When your business dies, it’s called failure. When it dies and you learn from it, it’s called a pivot. Mindset is everything.
Look. People keep asking me about my dropshipping business. “Dalton, didn’t that fail?” No. It pivoted. Understanding the difference between failing vs pivoting is crucial for anyone who wants to think like a wealth creator. I’ve pivoted four times this year. That’s four times more wisdom than people who haven’t tried anything.
The average person sees a closed business and thinks failure. However, the entrepreneurial mind sees a closed business and thinks: lesson learned, tuition paid, story for the podcast I’ll eventually start.
Why Failing Vs Pivoting Matters
Here’s the thing about failing vs pivoting. The outcome is the same. The business stops. The money is gone. Your ex sends a screenshot to your family group chat. Nevertheless, how you frame it determines everything.
Failure is a mindset. Pivoting is a strategy. Consequently, I don’t fail. I strategically discontinue ventures while harvesting insights for future deployment. As I explained in my piece about strategic liquidity positions, language shapes reality.
My Pivot History (A Case Study)
Let me walk you through my pivots. First, there was the dropshipping business. It pivoted after four months when I realized the market was oversaturated. Actually, I realized this after losing $8,000, but the timing is semantic.
Then there was the mastermind coaching program. Similarly, it pivoted when refund requests exceeded new sales. Some call that a failed business model. I call it customer feedback driving strategic realignment.
The cryptocurrency investment—the $FREEDM coin that was going to decentralize patriotism—also pivoted. Specifically, it pivoted into a valuable lesson about due diligence. Additionally, it pivoted $11,000 of my money into someone else’s wallet. But that’s what tuition costs.
How To Pivot Like A Wealth Builder
First, never admit failure. Instead, announce a pivot. Use phrases like “strategic repositioning” and “market-responsive adaptation.” Furthermore, update your LinkedIn immediately. Change your title to something that sounds like progress.
Second, extract lessons. Every failed—sorry, pivoted—venture contains wisdom. The wisdom might just be “don’t do that again,” but that counts. Therefore, you’re always winning, even when your bank account suggests otherwise.
The Wealth Mindset Difference
Poor people fail. Wealthy people pivot. The only difference is the story you tell yourself and others. Meanwhile, I’ve been telling a very positive story for three years now.
Am I where I want to be financially? I’m in a transitional phase. But I’m pivoting toward success. Any day now.
The key is to keep pivoting until something works. It’s not failure if you never stop trying. It’s just a really long pivot.
Not financial advice. Obviously.
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