Your Confidence Tanked… Now What? (Plus the Asset You’re Probably Ignoring That Pays Anyway)
and a bit of motorcycle history
A note before we dive in —
A genuine thank you to Albert, the first Founder-level subscriber at Burke’s Bits. That’s not a small thing, and I want to acknowledge it.
As a Founder, Albert gets the full picture: the monthly What I Actually Think issue — longer, deeper, no filters. Free access to the growing digital product library. Priority access to Research on Request, where once a month I take one subscriber-submitted question and research it properly. The quarterly Research Brief, a deep-dive document that goes well beyond the newsletter. And yes — his name in print, right here.
Glad you pulled up your chair and joined me, Albert. Welcome to the inner circle.
In today’s edition of Burke’s Bits:
Failure isn’t hard - Phooey!
A Marketing Tip
What I’m Reading
From the Research File
Pun of the Day
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Okay. To those who say “failure isn’t hard” — I say Phooey!
If you write social media posts and Substack articles that tell us to look at failure as a learning lesson, to relax because everyone fails, to not get ‘caught up’ in the negative...
Phooey!
I bet you never launched a product and had it bring in $10 when it was forecasted to bring in $15,000.
Fluff advice doesn’t work in the real world, does it?
I know, I know… there really isn’t failure, there’s only learning.
The thing is that when we’re feeling it? Oh my lord… are we feeling it! Am I right?
So what are we to do when we’re in the middle of feeling it?
I just read an email from someone who is really down.
They feel like a failure because they didn’t hit their revenue goal. Now they’re questioning why they’re even in this business... why they ever thought it was possible to sell their own program.
Their confidence has taken a real hit and want to know - now what?
Well, if this is you, I want to share a few things that might help.
It’s not the end of the world.
Yeah, I know, it sure does feel like it.
You had a lot of hope in that new product, in the joint venture, in the program you released. I get it. You put a lot of work into it and you did all the “right” things - you expected it to work.
Give yourself a little time to get angry. One of my favorite ways to release that anger is to get physical. Stomp around the house. Slam the fists on the bed. Get a foam tube and beat up an oak tree. Wear myself out. Hey, it works - try it.
Once the anger has passed it’s time to look at that confidence. It took a hit. Hey, you were confident it was going to work. You were wrong. Your confidence is now 3 feet deep in the ground. Let’s get it back up!
How? Here are a few things I’ve done that really help.
Take a break. Get out and do something you enjoy. You need to de-stress after a major setback.
Remember your past successes. This is where a success file comes in handy…where you record/save/copy every success and file it away for future use. Because, whether those successes were in business or not…you finished something. You won something. You achieved a goal. Remember those times. You see, you haven’t always been a failure, right? You did some things right, right? You need to remember that...to know that...to feel that.
Forgive yourself for not getting it right this time. Here’s a secret: Truly successful people learn and move on precisely because they know how to forgive themselves first. It’s just as bad to be mean to yourself as it is to be mean to others. The moment you realize this and learn to forgive yourself is the moment you give yourself permission to rise again and make things happen.
Now, take a look at what went wrong. Really look at it with fresh eyes. If you can get someone else to look over your project and review all the details...even better! Look for what went right and what went wrong. Just because it didn’t work this time, doesn’t mean it can’t work the next time.
Now, make a plan based on what you’ve learned.
When I did all of the above I got excited again. Excited about the potential to meet or exceed my revenue goal. I stood up straighter and taller. I felt good. I was able to contact a few people to see if they wanted to joint venture on this new project. I got my confidence back.
You can feel that way, too.
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A Marketing Tip
Your biggest off-the-books asset isn’t your product or your marketing… it’s your customer relationships.
Most businesses overlook this and chase new leads while ignoring the people who already said “yes.”
Stay in touch. Check in within 5 days after the sale. Thank them, reassure them, and remind them they made a smart decision.
That simple follow-up builds trust, reduces buyer’s doubt, and quietly sets the stage for repeat business.
Treat your best customers like insiders with early access and better deals. When people feel seen and valued, they come back.
Your customer list isn’t just a spreadsheet, it’s a living asset. If you’re not using it, you’re leaving money on the table.
It’s far easier to sell to someone who already trusts you than to win over a stranger.
Every lost customer takes future revenue with them, not just the one sale.
So before chasing more attention, take better care of the attention you already earned.
Do that well, and your business starts to grow with less pushing and a lot more momentum.
And yes, the above is marketing.
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What I’m Reading
📚Edge of Collapse 2, 3, and 4 by Kyla Stone
You read that correctly. March 8 I shared about Book 1 of this series » Edge of Collapse
And now I’m starting Book 5.
What a ride!
I warned you the first book would catch you by the eyeballs and take you for a ride. I wasn’t wrong.
In between I finished The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon for book club (I’ll talk about that in another newsletter). But, after every chapter I returned to this series.
Fast paced. Well written. With a few surprising turns.
Want a thriller?
Want a survival story?
Want a psychopath who seems to defy all ways to stop him?
This is the series for you.
A decade or so ago it would have been published as a single novel. Had it been published that way today I bet it wouldn’t have been read by 1/2 the readers.
It works well this way. Be warned, though, each book leaves you hanging and you will want to proceed to the next one as quickly as possible.
I’ll offer my review of the entire series when I’ve finished 5, 6, and 7.
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From the Research Files
aka random bits of info you may or may not be able to use in your life
In 1969, American Machine and Foundry bought Harley-Davidson and decided the problem with motorcycles was… not enough of them.
So they made more. Faster.
Unfortunately, they also made more oil leaks, more defects, and more customers quietly questioning their life choices on the side of the highway.
Meanwhile, Honda and friends rolled in with bikes that actually started every time. Rude.
By the early 80s, Harley was in trouble. The kind of trouble where spreadsheets get very serious and coffee gets very strong.
So a group of executives bought the company back and did something unexpected:
They fixed the bikes…
and then stopped trying to win on “better.”
Instead, they asked: What does a Harley mean?
Turns out, the answer wasn’t horsepower.
It was identity, noise, leather, and that subtle “yes, I meant to be this loud” energy.
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Pun of the Day
Keep calm and kickstart your day.
Motorcycle humor? That’s how I roll.
🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂
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With Gratitude,
Charlene Burke
If you think someone else would enjoy reading my random thoughts and shared every Sunday