By most peoples fears I live in a very dangerous place. Its the lightning capital of North America and leads all other locations around the world in shark attacks. However living in Tampa, FL really isn't all that dangerous. In fact where you currently are is much more dangerous.  The odds of dying from choking on food, drowning in your bathtub or being killed crossing the street are far greater than being killed by lightning or a shark. (On a positive note the odds of dating a supermodel or writing a New York Times best seller are way better than all of the above. Click here for more interesting odds) Fear Makes Cowards Of Us All I forgot who said that but it's so true.  Fear can cripple us instantly. My three girls, all under the age of 10, come running to me anytime we have a bad lightning storm. The loud noise, the bright flashes, the instant and startling way in which it all happens culminate to make for a very terrifying experience.  Unless you've been through it many times before like I have. My girls always ask me "how come you don't get scared?".  One word - experience. Right now you may be paralyzed with a great idea, a dream of starting a business and your left parked at inaction because of fear.  Fear of the what if and the unknown. Fear of how to get started, fear of the cost, fear of the outcome,  all of which stem from lack of experience.

All those business ideas in your head just bouncing around are being held captive by the don't. As in.. I don't have the time. I don't have the skill. I don't have the money. I don't have the knowledge. I don't have the energy. Perhaps all those are true, but what do you have? I do have the desire. I do have the passion. I do have a dream. I do have a vision. I do have hope. I do have excitement. Most of the time you find that the things you don't have can be obtained why the things you do have are innate.  Sure the innate traits need to be stimulated and encouraged (that's a purpose of this blog) but you already have those.  The don't is the thing that is holding you back.   Recognize the don't and navigate your way around it. Tak the leap, don't let the don't get in your way. photo credit

The discussion of whether entrepreneurs are born or made is certainly an interesting one.  I believe they're made and I believe anyone can be one. In fact if you have a job you're already an entrepreneur and probably don't even know it. Let's look at what you had to do in order to get the job you have. First, you probably attended schooling of some sort, if not a college or technical school at the very least you received a high school degree.  From there you filled out applications, had interviews, met someone or were recruited to start working somewhere.  Now you may not see that as an entrepreneurial process but look closer.

A good article appeared over the weekend that analyzed over 500 entrepreneurs and in that study a consistent pattern appeared. Entrepreneurs are made not born.  It's something I've been preaching for awhile. If entrepreneurs are not born then how are they made? "They simply got tired of working for others, had a great idea they wanted to commercialize, or woke up one day with an urgent desire to build wealth before they retired. So they took the big leap." It really is that simple.  At Lazzara Yachts we sell to very successful entrepreneurs and I make it a point to find out  how they got to where they are.  Nearly all of them have very humble backgrounds and quite frankly unremarkable stories as to how they were able to go from nothing to multi millions in a matter of years.  Now I say unremarkable with the utmost respect for what they have done, taking nothing away for their hard work, risk taking and vision needed to be as successful as they are.  The point is though that there isn't a complex back story to their success.  They are generally as simple as, having an idea and moving on that idea.  For most they didn't start out with clear visions of exactly how successful they would be, more a general idea that they had something that could work. Everyone's an entrepreneur is something I continue to say and while I realize not everyone will choose to be, I truly believe that everyone has the ability to be.  Whether you choose to exercise that ability or not is up to you.  Just know that you can be made into a successful entrepreneur you don't have to be born "into it" . What do you think? Leave a comment below and let me know?  Can anyone be made into an entrepreneur? photo credit

People guard and protect the things they value most. The things we value less we give up without a fight. However what happens when you think about that in terms of your career. Why do so many people continue to value complacency, fear and procrastination? When the question is phrased like that it would seem ridiculous to think that people value those things.  Obviously those are things we all experience, but value?  The thing is that many submit to each of those without putting up a fight.  It's easier to put it off until later than put up a fight and do it now.  It's easier to be content with where you are than fight for where you want to be. It's easier to produce all the reasons why you cant do something than bravely forge ahead with confidence. It's time to start fighting for the things you value most in your career.  That idea you have, the dream of launching that business, the goal of becoming an entrepreneur, all of them are worth fighting for. photo credit