A few years ago, a friend and fellow wedding vendor was named “one to watch” and a “rising star” in the DC wedding industry by a regional print magazine. A huge honor, certainly. But fairly ironic, as at the time she had been hustling hard and excelling in her business for over a decade.
When someone told my friend Mary that it seemed that her business “just came out of nowhere,” she smiled and said, “Yep, ten years… and then one more overnight.”
The idea of “overnight success” is a myth. Partly because a strong work ethic and an amazing product aren’t formed overnight. Partly because definitions of “success” vary quite a bit. But mostly because building a viable, intentional, lasting business takes time.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, only about 50% of small businesses make it to the 5 year mark, and less than one third of businesses celebrate 10 years. In other words, the longer you’re in business, the more likely you are to last. The very idea of overnight success is unthinkable.
I love what Liene Stevens has to say about this:
“If you want to be an overnight success, you do the work day in and day out. You do the work that everyone else gives up on. You do the work that everyone else has mistakenly labeled a waste of time. You do the work even when you’re convinced that everyone on Instagram has figured out some foolproof system that they haven’t clued you in on. You do the work even when it is boring. You do the work even when you don’t feel like it and would rather curl up under a blanket on the couch with Nespresso and Netflix.
Then one day, out of nowhere, you will be labeled an overnight success. A door will open to a new hallway with new doors bearing new opportunities. You will still have to do the work to open these doors, but they will swing a little more freely.
Everyone will want to know how exactly you got so lucky. How you found the shortcut to that hallway with those doors. And you will smile because you know the answer isn’t one they want to hear.
The shortcut is doing the work.”
You want to be an “overnight success”? Know your numbers. Focus on service, on adding value. Go above and beyond. Be the kindest person in the room. Treat people with respect and dignity. Make others successful. Keep your priorities in line with your values, and live joyfully within your boundaries. Ask for help when you need it, and give help when others ask for it, or even if they don’t.
Focus on faithfulness. Success is relative.