Roy is about to transition from being an employee to a self employed business owner. He has many of the characteristics which are important for succeeding in business. He is very knowledgeable in his field, he is well-disciplined, he has excellent work habits, and he has a stellar credit rating. He and his family live well below their means. Yet I have to wonder if Ray’s proposed business venture will ever get off the ground.
Roy’s enthusiasm has dampened since all three of his applications for business loans have been turned down. He has difficulty with those who criticize his business proposal. He found loan officers to be condescending, aloof and even insulting. Even his in-laws have no desire to lend him money. They told him that it was much too risky and that he lacked business aptitude.
I suggested that Roy reread the topic of “dealing with critics” in The Millionaire Mind. Here are just a few quotes that I hope Roy will find comforting.
There are countless examples of critics who try to destroy the dreams of ambitious men and women. But critics are a necessary part of our social system in America – they screen out those who lack the courage and resolve to take criticisms and triumph in spite of them.
Even steel cannot be hardened unless it’s hammered, and it’s no different with people. Self-made millionaires report that degrading evaluations and comments by certain authority figures played a role in their ultimate success in life. Hammering built the antibodies they needed to deflect criticisms and temper their resolve.
Life is not one short race – it is a marathon of marathons. Labels come and go. If you believe that you can succeed in life in spite of degrading labels that predict your failure, you are likely to win most of the marathons. This is the common experience among millionaires.
And Roy needs to understand that the length of the line of his critics will get longer as he become progressively more successful.
The more economically successful you become, the more critics you will attract.
BINGO! Well stated, & oh so true. As the hammer said to the anvil, clang, clang, clang.
I think Ray needs to understand you don’t need to borrow money to be successful or to start a business. You can certainly start at business slowly. I personally laughed when I read “He has many of the characteristics which are important for succeeding in business” and “He has a stellar credit rating”. I guess this is a sign of the times where people think they are better than others by their credit rating (e.g. FICO score). Personally, being really good at borrowing money is not an characteristic I desire.
I had the same thought, Rudy. Although it may have simply been another description of Roy, albeit not a good one, that was necessary to fill out the article’s reasoning of critics in this case. He also states that the family lives well below their means. I would assume that Roy, if he moves forward, will be able to save enough capital to start his business perhaps on a smaller scale than originally envisioned. I think this would be a benefit, not a detriment.