Failure is Just Part of the Plan

Okay, let’s talk about failure.  Why?  Well, it’s inevitable if you want to succeed, of course!  

 Most people don’t comprehend this.  As a business owner I have failed countless times.  I am currently dealing with some BIGTIME failure because I’m not managing my time well.  I am spreading myself thin and it’s affecting different areas of my life.  So much it brought me to my knees in a crying fit!  However, when I was done with my tantrum, I stood up, splashed water on my face, and went back out to conquer my dreams.  I WILL NEVER QUIT.  Matter of fact…I embrace failure!  I’m not crazy; I just understand that failure is necessary.  If you’re not failing, you’re not moving.

Sadly, many are terrified of failure so they stay where they are.  It’s why most people would rather endure the hardships of having little.  It’s what they know.  They’re comfortable.  They would rather complain day after day of not having money, not having time with their families, working a dead-end job, worrying about their financial futures, and on, and on, and blah, blah, blah, instead of taking a leap of faith. They’d rather blame everyone around them instead of looking in the mirror.  They can’t understand why they are so “unlucky”.  

If you’ve been this person and you’re ready for change then you have to learn how to include and embrace the hard work and emotional pain (failure, rejections, disappointments, exhaustion, conflicts, emotional turmoil, etc.).  Look at them as necessary deposits to your future success.  It’s your payment, your dues.  Most people will dream and never achieve, but if you’re ready to face and embrace failure on a daily basis then YOU WILL reach your dreams.

I love Jim Rohn’s quote,

“You can choose the pain of discipline or the pain of regret”.

 Remember…discipline is short and regret is forever.

Let me give you an example of how failure is necessary.  Let’s take a look at the lives of Joe and Beth.  Joe’s family is wealthy.  He has gone through life with everything paid for and never wanted for anything.  He was accepted into the best schools, a member of high society, knows everyone, and had all the time in the world.  When people came to him for help with their situations he blew them off and considered them failures.  He didn’t understand how they could have so many problems when it was so easy for him.  He lacked compassion because he never really experienced these problems himself.  He didn’t understand sacrifice, limitations, or significant loss.

Beth came from a good, hard-working family.  Her family never had much but her parents always did what they could to help her succeed.  She was determined she would repay them some day and they became her “WHY”.  They were her reason for working hard and attaining success no matter what it took.  Her understanding of hardships led her to help others find their dreams as well.  When her team would get frustrated she was feeling their hurt so she could be there for them.  She knew how to talk to them and motivate them.  She showed them how to embrace failure.  They realized failures are just learning experiences that we can pass on to others to inspire them to pursue their dreams.

So why do we fear failure so much?  Look for my next post to find out what’s really behind our thoughts.

If you found value in this post and know others who can benefit from it, please share!  Thank you and God bless!

Christmas is in 5 days. I’m sitting at the kitchen table looking out my window at the neighbor’s farmland. The colors this time of year give me so much peace. I love the rustic tones of yellows, browns, and greens. They remind me of much simpler times. The times when I was young and I had no worries.

Those days are now gone and the worries are plenty but how we deal with them can still give us the peace we had long ago. I watched a movie last night called A Christmas Tree. This family was wealthy. They had everything and they acted like it. It was all about name brands, new cars, big houses, and appearances. The father ended up losing his job and a year later they were homeless. They had nothing. Through this time they grew close and learned how to appreciate what little they had. Over time, they saw how their blessings were so much greater and they appreciated their lives so much more.

Failure was the best thing that ever happened to them. Doesn’t that happen in our lives? We fall but we learn something from it? We even find ourselves grateful for it! So why is it, when we go through the fire once more, we don’t appreciate what it will do for us? Why can’t we remember that this too shall pass?

Well, it’s time to make a change together! The next couple of posts will be about failure and how we can embrace it. Failure is just a part of your journey. Failure will refine you as gold in a fire. From it you will learn. From it you will succeed. From it YOU WILL change your life. Ahhh…this journey is going to be good.

So here we are. Day one. Ground zero. The day I decided to start a blog to help others achieve success. But what I really feel is…”I’M NUTS!” , “What am I doing? I’m not a writer!” “What am I going to write about?” I’m pretty sure my grammar is going to make all English Professors cry! Ugh…

But then I remember an analogy I heard a couple of months ago about baby birds, or hatchlings. When hatchlings are born they are comfortable and protected in their cozy nests. Their parents bring them food and care for them daily. They have no reason to leave…why would they want to? They are content.

However, they don’t stay. Eventually they have to make the decision to jump (or they are pushed). This has to be done because there is no room to stretch their wings. If they are unable stretch their wings they will not grow stronger. They will be incapable to care for themselves and learn to forage for food. Eventually they will die through starvation, weakness, or by a predator. So they must go down in order to be lifted up. They may be scared. They may wonder if they will hit the ground. They may think if I leap I could lose everything. Isn’t that what we do? Isn’t that why we stay where we are comfortable instead of taking the leap that could change our lives?

When the hatchling finally takes the jump…they flap their inexperienced, baby wings and flap as hard as they can….giving up is not an option. And what they find, before they hit the ground, between their nest and rock bottom, is that they will swoop up and soar. They fly! They’re free! They receive a gift so much better than the comfort of their nest. They will never look back. They realize their comfort zone would have kept them in the same spot or dragged them into failure.

This leap of faith? It can be you.

This is me. I just jumped. I may write for years and never reach a soul. But I jumped. And you know what? I will fly. I may fail at times but my wings will catch the air before I hit the ground because I won’t give up. My wings will grow stronger. I believe in me.

So, ask yourself. If a bird can take one step out of their nest and experience flying…what can your next step do for you? Take the jump and be ready to rise above your comfort zone.

(Photo by National Wildlife Photo Contest entrant Harlan Albers)

I am an entrepreneur, wife, mom, animal lover…but not necessarily in that order! I love to help others achieve their dreams and become successful in whatever it is they love. I look forward to sharing in your journey and keeping you encouraged and motivated to never look back.

Are you ready to reach YOUR 1 Million?

Let’s see: Are you tired? Do you dread Mondays? Do you struggle paying bills every month? Do you miss spending quality time with your family? Is there never enough time in the day? Are you wondering how you can ever retire? If you said yes to any of these then this might be for you.

So what does 1M mean? Well, that all depends on your goals, your dreams, your desires. You see, I’m here to guide you, give you some ideas, motivate you, and create a community that will help you reach the one thing you thought was unreachable. You can live your best life NOW. So follow me on this Journey to 1M!

My name is Brandi Nichole Turnbo and I am an entrepreneur. I own a clothing boutique in North Carolina and have a home-based business. I never thought in a million years I would call myself a business owner. I never had ambition growing up. I was content with following the crowd and doing what I was told to do. I was pretty average. I didn’t attend college and I was a bartender until the age of 26. It was at this time that I realized I can’t live like this forever. So, the next day I joined the United States Air Force.

I was an Air Traffic Controller for 10 years and I finished my undergrad in that time. I was still content with never managing, leading, or owning a business. I remember sitting in the control tower one day and saying, “I will NEVER own my own business. I am content the way things are.” It’s funny how God’s plans are always different from ours.

After the military I had to find a job but nothing sounded interesting. I had no idea what I was going to do so I dabbled in this and that. One day, while watching a terrible movie with my stepdaughter, we started talking about how fun it would be to own our own clothing store. The idea never left my mind and the next thing I know I completely cleaned out our entire savings account and opened my store!

How exciting it was! (At least at first) As many business owners know, the “stuff” piles up. You work endless hours with no pay and little reward. The parts you love to do fill only 10% of your time while the other 90% completely sucks. Well, at least for me it did. I had a hard time balancing time with my family, there was never enough cash flow, I was stressed out all the time, and just plain miserable. Owning a business like this is not at all what I expected.

Then one day I was introduced to a whole new world with my home-based business. I finally make money and have more time with my family. I get to interact with people all the time and help them achieve their dreams.

I finally realized what my 1M is. Yes, it would be nice to reach $1 million, don’t get me wrong! But it’s the idea of reaching 1 million lives that really drives me. It’s everything to me! And what I’ve found is, if you live your passion, the money will come too. So here it is…my blog that will enable me to reach you and the other 999,999 people.

I only ask two things from you. Please leave some feedback on what you like and don’t like or let me know if you have any questions. I am not a writer. I have never written anything. But part of what you will learn on this journey is you will have to do things that make you feel uncomfortable. The second thing is, if you know anyone who may find value in this, please share. That’s it! So, are you ready? Okay…let’s begin your journey!