Most of us have a dream we are trying to pursue or want to pursue. For many that dream involves working for ourselves and starting a business.
The dreaming part is fun. We think of how it will be when we get to live that dream. We have a very clear vision of how life will be. We imagine how our days will look like and all the incredible things we will get to do. Dreaming is kind of like watching a movie where everything just unfolds the way we want it to. As we are dreaming that movie plays in our head over and over again until we know it by heart.
One day you decide to start building. You work on it during any spare time you have. You start wishing you could do your dream full-time. The movie playing in your head fuels you on. You know exactly where you are going and how life will be when you can finally live your dream.
Then one day you get the chance to do just that. Live your dream. And reality hits you. Reality is not like the movie. Reality is full of things that were never added to the script and there is no safety net to rely on.
In the movie everything went easy. Reality is full of ups and downs. The client or clients you had decide to take their business elsewhere. The printer breaks down. Projects you are working on that were supposed to be easy turns out to take five times longer than you planned. You end up having to hire someone to help you. In your movie you never worked more than 4 hours a day but in reality you are working 12-14 hour days, seven days a week. In your movie every product you launch is hugely successful and sells out. Reality is that molasses may move faster than your product launches.
When it comes to pursuing a dream dreaming is the easy part. The building your dream while living your dream part? It can be exhausting and scary. It’s full of challenges and the main reason as to why so many give up once they hit this part.
Living your dream is hard work. At the same time it’s incredible exciting and rewarding. You are in charge of your own destiny. You’re working on something that makes you lose track of time and something your heart is fully engaged in. You are no longer just working on your dream in the margins. You are no longer watching this made up movie. You are the movie, albeit a bit different than you had envisioned.
As you are dreaming and starting to build remember to add a lot of reality to your dream. If in your movie it takes a month to do something, rewrite the script to three months. If in your movie you envision yourself working from a cafe in Paris, sipping cappuccino while money is coming in so fast from your first product launch it takes down your website, just envision yourself sipping cappuccino in Paris.
But don’t let reality discourage you. It’s all part of pursuing and living your dream. It’s not supposed to be all fun and games. If it was, everyone would do it.
What has been your biggest challenge so far pursuing your dream? Please answer in the comment section.
This is a great post Camilla! My biggest challenge has been finding enough clients to just give my coaching a shot. And thus gaining credibility has been a challenge.
Graham recently posted…The Grounded Father
Thank you Graham! Finding clients is hard. Have you tried setting up a “meet and greet” where those interested can come and talk to you? Speaking is another great way to be seen and heard. It’s easy to feel discouraged seeing some coaches take off fast but many of those have a huge community built up already. Go out on the radio. Local newspaper. Keep putting yourself out there and people will come to you asking you to coach them.
These are great suggestions. I would also recommend doing a free or discounted first session. You may want to help a few people to test your coaching and get good recommendations. Give them a great rate for great word of mouth. Also consider referral discounts. Eventually, the word of mouth spreads and you can pull back the discounts.
Kristin recently posted…Don’t let your lifestyle creep up on your income
This post is so spot on. When I started my business, everything took longer than I thought it would. i work more hours now than I did when working a regular job but I love what I do and I love the freedom I have.
Before jumping in, make sure you have a solid and realistic plan. Doing a budget for your business is really helpful, especially when trying to determine if you can scale it to make enough money to replace your day job.
Kristin recently posted…Don’t let your lifestyle creep up on your income
Definitely good advice to have your finances in order. It’s easy to think that if you only have more time you can generate more money and that’s not a guarantee.
“If it was easy, everyone would do it.” you nailed it with that one, Camilla. Most of the time I’m motivated and getting enough small wins to keep air in my sails. But, on a cloudy day when nothing is going like it should, it’s hard to get focused. Thinking of the end goal and just moving forward is sometimes the only way to make it. Enjoyed the read.
Brad recently posted…Did You Ever Start Something and Not Finish? Here’s Where Most People Slip (including me)
Thanks Brad! It’s a roller coaster for sure. Good days are awesome but the bad days – they can be brutal. Remembering your why and your goal is the only way to ride out the rough seas.