If you are an entrepreneur, it makes all the sense in the world that you would be protective of your business, and that you would want to make sure that each professional decision of yours was painstakingly mapped out in advance, so as to avoid any potential mishaps from occurring.
That being said, it’s undoubtedly true that the businesses which take the world by storm are always those who are willing to push the envelope a bit, to be daring, and to innovate.
It’s also quite self-evident that entrepreneurs who pursue those projects that genuinely interest them, whether that means custom car fresheners, or a new computing solution, are likely to be far more driven than those who spend their time working on projects that don’t much interest them.
Here are just a few reasons why you shouldn’t be afraid of being bold and daring in your professional life.
Because Customers Are Looking for Authenticity
Authenticity is something that everyone yearns for these days, and it’s clear to see this yearning in various customer-led movements that reject old modes of doing things, and that demand a renewed emphasis on quality and sincerity.
Just think about how creative marketers have to be these days compared to a few short years ago. When people are being sold things, they want to feel as though they are engaged in a compelling conversation with a friend, and not just as if they are being pitched formulae that were dreamt up in a high-rise office somewhere.
When all is said and done, what actually is authenticity in a professional context other than earnestly caring about and believing in the product or service that you are offering?
When you give yourself permission to be bold and daring in your professional life, you significantly increase the chances that you will actually get around to working on those risky passion projects that are authentic to you, and that will in turn present an aura of authenticity to your customers and clients.
Because with the Hyper-Connectivity Provided by the Internet, There Is a Niche Market for Pretty Much Everything
It may feel that being daring, with regards trying out a particular approach, feature, service or product that isn’t entirely “conventional,” would be too risky gamble.
While that might be true depending on the specifics involved, it’s also important to keep in mind that with the hyper-connectivity provided by the Internet these days, there is a niche market out there for essentially everything – and often those niche markets can be very lucrative, and can attract very loyal customer bases.
There are plenty of companies out there doing things the “conventional way,” but whenever something significant happens that shifts the playing field – such as the invention of the iPod and iPhone, for example – it will typically have happened as a result of some bold and daring action which seems like a risky gamble, but which in the end hit the right note with a perhaps formerly unknown element of the customer base.
Don’t assume, beforehand, that there is no market for your ideas.
Because It’s Often Impossible to Know What Will Take Off Until You Try It
We all have our own theories and ideas about how different plans might work out in practice, and how the market in general is likely to respond. By the same token, we all tend to have pretty well-defined ideas about our own personal capabilities and limitations, and what we can or can’t achieve.
Just as our personal estimations of our own abilities are often inaccurate, though, so too are our ideas about what will or won’t work, professionally speaking.
The bottom line is that it’s often impossible to know what will actually take off and work, until you try it. You need to confront reality to see how things really stand.
Because Being Daring Is One of the Best Ways to Gather Useful Professional Insights
Following on from the last point, it’s often very difficult, if not impossible, to gain reliable customer and professional insights if you are trying to survey and analyze things in too abstract a manner.
Being bold and taking action – often in a controlled and trial-focused way – is simply one of the best ways of gathering useful professional insights quickly and reliably.
