There is this young version of yourself that you wish you could grab and say don’t do this in life. Then there is the wiser adult version that accepts you learn from your decisions, and failure is not failing if you use it to move forward. We have to come to realize it’s OK to start over and you are not alone when you do.
Being an endurance cyclist have come to realize. There are some races you just need to come back a second or even third time to achieve your goal, or better yet just finish! There is nothing different in business, there may be a few businesses that require a restart.
That is the beauty of having endurance in life. To me personally, endurance is a set of skills that uncovers clues along the way. These skills make you less fearful as you grasp them. And sometimes we need to go back in life and restart a section of life’s journey with these new skills. It’s not an easy decision but one that will lead to a much greater impact in life.
What I have come to learn is that along life’s journey, endurance always reveal the truth. No matter if you’re an athlete, CEO, entrepreneur, business executive or just trying to figure out your place in life. There comes a time that you have to realize starting over may be the best thing. The question is will you allow yourself to see the truth and accept it. Many times, the truth may not be what you wanted. It may just be what you were pedaling away from in life.
That was me back in 2017 as I crossed the finish line of the iconic Leadville 100 in the mountains of Colorado. There I was pedaling into the finish line with my 3 boys and wife running across with me. I was cooked, this was no doubt the most taxing 100-mile mountain bike race I ever did. And I have done plenty, but that elevation teaches a lesson. And they lie the race is actually 103 miles with a final two-mile climb to the finish line. However, as I came into that finish line, I knew life going forward was about making an impact over just making a living. I like to say I pedaled into entrepreneurship!
A few weeks before the race, I had an abrupt end to Corporate America after 25 years in sales. I was fed up of having my identity based on someone else quota structure. It’s funny how a forced exit actually ignites you to pedal into your dreams.
After that exodus was working on figure life out and Leadville was a great race to do it. As I raced Leadville 100, it was my confirmation this was a moment to start over in life and go all in on my dreams. Thankfully, I had some side hustles going on and was able to almost sustain the income stream I was used to in the past. That changed though as 2017 progressed and eventually found myself selling our house.
After racing Leadville, I confirmed with my wife I was going to never return to Corporate America. Our decision was to make a change in life, to downsize and rebuild. Over me going back to what was known in Corporate America. When I crossed that finish line of Leadville 100. It was a dream I had in my heart since my early twenties, just like the dream of starting my own business since I was a kid. There was no way I could go back to what was known in Corporate America. That was like spinning on an indoor training bike and always being stuck in place no matter how fast I sprinted.
So, I continued along the journey of starting over which also involved a bankruptcy. Extremely humbling moment obviously but this is real life and real things happen to real people. This was part of my story and my journey. It was my unique fingerprint that would allow me to truly find my potential within.
There is no denying there were many dark days along the way. I learned to be vulnerable and share what was going on in life. That is a key moment where you will learn your friends of commitment versus convenience. Trust me you will find you have a very small group of committed friends. The same goes for business colleagues. That group will either judge you for your decisions or quietly share their story of financial hardship. There really is no middle ground. The beauty of all this mess was to restart with a new peloton to pedal forward with. A committed group of relationships that wanted to take their stories and help those who are going through the things they had overcome.
There is power when you get those kinds of people together. The momentum that builds is everlasting. That is when you become grateful you decided to start over completely. It comes with a price for sure at first however the end result is everlasting. And that is what I have begun to find as 2020 comes to a close.
The year has been a complete shift for me once again. Isn’t it for everyone though! There was a slow path being built back in life from bankruptcy and then Covid hits. Another log in the fire and one that I knew I was prepared for. It was when I truly was grateful, I went all in on my dreams. Because during this time have been able to help so many others avoid financial hardship. I was prepared for a time like this. Will never say this year has been easy. It actually has been quite challenging, however, having just begun recovery from financial hardship. It was easier to relate to others and help them through their hardship.
Now times are exciting as there are many fun, exciting and wild adventures in life and business that have been built. It’s funny how your personal hardship opens your eyes to seeing where you can help others in life. And that has been the story of this year. An accelerated come back that is in alignment with helping others win in life!
If there is anything I learned during my financial hardship. What happened to me can happen to anyone and it becomes fuel to help as many others pedal far away from that hardship. That is why I have built a few a knowledge-based business that come with guarantees. Meaning my clients pay as they win!
It is a win/win scenario!
They cross a finish line goal in their business. The reward for me is feeling amazing and of course being paid for delivery of results. There is no quota involved, no selling, just plain old helping others win in life by getting them to their personal finish line.
The process normally starts with my 5:55 Make LinkedIn Work For You Challenge that is done monthly. The crazy part is my clients only pay $55 for thousands of dollars of value in this challenge. Then from there we decide what other services offered will benefit them the most. They get to know me first and I get to know them through this challenge. This way we both know if we are good fits to work together.
If you told me when I sat in bankruptcy court that I would only get paid for delivering results to clients in the future. I would have laughed; however, I have come to realize people love guarantees. They love hitting their goals in life. And they are willing to work with someone who is willing to risk a pay when you win model!
As an endurance cyclist this to me is the best business model to be in. Delivering clients to their finish line in life!
For more information go to chriscolt360.com
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