How about a pick-me-up??
Just a little bit more about entrepreneurialism:
Before I continue, I’d like to plant a few seeds in your minds by asking a series of questions:
- Are you mentally prepared to quit your job, tomorrow?
- Can you handle rejection?
- Do you love sleeping, to the point where you can’t go a day without a minimum of five to six hours?
- Are you comfortable playing multiple roles, sometimes at the same time (yes, like Clark Kent and Peter Parker)?
If your answer to any of these questions is no, I urge you to think about your next move.
There are many false pre-conceptions to being an entrepreneur. The first and most self-destructive is the ‘this is easy’ perception.
Far from it, being an entrepreneur is the direct opposite. Mentally there is nothing harder than investing all you have into your business – time, money, passion and creativity. You begin to eat, sleep and number two your business – it becomes obsessive!
As opposed to your regular day job, whereby one carries out a fixed set of tasks outlined in their job profiles, being an entrepreneur requires you to work harder and longer. It takes you from doing a job you knew how to do in excellence; managing accounts for example, to doing the same job, plus an extra ten that you were previously oblivious to. You have got to learn and learn quickly to survive.
Being an entrepreneur is about understanding your ‘modus operandi’ and breaking beyond that. What you will come to find, sometimes harshly, is that 100% work performance just isn’t enough. This may get you the promotion you seek working for your boss but when you ARE the boss: it all changes. This truly hits home when you remember that your personal savings or mortgage are on the line.
To some, this may seem like bread and butter – that’s good. You are prepared to chase the dream and battle on in the wake of adversity (believe me there will be such moments). It’s innate! For some, it is more of an ‘acquired-taste’. You learn to do what is required to get to your dream. Both traits are suitable. For the others you may soon realise that your dream of independence and a carefree career is nothing more than a dream. To be honest, it all depends on how much you want it, your passion.
It begs the question, with the stress, frustration, immense workload and hardship, why would one want to become an entrepreneur? Quite simply, it’s rewarding (financially and emotionally), self-gratifying a medium for innovation and creativity and the benefits outweigh the negatives.
The key is to trust your gut instincts and understanding your purpose. Entrepreneurialism is far more than a fashion statement. It doesn’t come and go like materialistic objects that fly in and out of our lives. It doesn’t have a peak or off season! Entrepreneurialism is a way of life or maybe, your raison d’etre.
“You are built not to shrink down to less but to blossom into more”
“The right to choose your own path is a sacred privilege. Use it” Oprah Winfrey
