by Nathan Coumbe

It’s Just a Simple Fear of Failing

Dan Miller sent out an email a couple of weeks ago entitled “Why Are You Stuck?” It struck a nerve in me, so I pinned that email to the top of my inbox and read it every day for the last two weeks.

Today, I finally took the time to craft a response and send it back to him. I thought I’d share it with you as well.

I’m a great writer—in fact, I do that in my day job. That, combined with my teaching experience, is why I was hired. Because I’m good at, and enjoy, writing, I keep thinking about, journaling about, and contemplating becoming a freelance copywriter as a 15-hour a week side business.

(Click here if you’d want to learn how YOU can start a business with only 15 hours per week)

I eventually want to become a full-time marketing consultant and a business coach for aspiring entrepreneurs and small business folks. I’m already doing the latter as part of my day job, just not as often as I’d like.

And…I keep getting cold feet, talking myself out of it. But today, I think I’ve finally been able to express what’s holding me back. It’s not a fear of cold-calling people or getting rejected…

I’m afraid I’m going to let them down! I’m afraid I’m going to fail to live up to my prices. Or write bad copy. Or that I’ll wireframe and write copy for a website, and it won’t work! I’m terrified of charging someone money for something and failing to deliver what I promised.

It seems disappointingly simple that my hold-ups come down to a simple fear of failure. But there it is. Dan asked me the question, and this morning I finally had an answer for him.

What’s holding you back? Maybe you’re thinking of starting a business or becoming a freelancer yourself. If so, I encourage you to click here and enter your email address.

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by Nathan Coumbe

They’re Just Figuring It Out As They Go

What do you do when your parents die? When you become the adult?

Now you’re the spouse, the parent, the one who’s supposed to have all the answers.

When you’re young, your parents seem larger than life—superheroes who can swoop in and save the day. They’re wise sages who seem to have an answer to every problem in the world.

But as you grow up, you realize a poignant point: they’re just trying to figure things out as they go.

Just like you.

So what do you do when your parents finally leave this world?

You go on, just as they did, trying to figure things out as you go. And you make a lot of mistakes, just like they did.

But now things are just a little bit quieter, a little emptier. You feel just a bit…lonely.

Goodbye, Dad.

by Nathan Coumbe

Life’s Too Short

Seth Godin’s blog this morning contained a statement that seemed to scream at me:

“If you’re simply speeding things up because you are in a hurry to get through it, it might be better to not do it at all.”

—Seth Godin, “Faster! Faster?”, 5/31/2021

If you’re rushing through something because you feel obligated to finish it, just quit!

No one says you HAVE to finish that book. Or that podcast. Or that online course.

We don’t have enough time to do everything we think we should do. We don’t even have enough time to do everything we want to do.

We have to pick and choose wisely so we get the most out of life we can. And if that means you’re three minutes into a podcast and lose interest, just turn it off. (Essentialism is a great book to help you make these decisions.)

My late uncle Alan thought the Compact Disk (CD) was the greatest invention in history, so much better than the cassette player.

When asked why, he said simply, “Life’s too short to waste on a bad song.”

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by Nathan Coumbe

What IS a Business—Really?

Here’s a simple definition from Donald Miller to help you understand what a business really is:

A business is a for-profit entity that solves problems for paying customers.

Let’s break this down:

For-Profit Entity

Without profit, a business can’t survive. Yet we’ve tied some evil stigma to the idea of a business making a profit. If they don’t make a profit, they can’t do the thing for which they are created. And what’s that?

They Solve Problems

THIS is the purpose of a business: to solve problems for people. And is that really such a bad thing? Wouldn’t you be happy to pay someone to solve one (or several) of your problems? Of course you would.

Now, there are numerous businesses out there that don’t solve problems for their customers, yet they still make a profit. Those exist only to get as much money from people as possible without providing any real value. That’s theft, and it’s both unethical and immoral.

The good news is those businesses tend not to last very long. How often did you do business with a company that gave you no return on your investment?

PAYING Customers

Paying customers… This is the hard part for a lot of us. We’d all love to be non-profits, helping as many people we can without them paying us a dime. But you can’t fill someone else’s cup if yours is empty.

Customers need to pay for what you’re offering them. Here’s why:

  • It lets you help more people because you have money to grow.
  • It incentivizes the customer to use what they paid for.

That last point is important. When someone pays for something, they are more likely to follow through with it. Whether you offer education, a service, or sell a product, the thinking goes, “I paid for this, so I might as well get my money’s worth.”

This simple definition of business has a lot of meat in it. It definitely helped me overcome my own issues with making money, because in the end we’re helping people.

We’re just doing it in a way that lets us keep the lights on. And lets us grow so we can help even more people.

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by Nathan Coumbe

Why I’ve Been Quiet for a Few Weeks

 Hello to all my loyal readers!

I’m sorry that I’ve been quiet for the past few weeks: I’ve been in the midst of a very intensive job hunt. After multiple interviews and offers from three different companies, I started my new job at Lurn Inc. this past Monday.

As a content developer, I’ll be creating all sorts of amazing educational content to help aspiring entrepreneurs succeed in life and business. I’ve been going through a lot of the content myself this past week, learning how they teach and do things. It’s felt like drinking from a firehose of knowledge.

I am part of a great team: a small group of former (and current) freelance writers who love to teach. It’s the perfect application of my skills, passions, and knowledge areas. I’m working with, and helping, people I want to be around, and I have an ideal workplace—home. 😀

If you’re interested in what Lurn has to offer, I encourage you to go to https://lurn.com and get a free account. There are lots of courses you can start immediately (for free). You might come away with new business ideas or new strategies and tactics if you already have a business.

Here’s to regular posting once again!

Yours truly,

Nathan

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by Nathan Coumbe

No Job Is Beneath You If You’re Fighting Against Your Own Poverty

Today’s Daily Stoic email so inspired me, I had to share it with you.

“The Stoic doesn’t believe that any job—any profession or action—is beneath them if it is what life is demanding of them. To the Stoic, a dollar earned honestly is a good one. To a Stoic, a job done well is a good one.

—Ryan Holiday

If you have a job and are able to put food on the table for yourself and your family, you’re incredible. If you’re paying your bills and have a roof over your head, you’re a rockstar.

“I am solving the problem of poverty,” said Ulysses S. Grant when asked why he was selling firewood.

Don’t think of it as demeaning. But also don’t stop striving for something different if that’s what you want.

Sometimes you just have to work.

Check out the full post here.

by Nathan Coumbe

You Can’t Lead Everyone

This means one of two things: 

  1. You must become a better leader than you are right now. If you do, people will choose to follow you where you want to go. Or…
  2. (If you’re already a good leader) you have to find the right people willing to go on the journey with you. 

More people or the right people? 

The choice depends on you and where you want to go.

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

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by Nathan Coumbe

You Are EXACTLY Where You Are Supposed to Be

“Know that wherever you are in your life right now is both temporary, and exactly where you are supposed to be. You have arrived at this moment to learn what you must learn, so you can become the person you need to be to create the life you truly want.”

—Hal Elrod, The Miracle Morning, p. xxxi

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by Nathan Coumbe

It Might Not All Work Out…

We have the definition of optimism wrong.

We think optimism means believing that everything will work out for the best. Over time and on its own.

That’s not true. Plenty of awful things happen whether we’re optimistic or not.

“Well geez, Nathan! You’re obviously a pessimist with that outlook.”

No, actually, I’m quite optimistic. Because I realize that I’m the creative force in my life. I’m the driver of my own destiny.

As long as I’m alive, I have the chance to make something good happen.

Optimism isn’t simply believing that everything is going to be alright: it’s believing that whatever happens, you can make the best of it.

So if you’re reading this, you’re still breathing. And that means you can make the best out of whatever situation you’re in.

That is true optimism.

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by Nathan Coumbe

Want to Be Successful? Be Consistent.

Consistency is the key to success.

“Improvement is a battle that must be fought anew each day.

Your next workout doesn’t care how strong your last one was.

Your next essay doesn’t care how popular your last one was.

Your next investment doesn’t care how smart your last one was.

Your best effort, again.”

—James Clear, “3-2-1 Newsletter”, Jan 28, 2019

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