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| Margaret Mahy book signing (Photo credit: Christchurch City Libraries) |
One of the biggest fears that people have about self-promotion is that of rejection. Getting turned down and receiving negative feedback is not pleasant, but it's probably going to happen when you're putting yourself out there trying to get others interested in you or whatever you're trying to foist upon them. In fact I can almost guarantee it.
Put that rejection on your list of things that can possibly go wrong in your marketing endeavors. It may sound like a glum approach to look at the negatives of a considered venture, but it's more realistic to factor minuses in with the pluses. Letting your dreams drive you can lead to miserable failure. It's far better to let the dreams inspire you and have a road map to show you the way with detour options if needed.
Any marketing involves risk, but if you look at all of the possible outcomes then you have what is known as a calculated risk. When you believe strongly in your dream it can be easy think up all the good things that can happen. You get excited when you begin to consider the great prospects ahead of you. This can be a disaster and disappointment waiting to happen. High expectations can lead to a long fall to the bottom if things don't go according to the dream.
Be sure to consider those bad things that you might encounter on your marketing journey. List every negative that you can possibly think of and then come up with a contingency plan to deal with those negatives.. If you have all of your possibilities of failure covered then you are more likely to succeed and more accepting of the failure if that turns out to be the outcome.
A failure should not be the despairing end for you, but just another learning experience on the road to success. You can take a risk, but it's best if that risk is a calculated risk.
Have you ever failed at something because your dreams were bigger than the realities? Do you let negatives discourage you from pursuing your dreams? What do you think is the best recipe for success?
