Those of us who have the good fortune of working with creative and innovative entrepreneurs also know of the emotional peaks and valleys that confront these dedicated individuals.

Given that success is wholly based on total commitment and success is what drives them, it is no wonder that personal emotional states are often connected to the actual states of the businesses. When things are going well, they are on top of their world; when things are not going so well, they personify this as well.

While most successful business people expect this emotional connection, most also will attest to the need to properly channel it. Properly directing the “good” part is usually the easiest: success breeds success. It becomes a catalyst for energy to elevate past performances to new heights. Minor “bumps” of temporary setbacks are simply absorbed into the reservoir of positivity included in a successful trend.

But what about that period when things are not going so well? How do you fight the natural tendency of emotional lows to affect your everyday outlook and activity?

The first part of the answer resides in the question. You have to make up your mind to, indeed, fight it, and accept that it is a requirement that is not easy to fulfill. The important first step is to acknowledge that how you deal with this issue is a conscious decision; the next step is deciding on the mechanics.

Think about the following typical scenario and its likely repercussions. An entrepreneur is sitting at the desk, late at night reviewing the sales trends of the past few weeks.

The picture is grim. Despite hard efforts and the best of intentions, a steady decline is the result. Into the mind creeps the insidious “It’s just not fair!” mantra common to all failures. Self-pity all too often plays to a welcoming audience and at the end of the show there is this residue of victimization and not much else.

Left untreated, this emotional waste will effectively shut down any new initiatives (“Why try it if the world is against me?”) and ultimately spell doom for the person and the organization.

Contrast this with the person who sees the sales charts for what they really are — simply a numerical scoring system for the effectiveness of past programs. The operative word here is “past.”

Recognizing that there is nothing that can be done about these past results and accepting the full responsibility for future actions is the liberating thought process.

Grasping that one has total control on how to spend one’s time and then connecting control to productive activities removes the specter of victimization and energizes the practitioner.

Sustainable success in an entrepreneurial activity is hard. And perhaps the hardest part is dealing with this inherent rollercoaster ride of emotions.

Manage how you handle the ride, focus on what you can control, and you’ll increase your probability of success and maintain some semblance of sanity.

John F. Riddell Jr., director of the Center for Entrepreneurial Growth-Hamilton County, writes every other Tuesday about entrepreneurs and their impact on companies and the marketplace. Submit comments to his attention by writing to Business Editor John Vass Jr., Chattanooga Times Free Press, P.O. Box 1447, Chattanooga, TN 37401-1447, or by e-mailing him at business@timesfreepress.com

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