The lessons I learnt from my business failure

Rebuilding and Helping Others: A New Chapter

So, where do I find myself now? Well, here’s the thing: I am doing now what I wanted to do in 2008 but didn’t know how. Back then, I realized how alone I was, desperate for some good advice, and yet I still wanted to help others. Instead of moaning about the bad luck I was having (or would have for the next ten years), I decided that I should help others avoid my mistakes.

It’s a passion I’ve kept despite setbacks and find myself promoting through Yellowstone Accounts. Every opportunity to learn that I came across I wanted to impart onto others, mainly to save them the pain, but I just didn’t have the time. Fast forward to 2024, and here I am, able to share with others a platform that allows them to do what I couldn’t: shortcut their way to success, or at its most basic, have a conversation with someone who really does understand what it’s like to be in their shoes.

As the Martin Luther King quote goes, “I have a dream,” and my dream is simple. I’m standing on a stage, with people in front of me who have read my book (yet unfinished or started), sharing ideas that can help people achieve the success they are desperately looking for. At the end of my speech (which went well), someone stands up and says that my book changed their life.

No, not a paid actor, but a normal person, someone I’ve never met, who’s never used any of my companies, who by chance read my book and achieved incredible success. How great would that be, to have helped someone without ever meeting them? Then I’d know I’ve created a legacy, built a way to influence people’s fortunes even after I die. That would be great, and 2007 me would have loved it.

Conclusion: Building a Platform for Success

But I’m not there yet. Why would anyone even buy that book? So, for now, I need to focus on giving them a reason to listen to me, and the reason is this: I’m building a platform for 2007 Will. A platform that

means I would have never failed, a platform that meant I could avoid the years of pain. So where does one start when trying to build a platform to help others? Well, as it turns out, with accountancy. When I started out (not this time, the first time), I had a good accountant, and I told them everything, but I never got anything back. I was just a number.

They had all the insight into what I really needed but none of the foresight to help me out. I needed an accountant that didn’t just want to speak to me once a year. I needed an accountant that said, “Don’t worry, I’ve seen this before,” and “this is what you need to do.”

And what about the blog? Surely that’s not going to make us any money at all? Well, firstly, I guess that book isn’t going to write itself, but more importantly, as I hope I’ve explained, none of this is about money. I just want to help you manage the stress, strain, and workload of growth. Of course, I can help you with resources, but not everyone needs that. Some people just need good advice. Over the coming months, I will translate the thousands of words I keep in my diary onto here, meaning if you don’t want to pick up the phone or go for a coffee, you can still get access to my advice for free and hopefully learn something along the way.

I can’t promise it’s all golden; I certainly can’t promise it will all translate to your life, but what I can promise is that it comes from a place of wishing you the utmost success in whatever venture you choose. If I can sit here in ten years’ time and one person says, “Will, that post you did, it transformed my life,” then those are all the wins I need.