Don't hesitate, keep on taking the shots

By Navin Nageli

I really love this quote.  It is in-line with the immortal words of Marin Crane " (Frasier, Season 5, Episode 14) "Still scares me how close I came to chickening out, though, you know, as you get older, it's not the failures you regret or the times you made an ass of yourself. It's the times, you never even tried or when you just lose your nerve"

In life, business and sales,  this is a constant reminder that we got to take the shot regardless of the consequences.  Sometimes we get "too cute" - dancing around, overthinking the issue, thinking about how to take the perfect shot, thinking about the outcomes, waiting for the perfect time, etc., and lose sight of the importance of taking the shot.

Years ago, we posted a position for a job opening at our firm.  Within a few hours, we get tons of resumes.  This one guy called the office and left a message asking about the position.  I listened to it and was impressed that he made the call.  That afternoon, he was at the office in person expressing his interest in the job.  That showed me drive, courage and initiative.  I wasn't offended by it at all.  He kept on taking the shots and stood out.

Personally, I have nerves dredging up the courage to write a cold email or do the cold call or make the effort to introduce myself to someone new at an event.  Sometimes, we are intimidated by titles,  our own negative perceptions, our own limitations and are scared to take the shot because of the fear of rejection or fear of the unknown.  I have to remind myself that my intentions are truly noble and my heart is in the right place.  I have a great company, a great team and great products, that could truly provide immense value to an organization that is ready for it.  However, it's not going to happen, if I don't take the shot.

The great Wayne Gretzky had a shooting percentage of 17.6.  He shot 5,088 and he scored a goal 834 times.  This means he did not score a goal 4,254 times (82.4%).  If you hear any of the successful folks in business and life, they took lots of shots and failed numerous times to get where they are now.

Don't hesitate, keep on taking the shots, you will not regret it.