For starters, this is not the topic that was on deck to write about this week, but it needed to be written nonetheless, so here we are.
It’s worth mentioning on the woo spectrum (totally made up), I am a highly intuitive human and business owner. I came out of the womb with a strong reliance on my intuition, leaving little room for logic or best practices if it was counter to what my gut was telling me. Despite my love for planning, teaching and training around strategy, a plan is merely a guide, not your fate written in stone. So when my heart and my intuition say to write about a particular topic, that’s what I do!
Vulnerability as well as how isolating being an entrepreneur can be is what’s on my mind.
When I think about spring, I ponder the same things everyone else does…new beginnings, growth, easter bunnies and cadbury creme eggs (maybe this one is just me ;)) and flowers that smell wonderful and promising of what is to come. But, as I rolled into April, I could definitively say that was not the case for me.
In late March, the word that came to mind about what I was feeling was burnout, but that never felt quite right. And as the days passed, It became more clear that something was out of alignment and as a result, I was feeling disengaged. It took me a few weeks to gain additional clarity around what I was struggling with. Perhaps the double-edged sword that came with this disengagement was that my calendar was surprisingly quiet. It wasn’t full of networking or meetings, and the substance that usually filled my days was absent. I was left alone with my thoughts and feelings and a few trusted friends/family who listened as I worked through what didn’t feel right.
For a short bit, I had myself a nice little pitty party, but when people are counting on you, there’s not a lot of time for hanging out there for very long.
What I learned from brainstorming with my business and life partner and a good accountabilibuddy (it’s a real thing, look it up!) was that I was out of alignment with my true business goals and super hero powers. I had set my plan, created measurable goals with realistic action steps for each month, but somewhere in there, I lost track of why we were doing what we were doing.
The great thing was, I had the freedom and ability to shift gears and make a change. The challenge is, when we’re in a public facing role, it’s our brand to be clear and put together and certain about everything, even if it’s not real or authentic.
In the last week or two, I’ve been doing a lot of reflection and brainstorming. I’m talking out loud about ideas, thoughts, insecurities and scenarios. I have realized that this is possible because of the types of relationships I’ve created in my business and my life. Growing in and with my relationships is providing the support I need to be a better person both personally and professionally.
Noting that regardless of what spring often represents for us, this time I’m not alone in feeling a little out of balance. I am speaking with other business owners being open and vulnerable about their challenges of solopreneurship and I value that vulnerability.
A core value of Confluence Business Solutions is transparency and not in that trendy way that everyone is talking about. I believe in creating a safe space to say, this is what I’m learning… or I don’t have the answer for that right now, but I can get that for you. Or when encountering peers in networking groups, I can say freely this is what I’m growing through right now.
Here’s how I do it:
Trust Yourself – Once I start to think I am getting the hang of this, it’s time to uplevel and I need to be reminded of it again. Remembering I’m not the only person to struggle with this and that if I reflect on what I’ve actually accomplished thus far in my life, realize I’ve done a pretty good job of being a reliable person to count on. I deserve to trust myself AND if I don’t trust me, how can I ask others to?
Be in the Habit of Manifesting What You Want – I love working with woo clients because they challenge me to keep doing the personal work. In addition, it was a Keap colleague who shared this quote with me yesterday, “Start getting into the mindset where you expect something unexpected to happen. Like a sudden shift. An out of the blue miracle. A possibility of an instant breakthrough. Let yourself loosen up about how things will happen. Trust more. Believe more. Be open to receiving (source unknown)”.
Build your Network of Support – I can appreciate that not everyone processes their thoughts and feelings externally, but having a network of support can help everyone. Not only are they there to be a shoulder to lean on, but they can help expose blind spots, help us see potential in ourselves that we don’t quite appreciate, and they can hold you accountable. If support didn’t work this way, coaches wouldn’t thrive in what they do!
If you find yourself needing a place to be vulnerable, somewhere where you can just be authentically you, where you don’t have to be pretty and polished, know there’s always space with me and my team. Want to brainstorm, let’s chat! 💙
