This is part of an ongoing series of posts by our Entrepreneur in Residence, Kosta Ligris, focused on guidance for the student teams taking part in our MIT delta v accelerator.

“There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure” – Paulo Coelho

Teams: we are at the end of week two and it’s been a week with tons of content. I was welcomed with open arms at the NYC Startup Studio last week and really enjoyed meeting with some of our delta v NYC teams.

We had our first Founder’s Dinner in Cambridge with George Petrovas who talked about the values of listening to your customers and being super adaptive to how you can create value for them and solve their pain points.

George mentioned how critical time is (see last week’s EIR Reflections). I actually tested him by shooting him an email at 10:07pm and got a response at 10:08pm. It makes a HUGE impression on people. Never let any valuable lead or opportunity get cold. Connect quickly and stay connected!

Here is a quick read on Medium about using LinkedIn. I really love the concept of “the key is in the follow-up.” Who could use George as a resource? Have you pinged him yet?

Next, the Navy SEALs have an expression: “Get comfortable being uncomfortable.” I like the phrase so much I used it for the title of this post.

This quote applies to everything you do as an entrepreneur. Some examples:

• Having the tough conversations with your team. My experience is that procrastinating leads to terrible outcomes.
• Taking harsh or hyper critical feedback well (check out this article in the Harvard Business Review on “How to Be Resilient in the Face of Harsh Criticism“)
• Take the leap and cold call or email someone that could create value! The worst thing that could happen is they ignore you; the best outcome is priceless. That is a bet I am willing to take 10 times out of 10. Maybe this will help: Hate Cold Calling? 4 Steps to Get Over Your Fear

I have emailed Jeff Bezos twice. Sure I’m 0 for 2, but I’ll probably email him again. I emailed the CEO of Fannie Mae four or five times before he finally responded and connected me to his entire innovation/strategy group. Yes I think he did it to get rid of me, but guess what? Mission accomplished!

This week I’ve heard team members say things like “I think I can.” Be warned that I’m going to start interrupting you with “Yes You Can!” so be warned! Change your attitude and the way you communicate.

Get comfortable being uncomfortable! Still not convinced? Check out these other 7 things Navy SEALs say. So roll up your sleeves, get to work, and be “All in, all the time.”