Entrepreneurs and Gold Prospectors Both Need Perseverance

Startups are tough. For every entrepreneur and every gold prospector, there are more opportunities to fail than to succeed. Yet experts say that quitting too soon is a prime cause of failure in both endeavors. No one knows how many business founders quit digging when they are only three feet from the gold.

Way back in 1937, an author name Napoleon Hill first released a classic book called “Think and Grow Rich,” which started with a real story of a man named Darby prospecting for gold, who gave up on his dreams of becoming rich, a mere three feet from a major gold vein.

A more recent Napoleon Hill Foundation follow-on book, Three Feet From Gold – Turn Your Obstacles into Opportunities! by Sharon L. Lechter and Greg S. Reid,  highlights the similarities of those economic times with the ones we have today. It also demonstrates that the driving principles for entrepreneurial success haven’t changed all that much either.

While this book is not specifically about entrepreneurs, the motivational and leadership concepts discussed certainly apply. Here is a sampling of quotes from the book which don’t need any commentary from me for you to understand their business applicability:

• A dream is just a dream until it is written down. Only then does it become a goal.
• Before great success comes, you will surely meet with temporary defeat.
• There is a big difference between believing in something and knowing it.
• Focus on your people more than your profits.
• Work your strengths, hire your weaknesses.
• Capture the leaders, corner the market.
• Whether the glass is half full or half empty depends on where it began.
• Success simply comes from going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.
• Find and use your advantage, or someone will take it away.
• To succeed you must have “stickability.”
• Stay on your toes. Focus on the job at hand.
• Run from people with negative attitudes.
• Success is the reward for setbacks.
• Sometimes the worst situations turn out to be the best opportunities.
• There is a difference between being interested and being committed.
• Goals are aspirations until they become real. Then they become responsibilities.
• Every wealth creator is crystal clear about two things: a vision and a mission.
• Success simply comes from going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.
• Many receive good advice, yet few profit from it. Will you?
• Sometimes you have to step back and look at your situation from a different angle to find a different solution.
• The most successful people are the most accessible people. The most successful people want to teach others how to become successful.
• You need two types of courage – First, the courage to get started. Second, the courage to not quit!

In fact, these quotes are all from successful business leaders of the current generation who are sharing how they have been able to persevere and keep their fire of passion burning, despite adversity – how by not giving up, they were able to allow their miracles to happen.

The message for you, if you are ready to receive it, is that there is a roadmap to success for everyone. If you are willing to work with mentors, peers, and your team, it only takes a few weeks to cultivate a good habit. After that “we first make our habits and then our habits make us.”

In my experience, the real measure of an entrepreneur is his determination to “never give up.” I suggest that all of you can discover your own special gifts and keep moving forward, never giving up or quitting. A real entrepreneur would never stop digging three feet from the gold. Would you?