Note from Chris: This is a guest post from El Edwards.
It’s Monday morning, the first day of a brand new week. You stare at the blank, white screen in front of you, cursor flashing. What on earth are you going to do today?!
You pull out your planner, to-do list, GTD system or the good old fashioned diary, but it might as well be written in ancient Greek for all the help it gives you. You’re stuck.
Coffee? That’ll help won’t it? It’s bound to shift this fog and get you back in the right direction toward amassing your fortune, earning your keep, and generally keeping the proverbial wolf from the door. Because, let’s be honest, you don’t have time for this do you? You’ve a business to run.
There’s a whole world of stuff you should and could be doing right now but none of it feels right. Woah! Hang on a minute there cowboy. Feels? What’s this feeling nonsense you talk of? You’re an entrepreneur. You deal in plans and figures and goal setting and targets. Since when did you let your feelings dictate your work flow?
Well I have news for you sweetie. Feelings are what got you here in the first place.
Think back to why you started playing this game. What made you turn your back on the regular nine to five working for the man? Did it have something to do with dreams? Maybe a desire to spend more time with loved ones? Perhaps you wanted to earn a bit of cash whilst travelling the world? Forget travelling the world, do you have a desire to change it?
Whatever got you into this game, it certainly wasn’t facts, figures and balance sheets. Whether you choose to acknowledge it or not, your feelings have got you on this path so it’s time to play them at their own game. It’s time to start recognising your feelings for what they are and get real.
Stop pretending that you have it all together. The very next time your world feels a bit foggy, look around you. He might never admit it, but that guy over there in the slick suit and fancy tie? Yes him. He’s been where you are right now. And Ms ‘I have three degrees and six suits from Gucci’? She’ll be there next week. You are not alone.
The stuff whirling around inside that lovely head of yours is amazing. You can do such awesome stuff. But on the day that the fog descends, on the day when everything around you suddenly feels wobbly, you will feel all alone and shut off.
I’m here to blow the whistle on all that nonsense. The sooner we start being honest about this entrepreneurial journey of ours, the easier and more fun it will be.
Imagine that you’re having a dark day. Not black but certainly a darker shade of grey.
Just as you’re beginning to feel like the most frustrated person on the planet, your phone rings. It’s your best friend. A person who you not only respect and adore as a friend, but someone who you look up to in business too. So you pick up the phone expecting to hear of their latest triumph but instead, they tell you that they have a secret to share with you.
You grab another cup of coffee, ready for a tale of secret travels for their spouse’s birthday next month. But no, it’s not that kind of secret:
“Shhh, don’t tell anyone. I have something to tell you. I feel like a fake and a fraud. Everyone sees me as this hugely successful person. They respect my opinion and think I’m great. But the thing is, who am I to think I can run this multi-national corporation? I’m just me. Who am I kidding?!”
Wow! You land in your seat with a bump, the air knocked out of your lungs in shock. And then smiling and breathing a sigh of relief, you recover and prepare to welcome your friend to the club.
When was the last time you heard a peer own up to this darker side of business? Do you ever look around at your contemporaries and feel a slight tinge of envy because they have no worries?
I have news for you my friend. Every single person on this planet has days like this. There are some great actors in our circle but it’s an illusion.
It’s time to start being honest. It’s time to start being real. It’s time to shine a light on the dark stuff so it has no-where to hide. Who’s with me?
El Edwards is a muse and writes Heaven and El where she inspires people to live their dreams in an honest and authentic way. You can read more about El’s vision in her manifesto, Like A Breath Of Fresh Air. She’s also the founder of UK registered charity Give A Brick where she uses social media to empower unconditional love and giving.
