Mike Tyson once said, “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” This response was to a reporter’s question regarding whether he was worried about Evander Holyfield’s fight plan. What a profound statement!? In life we often make plans – some plan to be married with kids in their mid-20’s, while others aspire to be the youngest CEO in their company’s history. Even thoughts of opening your own business. Whatever the plan, make sure it is agile enough to sustain the first obstacle, or first punch in the mouth. The punch in the mouth, like a headache, warns us that something has gone wrong. If we are determined, we look for the cause and profit by gaining experience.
Setbacks have stopped many moving dreams on the track of life. Hope is lost, focus is shifted, plans are put on hold, and some simply give up because plans did not account for practical responses to tough situations. In my entrepreneurial mind, I see my business aspirations as an incomplete puzzle. I develop a plan to put the puzzle together by identifying the pieces, looking at the picture closely, methodically aligning the outer edge, then placing every piece into its perfectly designed position. I build my entrepreneurial puzzle in sections; corner-by-corner, until there’s enough to visualize the final product. Of course, there are hurdles; such as, time constraints, missing pieces, family obligations, a nine-to-five and a host of other things. The unforeseen cannot always be planned for, but you must keep moving and trust God.
Learn from those proverbial blows to the mouth. Those are the wake-up calls and can either make or break an entrepreneur. Know yourself! Know your limits and your limitations! Do not take on more than you can honestly handle! Look at creating a team of like minded people you trust, not yes men. Take the necessary precautions to endure and continually move forward, with minor adjustments, after getting hit in the mouth. In history, the successful business startups rarely share the obstacles and troubles they encounter. We love a great love story, but never want to hear the adversity it endured to become great. Remember what you survived when you achieve your definition of success and share it with others who emulate you. A rose was once a seed!
