How to deal with the frustration of not moving forward?

[Walter Hay]

Have contacted a supplier in China and they said it costs thousands to ship the product due to customs (I think it's just a rip off) how can shipping cost more than the product? doesn't make sense.

Cost of freight depends on many factors, and it is not unusual for freight cost to exceed the value of the product. The "due to customs" part doesn't ring true. It's true that Chinese suppliers have to pay fees, and exports have to go through Chinese Customs, but those things usually have little effect on the shipping cost.

If you do proceed with buying from China, beware of freight ripoffs. There are many scammers operating in the freight industry in China, and some other countries also.

I started to source from china, but quite disappointing so far. Seems like this whole supply chain thing is in distress currently. Next year will probably be really bad for most companies. So glad to work in the digital space.

If this is your first time trying to source from China, you should educate yourself on the subject first. As a start have a look at my AMA GOLD! Sharing my lifetime experience in export/import. Product sourcing specialist. You can ask questions there and I will help. It has grown to 62 pages, so you might like to have a look at my much smaller thread: NOTABLE! Walter Hay's Q & A - Importing and Sourcing
There are many alternatives to sourcing from China, and you can see why here: CHINA PLUS ONE STRATEGY
Walter

 

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[The-J]

Something interesting I felt today. There's "not moving forward" and then there's "facing setbacks".

If you're not moving forward, maybe there's something you're not doing. Let's say you're waiting for a product to get made. What can you do in the meantime to either pre-sell the product, tease the product, or build a potential customer base for your product?

You could build up your social media presence. You could do some content marketing or SEO. You could start planning for your 2nd product launch. You could be researching ways to get funding for an even bigger launch later on. There's always something you can do. You don't have to be sitting there twiddling your thumbs while waiting for product to arrive. I made this mistake and I was surprised at how much, looking back, I could have done. I'm not making that mistake in 2021.

But... then there are setbacks. Setbacks like getting your Facebook account banned or your Amazon listing deprioritized. Setbacks are normal and part of the game, even though they feel awful and can make you think that all the progress you've made is now gone. Just remember: setbacks contain opportunities, and no setback is forever. Just keep at it, keep plowing on.

Maybe you're not moving as fast as you want to. Maybe you see other people flying past you while you feel stuck. All of those feelings are normal: don't dwell on them, and get to work!

 

[Kung Fu Steve]

Is this an absolute truth in business & entrepreneurship? Or does it apply only in certain cases?

There is not such thing as "truth" -- only math, and my dumb opinion.

The nice thing about opinions is you can listen to all of them, gather them up, and decide which one is right for you.

Do you need to love the journey? Or are you saying that as long as you don't completely hate it, you're on the right track?

I'm working towards something, but the journey is not fun and I dislike every aspect of it.

The only way it would be fun is if I'm somehow doing something I'm passionate about (which means something that utilizes my strengths), however my strengths aren't really relevant to my market.

My intuition tells me that it's okay to do things you hate so that you can get to a point where you don't have to do them anymore. If you're talented (high IQ, entertaining, athletic) then I supposed the journey is more enjoyable.

To each their own but I can say something pretty definitively from experience:

Happiness = Progress.

Even if you don't 100% love everything that you're doing, if you're progressing, you'll feel happy.

But if you're spending your days sifting through industry reports, burning cash, emailing 100s of people etc. in order to build a viable business, that process is just not going to be enjoyable. But you have to do it anyway.

Never been an advocate of "the journey matters", but open to having my mind changed as I'm still a rookie entrepreneur/businessperson.

What I've noticed from the most successful people in each industry is that they might start out disliking those things but if it's mandatory -- they find reasons why they enjoy it.

And when they do, their entire world shifts.

I met the number one realtor in the world last year. She does some 300 transactions a year by herself. It's nuts.

She loves to door knock.

When I told her "bullshit, no you don't!"

She said "no, honestly. If nothing else is working that day. A deal falls through, an offer get rejected, an appraisal doesn't go well... I go door knocking. I'm good at it. I know if I knock on 5 doors, I'm going to end up getting 1 listing."

The vast majority of realtors HATE door knocking. Even the experienced ones. But because she associates more pleasure than pain -- she continues to do it without complaining. She even says "now I actually enjoy it".

Working out is another example. At the beginning it's hard. It's challenging. When you get good at it, you know what you're doing, all of a sudden there's one day you wake up and realize you don't mind it -- you might even enjoy doing it!

So I guess if you're dead-set on utilizing the strategies that you're using now, my question would be: What DO you enjoy about the process? What COULD you enjoy if you really wanted to? What aspects are even kind of fun?

 

[GatsbyMag]

There is not such thing as "truth" -- only math, and my dumb opinion.

The nice thing about opinions is you can listen to all of them, gather them up, and decide which one is right for you.



To each their own but I can say something pretty definitively from experience:

Happiness = Progress.

Even if you don't 100% love everything that you're doing, if you're progressing, you'll feel happy.





What I've noticed from the most successful people in each industry is that they might start out disliking those things but if it's mandatory -- they find reasons why they enjoy it.

And when they do, their entire world shifts.

I met the number one realtor in the world last year. She does some 300 transactions a year by herself. It's nuts.

She loves to door knock.

When I told her "bullshit, no you don't!"

She said "no, honestly. If nothing else is working that day. A deal falls through, an offer get rejected, an appraisal doesn't go well... I go door knocking. I'm good at it. I know if I knock on 5 doors, I'm going to end up getting 1 listing."

The vast majority of realtors HATE door knocking. Even the experienced ones. But because she associates more pleasure than pain -- she continues to do it without complaining. She even says "now I actually enjoy it".

Working out is another example. At the beginning it's hard. It's challenging. When you get good at it, you know what you're doing, all of a sudden there's one day you wake up and realize you don't mind it -- you might even enjoy doing it!

So I guess if you're dead-set on utilizing the strategies that you're using now, my question would be: What DO you enjoy about the process? What COULD you enjoy if you really wanted to? What aspects are even kind of fun?

Perfect, thank you for an elaborate answer. Much respect for this.

 

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[TheComebackKid]

Tell me about it! Just don't be the person that posts 9 times then disappears, lol.

Haha. I read here every day. It has given me great hope. I am rebuilding my life at 29 and the people on this forum truly are an inspiration to me.

Bless you all.

 

[seomatic]

One of my current frustrations is a lot of people owe me money:

• Suing my ex-company for compensation
• Rent money not paid
• Client projects
• even the state owes me VAT lol

It takes soo much time just to remind people to pay you. Should I just ignore the little stuff and go for the big win?

 

[Kung Fu Steve]

One of my current frustrations is a lot of people owe me money:

• Suing my ex-company for compensation
• Rent money not paid
• Client projects
• even the state owes me VAT lol

It takes soo much time just to remind people to pay you. Should I just ignore the little stuff and go for the big win?

There was a point where I went from part-time marketing consultant to full time.

I had been coached by the best and I had complete confidence in my skills. My promise was I'd double or triple your business in under 12 months or you didn't pay me.

It took off. I was only charging a couple grand a month per client and making great money.

Then I said "I want to be like my coach and start doing profit sharing and revenue deals."

I'd tell them not to pay me anything but if I increased their business, I'd take a piece of the upside. 10-15% one time. Some were ongoing.

Long story short I was so pumped and motivated. I worked 18 hours a day. CRUSHED it.

And when it came time for 3 clients in particular (what I thought were going to be the big wins) to pay me... there were excuses, problems, delays, procrastination.

I was INCREDIBLE at making the money. I was SHIT at collecting on it.

I am still owed a little over $800,000USD between these 3 companies. 2 of which ended up going under a few years back.

I'll never see that money.

If I had to do it over again I would have the guts to charge what I was worth. Get up-front money AND back-end money. I would have strongly worded contracts and consequences for lack of payment.

Here's the harshest statement: you get what you tolerate.

Stop tolerating this stuff in your life, my man.

And from now on, put systems in place so it never happens again. Be VERY clear in your communication. "This is the due date." Do no waiver, do not sympathize, you have bills to pay, too.

If you are STILL struggling, hire someone to be your muscle!

 

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[seomatic]

I made some progress in my business and life, but I'm still frustrated because I know that I'm operating way under my potential. The problem that bugs me the most currently is the switch from selling time to having my own product. Especially when should I work on my own product when my whole day is scheduled to make others rich lol. Is there any good book or advice? I don't have the gut to cancel my contracts, yet.