Recently one of our clients brought her five-year old son to one of our workshop presentations.
He was a ball of energy and in many ways, he reminded me of my sons’ childhood days.
But what really struck me was what business owners could learn from a five-year old kid.
1. Curiosity
During the workshop the young lad asked a constant stream of questions.
His mother would say something, and he peppered her with more questions. She would answer, and he would ask another question. His favourite word was “Why?”
He was incredibly curious and when he got the answer to his initial question he would ask another one.
Successful business owners are curious too.
They are genuinely interested in finding out about the nuts and bolts of a business opportunity and how it could benefit them.
But many fear asking questions at the risk of coming across a little dumb.
Always remember the following:
“He who asks a question is a fool for five minutes: he who doesn’t ask a question remains a fool for life.”
2. No fear
Most business owners have some fears and hesitations especially when it comes time to ask for a commitment or asking tough, probing questions.
However, five-year-old, kids, especially boys, have no fear.
No question is stupid or irrelevant. They have no hesitations in asking for something that they want.
For example, during our workshop, the young boy kept asking for another biscuit—there was a plate of biscuits on the table just out of arms reach. His mother kept saying no but that didn’t prevent him from continuing to ask.
Eventually, his mother relented and gave him not just one biscuit but the whole plate!
Most people with a dream of starting their own business don’t persist enough.
As soon as they encounter any type of resistance they are ready to throw in the towel.
3. Pushing the boundaries
Although this young boy was getting threatening looks from his mother he was prepared to push the boundaries by trying to snatch a biscuit whilst she wasn’t looking.
“If you do this one more time, this is your final warning!” she replied, but with no joy.
Again, he wasn’t taking no for an answer, he then said to his mum that he felt faint because he was so hungry, like his mum hadn’t fed him for days.
That worked like a treat because everyone in the room looked at the mother thinking how cruel.
That young lad was using peer pressure to get his way, hoping that his mum would simply cave in to his demands,
Why do kids do this? Partly because our children are always experimenting to find out what works to get what they want, and partly because how parents respond in these situations can inadvertently teach kids to keep pushing limits.
Now in business you will always encounter closed doors or even the occasional doors that are slammed in your face, but you just must keep on knocking, pushing the boundaries.
That leads my nicely on to the third point…
4. Rejection
Even though this kid’s mother kept saying no, he didn’t take it personally.
He didn’t allow the initial rejection to prevent him from continuing to ask for the biscuit. Even though there was a room full of people looking on somewhat irritated by his persistence.
He wasn’t afraid of the rejection or concerned that his mother kept saying no and was completely oblivious to other people in the room. He ignored the rejection and kept persevering. And, eventually, he got what he wanted, and some!
5. Baggage
Behaviours are learned. And people often miss out on valuable opportunities because they don’t ask enough questions or because they give up too soon.
They carry around baggage from previous business venture that perhaps went belly up and allow this baggage to prevent them learning valuable lessons from this failed adventure and starting something new.
I’m not suggesting that a five-year old child could start a business but most people looking to start a business could learn a thing or two from someone this age.
Here’s my question to you…
What have you stopped doing that could move you towards starting your own recruitment agency?
Is it taking the time to find out more about what we have on offer and to see whether starting your own business is right for you?
Is some pass business failure holding you back from starting a new venture?
Is worrying about what others would say if you started some new business holding you back.
Take a lesson from a five-year old boy and completely ignore all that white noise, just be persistent in your endeavours don’t take no for an answer and you too may achieve your hearts desires.
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P.S. Again line with this blog post, I will be discussing a TV interview that was aired on Barack Obama, where he reveals what lies behind his meteoric rise to the White House…which will make unmissable reading…
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Though for the day
A river cuts through a rock not because of its power, but its persistence.