“Some of us have great runways already built for us. If you have one, take off. But if you don’t have one, realize it is your responsibility to grab a shovel and build one for yourself and for those who will follow after you.”
― Amelia Earhart
A couple weeks ago I was flying to Austin, Texas for the first time to visit a friend. As my plane approached the runway I remembered something she had shared with me.
Her grandfather was a pilot in the Navy. One of his favorite sayings was “You can’t use the runway behind you.”
He lived this mantra as a multipurpose reminder to not dwell on the mistakes of the past, to be happy no matter what situation you are in, and focus on the future.
In your business are you thinking more about the runway ahead of or behind you? How about in your personal life?
I am generally a forward looking person but even for me the temptation to be looking back at the runway I’ve already flown over is always there.
I dealt with this for several years after the collapse of my real estate company and resulting loss of millions of dollars I had made in selling my first business.
It was like a giant raincloud constantly hovering over my head.
For awhile I thought the sting of such a massive failure would only go away when I finally surpassed my original success financially.
It wasn’t until I lost my marriage and family as I knew it and really hit rock bottom that I knew that wasn’t the key.
No, only then did I realize it was much more about finally taking full acceptance of the situation, forgiving myself where and if I needed to, and fully forgiving others.
The result? Out of all this failure, heartache and pain sprung a life passion and direction I never knew possible. Out of that came The Comeback Academy.
The Runway Ahead of You
I have spent the last 4 weeks working with 8 awesome entrepreneurs in the Beta group of my “Never Be Stuck” Online Marketing Mentorship.
I know I’m probably in trouble with some of you – I had intended to open it up to all of you. But I wanted to keep the group small and I had so many people approach me directly when I even mentioned it that it filled up on it’s own.
The good news is of course that down the road I will be launching the full version of the mentoring program. And I promise I will be opening it up to everyone on my VIP e-mail list.
In any case in this group we have, amongst others, two life coaches, a video coach, an executive coach and a great guy creating a course on physical education for homeschoolers.
I had them start by developing their “Life’s Aim” statement. Then once they had succinctly described what they wanted their life to be about we set out to create a business that would serve that Life’s Aim.
Next they identified a greater vision for the business they were starting or already in by completing an action sheet called “Choosing Your Dream” business.
Part of this exercise is identifying the cross section of your experiences, talents and passions so you can serve the world in a unique way that no one else can.
And after that they did a very deep dive into identifying their “Dream Clients’” wants, needs, hope and fears (and what kind of toothpaste they use lol). They got to know their Dream Clients intimately by giving them a name, age, hobbies, etc. They even wrote a journal entry in first person as their Dream Client.
Over these past four weeks my vision for Comeback Academy has become much more of a reality. It certainly looks every day much more like “the runway ahead of me”.
One of the Beta mentoring members was explaining how she wants to help women overcome eating disorders as she has some experience doing that and a huge passion for it.
As each member of the group went around and explained their business and their dream client I realized my potential domino effect. If I can help them succeed in serving their dream clients my positive impact on people’s lives will be multiplied.
And that, my friend, is a great runway to have out ahead of you.
So don’t forget. You are uniquely qualified. Qualified to serve the world in a way that no one else can.
And that is the runway ahead of you. So as Amelia Earhart said, grab a shovel and start building that runway ahead of you.
And some day you will look back with satisfaction as you watch your dream clients landing on the runway you built!