Blog | Entrepreneurship

Stuck in a Rut?

Discover a powerful secret to help you break out of any mindset that might be holding you back

I was recently speaking with fellow Rich Dad Advisor, Ken McElroy. Most of you know Ken as Robert and Kim Kiyosaki’s advisor on real estate. Together, they have made lots of money over the years investing in multi-million dollar real estate deals.

During our visit we talked about a few things. Mostly, we discussed how, as entrepreneurs, we get stuck. All of us get stuck.

One day leads to the next. Sometimes it feels like an entire month has gone by and we haven’t made any progress.

During the discussion, I explained how I was in a mental funk. Since Ken is a true entrepreneur (i.e., problem solver) I reached out to him for some answers. As is often the case, I didn’t get the answers I was hoping for. Instead, Ken provided solutions in the form of questions.

Does that sound familiar?

Things weren’t working how I wanted them to or thought they should. I was tired of hitting a wall and simply throwing my hands in the air. I shouldn’t be surprised as all entrepreneurs have their struggles.

After I explained where I was, Ken replied, “So what makes you think you’re so different?”

After a moment of stunned silence I asked him to elaborate.

He went on to say that it’s easy for us to have a little pity party for ourselves. We get stuck in our old (or new) habits and we can’t break out of our way of thinking. We get so hyper-focused on solving a problem that we block out other solutions and opportunities that are all around us.

Me? Homework?

He actually gave me a homework assignment.

I’ve been making money as an entrepreneur for over thirty years. I get my lessons from the school of hard knocks every day. I don’t need to do homework. Or so I thought.

Ken had me build a list with all of the assets I have at my disposal. I listed all the people that in some way touch or influence my business. After I accumulated the names, Ken walked through the list with me and helped my see things from a different point of view. He asked how can I capitalize on those relationships? What could I exchange for their help? Are there different partnership options available that I wasn’t seeing?

Suddenly the light bulbs began to go off.

It’s important to realize that most of us work in a vacuum. We become specialized in one area of focus and lose sight of what we have around us.

I can hear you now, “But Blair, I don’t have a real estate mogul that I can ask for help that knows my situation. What can I do with my limited resources?”

Help doesn’t have to come from someone who’s “made it” or taken the path you’ve chosen. It can be a mentor, coach, preacher, or even someone you’re tied to through social media.

The key is getting out of your own headspace and viewing things as they really are but with a different perspective.

Ambition: The Double-edged sword

Every entrepreneur has a driving force within them. But that driving force can either make you or break you. It can either push you to succeed, or it can blind you. Sometimes the drive can make you forget what you already have. It can block out different perspectives, when sometimes it’s those same perspectives that you need the most to succeed.

It’s easy to forget what we do have because it’s the drive to be the fastest and the best that makes us want to be entrepreneurs in the first place. But it’s that same drive that can block out different perspectives, sometimes when we need that mindshift the most.

I firmly believe that, as an entrepreneur, if you have a dream or goal and you’ve focused your life to attain it, you deserve every opportunity to chase it. However, it becomes critical to realize when you become your own worst enemy.

I get it. You want to solve every problem you can by yourself. We fool ourselves into believing that once we’ve acquired enough knowledge that we can then seek help to take us to the next level.

Here’s the thing, you’re never going to feel ready.

You need to ask yourself: Am I surrounding myself with people who will tell me the truth or give me lip service? Will they tell me things I don’t want to hear but need to hear? Do I need to tighten my circle of influences? Does my circle need to expand? Are the people in my immediate circle of friends and business associates looking to better themselves or are they content with life?

Every time I screwed up the most, it was only with the help of others that pulled me out of it. It was my team.

You’re going to stumble. You’re going to fall on your face. Who is going to be there to help you up? Who can you count on?

If you need more help developing a team you can trust, check out my latest book Team Code of Honor.