My Process Reflective Log 2024+

[Awoken]

This thread is to serve as a reflective log for my own journey.

Why am I doing this? So far, I've found my process to be a lonely one. Everybody in my life lives a normal conventional life. I have nobody to discuss my thoughts with or relate to. I hope this log will not only help me the writer reflect on my process in more depth, but will help you the reader in some way. And I would love if you would contribute your thoughts and advice throughout my journey, wherever I may end up!


Background:
Four months ago, I definitively decided to pursue and ultimately master Ecommerce/product branding. I chose Ecom/product branding because I was naturally drawn to it, and I believe many of my natural strengths align with it well. I still have occasional doubts whether this is 'the right path'. But right now I think its a better one than doing nothing!

I've done this while living at home and working a part time job that is relevant to my degree (relevant later). Since then, I found a product that I thought/think has potential and have been working on launching it. I've learnt so much already but I know I've only scratched the surface. Exciting!

Recently, I went through what I can only describe as a FTE. I can't remember a time I felt worse in my life. The trigger for this was fear of failure. With my first product I've been working on, I now realise I've gone about things backwards. I began by heavily focusing on the branding and product design etc, and later delved into the manufacturing of it. This means I already invested in the trademark + logo etc for the proposed brand before definitively confirming manufacturing viability.

But, by focusing on this before finalising manufacturer quotes, I have reached a possible roadblock that might stop this product from being viable. I've acquired several samples from different manufacturers and have found the only one that offers the high product quality I'm aiming for is charging the highest unit cost (which I guess makes sense). With my proposed branding, I have always planned to launch my product with a more premium position, as it is unfilled and I have soft proof that there is a market/need for this. However, this new discovery of my unit costs being higher than I planned for was combined with me underestimating product shipping costs and other misc costs. Great job past me!

Collectively, this caused a sudden state of panic to overwhelm me as I was faced with the possibility of my product not working for the first time. It was rough. I began questioning everything I was doing and if this was all a huge mistake. I wondered if I should have listened to my mother and pursued a career with my degree. This panic passed. I made it through. And the aftermath has been very insightful. I have gained MASSIVE clarity from this regarding:

(1) Comparative Immunity + Self Mastery:
Focusing on myself, my unique traits/background/genetics/mind etc is essential. For too long, I have obsessively compared myself to others, particularly success stories of people similar to my age. This has only caused me misery and created huge self inflicted pressure for me to succeed RIGHT NOW, to stop me feeling guilty and inadequate.

Following my FTE, I have definitively acknowledged and accepted that I must undergo my own unique process to achieve success. Instead of comparing myself and my process to others, I must maintain my focus on Self Mastery. What are the best actions to take FOR ME? What is the best choice to make FOR ME? What environment allows ME to work to my best and fulfil my full potential? What decisions align with MY priorities?

(2) Process > Event:
Linking to the above point of focusing on myself, this has allowed me to accept fully that success in Ecommerce/product branding will require a continuous process, involving many mistakes and failures.

This applies to any worthwhile venture in life - anyone who has achieved substantial success has went through a significant process!

Mistakes and failures are guaranteed and should be anticipated. The best thing to do is accept this. Become comfortable with the idea of failing! Use these mistakes and failures to guide your next product, and then your next, and then your next... until you hit a win.

(3) Opportunity Cost + Sacrifice:
Pursuing entrepreneurial success means I must acknowledge the relevant opportunity costs. For me, this involves not pursuing certain careers/further education so I can maintain focus on my business work.

This is essential to understand fully and I know I must come to terms with it, as it links to fear of failure.

'What if I never succeed in entrepreneurship and I waste my time, when I instead could have done that career?' - Fear of Failure
'What if I had succeeded in entrepreneurship instead of doing this career for 40 years?' - Fear of Regret
Which is greater?


Right now, I'm using this FTE and the gained clarity to reshape my approach. My current thoughts:

1. The Self Mastery mindset shift genuinely makes me feel so much happier so quickly. Focusing on myself lets me determine what the best choices are for me, and has removed the immense pressure and guilt that loomed before. I must remind myself of this focus daily.
2. By accepting that entrepreneurial success won't come straight away and takes significant process, I'm acknowledging that I may not achieve success with a product/brand for many months or years. This makes me think I need to change my currently unsustainable circumstances. I can't work a part time job and live at home forever! My previous comparative mindset made me feel desperate to achieve an instant buz success so I could quit my job... but now I'm accepting this may not happen and may take longer than I'd wish. So, my thoughts are to search for a full time job/career that would enable me to simultaneously pursue entrepreneurship.
3. Not all jobs/careers would allow me to do this. So I would have to carefully select the job/career I do, to ensure I don't disrupt my buz work. I think this would be different for each person, as you the reader may find one job perfectly manageable alongside your buz work yet I might find it completely draining! I need to spend some time figuring out what jobs/careers I could do here.
4. Fear of failure is definitely my worst enemy, I've known this for a long time. Truly overcoming this is my biggest challenge. If I can find a suitable job/career to do alongside my buz work, I think this would greatly reduce my fear of failure. I believe I can manage my fear of failure on a product by product basis by accepting the necessity for process. But the fear that I still feel lingering is about 'not doing well in life'. This comes from my own ambitions to succeed to look after my mother and family. I don't know how I can change this as I have felt this ambition since I can remember. As I write this, I wonder if this is instead one of my biggest strengths than a weakness? If I can truly become comfortable with failure during my Ecom/product branding process, then I could harness my fear of 'not doing well in life' to ensure I remain focused on Ecom ventures!
5. I need to figure out a way to get past the Opportunity Cost dilemma. If I don't, I'll never shake the 'What if' fear of failure. Maybe focusing on the fear of regret for not pursuing entrepreneurship fully is the key here? A couple things that always comfort me about this are: (1) The thought that even a small Ecom success which grants me time freedom/flexibility would be better than a job/career I hate! (2) The career area my degree involves is one I can see being heavily disrupted by tech advancements like AI in the future, making me think job security is low and that I should search for alternative paths (like Ecom).

For this first product of mine, I'm going to stick at it and see if I can get it to work. I still believe in the branding potential + the relative value the product and offer provides. The only unknown variable will be if people will buy it at a higher price point. This was always an unknown for this product, but the higher than expected costs mean I'll have to price it slightly higher than originally planned, which I guess increases the risk of it not being appealing?

Still gonna get it launched as long as the manufacturer doesn't fall through. Will just have to pay extra attention to marketing and branding! WCCA is I launch the product and it doesn't sell at the higher price, so I drop prices and make a loss. I'm confident I could sell the product as I believe in the relative value offered. FYI, I'm launching on Amazon and intend to expand with Shopify store for social media marketing etc if validated on Amazon.

Planning on updating more regularly. Just writing this has helped me process things quite well! Any thoughts or insight you can offer is super appreciated!

 

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[circleme]

Recently, I went through what I can only describe as a FTE. I can't remember a time I felt worse in my life. The trigger for this was fear of failure.

I don't want to sound mean, but I don't think that you had a real FTE. It sounds a lot like a fake FTE. Reason: If you had one, the five bullet points (self-doubts) wouldn't be a thing at this moment.

I can't work a part time job and live at home forever! My previous comparative mindset made me feel desperate to achieve an instant buz success so I could quit my job... but now I'm accepting this may not happen and may take longer than I'd wish. So, my thoughts are to search for a full time job/career that would enable me to simultaneously pursue entrepreneurship.

This sound like a dilemma to me. If you didn't make any progress in your current situation with that "much" time, why a full-time job would make things better? That doesn't make sense imho.

I know where you are coming from. You want to change the status quo but you also fear that your brand-building takes way too long, so your status quo won't change in the next couple of months/years. That sucks. I understand that. I had to accept that myself as well, even though I'm in a different situation than you are.

I need to figure out a way to get past the Opportunity Cost dilemma.

Again, I honestly believe that no one with a real FTE would think about opportunity costs at your point in the journey. It's like saying: Well, this entrepreneurship-thingy sounds nice, but I could earn 50k per year otherwise in a safe 9 to 5, compared to 10% success rate and only a few $. It doesn't work like this imho.

 

[amp0193]

However, this new discovery of my unit costs being higher than I planned for was combined with me underestimating product shipping costs and other misc costs. Great job past me!

Collectively, this caused a sudden state of panic to overwhelm me as I was faced with the possibility of my product not working for the first time. It was rough.

Why wouldn't it work? Why panic? Just raise the retail price to whatever it needs to be to make a profit.

This supplier is in business because people like you buy their products in large quantities and then sell them for a profit.

It's not like the unit economics are different for their other customers.

The only unknown variable will be if people will buy it at a higher price point.

However high you think your upper price threshold is for this product... I guarantee that there are people who will pay more than that.

Some people don't buy products because they are priced too low (which signals low quality).

But the higher the price, the more you are required to deliver on product quality, service quality, and marketing ability.

(3) Opportunity Cost + Sacrifice:
Pursuing entrepreneurial success means I must acknowledge the relevant opportunity costs. For me, this involves not pursuing certain careers/further education so I can maintain focus on my business work.

The opportunity cost of focusing on your career is sacrificing your future for the short-term.

The opportunity cost of entrepreneurship is sacrificing your short-term for your future.

It's your life, which way do you want to do it?

 

[Awoken]

I've done a lot of mental processing, and believe I've made some key distinctions.

These were greatly influenced by your criticism @circleme and your wisdom @amp0193. So thank you both so much, it really means a lot!


(1). Firstly, I see now that my problem is that I've not fully let go of the idea of a career (the SL). This is why I've recently been juggling the idea of finding a career I can do alongside Ecom/product branding... not because it will aid my Ecom process, but because it means I don't have to fully let go of the SL!

A significant reason why I'm struggling to fully commit to Ecom/product branding and leave the SL behind is because I have lost sight of the immense potential that Ecom/product branding offers. I'd become so obsessed about achieving a quick success to change my status quo that I had lost sight of the bigger picture = the opportunity and its life-changing potential!

I'm going to address this by essentially reminding myself of the epic potential Ecom/product branding offers + the negative consequences of not pursuing this and instead following the SL route. Cementing this belief into an unbreakable conviction will be crucial for driving my Ecom/product branding process. If I TRULY believe in the great potential of this process, I will be able to fully accept turning away from the career route for good, period.


(2). Once I've addressed (1), this leads on to what my next moves are. By acknowledging the long term process of Ecom, I need to address the status quo. For me, this is living with my mother who has strong conventional beliefs and has no understanding of what I'm doing. This has caused tension and is obviously pretty miserable. Also, I'm working part time in an entry-level position for the career of my degree. This job is so mentally draining, and every time I'm there I feel the claws of conventional life grasping at me. Big resistor!

Like you said @circleme, part of the reason I've been desperate for a quick Ecom success + I then returned to considering a full time career after realising success may not be so quick is due to my desperation to escape the status quo = escape the things making me miserable. This desperate need for status quo escape directly conflicts with accepting long term process/repeated failures/TRUE conviction in Ecom.

So, I must address my desperation to escape the status quo:

• I must accept my choices will not be well received by others -- This means accepting that I'll get slack from my mother and others about the path I'm taking. Best thing I can do here is figure out a way to pacify her and others as much as possible. This probably means not speaking to others about my Ecom/product branding work at all, which I regrettably have done before when I felt a need to talk through things. I don't think I could ever not care what my mother thinks, but I'll have to make peace with it. I believe TRUE conviction in Ecom should solve this as I will fully believe in my process eventually bearing fruit, meaning I know her slack will end once I achieve tangible success.
• I must quit my current job and find something compatible with my process -- The criteria for a compatible job with my Ecom process should never include career prospects as this means I'm not fully committed! It should simply = that it enables me to work to my full capacity on my Ecom work (doesn't consume all my time, doesn't drain my mental energy... not a major resistor) + it provides income to cover my basic life expenses and fund my Ecom process.

These currently feel like a massive step, as I've not yet addressed (1). I know success of these changes is fully dependent on my TRUE Ecom conviction, as this is necessary to eradicate the relevant fears and doubts.

So, I'm going to fully focus on addressing (1). And I'll know I've cemented a strong enough conviction when I've addressed (2)!


(3). At the same time, I'm continuing to work on my product. I'm discussing details with the most expensive supplier (the good quality one). I've also contacted a few other suppliers again that asked for a higher unit cost and I'd previously looked over.

Basically, a big lesson I've learnt here is that a supplier's price isn't everything. A low price isn't always the best!

Why wouldn't it work? Why panic? Just raise the retail price to whatever it needs to be to make a profit.

This supplier is in business because people like you buy their products in large quantities and then sell them for a profit.

It's not like the unit economics are different for their other customers.

However high you think your upper price threshold is for this product... I guarantee that there are people who will pay more than that.

Some people don't buy products because they are priced too low (which signals low quality).

But the higher the price, the more you are required to deliver on product quality, service quality, and marketing ability.

Reading this genuinely felt like gold to me @amp0193. It made things seem so much clearer and simpler than I'd made them out to be in my head. I can't thank you enough!

Firstly, it applies common sense to my experience with suppliers; better quality products will demand higher unit costs. Secondly, it helps me better relate my product to the existing seller products by understanding that current sellers are dealing with the same unit economics as me. It puts me figuratively next to the other sellers and tells me 'You need to figure out how to make changes to this product that provide relative value while being economically viable. It's that simple!'

Your wisdom about pricing is great too and has been extremely valuable for me. My intended higher pricing is something I've been flip-flopping about since the start. I have solid soft proof that people will pay a price even greater than the range I will offer for an imperfect product in the same category.

And yet the doubt about whether my product will work repeatedly returns .
'Will they like my design?'
'I'm not sure if I should keep or remove this feature...'
'Is there a market here for a premium version of this product?'

Marketing and service are things I'm confident I will deliver on - I don't know exactly how yet but I'll learn as needed! But the product design doubts have made me feel I need to lower prices as much as I can to minimise the risk.

Your advice has stopped that and I've rethought my pricing strategy. I understand this product design doubting is my inexperience and lack of confidence, and it will lessen as I progress through my process. Reminding myself that I'll never know how a product will be received until I launch and assess customer feedback (3As) is key!

Again, I honestly believe that no one with a real FTE would think about opportunity costs at your point in the journey. It's like saying: Well, this entrepreneurship-thingy sounds nice, but I could earn 50k per year otherwise in a safe 9 to 5, compared to 10% success rate and only a few $. It doesn't work like this imho.

Regarding whether my mental breakdown was a FTE or not, you could be right @circleme. All I know is the emotional pain I felt was so strong that it has made me reassess everything and take action more than anything else ever has. It's made me think how my mind thinks and determine what needs to change.

I don't think a FTE magically changes how your mind thinks, it gives you the drive to change it yourself. How you think is a choice, right?


Gonna crack on with work now. Cheers to you reading this.

 

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[amp0193]

And yet the doubt about whether my product will work repeatedly returns .
'Will they like my design?'
'I'm not sure if I should keep or remove this feature...'
'Is there a market here for a premium version of this product?'

Only way to get answers to these things is to test. You will never have all the answers before you start. Sometimes you have to take the leap.

me feel I need to lower prices as much as I can to minimise the risk.

1. Sell the product at the maximum price you think you can sell it at, to the customer who the product is most for.
2. if it doesn't sell, work on your marketing. Sell the value of the product. Attract the right kind of customer.
3. Iterate and repeat.
4. If it still doesn't sell, then drop the price, sell out the inventory, and find something else to do.

But starting with a low price is a guarantee for failure. If you sell through the inventory, so what? You won't have enough margin to scale, hire a team, cover overhead, etc. You won't have any margin to advertise, again, limiting scale.

Your risk is low when selling physical products. Generally the worst case scenario (unless you are bad at marketing, or the product quality is a disaster), is that you can blow out the inventory for around the cost that you paid for it. This is the plan C, after Plan A and Plan B have failed. But you don't start with Plan C.

 

[Awoken]

Thanks again @amp0193 for your great advice. It's made me realise I was going about things totally wrong with pricing and has been extremely helpful!

I'm working with suppliers to get a final sample sorted so I can do financial assessments before bulk order. The slowness of the back and forth frustrates me, but I understand it's just part of the process.


At the same time, I'm going back to basics. I'm rereading & studying TMF & Unscripted . I know I've let myself forget some of the foundational knowledge they hold, and I need to fix this.

After my recent encounter with overwhelming fear of failure (FTE), I've reflected on the past few months and it's shown me I've failed to address several beliefs/behavioural patterns.

The first is fear of failure itself and how I overcome it. I understand my primary fear is of overall failure in life. This is what keeps me from fully detaching from the SL, as I currently view fully committing to the FL as a path that could fail to bring success. This is why my initial reaction after my overwhelming fear of failure was to see if I could pursue a FL biz alongside a SL career (which I expressed in the first post of this thread), as this would mean I could avoid the risk of fully pursuing FL.
Overcoming this is proving tough for me. It's on my mind all the time, and I find myself at one moment feeling ultra confident about my FL path, but the next moment I'm doubting again. Then come the secondary fears like whether Ecom is the 'best' FL pursuit for me to commit to, whether my product is good etc. It's exhausting honestly.

Reflection also showed me I wasn't as focused as I need to be. I've addressed this by quitting social media for good, selling my gaming tablet, restricting other distractions etc. I thought I was focused before but now I realise there was a lot of room for improvement, my focus has drastically improved already!

I'm also creating a new system for me to note, store, and review knowledge. I believe reviewing knowledge regularly is key to prevent it being lost, allowing it to become cemented into permanent knowledge through action and experience. I've tried other systems like writing in notebooks, but I never felt they worked for me. So I'm assessing the issues from my last system and creating a new digital system that I'm very optimistic about.

That's me right now. My biggest obstacle is overcoming this fear; I get so angry with myself. I'm so determined to succeed, I know I just need to definitively choose a road and go all in... yet this fear stops me doing that! I'm optimistic that rereading TMF & Unscripted will bring me clarity and let me create key distinctions to combat fear of failure for good. Reigniting my belief in the FL success potential + my belief in the negative consequences of the SL is key.

Cheers to you for reading this