Execution.

This is the first principle of success in the Book of Proverbs.  The Bible says, Work brings profit, but mere talk leads to poverty! (Proverbs 14:23 NLT). It also says, Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth (Proverbs 10:4 NIV).

Here’s proof.  Get a pen and paper.  Take one minute to list down every successful person you know.  In any field—Business, or Ministry, or Sports, or Family.   Successful people you actually know—people you talk to.  And successful people you know from afar—through books or seminars or websites.

Do you notice something?

What is common among them?  I bet you, every single person in your list is someone who has a bias for action.

Success is all about execution.

Brilliant Ideas Are a Dime a Dozen

Sometimes, people come up to me and tell me—under strict instruction I don’t share what they will reveal to me to anyone—their brilliant business idea.

They say, “Brother Bo, I have an idea that will make me a multimillionaire.  It will be the next Uber.  The next Snapchat.  The next Amazon.   Please don’t tell anyone about it.…”

And I listen to their business idea.

You know what?  Some actually are brilliant.  (Some are crazy, like some of these ideas from Japan…)

Question: Will these guys with brilliant business ideas become a multimillionaire?

Not by a long shot.

Here’s the truth: Brilliant ideas are everywhere.  They’re a dime a dozen. Successful businesses are not based on brilliant ideas but on the ability to execute those brilliant ideas.

Success doesn’t happen. You make it happen.

What Is Stopping You?

So why don’t people execute?

In coaching and mentoring people in their success journey, their problem is not laziness.  Their problem is fear…

Fear is THE invisible prison that keeps you stuck where you are.  The fear of rejection.  The fear of shame.  The fear of loss.  The fear of failure.

But pull out again your list of successful people.  And you’ll notice that another common thing among all of them: The more successful they are, the more failures they have.

Get over this fact. You will fail.

May I share with you a new mantra I’ve developed for people who are stuck?  The six words that will set you free from fear: Fail tiny, fail many, fail quickly. 

  • Fail Tiny: You don’t have to fail big. Dream big but start small. See to it that you start small, so that you can fail small.
  • Fail Many: Each failure teaches you a lesson. So keep failing!  The more you fail, the more you learn.
  • Fail Quickly: Don’t wait too long to start again. Fight the disease called “analysis paralysis”.  As long as the failure is tiny, do it.

The Sower Got a 25% Success Rate

Remember the Parable of the Sower?  Some of his seeds fell on the path, rocks, thorns, and good soil.  According to Jesus, his success rate was only 25%.  But that 25% was enough to win a huge harvest.

In school, the passing grade is 75%.  Imagine if you get only 25% of an exam.  You would be labeled too dumb to study.  No school will ever accept you again.

But I believe 25% is the real passing grade of life.

Embrace failure!

Do not be afraid to launch your big idea. Do not be afraid to take small steps. Do not be afraid to fail.

Because one way or another, you will succeed.

May your dreams come true,
Bo Sanchez

P.S.: I want to invite you to join me in a special retreat. Every year, I lead a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. I bring a priest with me. I bring preachers. I bring a music team. So you get a full, life-changing experience.

Bo, I want to learn more about the Holy Land Pilgrimage 2018.