The Salt River which runs through Saguaro Lake Ranch
In a few hours, Charlie Gilkey, Angela Wheeler and I will kick off another Lift Off Retreat at Saguaro Lake Ranch.
It is hard to describe the feeling of anticipation that comes before Lift Off. There is a special magic that occurs that is unlike any other class, event or retreat that I have ever led. This time, we have a whole crew of alumni that are cheering us on behind the scenes, giving us so much inspiration to bring our very best game to the new “Liftoffians.”
There are so many things to share about the entrepreneurial journey. We will talk about business models, product funnels, client avatars, money systems and personal environments.
But my best advice on how to get through the ups/downs and sideways of entrepreneurship comes from the mantra that my family has adopted for 2012: Positive Attitude, Perseverance, Courage. <with the added cheer “Go Slims!“>. As you might remember, my son Josh chose these three values at Boy Scout Winter Camp. I loved them so much that I brought them into my year as a personal mantra.
In order to bring the values to life, I asked Willie Hewes if she could draw them as my personal mascots. Her illustrations were so beyond my expectations — they perfectly captured both the feeling of the words, and the spirits of me and my children.
Positive Attitude
(Guess who that hippie is?)
Perseverance
Like only my boy understands.
Courage
It does not get more Rosie than this.
—
I highly recommend your own flavor of a fun, inspiring and uplifting mantra for the year.
See you on the other side of Lift Off with a brand new set of stories and insight.
Thank you Willie Hewes for your inspiring art!
This post is incredible! Thanks for sharing. I’ve been doing this entrepreneurship thing for over seven years now. Along the way, I’ve discovered seven critical success factors that have been keys to success for me as an entrepreneur. I would go so far as to say these seven critical success factors are equivalent to the DNA of success for entrepreneurs which I spelled S-U-C-C-E-S-S (view article here http://www.liveitforward.com/do-you-have-what-it-takes-critical-success-factors-for-entrepreneurs/):
S elf-Starter
U nited Family
C oncentration
C apability
E nergy
S tick-to-it-tive-ness
S elf-Discipline
These factors have helped me along my journey to entrepreneurship. Hope this also help you too. Keep your posts coming!
LOVE, LOVE, love your mascots and mantra. Long ago, I wanted the words trust, honesty, love and courage tattooed somewhere on me in a unending circle. That would certainly take courage! Thanks for sharing Willie! (go Pam, for being a fun mom!)
Hope Lift Off is stupendous (duh, of *course* it will be).
Those mascots are absolutely incredible! So much life in them! Go Willie. (And go Pam, for having such clearly awesome kids!)
How fun, and what a great reminder of your mantra! I think I’ll try to make my own mantra and represent it visually.
Great post, Pam. Love the mascots!! See you in Austin. 🙂
Perseverance is the most important bit, I can stress enough how important it is!
Pamela:
Enjoy the retreat–it certainly looks like a nice place!
I too spent some time earlier this year coming up with three words for 2012 (inspired by a blog posting by a friend and colleague)(but no nifty artwork, though). It was a tough assignment, but so far, it’s been worth it. I don’t live up to them all every day, but they do give me something to come back to (and aspire to) over the year.
My mantra for this year is “Connect, Complete, Contemplate” (and you can read about the whys and wherefores at http://www.accounting-wizard.com/2012/01/04/my-three-words-for-2012/
Lawrence
As a fellow Valley of the Suner, I must say I have never made it to Saguaro Lake. But that picture makes it look mighty inviting…
Have a great retreat!
Thanks Marshall! Saguaro Lake Ranch is amazing! I actually got married here. You must visit one weekend! Great place to hang with out of town guests if you really want to unplug. http://www.saguarolakeranch.com