There’s an old song that goes “You’ve gotta know when to hold ’em. Know when to fold ’em. Know when to walk away. Know when to run.” It’s true in poker – and it’s true in business.
When you’re in business for yourself, it’s natural to always be on the look out for new opportunities. In fact, it’s essential. Eventually, therefore, you’re bound to come across business ventures and idea that will seem fantastic at the time. “Safe bets.” Surefire wins. They’ll claim that there’s no way they can fail. And sometimes, it’ll be true – there are businesses and ventures out there that are guaranteed income generators that can secure you Personal Independent Earnings with relatively little stress.
However, it’s important to be aware that often, this may not be the case. Even the best idea on paper may fall apart put into practice – in which case, of course, it wasn’t such a great idea after all. Sometimes, with the investment of enough time, money, and effort, these can be salvaged and turned into successes, but you have to be open to the possibility that the smartest call you can make is to cut your losses and try something different. Depending on whom you ask, the following quote can be attributed to Narcotics Anonymous, Alcoholics Anonymous, or an author named Rita Mae Brown: “Insanity is repeating the same mistakes and expecting different results.” If an idea isn’t working despite your every effort, the smart move, the sane move, is to abandon it. Give it a chance to work. If it doesn’t work, at some point you have to decide to walk away.
Persistence is admirable, but it is not so admirable as success. If you’ve done your best and been unable to find success, there is no shame in admitting that you made a mistake, learn all you can from it, and move on to something else. It is impossible to get it right every single time. But it is of the utmost importance that when you don’t, you learn as much as you can from the experience and approach your next venture a little wiser, and hopefully a little better prepared to ensure success. Before long, you’ll know exactly when to hold ‘em, when to fold ‘em, when to walk away – and when to run.
