Almost Quit Being An Entrepreneur… But This Is Why I Didn’t
This past weekend I went out alone in my city.
I met a couple of nice people, got a snack on my way home, then started crying in the car.
The feeling of “i don’t know what to do with my life” was setting on me HARD. In that moment I was just fed up with uncertainty. I was so ready to just stop pursuing online business and go back to pursuing medical school.
But these feelings are normal.
So whether it’s a personal brand, a business, or a social media channel that you want to build, these tips are going to help you move forward with clarity.
Move despite that darn uncertainty
I know this one is hard.
We like to be sure of the next 7 steps that we should take. It’s like we’re waiting for someone to knock on our door and tell us exactly what we need to do.
That won’t happen.
But that’s a good thing. This just means that when you DO finally reach a large goal of yours, you can proudly say that you did it on your own.
#Selfmade?
Here’s what you should do if you’re feeling uncertain about where you want to go in life and/or entrepreneurship:
- Write down ONE business model to explore at a time. Explore it for more than 2 weeks and see if you like it. What separates a successful entrepreneur from an unsuccessful one is that the successful one is consistent. The unsuccessful one changes their mind every 2 minutes.
- Stop telling people about your plans. Simple. Don’t invite unwanted energy into your plans because then you’ll get discouraged. Only take advice from people who are where you want to be.
- Write out what you want your life in the next couple of years to look like. This gives you conviction to keep moving forward. Also, you’ll be subconsciously manifesting it (coupled with action of course).
For the past entire year, I was learning about business models. I spent a whole year trying to make specific business model work.
I learned about selling t-shirts, affiliate marketing, social media management, youtube, course creation, etc.
In the end though, I’ve chosen to pursue one of the first business models that I explored: social media marketing. I’m also doing youtube.
Going from business model to business model is a pretty normal thing for new entrepreneurs to do.
In his youtube video, entrepreneur Dan Koe talks about how he also explored a lot of different business models until he made something work.
Are you born to be an entrepreneur?
These are the qualities that make great entrepreneurs:
- Eagerness to figure things out
- Bold and daring to try new stuff
- Gratitude for ANY lessons learned, no matter how difficult
- Resilience
- Ability to plan and stick to a system
This last one is important. It’s something i’ve struggled with, but it doesn’t have to be hard.
Just open up a google doc and write out a system for doing the things you want to do.
If it’s content, write out what platforms you’re posting content on and how frequently you’ll do that. Write any details about repurposing content onto other platforms if that’s one of your intentions, too.
The point is to have a general idea of a system that will help you if you stick to it. Don’t rip your hair out trying to make a complex system. Keeping things simple is so much better.
So write the frequency that you’ll be posting weekly or monthly. Write out what content you’ll post about. Write out your target audience. Stuff like that.
Even if you think you don’t have any of the qualities that would make a great entrepreneur, they’re things you can work on over time.
Remember that great entrepreneurs that start from nothing are still great entrepreneurs.
If you feel like quitting
Don’t.
I know that it looks really hard now and that you might be discouraged. But just know that things worth having do not come without paying the price.
I think paying the price just means being resilient and willing to keep learning and trying.
It’s actually quite simple but what prevents people from becoming entrepreneurs is that they give up early on.
Don’t let that be you.
Long story short: I didn’t quit being an entrepreneur because the freedom to do what I want, when I want, with who I want is really important to me.
I can’t deny to myself that I want those things. I’m sure you do, too.
Be the person that is able to move past the fog. I promise that eventually you will get there. You’re seriously closer than you think.
There’s not really any other actionable advice I can give for now. I’m still figuring things out myself and I’m just sharing my journey. I can only give guidance on what i’ve been through.
I hope that you found this article helpful and that it inspires you to keep going.
Remember that you wouldn’t have a desire if it weren’t meant for you to live it out. You got this, friend.
I write about entrepreneurship, content creation, and personal branding. Sign up for my up and coming newsletter that talks about all of this.
