👋 Hey there!
🚅 This is issue #43 of The Double E Bullet where I share two action-packed bullets to help you elevate your entrepreneurial journey and take you from full-time founder to part-time CEO.
BULLET ONE
😎 Building Confidence as an Entrepreneur 😎
The life of a business owner is a difficult path to tread; I can attest to that after years of building and running multiple businesses.
However, the biggest challenge is often not the ones that you can’t control like increasing sales, maintaining superb customer service experience, or producing exceptional products and services. One of the struggles an entrepreneur must learn to overcome? Having the confidence to run their business.
So how do you build it?
Self-confidence as a business owner is not something we are born with; it is something that we have to build over time. Here are some tried-and-tested ways you can build your trust in yourself:
1. Don’t be afraid to take risks – and learn from them
Confidence and taking risks actually come in a loop: you take risks when you’re confident enough but you’re only confident enough when you’ve taken a lot of risks (and hopefully emerged successful).
However, for you to get started, you need to make that one giant leap first, and also remember that success may come in different forms: it can be a spike in sales or it can also come in the form of more data, which will help you make more calculated risks in the future.
Not all setbacks from taking risks equate to failure – learn from the mistakes you’ve made and use it when you make future decisions.
2. Have yourself surrounded with supportive folks
One of the things I love about running the Entrepreneur Basecamp is that you get yourself surrounded by people who understand what you are going through, and who will celebrate the highs and lows of running a business, with you. In this mastermind group, I do not only share my own successes and failures as a solopreneur, but I also get to hear about their own struggles and victories, which is important for everyone to learn from.
3. Learn to delegate
I’ve shared time and again the importance of delegation in an organization. As the leader who oversees the group, you cannot and should not be taking part in ALL THE SMALL details that make up your company. Instead, delegate parts to your team, especially the ones that you do not enjoy or that you struggle with, and focus on your strengths.
4. Always be learning
You’ll never find me without a new article, podcast, book, or app to share (and it reflects in the bullets). I’m the type of person who uses their free time to catch up on what’s new in tech and business. Podcasts and interviews are particularly great resources if you want to be standing on the shoulders of giants, and learn from those who have already made it big in the industry.
5. Celebrate your wins
Building your confidence is easier said than done. I know because so many seasoned entrepreneurs, myself included, still suffer from impostor syndrome (we’ll talk about that in next week’s bullet) – which is why it’s important to practice these things everyday. Don’t forget to celebrate your wins, no matter how small they are, because these experiences will help you become a better business owner.
Eventually, your confidence will allow you to easily make bold decisions and give you resilience to overcome whatever challenges and obstacles come your way.
The entrepreneurial life, after all, is no easy path and it comes laden with a lot of setbacks and uncertainties.
Don’t be too hard on yourself if you experience issues – it’s okay to pause and breathe before moving forward, but never give up.
BULLET TWO
🤼♂️ A Pro Wrestler’s Guide to Confidence 🤼♂️
In his funny but insightful TED Talk, former pro wrestler Mike Kinney shares how he was able to boost his own confidence in the arena: by finding out what makes you unique and using that to your advantage. He shares how he dug deeper into himself, found out what made him special, and turned himself up in order to achieve his perfect wrestling persona and reach his dreams in the ring.
I highly recommend watching his 13-minute talk and be reminded that you are more than you think you are.
🧨 DHIREN’S UPDATES 🧨
Self-confidence in entrepreneurship is one of the keys to a successful entrepreneurial journey. However, most people miss out on a lot of opportunities because they overthink that they don’t deserve them, they are not good enough, and that they might just mess up.
They lack self-confidence which causes them not to see the endless possibilities that await them and how much they can do. Are you one of the most people? Do you want to reach your full potential and build strong self-confidence?
In this podcast episode, we talk to Aliyah Rajah, a biomedical science and masters in public health degree holder. Aliyah realized that the boxes she was ticking didn’t offer the fulfilment or sense of achievement she hoped for, and that led her to become a personal and self-development coach. This is a highly recommended podcast if you find yourself lacking in confidence, not just in your business but also in your everyday life.
That’s all for this edition! What was your favorite bullet?