Life’s greatest fruit – a fulfilled life – is always at the end of the branch. You have to be willing to fall out of the tree to get it.
The key is to have people around you who can catch you if you happen to fall. So grow your network of trusted friends around you as you go taking risks to grab the fruit of life. You will be truly successful (fulfilled) only if these people support you.
Who are these people? They are:
Partner and Family - Family support is crucial and essential. You need to fall in love with your job at hand to be successful. You partner should also indulge in your love affair with your business. The family has got to be tolerant and listen to you when you have ideas to discuss, and then give you the support. What are families for? If they do not give you this support, I don't think they love you enough and you need to either quit your dream or your family.
Mentors - Don't be afraid to ask for help. Surround yourself with mentors - each with a specific knowledge that you do not have. They will teach you, if you are humble enough to want to learn. When mentors invest their energy in you, they want you to succeed, it’s a great sense of accomplishment for them to see you succeed.
Your employees – Hire the best and respect them for their skills. You cannot be master of all trades - but, you can easily pick up the basics from them and then let the experts deal with the specific challenges. Empower each of your employees to make decisions, trust them.
Above all: Be receptive, the real rewards will come to those who keep an open mind to feedback, drive for new opportunities and a far-sighted eye out for obstacles.
