Why do you do what you do?
I want to share a time in my life where I wasn’t clear on my dreams…and was getting exactly what I was looking for. Lots of work and no forward progression.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve had several moments while I was building my business where I was ready to just give up….
In the first 2-3 years of my business, in fact. You could say I was incredibly successful. After just 2 years, 1 year being full-time, I was consistently getting new clients, and starting lots of projects! I was thrilled!
What most people didn’t see was the life I was living. I was also so focused on work that I was working 12+ hours each day(!) to get that work completed. I was ok because it was my early 20’s and I had plenty of energy but it still deeply affected my health. I would start working about 7 or 8 in the morning and go through until 5pm, because I felt like that was when I needed to work. Even though I was working from home, I had this enormous pressure on myself to work a proper workday with no distractions.
However, I am also a night owl and would hit a wave of inspiration at about 9-10pm at night and get right back to work. I loved those nighttime hours because I could just focus on projects without being interrupted by emails or calls, and would usually work until midnight or even later. Only to wake up at 5 or 6 to start again! In fact, there is a time when I explored extreme sleep cycles such as the Everyman and the Dymaxion cycles. I was so sleep deprived that I could barely function. I specifically remember 3 months where I only got 4 hours of sleep a night. In the end, I was hardly functional. Even walking down the hallway I was tripping on the carpet.
What I also remember about those times is leaving family gatherings early to get back to work because I had so many projects and deadlines. Or saying no to getting together with friends in the evenings because I had too much work to do.
Now there is one thing to invest time into your business and support it while it’s growing, but it is another thing to give up your whole life in the pursuit of making more money / having a successful business.
Money is for choices, and should not be the goal in itself.
So, what gave in the end? I had to get support and accountability. I had to work with a coach who helped me put myself as a priority, who helped me focus my days and who helped me have gratitude for all the good in my life. And then she held me accountable to my goals!
Today I am happy to say that I take naps in the day when I feel tired, I’ve created a system of working that meets me in my optimal times and I have perspective on why I work and why I do what I do. Yesterday the sun was out and the weather was amazing so I moved my schedule around to take extra time in the afternoon to enjoy the warmth. 10 years ago I could never have imagined doing that!
I know my case may be a little extreme because of my perfectionism, my drive and even the stage of life that I was in (no family responsibilities). But many new business owners often find themselves waiting until the evening to jump right back into work and get just a few more hours in to catch up. Or passing on important events to finish up a project. I’m not saying that investing the time isn’t worth it, but I am saying that you need a bigger vision of where you are heading.
Why do you do what you do?
Have you stopped to take the time to consider that question? Why do you do the work you do? The business you do? In fact, why do you wake up each morning? And how do you wake up each morning? Is it with dread? Or excitement for what the day offers you?
You need to know the answer to this question – to know your why.
You know this! You’re a smart and successful business woman. Yet you don’t always do it. Why is that? Because there is a level of accountability and support that is needed to help overcome day-to-day life.
In addition to accountability, I’ve learned through top mentors how to create a successful and powerful day, and to create beliefs that become thoughts, that shape my words to create action that turn into habits that help me create the life I love.
Are you feeling stressed out and overwhelmed by your business? Do you have to sneak in extra hours but still struggle to move forward? I hear you because I’ve been there.
Are you having trouble finding focus? Do you feel like your dream is on the back burner while you build your business?
Join me for your free Intro Intuitive Success session and we can discuss your wild, crazy soul dreams sitting in your heart, and how you can create your dream life too.
