Risk and Reward in 2020

by Scott Mulvaney

2020 has generated so many observations that can manifest opportunities to refocus and come out of things stronger and more resilient. I truly believe there are no excuses in life and especially in business. We all must commit to the risks to succeed and achieve the potential rewards that can come from those committed efforts.

Recently, I, too, had to be reminded that we all have the same 24 hours in the day. It is so important that we prioritize our time and ensure balance with our values and goals. Our mindset development is a big choice amongst the priorities that we choose to focus on. I am grateful to so many of my podcast guest cohosts who have reinforced this point repeatedly. Many of us truly do not understand the value and importance of our minds’ strength and the powerful benefits that come from a positive mindset. Many of us resort to waiting until the shit hits the fan to finally pay attention to that self-realization, and very often, that is too late.

The writing of this article is occurring during the week of my 43rd birthday. 2020 has become such a crazy year for all of us and many of us cannot wait for 2021 to begin. We have all been handed the challenge to step up and be better. I’ve been providing consistent strategy and execution guidance to my clients during this new way of business. These new strategies are not always easy to hear, but rather they are often implemented as a wakeup call to get them to embrace necessary change for survival. We must understand that these are things that we are going to continuously see happen in our lives and in our world.

It is more important than ever to not get swayed from contemplating calculated risks that could grow your business. I myself have taken on and embraced more risks while achieving some eye-opening rewards this year. A key point that I want to make sure is understood here is that risks need to be taken in business as well as in life. Now granted, many of us will go about them differently, depending on our life experiences. Coaches and mentors may help guide us through some challenging decisions, but either way, we must still commit to executing and owning the outcomes of those decisions. Embracing change is simply part of a successful life.

My own wife’s business, All Points Equine, is a great example of embracing change for growth. Their Greater Lehigh Valley-based, large animal practice has steadily grown over the last 7+ years. She and her co-founder had to make risky decisions to ensure their professional sanity as we approached 2021 and beyond. One thing that was uncommon to many other local businesses was their realization of needing to hire on a new veterinary doctor and a vet tech. Hiring personnel is a big decision for a small business. I only bring this business case into our story here because she’s obviously a big part of my life, and I’m proud of their all-women business and their continued success.

The greater the risks, the greater rewards. As we become accustomed to experiencing more risk, our skin will thicken, and our comfort threshold will rise. Surround yourself with growth-minded influencers from different walks of life, different pastimes, other careers, etc. What matters is a diverse pool of positive feedback, mindset alignment, and sharing of best practices. What matters, even more, is that we come together, and we all help each other rise with the tide, together.

Have you played it a little too safe this year? Has fear paralyzed your need to innovate and pivot your business? Have you missed out on some possible rewards that had relatively moderate risks involved? Have you failed to innovate and embrace change to ensure your business can survive into the next 10-20 years? I’ve never allowed myself to get too comfortable. We must continue to build up a great network of positively charged professional connections. My wife and I are committed to growing each other’s success to have a sustainable Freedom Trifecta. I created this years ago; Time Freedom, Location Freedom, and Financial Freedom make up this Freedom Trifecta.

If you’re an entrepreneur, you are already on the risk curve. It’s a huge and exciting risk every time you start up a business. We cannot blame anyone else but ourselves if our businesses are failing. I take personal and professional accountability very seriously. A lot of businesses, small and large, have failed this year, and that is unfortunate. What could we have done to help those businesses innovate and pivot for future success? When we look back at 2020, we will see some amazing transformations and some profound success stories. I’ll be the first one there to study and learn from each of them. Do not let fear paralyze you. Get better with embracing it so you can keep growing forward. I wish us all continued success as we put 2020 behind us and rip the lid off of 2021!

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