Biz lessons from survivor

In 2009, I wrote about a fellow coach, colleague and friend who experienced a cancer relapse. She was told her cancer was incurable. Against the odds she is alive and continues to inspire me, enduring clinical trials and all the time living a very full life.

My friend is possessed with an indomitable spirit. While many would be inconsolable and lost, she has an endless reserve of hope. I’d like to thank her for the lessons she’s taught me and I’d like to share them with you, as they’ll come in handy as you work on your business. Four key traits personify my friend:

n Acceptance. Sometimes there’s nothing we can do to change things. Accepting our limitations is difficult but profoundly freeing. When we recognize and accept what we cannot do, we’re free to move forward and do our very best. My friend has accepted she has an incurable illness and she’s moved on and is living a more enriched life.

n Hope. To believe in possibility even in the most desperate of times is to maintain hope. Hope isn’t wishful thinking; it’s a resolution to look beyond the prevailing circumstances and to recognize that every bit of our potential is within our grasp. My friend faces a certain outcome, yet the power of hope provides the framework to make this journey a far more enlightening experience for herself and those around her.

- Advertisement -

n Integrity. The state of being whole, having fully integrated yourself with the world around you. It’s more than being honest with others; it’s being honest with yourself. Being in a state of integrity provides access to your greatest potential.

n Perseverance. If acceptance, hope and integrity are the gateway to achieving your goals, then perseverance is the engine that sustains the effort. My friend’s acceptance has given rise to the hope she’ll leave behind a legacy of tremendous proportion and value. The integrity in which she lives has provided her access to her true purpose – a purpose she’ll be able to share with those near to her. Perseverance will ensure all of her goals are reached, even if the timelines aren’t as generous as she may have hoped.

Consider these lessons I’ve learned from a friend. The success of your business lies within you – if you haven’t sorted that out yet, now’s a good time to start working on it. •

Ed Drozda, aka The Small Business Doctor, is principal of North Attleboro-based E&D Associates.

No posts to display