Black Entrepreneur Blueprint 516 - Jay Jones - Mirror Moments - How To Survive A Crisis As An Entrepreneur

[00:00:12] Welcome to Black Entrepreneur Blueprint, the number one podcast and resource for black entrepreneurs.

[00:00:19] I'm your host Jay Jones and Black Entrepreneur Blueprint was created specifically to educate and inspire black entrepreneurs to launch, build and grow successful, sustainable businesses.

[00:00:32] Join us as we help building economic power base in the worldwide black community by building and supporting black owned businesses.

[00:00:41] If you're currently an entrepreneur or want to be an entrepreneur, you're invited to join us each and every week here at Black Entrepreneur Blueprint.

[00:00:50] Welcome to the BEB family and get ready to elevate your entrepreneur IQ.

[00:00:56] Welcome to the Black Entrepreneur Blueprint, episode number 516.

[00:01:06] I'm your host Jay Jones and today we have another outstanding and informative show in store for you.

[00:01:12] Today's show topic is Mirror Moments, how to survive a crisis as an entrepreneur.

[00:01:17] Mirror Moments, how to survive a crisis as an entrepreneur.

[00:01:23] We know as entrepreneurs there are many roadblocks and inhibitors that make it very difficult for us to become successful.

[00:01:30] But what do you do when you're faced with a crisis that threatens to upend everything that you've built?

[00:01:36] On today's show, we're going to discuss what a mirror moment is.

[00:01:41] Why do we have mirror moments?

[00:01:43] And then I'm going to give you 10 steps to help you come out of those mirror moments in those crisis periods bigger and better than before.

[00:01:51] I'm going to give you some real life examples and I'm also going to share one or two of my own personal stories.

[00:01:57] And we're going to give you some actionable steps guys to be able to move through that crisis period where you're possibly on the brink of losing your business to becoming super successful.

[00:02:09] Now before we get to today's content, let me just share a few things with the Black Entrepreneur Blueprint family.

[00:02:14] First and foremost, I want to welcome all first time listeners.

[00:02:18] Welcome to the BEB family.

[00:02:20] Please stick around until the end of today's broadcast and I'm going to share all my social media contact information and resource links such as the link to my latest workshop.

[00:02:30] I need more leads dot pro that's dot p r o.

[00:02:34] Make sure you go to I need more leads dot pro for more information.

[00:02:40] So if you're having trouble staying in business, if you can't grow and scale your business, this workshop is for you.

[00:02:47] Go to I need more leads leads dot pro.

[00:02:52] Now let's get ready for today's show content Mirror Moments.

[00:02:57] How to survive a crisis as an entrepreneur on today's show.

[00:03:01] We're going to discuss and dissect mirror moments.

[00:03:04] We're going to talk about what they are, why they happen, and then I'm going to give you 10 steps onto how to survive and thrive after your mirror moments.

[00:03:14] So you're probably asking yourself, hey Jay, what the heck is a mirror moment?

[00:03:19] Okay, a mirror moment is in short a crisis.

[00:03:23] It's when you look into the mirror and you realize that you're at a major crossroads in your life and or in your business or both.

[00:03:31] And you know, depending upon what you do next can have a major effect on the rest of your life.

[00:03:38] That is a mirror moment.

[00:03:39] So to put it succinctly, if you're looking for someone to change your life, look in the mirror.

[00:03:45] That's as far as it goes.

[00:03:47] Nobody else look right directly into the mirror.

[00:03:51] And that's when you realize the fate of your business and or your life or both is based on the decisions that you make subsequent to looking yourself in the mirror.

[00:04:02] It's kind of like that.

[00:04:03] Oh shoot moment and I'm using the PG version or is balls to the wall.

[00:04:09] You know, right now something has to be done.

[00:04:12] If not, you're going to perish.

[00:04:14] First, let's discuss why do mirror moments happen?

[00:04:18] Why do mirror moments happen?

[00:04:21] And there could be a whole gamut of things that cause you to have these mirror moments or these crises when it pertains to your business and or your personal life.

[00:04:30] So it could be a change in the economy or your industry.

[00:04:34] So, for example, in 2008 I had a thriving mortgage business 50 plus employees, myself and my two partners doing millions of dollars a year in not just revenue, but also in net profits.

[00:04:48] And everything was going fine until the economy tanked and the banks went out of business, the credit tightened and our business literally just fell off a cliff.

[00:04:59] OK, another thing when it comes to your economy or industry, there could be new technology changes that can make certain businesses obsolete.

[00:05:09] So, for example, years ago, you guys old enough to remember blockbuster video stores, right?

[00:05:16] They were they were the king of the mountain when it came to videos.

[00:05:21] They had an opportunity to buy Netflix when Netflix was in its infancy for I believe it was 30 million dollars and they laughed sooner.

[00:05:30] You know, sooner than later, Netflix pretty much put them out of business.

[00:05:34] Now Netflix has become a streaming channel because they understood if they didn't stay up with technology, nobody's really going to wait for a DVD in the mail.

[00:05:44] They can just go and stream it right online.

[00:05:47] So when you talk about mirror moments and why they happen, it could be changing your in the economy or industry.

[00:05:54] You have to look at that too.

[00:05:56] Another reason you may have a mirror moment is a change in all the world like the pandemic.

[00:06:02] Everything got shut down.

[00:06:04] Nobody could predict that.

[00:06:06] But that was a mirror moment for a whole lot of people.

[00:06:10] Businesses were going out, retailers especially.

[00:06:14] Nobody could leave the house.

[00:06:16] There was no retail business going on here in the United States, Canada and throughout most of the world.

[00:06:21] And so if you have rent, you have payroll, you have supplies, you have cost of goods, all of those things kept going.

[00:06:31] But you weren't getting any income in.

[00:06:34] So that was a mirror moment for a whole lot of folks out there.

[00:06:38] Another mirror moment could be caused by personal or family health issues.

[00:06:42] So any of you B.E.B. family members who've listened to my podcast for any period of time may know that I lost my son to brain cancer when he was only 17 months old.

[00:06:52] And so that was a mirror moment.

[00:06:54] Not only were we dealing with the grief and the struggle of the loss of a loved one, but then we had the financial stress on top of that because I had just started one of my new businesses at the time.

[00:07:08] And my wife had to stay home with my son because he had chemotherapy and treatment.

[00:07:14] And so she was in the school system as a teacher at the time and she had the consistent income literally when he was diagnosed.

[00:07:21] He was diagnosed on a Saturday.

[00:07:24] I had just quit my job that Friday.

[00:07:27] I had given my two weeks notice and I was out.

[00:07:31] And that's when it happened.

[00:07:33] So that was a mirror moment for myself and my whole family.

[00:07:37] Another thing that can cause a mirror moment is bad personal and or business decisions.

[00:07:43] So, for example, if you start a business with no proof of concept, quit your job and think everything is going to be OK, you probably going to have a couple mirror moments.

[00:07:53] All right. Because these are the things that put you in crisis mode.

[00:07:57] Some things that you can control others.

[00:07:59] You cannot.

[00:08:00] So the things you can't control, you don't worry about it.

[00:08:03] But the things that you can control, make sure you have a handle on that.

[00:08:08] So just because you have that mirror moment and you're walking past the mirror and you're looking at yourself, you're like, damn, this is it.

[00:08:16] Something's got to give us either ball or fall right now.

[00:08:19] It doesn't mean that you've had or done something to put you in that situation.

[00:08:25] One of my best friends from high school, a while back, experienced temporary displacement.

[00:08:31] He lost his home.

[00:08:32] I didn't know anything about it because he didn't want to tell me about it.

[00:08:36] And he was embarrassed until after the fact.

[00:08:39] And so it can happen to anyone.

[00:08:41] He lost his job.

[00:08:42] He wasn't able to hold on.

[00:08:44] And basically he had to drop the keys off and give his house back.

[00:08:48] Subsequent to that, he's back on his feet now.

[00:08:51] Myself and a couple of other my friends, we all got together, tried to prop him up and get him situated.

[00:08:57] So this can happen to anybody in any instance.

[00:09:01] OK, so these are some of the reasons why those mirror moments happen.

[00:09:06] And this is what's called a crisis, guys.

[00:09:09] And as an entrepreneur, we're going to have our bumps and bruises and we're going to have our trials and tribulations.

[00:09:14] But I'm talking about a near death crisis.

[00:09:18] I'm talking about something that can change the trajectory of your life and of your business.

[00:09:24] So when the 2008 financial crash came, it literally changed everything in my life and in my business because they were intertwined.

[00:09:33] And the mistake I made, which I will never do again, the majority of my assets were in the real estate classification.

[00:09:42] Be it properties that I owned.

[00:09:44] Obviously, I owned a mortgage brokerage firm and I was actually in the process of buying a rebax real estate firm.

[00:09:52] It would have made a difference because that whole sector got wiped out.

[00:09:56] So these are some of the mirror moments that I've had and I've had many of four or five.

[00:10:03] OK, and so they're not fun.

[00:10:06] But once you deal with crisis at that level, I'm not talking about your regular.

[00:10:10] I'm not talking about your regular bumps and bruises as being an entrepreneur.

[00:10:14] I'm talking about crisis, do or die.

[00:10:17] Have a roof over your head.

[00:10:18] Don't have a roof over your head.

[00:10:20] Live, die.

[00:10:22] That's what I'm talking about when it comes to crisis.

[00:10:25] But you try to stay out of those situations.

[00:10:27] Sometimes you're not able to because it's just the luck of the draw.

[00:10:32] Now, let's talk about quickly how you can react to those mirror moments.

[00:10:37] And I'm going to give you 10 steps to win when you have the mirror moments, these quote unquote crises and how not to just win but come out from under it.

[00:10:47] OK, number one, acknowledge your situation, but do not dwell on it.

[00:10:54] And this is what I have to remind people.

[00:10:57] You have to come to the realization.

[00:10:59] So I've never been an alcoholics anonymous, but I know they say something like, yes, my name is Jay and I'm an alcoholic.

[00:11:06] So they have to acknowledge where they currently are.

[00:11:09] And that's the first step in making your comeback.

[00:11:12] You know, yeah, I'm jacked up right now.

[00:11:15] I'm about to lose my my home.

[00:11:17] Been there done that.

[00:11:19] I'm about to lose my cause been there done that.

[00:11:22] I'm about to lose everything.

[00:11:24] So number one, you have to acknowledge your situation.

[00:11:27] But as I said prior, do not dwell on it.

[00:11:31] Do not think about it night and day.

[00:11:33] Hey, yeah, this is where I am.

[00:11:34] But let's get ready to move from point A to point B.

[00:11:37] Step number two, ask yourself what is the worst case scenario if you do nothing?

[00:11:44] What is the worst case scenario if you do nothing?

[00:11:48] Understand though that this is not an option.

[00:11:51] OK, but I want you to understand the gravity of what happens if you get frozen, you get paralyzed and you can't make any moves or do anything.

[00:12:02] And a lot of times, trust me, I've been there.

[00:12:04] I've been looking up at the ceiling at night wondering how I'm going to pay my mortgage and I'm four months down.

[00:12:10] I'm looking up at the ceiling at night.

[00:12:12] My wife and and daughters are sleeping well.

[00:12:15] I'm hoping the electricity will stay on tomorrow.

[00:12:18] So ask yourself what is the worst case scenario if you do nothing but understand that this is not an option?

[00:12:26] And what this does, guys, it gives you a bottom line.

[00:12:30] Hey, if I don't get this crisis straight, this is the worst case scenario and the worst case scenario may be guess what?

[00:12:38] You're homeless, you're out in the street or temporarily displaced as they call it and you're out in the streets.

[00:12:44] So you have to recognize and understand, you know, what is the worst case scenario?

[00:12:49] So that's step two.

[00:12:50] Step three, ask yourself what is the best case scenario?

[00:12:55] So the best case scenario for the time during the mortgage crash or the financial crash in 2008 was me being able to build my mortgage business back up quickly.

[00:13:06] But guess what?

[00:13:07] That never happened because the industry was stagnant for over two years and it took a long time to even get that business back up.

[00:13:17] And I actually left the business for a long period of time because I figured out a different way to get what I needed to get and to be where I needed to be in terms of my income and my career and the trajectory that I wanted for my career.

[00:13:33] So ask yourself what is the best case scenario?

[00:13:36] So by asking yourself the worst case scenario and the best case scenario, what you're doing is bracketing or giving yourself a range of what's going to happen once I go to work and get active.

[00:13:49] Okay, that's number three.

[00:13:51] Number four, what do I need to do to create the best outcome?

[00:13:57] You already know what the best outcome is because you just went over that best case scenario and number three.

[00:14:04] So what do you need to do to create the best outcome?

[00:14:07] Let me give you my thought process after my mortgage business crash.

[00:14:12] So I knew that the mortgage industry and the economy was going to be in the toilet for probably the next couple of years.

[00:14:19] So I already ruled out staying in the mortgage business.

[00:14:23] I had stayed long enough trying to keep it together.

[00:14:26] So I had to reinvent myself and I had to figure out what does this new creation look like?

[00:14:32] So here's a couple of things that I thought about the things that I did not want to do again.

[00:14:38] Number one, I did not want to have any employees.

[00:14:41] Number two, I did not want to have to go into an office every day to manage employees.

[00:14:48] Number three, I didn't want a fourteen thousand dollar month office rent and an additional thirty forty fifty thousand dollars in expenses running a business of that scale.

[00:15:00] Now I said what do I want? What is my next life look like?

[00:15:04] What does that iteration look like?

[00:15:06] So here's some of the things that I came up with.

[00:15:08] Number one, I wanted to make as much money as possible without an income cap.

[00:15:13] Number two, I wanted to have freedom and flexibility to be able to do what I want when I want with who I want.

[00:15:20] And I wanted to be fulfilled in whatever projects or business that I was in.

[00:15:27] So these are the things that I had to think about.

[00:15:29] And I then number five is how can I harness the strength and resources I need to create that best outcome?

[00:15:37] So for me, going back into my old business or staying there, it wasn't even possible based on the economy.

[00:15:44] So once again, that was one of the reasons for the mirror moment.

[00:15:49] It wasn't me. I didn't do anything wrong.

[00:15:51] My business was rolling.

[00:15:52] The economy took a hit and it affected my business and pretty much everybody here in the States, Canada and all over the world.

[00:16:00] So number five, how can I harness the strength and resources I need to create the best outcome?

[00:16:06] So the first thing that I did was I said, man, I'm going to have to probably go back into corporate America real quick or get some type of BS job, something just to get some income coming in.

[00:16:18] So I did that. I can't even remember the company I worked for.

[00:16:22] And so I did that for probably about five or six months.

[00:16:26] It was inconsequential, but it gave me something to get up for in the morning because I'll be honest, I'm fighting depression here.

[00:16:34] I got all this stress on me trying to keep everything together, hold that and make sure the house doesn't get foreclosed on.

[00:16:41] All my cars were paid for except one one to make sure that didn't get repo.

[00:16:46] Keep the electric on.

[00:16:48] You guys know if you ever been there, trust me, you know how it feels.

[00:16:52] So that was the whole focus there.

[00:16:55] Then I said, how can I use my resources, which weren't much because I had blown through everything trying to save the mortgage company?

[00:17:03] And how can I use my resources and my abilities to create the situation that's going to be best for me and my family?

[00:17:12] And so that's what you want to do.

[00:17:14] How can you harness the strength and resources you need to create your best outcome?

[00:17:20] So one of the things based on what I like to do or wanted to do, I always wanted to build an e-commerce brand.

[00:17:27] And so that's something I had tried to do years ago before.

[00:17:31] And so I focused on learning e-commerce and so I was able to build a pretty good portfolio of e-commerce brands that I created.

[00:17:40] And it literally turned everything around for me.

[00:17:44] So that's something that you're going to have to do.

[00:17:46] Number one, and we're talking about how to react to mirror moments.

[00:17:50] Ten steps to win when you have a mirror moment, which is basically a crisis.

[00:17:56] Number one, acknowledge your situation.

[00:17:58] Don't dwell on it.

[00:17:59] Number two, ask yourself what is the worst case scenario if you do nothing?

[00:18:03] But understand that's not an option.

[00:18:05] You have to do something.

[00:18:06] Number three, ask yourself what's the best case scenario?

[00:18:09] So now you know the worst and you also know the best.

[00:18:13] Number four, what do you need to create the best outcome?

[00:18:17] What do you need to do to create the best outcome?

[00:18:20] Number five, how can you harness the strength and resources you need to create that outcome?

[00:18:26] Whatever strength, resources that you have to be able to make the best outcome come to fruition.

[00:18:33] Number six, and this is very important guys.

[00:18:36] Find a like-minded community or group who understands your problem and can give you support and advice.

[00:18:44] Find a like-minded community or group who understands your problem and can give you support and advice.

[00:18:51] So when I talk about mentors, when I talk about organizations or groups for entrepreneurs, people that speak the same language that we do.

[00:19:01] You may have a best friend from childhood who works at the electric company and you guys have been best buddies for 35, 40 years, whatever it is.

[00:19:11] They may not understand the language of entrepreneurship.

[00:19:15] They can give you some emotional guidance and comfort, but when it comes to actually execution, the experience of dealing with a mirror moment or crisis moment in your business, they're not going to be able to give you that.

[00:19:30] So what I found guys is if you can align yourself with like-minded entrepreneurs who've gone through the things that you've gone through, who are going through the things that you're going through.

[00:19:42] You guys can galvanize and synergize to be able to help you go through these hard times.

[00:19:48] And I'm telling you guys this is one of the biggest things that you need to plug yourself into.

[00:19:54] Some type of entrepreneur group or a bunch of people getting together that are entrepreneurs and you may need to create that.

[00:20:03] It could be a meetup, it could be whatever, but that's something that you need to focus on.

[00:20:08] Number six, find a like-minded community or group who understands your problems but can also give you support and advice.

[00:20:17] Number seven, this is super important too guys, formulate a daily action plan to create the outcome you need by identifying each step and completing each step.

[00:20:30] There's an old saying that goes, how do you eat an elephant?

[00:20:34] And the answer is one bite at a time, right?

[00:20:37] So an elephant is large, how do you eat it?

[00:20:40] Just like you would eat anything else, one bite at a time.

[00:20:43] So you want to formulate a daily action plan to create the outcome that you need by identifying each of the steps and then completing the steps.

[00:20:53] My mantra for 2024 is consistency.

[00:20:58] And that's something that I've been super big on in 2024 and I've made a concerted effort to be consistent because that's how you grow.

[00:21:08] Like for example, if you want to get in shape, you're not going to do 100 sit-ups a day for five days thinking you're going to have a six pack.

[00:21:16] It's consistency over time.

[00:21:18] So when you formulate that daily action plan to create the outcome you need, you have to break that down by steps.

[00:21:26] You got to break it down by steps, whatever it is.

[00:21:30] So if you decide that you want to get into affiliate marketing, that's the first step.

[00:21:35] You made that decision.

[00:21:37] The next step is you have to find a platform where you can find affiliate products to sell.

[00:21:43] That may be ClickBank or MaxWeb or somewhere else.

[00:21:46] After that, you're going to have to choose the product that you want to sell.

[00:21:50] The next step is you're going to have to drive traffic to your landing page that you create to get the clicks, to get the affiliate sales.

[00:21:59] And I'm just going off the top of my head for that, but you guys get the drift.

[00:22:03] You have to have the steps and these are steps that you may have to do repetitively or you may have to do on one time and then focus on the next portion of building your business.

[00:22:15] So that was step number seven.

[00:22:17] Formulate a daily action plan to create the outcome you need by identifying each step and completing each step.

[00:22:26] Step number eight, track your progress and make sure that you stay on track.

[00:22:32] So you always want to be able to track your progress.

[00:22:36] The only way that you know if you're doing well or moving in the right or wrong direction is by tracking your progress.

[00:22:42] And that could be something as simple as a daily calendar, checking off tasks as you do them, whatever works for you.

[00:22:51] But you need to track your progress.

[00:22:54] You don't want to just take it for granted because a lot of times we think we're making progress and we're letting things fall through the cracks.

[00:23:02] That's number eight.

[00:23:04] Number nine, set realistic expectations and timeframes and continue to work the plan.

[00:23:11] Set realistic expectations and timeframes and continue to work the plan.

[00:23:16] So you want to have realistic expectations, nothing silly or out of the box.

[00:23:22] You're going to make a million dollars in the next 45 days.

[00:23:25] Now, I'm not saying it's possible, but it is highly unlikely.

[00:23:29] So as I mentioned before, it may look like a daunting task, but you have to do it one step at a time just like how do you eat an elephant?

[00:23:38] One bite at a time and last and definitely not least number ten, you must have faith to believe you will be successful.

[00:23:48] You must have the faith to believe that you will be successful.

[00:23:52] And this is where a lot of entrepreneurs fail and they fall off because they're not ready for all the things that are coming at them as an entrepreneur.

[00:24:04] You're not able to get over the hump.

[00:24:06] You're listening to the wrong people, people that aren't entrepreneurs that are civilians that don't know what it takes to become a successful entrepreneur.

[00:24:16] You're not sure of yourself.

[00:24:18] You have imposter syndrome.

[00:24:20] The biggest thing that you have to conquer is your own mind.

[00:24:23] So you must have faith to believe that you will be successful.

[00:24:28] Now, is that faith going to be consistent 100% of the time?

[00:24:32] No, they're probably going to be lapses.

[00:24:34] Trust me, I've been there done that myself.

[00:24:37] I've sat down and asked myself, is this really going to work?

[00:24:41] Maybe my family was right.

[00:24:43] Maybe I am crazy.

[00:24:45] But you have to keep plugging.

[00:24:47] And one of the ways that you know that you're on the right path is proof of concept.

[00:24:51] Okay, so you have to get proof of concept before you go all in.

[00:24:56] I don't care what type of business it is.

[00:24:59] So you have to have that faith to believe you will be successful.

[00:25:03] Without that guys, it's a wrap.

[00:25:06] Nothing is going to happen.

[00:25:08] So that's paramount.

[00:25:10] And that faith also comes from being around like-minded people or in a community of entrepreneurs.

[00:25:17] Because they understand what it takes to be successful.

[00:25:20] Everybody is looking at you like you're some kind of idiot or something.

[00:25:24] Oh, you left corporate America.

[00:25:26] Now you're out on your own.

[00:25:28] You were making six figures and now you're making $20,000 a month, I mean a year.

[00:25:33] So you have that self-doubt sometime.

[00:25:36] And until you've accomplished something, you have it.

[00:25:40] Okay, and I know that sounds simple and silly.

[00:25:43] But you know you can aspire to be a successful entrepreneur.

[00:25:48] But until you have become one, you don't know if you can become one.

[00:25:53] Right?

[00:25:54] So it's real simple.

[00:25:56] Either you are or you aren't.

[00:25:58] And successful is a relative term.

[00:26:01] Some people may not think they're successful if they're making $500,000 a year.

[00:26:07] Oprah Winfrey, if she had to make $500,000 a year, she'd be like that's a damn year.

[00:26:12] I'm poor.

[00:26:14] So it's all relative to where you come from and what you aspire to do or to be.

[00:26:19] So number 10, you must have the faith to believe that you will be successful.

[00:26:25] And everything starts there guys with your mindset.

[00:26:29] If your mindset isn't right, like I said before, it's a wrap.

[00:26:32] None of this is going to help you.

[00:26:34] Now before we get to the last segment of the show guys, let me quickly give you my contact information and resource links.

[00:26:42] So at the top of the show guys, I mentioned my latest workshop, I Need More Leads.pro.pro.

[00:26:49] Go there for more information if you're struggling, if you're about to go out of business or if you want to learn how to scale your business.

[00:26:56] I Need More Leads, leads.pro.

[00:27:01] Now if you want to connect with me guys anything long hit me on my email.

[00:27:05] jjones at blackentrepreneurblueprint.com

[00:27:08] That is j-a-y-j-o-n-e-s at blackentrepreneurblueprint.com

[00:27:13] Facebook Black Entrepreneur Blueprint

[00:27:15] Twitter jjones001

[00:27:18] jayjones001

[00:27:22] Instagram, I have two IG accounts guys.

[00:27:24] The first one is jjones for real, j-a-y-j-o-n-e-s.

[00:27:29] The number four, r-e-a-l.

[00:27:32] Second one is Black Entrepreneur Blueprint.

[00:27:35] Also don't forget to connect with me on LinkedIn guys.

[00:27:38] Go to LinkedIn, type in jjones Black Entrepreneur Blueprint, connect with me there.

[00:27:43] Also don't forget to subscribe to the YouTube channel.

[00:27:46] I have additional content on YouTube that is not on the show.

[00:27:50] So go to YouTube, type in Black Entrepreneur Blueprint, hit that subscribe button.

[00:27:55] Also for all you first time listeners please make sure that you subscribe to wherever you are listening to this or watching this if you're watching on YouTube.

[00:28:05] Now we drop every Monday morning 5 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on all your major podcast platforms and YouTube.

[00:28:14] Also guys don't forget to use the biggest resource I have which is the website.

[00:28:20] Make sure you go to Black Entrepreneur Blueprint dot com, hit the learn tab and we have all types of resources to help you elevate your entrepreneur IQ.

[00:28:29] So we have content on scaling your business, e-commerce, mindset, side hustles.

[00:28:36] Anything that you need to learn we have the content on the website Black Entrepreneur Blueprint dot com.

[00:28:43] Now everything I also told you in terms of my contact information is on the website.

[00:28:49] So if you're unable to write it down just go to the website.

[00:28:52] If you want my social media contact information under the about section under my bio there's all my links to my social media.

[00:29:01] Now let's get back to the last segment of the show before we close this out.

[00:29:06] So today we talked about those mirror moments when you look in the mirror and basically is you against the world.

[00:29:13] That's what a mirror moment is.

[00:29:15] It's a crisis moment and many entrepreneurs have it myself included multiple times over multiple years.

[00:29:23] And how do you survive a crisis as an entrepreneur?

[00:29:28] So I gave you guys those 10 steps to help you not just survive the crisis but come out on a better on the better side of it.

[00:29:36] And so having lived this and had multiple mirror moments like I said I can speak from experience and I'm telling you guys it may look bad at that present time.

[00:29:48] But if you do nothing I guarantee you is going to get worse.

[00:29:52] So I know we can be paralyzed a lot of times by situations be it health situations losing your job or whatever it is.

[00:30:00] You can get paralyzed and depressed.

[00:30:03] And so when you get in that state that's where the enemy wants you.

[00:30:07] They want you paralyzed.

[00:30:09] They want you to lose everything.

[00:30:11] What does the devil want to do?

[00:30:14] Steal, kill and destroy.

[00:30:16] And he does that a lot by mind play.

[00:30:20] So that's why you have to keep your mind strong.

[00:30:22] That's why you have to affiliate yourself with people that give life and speak life and not death.

[00:30:28] It could look bad.

[00:30:30] Ye though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death.

[00:30:34] Not that I walk through the valley of death but the shadow.

[00:30:37] Shadows can't hurt you.

[00:30:39] But that's what the enemy wants you to think that a shadow can hurt you.

[00:30:43] So you have to understand and still stay diligent.

[00:30:46] Stay strong in the mindset to come through those mirror moments.

[00:30:51] And I know it's easier said than done.

[00:30:53] So any support that you have be it family, friends, you know compadres whatever it is lean on that.

[00:31:02] Because that's what true friends and family are for.

[00:31:04] They're there for you when you're down.

[00:31:06] When you need help.

[00:31:08] And you'll really find out who your true family and friends are when you need something.

[00:31:13] Right?

[00:31:14] It's easy when you're rolling and you're giving.

[00:31:17] But there are two types of people out there.

[00:31:19] There's givers and there's takers.

[00:31:21] There's people that serve and there's people that want to be served all the time.

[00:31:25] You have to have a balance.

[00:31:27] And that's why your environment is a major predictor of success.

[00:31:32] So you may live in a household that's dysfunctional.

[00:31:35] Probably all of us damn near did in some form or fashion.

[00:31:38] I know I did.

[00:31:39] But you also have to have an environment that nurtures you.

[00:31:43] An environment that supports you.

[00:31:45] An environment that pushes you.

[00:31:47] That pulls you.

[00:31:48] That helps you get from point A to point B.

[00:31:51] And that's super important.

[00:31:53] So sometimes you have to cut people out of your life that may be family members.

[00:31:58] Hell, you may be married to the person.

[00:32:00] It may be one of your parents, your brother, your sister, your cousin, your best friend.

[00:32:04] Whatever it is.

[00:32:05] There's certain people that give negative energy.

[00:32:08] Some not on purpose.

[00:32:10] But there are a lot of them that do it purposely.

[00:32:13] And there are others that give positive energy.

[00:32:16] And so when you're dealing with the crisis.

[00:32:18] You don't want to be around negative energy and negative people.

[00:32:22] You're already at a low point.

[00:32:24] You're already vulnerable.

[00:32:25] You need people to energize you.

[00:32:28] To protect you.

[00:32:29] To help you rise and move to where you're supposed to be.

[00:32:33] So be cognizant of who you share your energy with.

[00:32:37] And you don't have to be mean or rude when you kind of cut people out.

[00:32:42] Yeah, we can still be cool and all.

[00:32:44] But I know I need to limit my connectivity with this person.

[00:32:48] Because all I know the person is draining me.

[00:32:52] That's negative energy.

[00:32:54] Trust me.

[00:32:55] Trust me.

[00:32:56] I've had to do it to some very close family members and friends.

[00:33:01] And I purge on.

[00:33:03] I'm going to be honest with you all.

[00:33:05] I purge periodically.

[00:33:07] I'm like, yo, this don't feel right.

[00:33:10] This energy isn't good.

[00:33:12] And for what I'm trying to accomplish.

[00:33:14] I need all the positive energy and reinforcements that I can get.

[00:33:19] So if you're not helping me.

[00:33:21] Guess what?

[00:33:22] You're hurting me.

[00:33:23] So sometimes we're going to have to learn how to disconnect from people.

[00:33:26] Especially if you're in a crisis situation or you're in a mirror moment.

[00:33:31] And you need positivity, you need love, you need support.

[00:33:36] That is when guys you really is going to see who you have around you.

[00:33:41] When the money is flowing.

[00:33:43] They're your best friend.

[00:33:44] When your money gets light, you can't find them.

[00:33:48] Now all of a sudden they're calling you all the time for to do things for them.

[00:33:52] Help them with this.

[00:33:53] Oh, I need my electric bill paid and all of that.

[00:33:56] And now you're hurting.

[00:33:58] You're going through that mirror moment.

[00:33:59] That crisis.

[00:34:00] And you may need a hundred dollars for your electric bill.

[00:34:03] And they talk about they don't have it.

[00:34:06] And they just bought a 250 pair of 250 dollar pair Jordans or something silly like that.

[00:34:12] So once again guys as an entrepreneur, you're going to hit these rough patches.

[00:34:18] And you're going to have to understand and learn how to survive these crisis moments.

[00:34:23] Now I do want to add a caveat.

[00:34:26] Sometimes as an entrepreneur, it is not meant to be.

[00:34:31] And when I say that, I'm not saying that you're done as an entrepreneur.

[00:34:35] But this business or this idea may be God's way of saying, yo, bro, you know, it's cool.

[00:34:42] Take what you learn from this.

[00:34:44] But now I need you to take that and move that energy onto another business or some other endeavor.

[00:34:51] So sometimes we hold on to a business so long because it's like a baby.

[00:34:56] We birthed it.

[00:34:57] We created it in our mind first, and then we made it come to fruition.

[00:35:01] And then it's not working.

[00:35:04] So of course, just like a baby, you're going to try everything you can to keep it going resuscitated and all that.

[00:35:11] But sometimes God is telling you, yo, put it down.

[00:35:14] You've learned everything that you could from this experience.

[00:35:18] I want you to take what you what you've learned and go and do something else.

[00:35:24] And don't make the same mistakes you've learned from this.

[00:35:28] So don't make the same mistakes.

[00:35:30] And it's funny.

[00:35:31] I had a conversation with a young entrepreneur the other day and I was telling him, I said, yeah, I learned more from my mistakes than I did of my successes.

[00:35:39] Because the mistakes are the things that that really hit you hard.

[00:35:43] So to be a successful entrepreneur, you have to take those mistakes, those those losses, those L's, those setbacks and be able to put them in your holster.

[00:35:54] So now, you know, I can't make that mistake again.

[00:35:57] All right.

[00:35:58] Yeah, I did that last time.

[00:35:59] It cost me my business.

[00:36:01] So every time or every iteration, you get better and better and better.

[00:36:05] Nobody starts out as a super entrepreneur that makes all the right decisions and all the right choices.

[00:36:11] So recognize and understand that I don't want to go on a tangent.

[00:36:15] So I'm going to close it out here, guys.

[00:36:17] We get more and more downloads each and every month because of you, the black entrepreneur blueprint family.

[00:36:23] I appreciate you guys so much.

[00:36:25] Please continue to spread the word about the podcast, the website and all the ecosystem around black entrepreneur blueprint.

[00:36:35] The free resources on the website, the online courses, the workshops, the trainings, everything designed to help you elevate your entrepreneur IQ.

[00:36:45] Remember, it's not about me.

[00:36:46] It's not about you.

[00:36:47] It's about us.

[00:36:48] It's about building a worldwide economic power base by building and supporting black owned businesses.

[00:36:54] Love you guys.

[00:36:55] See you same time next week.

[00:36:57] Peace.