While confidence is an essential asset for launching a successful home-based business venture, it is entirely possible to have too much of a good thing. When confidence gets too big for its britches and becomes arrogance, problems often arise that can ruin a home-based business’s chance at success. The key to staying confident yet preventing yourself from becoming overly confident is to balance confidence with a healthy dose of humility.
Humility serves as a sort of reality check that helps home-based business owners prepare for problems that could arise instead of believing that they have planned the whole thing so well that nothing could possibly go off track. It is present every time you listen carefully to what a person is saying instead of concentrating so much on what you are going to say next. Also, keeping an open mind is a way to incorporate humility into your daily work. You never know who may help inspire your next great idea or who might have the answer to a problem that you have been working on for a while.
Arrogance, on the other hand, can get you headed down the fast track towards failure. Believing that your business plan is bulletproof is one way you can get yourself into trouble. Your business plan is essential to your success, but it is important to remember that as you go through each day and absorb new information, you may need to make adjustments to your original plan. Failing to listen can leave clients with the impression that you do not understand or care what they really want. Believing that no one but you can solve all of the problems that arise as you go about your business is not only isolating, it cuts you off from people who believe in your ability to succeed and have the knowledge and tools to help you work through those problems.