The First Ingredient to Your Business Success

Have you read The Wise Woman's Stone story?

It's a very short story by an unknown author that is more of a parable than a story. I used this story in my upcoming book . . .

Discovering Your Inner Samurai
The Entrepreneurial Woman's Journey to Business Success

. . . to ask a very important question: What is the unique, exclusive, exceptional gift that you and only you have to offer to your clients and customers that no one else has?

When you know that answer, you will have discovered the first ingredient to your business success.

Here's the story:

A wise woman who was traveling in the mountains found a precious stone in a stream. Admiring it for its beauty, she picked it up and put it into her bag. The next day she met a fellow traveler who was hungry. She opened her bag to share her food, and when she did, the hungry traveler saw the precious stone within and asked the woman to give it to him. She did so without hesitation. After they ate together, the traveler left, rejoicing in his good fortune. He knew the stone was precious and worth a lot of money . . . enough to give him shelter and feed him for life. But a few days later he came back to return the stone to the wise woman.

‘I've been thinking,’ he said, ‘I know how valuable the stone is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even more precious. Show me what you have within you that enabled you to give me the stone.’ 

That which enabled the wise woman to give her fellow traveler the stone was her unique gift to the world. It wasn’t the stone — the hungry man recognized that soon enough. It was something she had that was far greater than the stone.

What do you have within yourself? What is the unique, exclusive, exceptional gift that you have to offer? What rare or uncommon part of you needs to be expressed at this time in the world? What will keep your clients and customers coming back to you and asking for more, like the hungry man bringing back the stone to the wise woman? It will be the essence of who you are. This is the first ingredient of your business success.

So what's your answer? What do you have to offer that sets you apart? Do tell!

The original Accidental Pren-her™

Comments

[Dana]

With your help, Susan, I've come to know some of the answers to these questions. They used to confound me until I let them go, and then recognized the answers when they revealed themselves to me.

[The Original Accidental Pren-her]

Ah yes, you've added the necessary ingredient, Dana -- letting go. The very act of letting go allows for the unveiling, doesn't it? So simple and so profound. Thanks for adding that piece!

[Verna Wilder]

This is such a good question, Susan. It's also very good when interviewing someone for a job. So many applicants have the right skills, but what would they each offer that is their own gift to give?

Have you ever read The Gift by Lewis Hyde? I think you'd enjoy it.

[The Original Accidental Pren-her]

You are right, Verna, what a great interview question.

I was watching the "Nanny Diaries" the other day, and before the nanny became a nanny, she went on traditional job interview and was asked the question, "so, who is Annie Braddock?" She had trouble answering. Both those questions -- "who are you," and "what unique gift do you have to offer" are good ones for women to know for themselves.

No, I have not read "The Gift." Thanks for the recommendation.