Success Myths You Can’t Afford to Believe
Posted on 10. Aug, 2010 by Adam in Business, Entrepreneurship, Personal Development
Why are some people wildly successful in business, while others just don’t seem to ever get anything going? Sometimes the reasons are obvious. Someone who’s lazy, unpleasant to be around, overly negative, or just plain dumb, for instance, doesn’t have much chance of being a business success. They might win the lottery or something like that, but they won’t be able to successfully build a sustainable business. It’s not always as clear why someone is successful though, and many people who haven’t yet seen success resort to believing and repeating common myths to explain it.
The danger in buying into these myths is that they rob power from those who believe them. If you believe people are only successful if luck is on their side, for example, you’re saying success is out of your control. So look over this list of myths and realities and endeavor to eliminate these beliefs from your mind. Your business and your life will be better for it.
The Family History Myth: Some people are successful because they were born into a rich or entrepreneurial family.
Reality: As with most myths, there can be a piece of truth in this one. If a person’s family has the resources to support their entrepreneurial dreams, or if they grew up learning about business, they can be said to have some degree of advantage. Stories abound, however, of people who inherited the family business only to run it into the ground and end up broke. There are also plenty of stories about people who were handed family fortunes and squandered them away. The reality is that even though it can be helpful to have the advantage of a family history of success, a person with such a heritage still has to do what’s necessary to be successful with those advantages. The reality is, even with an advantageous family history, you still have to work for your success.
The R.P.R.T. Myth: Successful people make it because they’re in the right place at the right time.
Reality: It does help to be in the right place at the right time. Many successful entrepreneurs attribute their success to this. But that’s not the whole story. First, any successful entrepreneur who was in the right place at the right time, had to be the right person in the right place, at the right time. In other words, just being clued in on a trend, discovering an innovation, or getting a hot tip isn’t enough. In fact there are opportunities coming at us – all of us – all the time. We’ve all been in the right place at the right time at some point, and we will be again and again. It’s those who recognize those opportunities and act upon them who reap the rewards. Have you ever had a brilliant idea that you didn’t act on and then saw the same idea come to fruition for someone else years later? You were in the right place at the right time for the idea to come to you, and so was the person who made it happen. The reality is that “R.P.R.T.” can’t make it happen. Taking the opportunity given to you in the right place at the right time and making it successful takes work, dedication and focus, not luck.
The Who You Know Myth: People are only successful if they’re lucky enough to know the right people.
Reality: Many stories of success can be attributed to the saying, “It’s not what you know but who you know.” In fact no true success story happens with someone doing it all on their own with no support from anyone else. Knowing the “right” people can indeed contribute to your success in many ways. What this myth fails to take into consideration is how successful people go about getting to know the right people. Successful entrepreneurs are networkers. They attend conferences, workshops, business fairs, and anything else they can find where they’ll have the chance to mix and mingle with like-minded business people. It isn’t luck that they know the right people, it’s their dedication to learn and grow through those relationships that has led them to the right people. Is it lucky that they happened to be at a conference with the one person who could help them take their business to new heights? Maybe you could say that, but they had to meet that person, talk to them, and do whatever it took to get them involved. No luck involved there.
The Timing Myth: Many successful people just so happen to launch their businesses at just the right time.
Reality: “The right time” is when there’s a need, and the most successful companies become successful because there is a need for their product or service. That’s kind of a no-brainer, isn’t it? But this rarely has to do with chance. Entrepreneurs watch trends. They stay tuned into the market and the needs of their customers and consumers in general. Most importantly, they take that information and act on it. Successful people don’t let fear stand in the way of their dreams. They take risks, and often those risks pay off. This myth doesn’t take into account that most entrepreneurs have started several businesses during their entrepreneurial life. Some might have been successful, and many might have failed. The key is that they keep going. They keep trying until they make it happen.
The Background Myth: People who build successful businesses have the right education, training, work experience, friends, family, and mentors.
Reality: This myth combines several of the other myths and says that the only way to be successful is to be “lucky” enough to have outside factors working in your favor. The reality is that, almost without exception, successful entrepreneurs have realized their accomplishments because of what’s inside themselves, not because of their circumstances. Indeed, many have realized success in spite of their circumstances. We hear often about high achieving people with no formal training, little to no formal education, and very few if any advantages over “average” people. The truth is, success comes not so much from where you’ve been as from where you know in your heart you’re headed.
Successful people define luck as when preparedness meets opportunity. Have you ever heard the saying, “It’s not what happens to you but what you do with what happens to you that matters”? Maybe we can consider the “what happens to you” part as luck. Often we have little control over what happens, so maybe that’s called luck – good or bad. But when it comes to success, the luck piece of the equation won’t take you far. It’s what you do with your luck that determines your success. So if you’re counting on luck to make you a successful entrepreneur, good luck with that!
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30 Responses to “Success Myths You Can’t Afford to Believe”
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Medical Air Transport
10. Aug, 2010
Reality is, 98% of successful people work their butts off to become successful!
JohnAtBlogtrepreneur
10. Aug, 2010
@Medical: I think you just took a thousand word article and summed it up in one sentence, my friend! lol :)
Credit Girl
10. Aug, 2010
I don’t think it’s any ONE of these elements that can make a person successful completely. It’s more so a combination of all these things that a person can leverage to help their successes. However, success isn’t something that just comes to you it’s something that you gotta work for so yeah, success comes from hard work.
Jake Adams
10. Aug, 2010
Agreed! (with all the above) A combination of all the elements above can play a small part in entrepreneurial success but ultimately you decide your destiny. Good post.
Laptop Briefcases
10. Aug, 2010
Very true, you can’t just wait for success to happen. Also you can’t let your circumstances be a hindrance to your success. A lot of successful people came from less than ideal situations. So drop the excuses and get down to chasing your dreams.
Smooth Entrepreneur
10. Aug, 2010
I forget who said this quote, but it was something along the lines of “The harder I work, the luckier I got”
I think this quote says a lot at really ties into what you were covering in this article. There is no substitute for hard work, dedication and intelligence.
Carlton
10. Aug, 2010
I agree with the family history point. If you are not innovative enough to run your business then you are going to lose whatever you got from family.
jason
10. Aug, 2010
Most of these myths would dispell people from trying to make money online, but it’s good that you are focusing on them, as pointing this out will show future bloggers what to miss on their way up.
Computer Tips Tricks
11. Aug, 2010
I’m so impressed by all the points mentioned above. I agree with you especially for the timing myth which I think is the most accurate one. I’ve seen many suprises from many businesses that goes up surprisingly, mainly because of their timing of launching their products. This is real and we just have to adopt it.
Alvin.
Escort Agency London
11. Aug, 2010
It does help me translate into a great perspective that would suddenly feel me a great marketer someday!
Laptop Briefcases
11. Aug, 2010
While people can overcome obstacles to become successful, each of these ‘myths’ refer to circumstances where someone is starting with some kind of competitive edge. Don’t be surprised if someone does become successful largely because of one or two of these factors. If you don’t have any of these things going for you, you may just have to take a different route to achieve the level of success you aspire to reach.
Andrew @ Blogging Guide
12. Aug, 2010
It’s better not to waste your time believing on myths but to create a plan, persevere, wok hard, and to never give up until you’ve accomplished what you want to do.
mature singles
12. Aug, 2010
Too be honest, I think 90% of any kind of success is mental, the difference between the athlete that comes 1st and the one that comes second isn’t really physical is it. Its the same in any other area of life, I suggest checking out Tony Robbins.
JohnAtBlogtrepreneur
12. Aug, 2010
@Andrew: You’ve listed the keys to success. Even if you don’t have any of the advantages listed in the article, if you do what you’ve stated in your comment, you can be successful. People have overcome unbelievable adversity to find success, only after planning, working, and sticking with it.
Thanks all for sharing!
Escort Agency London
13. Aug, 2010
This reminds me of the saying that goes this way
“You are the boss of your thoughts. Rearrange, reorganize, re-scramble, and rethink your thought patterns to reflect an acceptance of wealth, which is our true original condition.”
tires
13. Aug, 2010
Great to see you break down these myths and mental barriers that people are putting on themselves from reaching their goals. More people should try to follow their true dreams, myself included, and with the right dedication and approach, anything is possible.
Till then,
Jean
car battery
15. Aug, 2010
Great post. I think too many people give up citing reasons such as bad luck or fate. The great auto racing team owner Roger Penske said that luck is when preparation meets opportunity. If you don’t do your role, which is the hard work, how will you be able to capitalize on an opportunity if one opens up for you? So as long as we do our work with dedication, we are doing the right thing.
sports betting professor
15. Aug, 2010
Is there really any secret to success? Surely it’s just about hard work, focus and commitment. I think there are two great quotes that say it all. “Only in the dictionary does success come before work” and “the more I practice, the luckier I get”. Keep at it!
Growing Sales Revenue
15. Aug, 2010
Great article post really. I agree with you especially for the timing myth which I think is the most accurate one. I’ve seen many surprises from many businesses that goes up surprisingly, mainly because of their timing of launching their products. This is real and we just have to adopt it. Keep it up man, awaiting another one..
Bidet
16. Aug, 2010
Great post, these aren’t necessarily myths but they do make it easier for someone to succeed if its true for them. For example if you know the right person its much easier to get a job than the person who does not know anyone. One can still be successful if none of the above are true for him but it will be much harder.
Growing Sales Revenue
16. Aug, 2010
Really awesome post to read. I agree with you especially for the timing myth which I think is the most accurate one. I’ve seen many suprises from many businesses that goes up surprisingly, mainly because of their timing of launching their products. keep on like that.
GirlOpinion
17. Aug, 2010
I am so surprised that I was able to realize that some of my concepts belong to the myths and not reality. This article is so refreshing and at the same time entertaining.
JohnAtBlogtrepreneur
17. Aug, 2010
@Bidet: You’re right. As it says in the post, there is some degree of truth to each of these ‘myths’. I think the point is that the myths aren’t enough to make you successful. Sure, if you know the right person you might get the job, but without hard work and the other necessary ingredients of success, you’ll still fail ultimately.
Matt Monroe
17. Aug, 2010
This is a great motivator. Most of the entrepreneurs I work with are people who refused to struggle like there parents did. The successful ones are motivated by an inner force that really none of the myths listed above could ever stand against. Great post!
Garious
18. Aug, 2010
Interesting, it makes me recall something I’ve read about the law of attraction – that the universe gives you all the things you need, no matter how good or bad it is. In the end, it’s all about perceptions that will determine your success. As they say, only a hen sat its way to success. If you want something real bad, you will work hard for it. Simple. Timing may be everything; but having clear goals wins. What is it that you really want? The answer then drives you to succeed.
ZineGuru Website Marketing
20. Aug, 2010
Great post Adam. Just stumbled across your blog and I find it pretty informative. I find that many people aren’t successful as they could be is due to too much procrastination. This is a sure-fire way not to get things going and limit success. That’s one of the reasons but of course there are other factors as well. Maybe someone wants to start a business but can’t do so due to financial difficulties but I believe with the Internet nowadays, it’s more easier to start one than a brick and mortar business for instance.
Thanks,
Jean
Napkin Rings
13. Sep, 2010
Honestly, im not so sure that background is a myth. It’s true that we often hear about people without background becoming very successful, but we hear about it because it makes a good story. It doesnt mean that people with good background have same chances as those without it, not even close. It just means that its not impossible to succeed no matter what’s your starting point.
Bryan @ Free At Home Jobs
13. Sep, 2010
I believe in a lot of what you’ve mentioned in this post. The main thing overall is that it takes plain old hard work, dedication, patience, persistence and the ability to make mistakes and learn from them. You also need to not be afraid to fail. A lot of people for one reason or another are afraid of doing something new or different, because they feel that failure will hold them down. That’s the wrong mindset to have. Instead of wondering “what could’ve been”, giving something a shot will leave you with no regrets.
Mark Combs
20. Sep, 2010
The ultimate leveling of the playing field comes with hard work. The harder you work, the luckier you get!
DragonLeaders
22. Aug, 2011
If it is 90% perspiratioin and 10% inspiration, then mental toughness sits at the heart of the success game.