I have been thinking about this question since I first read Robb’s blog. It keeps hanging there in the back of my mind, waiting… irritating me.

What sounds like a simple process, isn’t quite so simple (at least for me, maybe I have problems…). You see, I have made some monumental mistakes. I mean Mount Everest mistakes. Mistakes so bad, I still shudder when I think of them.

How could I have been so stupid?

How could I have made such rotten decisions?

What could I possibly tell “young Dave” to help him navigate the tsunami of mistakes he will make? How can I help that poor, uninformed, naïve, young person heading into the business world?

And then, like a bolt of lightning, it hit me, more clearly than most things these days. What would I tell “young Dave”?

“Hey bud, you’re doing great! Don’t change a thing! It’s all gonna be great!”

The person that I am now is the result of the lessons that I learned from all of those mistakes. I like to think that I make better decisions, and am a more balanced person now. I like to think that PawnMaster is happy to have someone that isn’t afraid of the mistakes he has made, and is willing to make decisions and take chances. People who don’t make mistakes don’t take chances.

Take a chance. Don’t risk your business or family, but go outside the lines every once in a while. The thing that will make you great is the fact that you are willing to learn and grow, and that usually doesn’t happen without mistakes. Sadly, the mistakes are just part of the process.

I will leave you with something that I’ve told my daughter ever since she was a child…

Don’t let the world “happen” to you, instead, “happen” to your world. Be bold!! The world will always need those who are willing to let boldness be a part of their life.