Many of you have heard me say that the Juice Plus+ Virtual Franchise is a course in personal development, cleverly disguised as a business. And, that’s true. Building a solid business, encouraging a team and leading people—all of that means we must grow. We must get wiser, more focused and more confident and competent.

Personal development usually means that we need more to move forward—more skills, more understanding, more education, more expertise.

“Read this book, and your business will take off.”

“Watch the video and your team will explode.”

“Attend the next conference and learn how to lead your team.”

However, some of my biggest steps in personal development have come not from addition, but through subtraction. Not from piling on more stuff, but letting go of things I never realized were holding me back.

Here they are—three things we have to let go of, in my opinion, to grow and develop as a person and encourage the people on our teams.

The first is the compulsion to be successful.

How strange of me to suggest such a thing! But wait, success is not just about making money. Maybe it would help if I substituted for “successful” something like “approved” or “accepted” or “highly esteemed” or “getting the credit.” One of the things I am continually letting go is the hustle for human approval. Please think about that.

The second is the compulsion to be right.

Before joining the Juice Plus+ Company, I was in the Christian ministry where the compulsion to be right—theologically right—is a crippling disease. And because of this compulsion, churches and families have ended up split in half—not because of genuine spiritual concerns but usually because of huge ego trips.

In the Juice Plus+ “culture of encouragement,” let’s purposefully let go of those inner demons telling us that if someone doesn’t agree with us, we need to wrestle them to the ground. Please, let it go.

The third is the compulsion to be powerful. 

It’s our need to have everything under control.

Good luck on that one in our business. Does anyone need to be reminded that we don’t have any employees on our teams? Controlling others through disapproval or criticism or putdowns is a losing and destructive compulsion in our business model. It’s not who we are. So let it go.

Doesn’t this stir our desire to grow and develop as a person? How else can we learn to lead, inspire and encourage people to achieve their dreams?

So the next time we’re trying to figure out how to take our business and our teams to the next level, first consider letting go of some things in order to move forward.