Jul 26

Jul 26 Overcoming Fear & Failure + Free Webinar

gratitude, inspiration, journey, wellness, yoga, nature

I’m learning and growing more through entrepreneurship than I ever could have if I was still stuck in a cubicle. Every day is different. A new challenge. A new opportunity. A new lesson to learn. I’m grateful for all the skills I learned in college and my past career but my work now is exponentially more fun and fulfilling.

I listen to a lot of audio books so I don’t remember exactly which one this little nugget came from but it stuck with me nonetheless.

“It’s not failure as long as you learn from it.”

It kinda blew my mind and totally shifted my entire perspective and definition of the word.

I’ve been afraid of failure my whole life.

If I didn’t win an award I wanted for a reading contest or a science fair project or senior superlative, I would be upset for days, maybe weeks. My self-worth was based on how many trophies and A’s I accumulated.

If I made one small mistake in a high school volleyball game, I’d be so afraid to mess up again, I’d psych myself out and my confidence and skill would slowly erode for the rest of the match.

I still remember the time in first grade when I lost a spelling bee to Grace Bagwell because I spelled umbrella with one L instead of two. I will never again misspell U-M-B-R-E-L-L-A-ELLA-ELLA-EH-EH-EH (Rihanna song joke).

I learned a lot in school but it’s also where I acquired my fear of failure.

Before that, I was creative and carefree and authentic without restraint. If I didn’t acheive my desired outcome, I would try again or try something different and eventually figure out a solution even if it was unconventional.

Each day I feel like I’m revealing more of that confidence, curiosity and creativity that has been buried by years of fear, doubt and anxiety.

I’ve failed a lot. But so did Edison and Einstein and Oprah and Darwin and Ford and Rowling and Lincoln. Each dead end or roadblock or detour brings you closer to that successful destination. But of course it doesn’t stop there. Success is also a journey in and of itself.

Ironically I’m kind of afraid of success too. At least with failure it’s like, oh well it didn’t work out. People will forget about it. But with success, this pressure to maintain and excelerate future success starts to accumulate.

A lot of people say something to me like “What a cool job! You get to hang out in the woods all day and teach yoga.” Eh - They’re half right. I do love this quirky, hippie job I invented for myself - and now 11 other awesome yoga hiking guides.

But there is so much more that goes on behind the scenes. Permits, paperwork, social media, branding, budgeting, bookkeeping, customer service, marketing and press releases.

But it’s not all sunshine and butterflies and waterfalls. I’ve hired people and had them flake on me. I’ve had salty forest officers demand proof of permits. I’ve been subcontracted by another business who claimed they wanted to be “my best customer” - but then only used me until they could start their own competitive service.

I’ve had to take it all in stride. The ups and the downs (literally and figuratively). The sunshine and the rainy days.

Yoga, meditation, coaching and journaling have helped me deal with my bouts of anxiety, fear, disappointment and doubt. Sure I learn from my successes but I learn even more from my failures.

I know that what I’ve learned over the past several years can inform and inspire others to figure out what they love doing and how to get paid for it. I’m sure there are so many more of y’all out there who love yoga, nature, meditation, mindfulness, learning and conservation as much as I do.

Seriously anyone can do this if they have the tenacity, the passion, the plan and the right guidance and advice.

That’s why I’m hosting a FREE live webinar on Tuesday, August 20 from 1:00 - 1:30 PM (EST) called Plant Seeds for a Successful Outdoor Yoga Business.

I’ll share the story of how I went from corporate worker to world traveler to successful yoga teacher & entrepreneur. I’ll share the basics of starting a business for all kinds of budgets, lessons I learned along the way, and my own biggest mistake and what you can learn from it.

I want to see more meditation and yoga in forests and mountains and beaches across the country and around the world! More than ever, people are craving a break from their technic (technological + hectic) lives and to improve their physical, mental and spiritual well-being. According to the Global Wellness Institute, Wellness tourism grew from a $563 billion market in 2015 to $639 billion in 2017, or 6.5% annually, more than twice as fast as tourism overall (3.2%). It’s forecast to grow even faster through 2022 (7.5% yearly), to reach $919 billion.

If you’re interested, make sure you get this on your calendar and feel free to share it with friends and family who would love to start their own yoga business.

Namaste & Have A Great Day!

Miranda