Not about success, but about mistakes and wrong decisions

I often see young entrepreneurs watching dozens of interviews with successful businessmen on YouTube, hoping to replicate their success.

That’s why today I’m going to share my opinion with you: you shouldn’t get hung up on studying someone else’s success. Having gone my own way, I realized that the secret is that it is almost impossible to repeat it.

Success is a very complicated recipe and its result is thousands of decisions and circumstances (we do not live and work in a vacuum, things happen around us that we do not influence), each of which is as unique as the person who makes them.

Successful business = successful entrepreneur

For example, let’s think of  Apple. Many believe that their success is due to one big product, such as the iPhone. But the reality is much more complex.

A little history

When Jobs returned to Apple in 1997, the company was going through a difficult time. However, Jobs was able to assess the market situation and identify critical moments to relaunch the brand.

One of the key moments was the launch of the iMac in 1998. A successful businessman, Jobs and the team realized that the computer market needed something revolutionary, something more than just technical innovations. They decided to create a product that would combine functionality and design, making it accessible to a wide audience. The timing was perfect, as the market was ready for change, and computer companies were focusing on technical features without attention to design and user experience.

Many years later, other companies tried to copy the iPhone, but only a few were able to come close to the same success because they didn’t take all these complex components into account.

If you can’t repeat it, can you learn from it?

☝️ Every situation is unique. We change, the people around us change, the environment, circumstances, weather, mood – all of this is constantly moving and changing. Even trends, technology and fashion are subject to the law of change. And there are many of these factors.

So, when we talk about a successful business, it is important to remember that it will always be unique because it is created in unique conditions. But as for mistakes, everything is much simpler: they can not only be studied, but also successfully avoided! Mistakes have typical signs, and if you learn to recognize and avoid them, you will ensure stability and open the way to significant achievements.

How to become a successful businessman even when making mistakes

Let us recall the case of  Blockbuster –  it was once one of the largest movie rental networks. They failed to see the trends in the market, in particular the shift to online streaming, which made their competitors, such as Netflix, dominant players. Failure to innovate and underestimating the threat from new technologies were fatal mistakes that led to the company’s collapse.

If you can protect yourself from common mistakes, you will have a significant advantage no matter what lies ahead...

Samurai would add: “I do not know who my enemy will be, but if I am invincible, it does not matter.”

This wisdom is especially relevant in business. It is difficult to predict an enemy or a challenge, but if you can protect yourself from common mistakes, you will have a significant advantage no matter what lies ahead.

Case study: Kodak failed to adapt to bugs

For example, Kodak, which dominated the photographic film market, failed to adapt to the digital revolution. Even though they even invented the first digital camera, their mistakes in strategy and their decision to stay in the film business caused them to lose their market dominance. In other words, they were in the game, but they didn’t know how to adapt and avoid mistakes.

We are all familiar with the concept of mistakes – and each of us, without exception, tries to avoid them. As the wise Horace said:

“Fear of mistakes can lead to new mistakes.”

This is a real paradox: we all know about mistakes, we all fear them, but this area remains one of the most unexplored in our lives. It is so common that the word “mistake” has as many as 82 synonyms! And it seems that there is nothing more to explore here. But it’s not that simple ?

Of course, at first glance, a mistake is a mistake – whether it’s with us or even in Africa. However, everything is more complicated than it seems. The problem often lies on the surface, but its essence is hidden in aspects of our lives that are familiar to everyone. Few people have studied the nature of mistakes in detail, and yet this can be the key to success.

Case study: Elon Musk also made mistakes

Let’s look at the case of   Tesla. The successful entrepreneur Elon Musk has repeatedly admitted to the mistakes they made during the development and production of electric vehicles. But instead of hiding his mistakes, Musk turns them into opportunities for learning and improvement. As a result, Tesla was able to become a leader in the electric vehicle market despite numerous challenges.

Absolutely everyone – 100% of people on Earth – makes mistakes. There is no success, achievement, or progress without mistakes. Mistakes are part of the process that leads us forward. Every move forward, every development involves the risk of making a mistake. And here’s the most interesting thing: even inaction can be a wrong strategy. It is impossible to avoid mistakes altogether. What matters is not whether you make them, but how you react to them and what you learn from them.

As the saying goes, only those who do nothing take no risks. But here’s the paradox: doing nothing is the biggest risk.

That is why mistakes and the risk of making them are inherent attributes of our future. Mistakes are unwanted but inevitable children of our decisions.

Case study: Nokia lost itself because of 1 bad mistake ?

If you have any experience in business or life, you have already seen that it is impossible to move forward without making mistakes. And here’s another important thing for entrepreneurs: companies usually go bankrupt not because of competitors, but because of their own mistakes.

? Let’s take the example of Nokia. They were the leaders of the mobile market, but their decision not to adopt the Android operating system led to a significant drop. As a result, the company lost its dominance because it was unable to adapt to changes in the market.

Anyway, Nokia is now launching charity programs, celebrating Dog Day, and partnering with @axiom.space on social media.

Tips for business: learn from mistakes

Let’s take into account business advice and delve into the essence and nature of mistakes. This will allow us not only to avoid them in the future, but also to use them as a springboard for development and growth.

Mistakes are an integral part of any path to success. You can’t run away from them, but you can learn from them and even use them for your development.

We see how large companies overcome obstacles every day, draw their conclusions, post them on social media ? and move forward.

So the most important thing is your own approach to the mistakes and decisions you make every day.

 

Success cannot be copied, but you can create your own path if you skillfully avoid common mistakes and learn from others. Sometimes the best way to do this is to get support from someone who has already been there and knows how to avoid fatal mistakes, I am a good example of this, with 19 years of experience helping me support entrepreneurs on their way, we build together, scale and rebuild on mentoring WOW Mentor ?

Subscribe to my mentorship — is a real chance to get advice that is exactly right for you, based on my experience. Together, we will reach your goals faster, with less waste and better results. These are not the general recommendations that are often found in courses. I will give you specific solutions that work in your situation, taking into account your goals and challenges. My experience will help you avoid common mistakes and save time so that you can achieve your goals without any hassle. This is your answer to the question “How to become a successful businessman”.

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