5 Lessons Walking On Fire Taught Me About Entrepreneurship

This past weekend I attended the Unleash the Power Within Seminar by Tony Robbins. There I was, Thursday night, chanting “Yes! Yes! Yes!” supporting my fellow peers as we conquered our fears and experienced the incredible power of the mind, as we walked over 2100°F coal.

To my surprise, I woke up the next day to tons of messages, missed calls, and e-mails from friends and family asking if I was okay. (I got a similar reaction when I quit my corporate job to pursue entrepreneurship full time). Okay?! I was more than okay, I was OUTSTANDING - why was everybody worried? And then I heard about the news – out of over 7,000 people who walked, 40 got burned.

Here’s the truth. Just because a couple of people get burned, in any situation in life, it doesn’t mean you will. If you’re thinking about walking the path of entrepreneurship, applying these teachings as fast as possible will get you on the fast track to success.

1. If you look down and focus on the pain, you will get burned.
   
   Prior to walking on coals at the Unleash the Power Within event, Tony spent three hours mentally preparing us for the walk. One of the most important techniques we had to learn was to look up while we’re walking, rather than looking down and focusing on the hot coal. You see, as soon as you look at the fire, your brain leaves that prime state that we worked so hard to cultivate, and it starts telling you that you should be in pain. As soon as you start focusing on the potential pain, it takes over.
   
   The same goes for entrepreneurship. Going into it you must accept that there will be pain, there will be failure, there will be those $0 launches and programs that just didn’t convert. But if that is what you choose to focus your attention on, you will not have a good time, and most importantly, it will be hard for you to learn from those experiences and move forward.
   
   As an entrepreneur, it is crucial that you acknowledge that there will be pain, and despite that look up, keep failing forward, learning, tweaking, implementing, failing, and tweaking again.
   
   
2. You might get some blisters along the way. And you’ll be so proud of them!
   
   Whether you’re walking on the flaming hot coals of fire or entrepreneurship, at some point or another you are bound to get some blisters. Some people will freak out, get scared, and vow to never take this path again. However, others will show their blisters off as a battle scar.
   
   You see, in entrepreneurship you must fail forward. If you’re not experiencing struggles or failures, it means you’re not pushing yourself. The trick is to accept that it is going to happen, to learn something from it, and to be proud of lessons you learned along the way!
   
   
3. Your friends and family won’t understand. In fact, they might be terrified.
   
   Although entrepreneurship is becoming increasingly popular, it is still the path less traveled by. The truth is, some people just won’t get it. They will be worried about you and your future. And guess what? That is okay. It is coming from a place of love and not truly understanding what you’re doing since it’s not the norm.
   
   The only person that has to get it is you.
   
   Plus, you will ultimately meet some incredible individuals along the way that have the same goals as you, and these people will become your biggest support system and your closest friends, shouting “You Rock!” as you walk across the burning hot fire of entrepreneurship.
   
   You will share a unique bond that only you understand, as you create life on your terms. Seminars, Masterminds, and FB Groups are becoming increasingly popular for entrepreneurial communities, like my free FB group for wellness entrepreneurs, Health Coach HQ.
   
   
4. You don’t know how great you can be, until you go for it.
   
   I admit that going into the event, I was so scared of the firewalk, to the point where I was getting goose-bumps 12 hours before the actual walk.
   
   Even preparing for the walk, I was seriously considering backing out. “I am just not the type of person who can walk on fire successfully and painlessly”, I thought.
   
   Well, I am so glad that we had to turn to a partner and promise that we would walk the walk (see how important community and accountability is?). I am so glad that my desire to not let my partner down was deeper than the fear I had of the fire.
   
   So I walked. And it was AMAZING. It was sheer happiness, excitement, and one of the proudest moments of my life.
   
   I never knew I could be so brave, until I was.
   
   In entrepreneurship, you don’t know how amazing you can be, how far you can stretch yourself, and how huge your vision can become until you simply do it.
   (And having accountability and support certainly helps you make that leap!)
   
   
5. You must take a leap of faith into yourself and into the process.
   
   As Nike says, “just do it”. You must put your fears, hesitations, and limiting beliefs aside and just take a leap of faith in the process. Did I have my fair share of hesitations about the firewalk? Of course I did. Did I put those hesitations to the side and just go for it? Yes I did. And it was the best mindset that I could’ve had.
   
   In entrepreneurship, there are a lot of unknowns. Find a mentor. Find a program. Get a coach. Have some support to help guide you through the process, and take a leap of faith into their teachings.
   
   Most importantly, take a leap of faith in yourself. I live by the mantra “set your goals and become the person it takes to achieve them.” Come into entrepreneurship knowing that you will have to stretch yourself, work harder than you ever had before, and prepare yourself to reach your goals no matter what it takes.
   
   On the other side of your fear, you'll find your greatness.