L = List

In our premise of “if Plan A fails you still have twenty-five other options”, we come to the letter “L”.  This was a challenging one so instead of choosing one word, we will focus on a string of “L” words.

LOVE

The first and obvious word is ‘love’.  Where are we if we don’t love our pursuits?  We are bored.  We are often only minimally engaged in the pursuit and we more often than not lack passion.  Love is the ingredient that drives us when all else is crashing around us. 

Got love?  It adds to the brew of ideas, blood, sweat and tears.

LEAP

Sometimes we have to take a great leap of faith in order to get our enterprise off the ground.  Leaping is the greatest act of faith one can have.  We leap and often do not know, or see, or understand where we will land, if we will land safely, and in what condition we will land. 

And we take the leap anyway.

It is exhilarating, and often, a good leap has landed some individuals in awesome situations. 

Bill Gates and Paul Allen in founding Microsoft

Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in starting Apple Computers

Letting Go

Ouch.  We had to come to this one.  This is a tough one for some entrepreneurs.  We become so attached to our creation and so protective that it is difficult to allow others to tinker with our baby.  We can develop tunnel vision, however, unless we allow others a peek inside to the inner workings of our creation. 

Sooner or later, we get around to adopting Michael Gerber’s concept of “working on the business as opposed to working in the business” to become the norm.  (Michael Gerber wrote The E-Myth Revisited.)

Can you do this?  Can you allow others to tweak, twist, redesign, remake, repaint, and re-market your baby?  Of course you lay out guiding principles, formats, outlines, blueprints – just find the guts to allow for improvement.

You ask “What if they fail?”

They ask “What if we succeed?”

It is a gamble either way, and sooner or later, original creators of successful entities find a way of letting go for the greater good of the project, product or process.

Laugh

Our final “L” word is “Laugh”. 

When things go right, we laugh all the way to the bank, as the saying goes.

When things go wrong, and we gain a bit of perspective on what has gone wrong, it is often a good thing if we can find some humor in our mistakes.  Yes, I am promoting some good laughter.

Just look at some of the benefits of laughter. 

  Boosts immunity

  Decreases pain

  Eases anxiety and fear

  Enhances resilience

  Enhances teamwork

  Helps defuse conflict

  Improves mood

  Lowers stress hormones

  Prevents heart disease

  Promotes group bonding

  Relaxes your muscles

  Strengthens relationships

Research for the Laughter section came from this web site if you want to read more.  (Click HERE to read Laughter Is the Best Medicine)

And there you have it.  “L” is a good start to a whole string of words after all.

  

P Michael Biggs

Up-Words Web Site

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One Word at a Time