Are you disappointed enough in yourself to do something about it?

I love being an entrepreneur. After spending the first 19 years of my career working for ad agencies owned by other people I decided to start my own. That was almost 4 years ago. It was also a leap year. Which is a good year to do anything because it gives you a 24 hour advantage. I tell this to presidential candidates and olympic hopefuls all the time.

The Reaction

Since I launched my advertising and idea agency, The Weaponry, people often treat me like I am doing something impressive. Or daring. They are positive and supportive of my entrepreneurial adventure. I often hear from people who want to launch their own business. They tell me I was really brave to set out on my own. But when I analyze the driving force behind my leap into entrepreneurship it was not bravery. Not even close.


I wanted to own my business since the beginning of my career. I envisioned myself as a business owner or business launcher-type-guy. Whatever that meant. In fact, in my head it was so clear that I would be an entrepreneur that after 15 years of working for other people I considered myself a failure for not actually being a real entrepreneur.

Disappointment for the win!

Eventually, it was the disappointment, and  sense of dissatisfaction in myself that finally moved things forward. Don’t get me wrong, I like myself. But I have a strong vision of my ideal self. And whenever I am not acting in accordance with that vision, or I am too far off the pace I set in my head, I really bothers me. And that disappointment and embarrassment is a powerful fuel. One we should guzzle regularly.

Disappointment (Is better den dat appointment)

Most people never become so disappointed in themselves that it propels them forward. But that is extremely valuable. An injury to your pride is one of the best things that can happen to you. You don’t have to become a prostitute or a heroin addict. Because there is a point of diminishing returns. You just need to be incongruent with your self perception. That feeling eventually pushes you forward like the other side of the magnet.

Key Takeaway.

Create a strong image of who you really are at your core. Write a glorious story about yourself in your head. Make it vivid and real. Think about it all the time. And eventually you will get so fed up with not being that version of yourself that you will take drastic measures. It’s in those drastic measures that the magic happens. And when you do you will feel remarkably alive. Like you are no longer coasting through life. I hope that happens to you. Here’s to you experiencing disappointment in motivating quantities in 2020.


Published by

Adam Albrecht


9 thoughts on “Are you disappointed enough in yourself to do something about it?”

  1. I think this is especially true with college athletes that had enough success to be great in college, but not enough to go pro. So then most “settle” and get a job to pay bills. The internal burning desire to once again be great never goes away, so they either: 1) dominate at their job till they retire; or they 2) do just enough to be better than most while they put a plan together to find their true greatness!

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Very profound post! And this resonates so much with me. I’ve never been satisfied with working for someone else. So in 2015, I began pursuing my dream of being a published Author, blogger and advocate for bullied kids, teens and young adults. Now, five years later, I’ve published four books and have a growing blog so far. I also advocate for the bullied and speak about bullying and its devastating effects on people’s lives.

    I’m not where I want to be yet. But I’m getting there!

    How right you are about disappointment being your driving force!

    Thank you for this post!

    Liked by 1 person

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