Being in business for yourself is a carnival, an adventure. Ups and downs, highs and lows, amazing possibilities, small triumphs and constant lessons. Things have a greater degree of smoothness and serenity than when I was just starting out, but still, I am hanging on to that turning Wheel of Fortune this year.
When you’re an entrepreneur, your priorities shift in many ways.
Sometimes I feel like I’m always saying NO. No to friends, to family, no to weekends away, no to nights out.
This used to cause me a lot of anxiety.
Now, instead of getting anxious about these situations, hemming and hawing before I make my decision, feeling guilty about letting friends and family down, I have learned to ask my gut, my inner voice, what is the most beneficial choice for me at this time. I do what feels right, not in a selfish or judgmental sense, but what feels right to my heart and my head.
Recently I had to say no to a cottage weekend away with my husband and my dearest friends. Now that was HARD. Believe me, I knew what I was missing out on! But my intuition told me 100% this was the best thing to do. I was working on a big project that needed to get done, and this would give me the chance to have a mini-business retreat, free of (most) distractions.
I had still had one major, but welcome, distraction during my business retreat
When the time came, I watched my husband drive off in the car with my best friends, off for a weekend of fun and general pleasant over-indulgence, and then I just stood in my quiet living room feeling quite intensely and melodramatically sorry for myself.
At that exact moment, an email came in for me, out of the blue another person signing up for my Tarot seminar series.
I immediately sent out a massive dose of thanks and gratitude to the universe, did a little dance, and got down to work! I felt this was clear and joyful confirmation of what my intuition, my inner voice had told me, that this was a pivotal time for work, not play.
The moral(s) of the story:
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listen to your gut
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timing is important – get everything done, including socializing, but do it at the right time
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if it feels right, or wrong, pay attention to that feeling…schedules and TO DO lists need to have some degree of fluidity (which is not an excuse for procrastination)
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keep your heart full of gratitude and joy, it will return to you in kind
I still make my TO DO lists, but I also check in with my heart and my cards if I feel that I’m forcing things or hitting the wall. By putting yourself into this kind of flow, you can let go of any feeling of resentment, of missing out, and know that everything is rolling as it should.
Let me know how you feel…are you a TO DO list stickler, do you go with the flow, or a little of both?
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