Are You ALL IN?
You ever hear of the expression “All IN?” The spot where we bet all our chips and bet on our hand, knowing we will win?! Often, this is frowned down upon and challenged by friends, parents, spouses and financial advisors. You know for the most part they are right when comes to money or income streams…maybe even marketing strategies.
Where the advice most certainly falters is in commitment to their business, beliefs and habits. We as normal humans tend to want to put our toe in the water when it comes to these things, just like we do with our money and our diversification of business growth strategies. Ultimately we don’t commit. Then we don’t take action…then we don’t execute…then we don’t get real data. We really don’t know whether what we are doing, be it the strategy or the execution. Maybe even the people we are doing this with aren’t the right people. We get caught in a very dangerous place. We get caught in limbo…stuck in our lives not moving forward or backward.
We make crap decisions about our business and our life because our data sucks. The human brain is capable of processing data at 400 billion bits a second, yet the adage garbage in and garbage out still holds true. If you are sticking in crap data, you get crap decisions out.
We get bad data on our businesses, our beliefs, and our habits because we don’t commit to them on the highest level. We fail more because of execution a lot more then we realize. We walk away from a relationship, a belief or a habit because we say it doesn’t work but the reality is we probably didn’t invest it to the highest level, we didn’t say “All IN.”
“All IN” is so hard because we so want to hedge our bets and make sure that we have a winning hand. The crazy thing about poker and life is that a lot of the time the person who is convinced they have the best hand wins against better hands because what they are willing to bet.
I watch this happen all day in the entrepreneurial world. A committed entrepreneur who bets everything makes it work because they have too. They bet their 401k, their house, their future income on their idea. They make it work big because they have too. The ones who hedge their bets and protect themselves by getting ready to get ready usually fall flat on their face because they end up in limbo.
They get stuck in “getting ready to get ready.” This level of commitment keeps them in a fog of indecision and unfocused thinking. This happens when real bets aren’t on the line.
I am not an advocate of risking everything you own. I am not telling you that you should mortgage everything and start your own business. I am saying if you are not willing to put your name to your goals and exactly what you want to accomplish in your life and your business, you are lying to yourself on some level.
I am saying that if you cannot find beliefs, habits and people that you can commit to an “All IN” level that you will not reach your true potential. And yes, the reward is great. And yes, the penalty is great. But is it any different from limbo or is “limbo” just a lot slower? I think you know my opinion.
Put down on paper exactly what you want…exactly what you want to feel, exactly who you want in your life, and EXACTLY what you want your business to bring you. Empower that big subconscious of yours to bring it to you at 400 billion bits per second. Live YOUR Life! You won’t regret it!
t
2 Responses to “Are You ALL IN?”
Leave a Reply
Tony;
I am sure glad we met. Thanks so much for a great article. I wanted to take time and comment on your “Are You ALL In?” blog. First, let me congratulate you on communicating an important topic that ALL entrepreneurs face. YES folks, even RAINMAKERS!
You have touched upon a subject most business owners overlook, that is, until it’s too late. I’m not sure if they don’t understand the impact a few minor changes in their business could have on their personal income or not. Or worse yet, they understand it but have DECIDED they don’t want to do anything about it because they’re too damn lazy to change their current mindset.
I speak from experience as I have been a business coach in the “E” (Entrepreneurial) marketplace for over 20 years now. During this time, I have met thousands of business owners who’s FEAR of LOSS, is greater than their DESIRE to gain. The sad part of the story is this. Most business owners are NOT entrepreneurs. They are literally TECHNICIANS working in their business and have yet to experience the abundance their business could provide for them should they develop a systematized process in which to operate their business.
Although a business owner may be “Interested” in growing their business, an entrepreneur is “Committed” to growing their business. Here’s the difference. If you are “Interested”, you will do what is “Convenient”. If your “Committed”, you’ll do what ever it takes.
Why do you think the failure rate in the United States among business owners is so high? 40% fail before their 1st anniversary. 80% never make it 5 years. And 96% fail within 10 years. These are not Jack Kaser statistics. These are facts from the SBA, Entrepreneur magazine and other credible sources.
Your “ALL IN” concept would change the statistics above OVERNIGHT if people would get over their fear of loss and DECIDE to think differently about why they started their business in the first place. People need to face the facts that NOTHING will change unless YOU change. A paradigm shift needs to occur in the minds of business owners and it must take place NOW. Business owners must adopt a sense of URGENCY and reinvest in themselves if they want to take their personal income or business to the NextLevel. (I just love that name).
Here’s what’s sad. As a nation, we Americans have become lazy and ungrateful for the gifts we have been blessed with. Foreigners are flocking to the US by the millions. It is estimated that by the year 2050, 50% of the US population will be Latinos. They come here for the FREEDOM that our flag represents. Most of them have a stronger work ethic than we do. While we sit around and bitch about what we don’t have, they form tribes of low income earners and are grateful for the OPPORTUNITIES they have been given that their own country wouldn’t give them.
I would encourage every one who reads this blog to take a closer look the next time you look in the mirror. Do a thorough self-examination. Ask yourself, “Do I have what it takes to realize my full potential? If not…what’s missing? What is my Definiteness of Purpose? How do I change my current paradigm way of thinking so I begin to “Think BIG” and really go for it in my business?
Are You ALL In? If not…why not? On average, we’re only here on Earth for about 4,000 weeks. How many weeks do you have left? What will you do to change the quality of your life & your business? You are worth it…aren’t you?
If you’re a true RAINMAKER, your COMMITTED to doing what ever it takes. Be more. Serve more. Thank more. I like that statement a lot. Thanks Tony!
I couldn’t agree more!!
t