There are a lot of things that you can do to affect your life and business, and give you a better chance to succeed.  You can practice DCP, hustle, work hard and smart, build great relationships, and even have the right mindset, but there is one thing that is not necessarily in your control that has an impact on your success as well...that is timing.

You can have all of the above, but still fail because of bad timing.  Just ask MySpace (if you even remember or know what it is).  MySpace was essentially Facebook before Facebook.  It was the right idea, but at the wrong time.  The market wasn't ready yet.  The same thing happened with a lot of the initial "box subscription" companies.  There were numerous "Blue Apron's" and Hello Fresh's" long before those came out that failed because it wasn't yet a normal part of life.

Timing doesn't just mean market timing for a product or service, it can be timing in your business for an initiative or in your life for a meaningful change, etc.

In fact, I once lost an A-Player from my team simply because of bad timing.  This person was doing a great job in the role they were in, but they knew, and we knew, that they were capable of much more.  We wanted them to do much more and move into a bigger role.  We had even discussed it with them in the past.

As the business grew and got to a point where the role was finally needed and we could afford it, we (my business partner and I) started putting everything together for the role and making plans to do the promotion with a big celebration, etc.  We started that process 2 months before we were going to announce it to the A-Player.  We had planned to do it in December going into the New Year, but we knew everything in October. 

In late November, the employee came to us with his notice that he was going to leave for an executive level opportunity.  We were literally a week out from promoting them and they were leaving!  We did everything we could to save them.  We explained our plans, the role, and how much time we had put into crafting the perfect role for them - but they had already made the commitment and given their word to the new company.  On top of that, we didn't look that great, because it was after they told us that we came to them with the new role, etc.  

Needless to say, they moved on and we remain friends to this day, but our poor timing cost us a great asset to our company and a great team member.  We could have easily told them what were planning in October when we had done it.  We may not have had all the details, but it would have made a difference to them and probably would have kept them from even taking the interview in the first place.

And that is the lesson, in life and business, there are moments of opportunity when you know the timing is right and you need to seize them - don't hesitate.  Act in spite of the doubt, fear, or even complacency.  Equally as important is to know when the timing isn't right for something and to table it.  That doesn't mean that there won't ever be a time for it, just not now.  The hardest thing to do is to see reality when you have worked really hard on something, or someone, and are emotionally invested in it.  But, it will make a huge difference in your life and business if you can muster the courage to do so.

Be conscious of your timing, especially on big initiatives, and make sure to always be ready to seize the moment when it arrives.

In celebrating 100 episodes at the Misfit Entrepreneur, we poured through all of the episodes to narrow down the Top 10 Lessons we have learned from our guests on how to succeed and thrive.  In fact, we created a guidebook that highlights each less and gives you a Misfit 3 of action items, resources, and hacks that you can use to implement them.

We hope you enjoy the guidebook as much as we did creating it for you!

Just click the link below to download your copy...

The Misfit Entrepreneur 100th Episode Top 10 Lessons to Thrive and Succeed

Here's to you success!

Dave and the Misfit Entrepreneur Team

We live in a non-stop instant society.  We are bombarded by interruptions and our attention is pulled in all directions.  We stop the microwave with 3 seconds left, we can't even wait 3 seconds anymore.

With all the non-stop bombardment of attention grabbing disruptions, one of the things we most need to do is the thing simply forget to do.  And that is to stop and take the time to have a conversation with ourselves.

This is so hard for people.  Try sitting for 1 hour with no distractions and talking to yourself...about yourself.  The good, the bad, your fears, your hopes, your dreams, the state of your relationships - talk them through with yourself.  See if they are what you really think they are.  You'll be surprised how many times what you thought you knew was true for yourself is not at all what you want or believe.

You should set aside 1 hour to do this every month.  It will keep you grounded and keep you pointed in the right direction (s).  It will help you to better understand who you are, how to better yourself and relationships, and give your more confidence.

Be honest with yourself.  No one is perfect and never will be.  It is OK to sit with your flaws and embrace them.  Understand them.  It doesn't mean that you can totally fix them.  But awareness is the catalyst of change and once you are aware, you can make a difference for yourself.

Having a conversation with anyone is becoming a lost art, let alone yourself.  But, if you can learn to be open with yourself, take responsibility for who you are and what you want; it will allow you to have better more meaningful, conversations with those around you.  You'll be amazed at what this simple little exercise can do to change your life.

Are you at a point where you are frustrated?  Are you fed up?  Are you sick of not having what you want or reaching to levels you think you should be?  Are you close to giving up?  Or maybe you just did.

Everybody reaches points in their life where they hit a wall.  And the emotion starts to take over and those thoughts begin to creep into your mind.  "Maybe I am not good enough...Maybe I am just not destined to be where I thought I could be..."  These self doubts creep into our heads and mess with us.  They plague us and for many are the killers of dreams.

If you ever find yourself in this type of situation and your subconscious begins to sabotage you and those feelings of doubt, fear, and giving up fill your head, here is the question to ask yourself:

Am I willing to do it just one more day?

Chances are the answer will be "Yes."  You can do it just one more day, right?  Just one more day.  But, here's the beauty of the question.  Tomorrow, when you feel like giving up, ask it again.  Just one more day.  All it takes one more day.  That one more day maybe tomorrow or 6 months or a year from now, but if you keep doing it "just one more day" you will break through and you will find that you are capable of reaching the levels you are worthy of.

It takes Discipline, Consistency, and Persistence and the One More Day philosophy delivers just that for you.  Now go out and give it one more day!

Have you ever heard of the 40% rule?  

The rule was made famous by the Navy SEALS ans states that "When your mind is telling you you're done, you're really only 40 percent done."  When you think you are absolutely exhausted - you still have 40% left.

I have used the rule numerous times throughout my life to push myself when my mind was telling me to stop.  It works.  And when you do use it to bust through a mental limit, you increase your capabilities and the level at which you can perform.

But, over the years, I built upon the rule to make it even more powerful.  I call it the 40 + 1 Rule.

The 40 you get.  It is the knowledge that you always have the 40% reserve, but the "1" is how I supercharge it to push myself even further and harder.

So, what is the "1?"  It is the addition of your deepest, strongest "Why" for why you are doing what you are doing.  You can apply the 40 + 1 Rule to anything.  Life, relationships, fitness, business, whatever.  The key is to understand the fact that you always have 40% and anchor unleashing that 40% to the deepest, strongest "why" for that area of you life.

For example, in training for the Iron Man Triathlon, my deepest, strongest "why" is the show my daughter that you can accomplish great things - things that many would never attempt or say are too hard (or in some cases impossible).  For those of you that don't know what an Iron Man is, it is the ultimate Triathlon where you swim 2.5 miles in open water (Ocean), bike 112 miles, and then run a marathon (26.2 miles) back to back concurrently.  A bonus for this is that I also have an equally strong why to break through my own mental limitations and increase my mental reserve for doing great things.

When you combine the 40% rule and your why, you create a mission for yourself that drives you more than you have ever driven yourself before.  And this leads you to new levels of success, fulfillment, and accomplishment.

Take time to understand the 40% reserve that you and to find your deepest, strongest why(s) for each area of your life.  Then go out and make it happen!

The other day,  I picked a book from my library that I hadn't read in a while and leafed through it.  It was the Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande.  I had forgotten how good this book was and how it's practical insight and useful is so powerful.

If you haven't read, you can probably guess what it is about.  It is about the power of using checklists.  Gawande goes through all sort of great examples from how checklists are essential flying planes and managing though crisis to how they have and still continue to revolutionize medicine and other industries.

It is amazing how something as simple a checklist can have such a huge impact.  But, if you think about it, it makes a lot of sense - especially in today's incredible fast paced world.

We forget things.  Or miss them.  It is as simple as that and having a checklist that you can use to make sure you are doing everything you need to do serves as a great tool to succeed.

I have talked about having a daily "To do" list" before and its power to help you become exponentially more productive.  All a "To do" list is, is a checklist.  But moving on from that and thinking bigger, checklists can be used in so many ways to help you as an entrepreneur.  They are starting point to systematizing your business so that it can grow.  If you take the time to document the processes it takes to make your business run, putting them into a checklist format, you can then hand that off to an assistant or employee to follow.  You can do this in all areas of your business and make your business much more scalable.

You can also do this for your life.  You can create checklists for things you need to do throughout the week...or maybe that you keep forgetting to do in your relationship with your significant other.  You can create checklists for getting things done around the house or "house rules" for the kids.

The simple checklist can be such an incredibly powerful tool to help you in all areas of your life.  Pick one area and create a checklist today and watch the magic begin to happen.  And if you get a chance, pick up the Checklist Manifesto and give it a read.  It won't take long, but it sure can make a huge difference in your success!

Think about resilience.  What does it mean to you?  What do you think of when you think of a resilient person? 

Resilience is the ability to bounce back, to overcome adversity, and it's a choice.  You must choose to be resilient in the face of adversity - whatever it may be in your life.  When it comes to a lot of things, it is not easy.  But, then again, most things worth doing aren't easy anyway.

How can you develop your resiliency muscle so you are ready when you run into adversity or big challenges?  

Here are 7 Surprising Traits of Resilient People:

1. They Understand Reality:  In a world where it is some times deemed OK to create an alternate reality and decide that something that is true factually is not, resilient people know the truth and they know that reality always wins.  The embrace it and focus on how they can thrive in the environment they are in.
2. They Work the Problem:  Resilient people work the problem.  They don't fret, they don't sit around an worry.  They don't freak out.  They simply go to work systematically solving the problem taking it one step at a time.
3. They Play the Long Game:  Resilient people know that you win over time.  They know that showing up consistently every day and going after their goals, even if they are not the most talented or have all of the tools they need, will lead them to success.  They play the long game and know they can outlast failure, competition, adversity, etc.
4. They Don't Dwell on the Past:  Resilient people don't dwell on the past because they know there is nothing they  can do to change it.  They can only move forward, learn from the past, and keep striving toward their goals.
5. They Win Incrementally:  Resilient people win incrementally.  They know that it is not usually one major win that makes the difference, but a lot of little wins over time that add up to create a huge advantage.  So, they focus and make sure that they are disciplined winning in all areas of their lives and businesses incrementally.
6. They Ask for Help:  Resilient are not afraid to ask for help.  They know that they do not and cannot know everything or be able to do everything, so they enlist help whenever they need it.  
7. They Keep Perspective:  Resilient people keep a healthy perspective.  They know that things will never go exactly as planned or in the way they like.  Understanding this and knowing that they will just "work the problem(s)" if or when they come up allows to keep going and reach their goals.
   

You can develop these sames traits and make yourself a more resilient person.  Pick one and start working on it this week.  Once you've mastered it, pick another.  Very quickly you will find them start to take hold in your life.

You've probably heard the following phrase:

"Success has many fathers, but failure is an orphan."

When you think about that - isn't it sad?

The fact that so many people's natural tendency is to run from failure and to distance themselves from it is one of the reasons so many people don't reach their true potential.

You hear all the time that you need to embrace failure and that it is a good thing - and that you should learn from it and use it to fuel your success into the future.

Let's get real for a second.  Failure sucks.  It's hard.  It's painful.  It doesn't feel good when you are going through it.  And it especially can take a toll on people emotionally.  It is true that you will learn the most from failure, but that doesn't mean you will automatically turn into a success.

You will have to learn from it and learn well.  But, then you will have to go to work.  Serious work.  You will have push yourself more than before the point of failure.  You have to go at it day in and day out.  You will have to sacrifice.  You will have to overcome your mental limitations and negative self talk.  You will have to separate yourself and not let the failure define you.  And you will have to get smarter, more innovative, and never give in to that which you can control.  Oh yeah, and you have to take responsibility for things as well.

These are the reasons why "failure is an orphan."  Most people are not strong enough or willing to go through everything listed above - or step up and take responsibility.  What they don't realize is that responsibility goes both ways.  You are responsible when you fail, but you are equally responsible when you succeed.  This is why I will take failure every day of the week, because if you have the will, the work ethic, and the humility to learn and innovate, you can rise like a phoenix from the ashes and rise to entirely new heights.  

The lesson?  Failure sucks.  It's worth it to take responsibility, learn, and overcome it.  You'll work you ass off, maybe more than you ever have, in doing so, and you have the opportunity to reach all new levels that you may never even thought were possible.  And I'll take that any day of the week.

No matter where you are in business, you will only be as good as the team you surround yourself with.  Even if you are a solopreneur, you have a team.  It comes in the form of your vendors, partnerships, etc.  And that means that whatever stage you are in your business or in building a team, you need to make sure first and foremost that you have the RIGHT people.  This is most critical.  It is not enough to have people on your team...To really make things go, you have to have the RIGHT people doing the Right things Right!

With that said, once you have your team in place, it is your job to inspire and motivate them to greatness.

First, you must be able to create a vivid picture and vision of where you are all going for everyone.  Then, you must make sure that everyone sees it and understands it.

Next, you must believe in it with more conviction than anyone and show that to your team.  You must show that by believing in them and helping them realize where they fit into making the vision a reality.  Help them realize what you believe they are truly capable of and how it contributes in a large way to manifesting the vision.

Third, in order the belief in the vision and your belief in your team's ability to make it happen, you have to get in the trenches with them.  You have to get down in the dirt and work with them and help them overcome challenges and obstacles - especially in the beginning.  This does not mean that you do the work for them, but it does mean when they don't think something can done, you help show them the way, or work with them to help them figure it out.  When they see you working with them side by side and see progress happening, it will ignite their passion even further and accelerate your pace toward your goal.

Fourth, listen to your team.  They are the ones in the trenches all day.  They are in the field and at ground zero with clients.  Some of the best insight comes from their day to day interactions.  Listen to what they have to say, analyze it's impact, and take action if appropriate.  Your ability to listen and synthesize the acres of diamonds they unearth will help you even further in getting to your goal and reaching greatness as a team.

Lastly, ask for help and tell them to do the same of each other.  People support what they help to create and you must foster an environment that collaborates and makes things happen.  The only way you can do this well is by encouraging people to ask for help where they need it and help others when they need it.  It should be a badge of honor to ask for you help because that means you are striving and getting closer to your goal.

If you take these principles and use the with your "teams," you will be amazed at what they (and you and your business) can accomplish.  Here's to your success!

Some books are timeless and offer wisdom and insight that everyone can and should use in their lives.  Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl is one of those books.  The book is about Frankl chronicling his experiences as an Auschwitz concentration camp inmate during World War II, and describing his psycho-therapeutic method, which involved identifying a purpose in life to feel positively about, and then immersively imagining that outcome.  It was this understanding that kept him alive and kept him going in the darkest of times.  Here are my 8 favorite quotes from the book to inspire and motivate you to something better and greater.