Harness Your Passion to Overcome the Challenges of Being a New Entrepreneur
Posted on November 28, 2015 by Cougar Brenneman, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.
When you go off on your own as an entrepreneur, no one can provide you the security you need. But a second set of eyes can make a world of difference.
Before you go out on your own, after the security of a full-time or part-time job, you have had the luxury to make detailed plans, to get many of your ducks in a row, and to dream in Technicolor, as they say. You may have had time to clarify and develop your vision, detailed background information, your strategy, your funding, the market that hungers for your unique offering , your network, your team, & your physical location. This is no pie-in-the–sky dream for you. You’re serious.
Missing the Forest for the Trees or the Trees for the Forest
But perhaps you’re still filled with doubt. All your research has also highlighted the numerous problems and challenges you’ll be faced with. You wonder if you have the skills necessary, and in spite of your preparation, there’s no way to test your skills without jumping off the cliff. You may even know what some of your problems might be; common problems include lack of focus, distractibility, and lack of accountability. No amount of research can relieve the doubt that comes of being ultimately responsible for everything.
You know intimately how you undermine yourself. You may doubt that you have the mindset of an entrepreneur: Will you be a tough enough competitor? Will your practice of mental toughness destroy your natural sense of empathy? Will you get too wrapped up in details to see the big picture? Will you be so focused on the big picture that you miss the crucial detail that can lead to failure?
Can You Get Excited about Spreadsheets?
You may be going into business because of something you feel passionate about, such as an unfulfilled dream that you can no longer stand to postpone. The time of preparation, though vital, may feel like procrastination. If you feel the need to continue preparing, you may castigate yourself for dawdling every time a necessary postponement occurs.
Yet the practices required by being in business may seem contrary to the excitement that the initial dream awakened in you. Because of this, you may see yourself as terrible at managing your business because of all the things you do not know how to do. Yet if you put all of your attention into these areas of weakness, you may further lose some of the excitement that has propelled you forward from the beginning.
My Role as Your Coach
Like most coaches, I can be your accountability buddy. But unlike many of them, I can help your create a powerful partnership with your doubts and inner conflicts. I can help you delve into them to extract the wisdom and insight that they have for you that can give you the edge you need. From that new understanding, I can help you sort out, design, and implement routines and strategies for conquering the most challenging aspects of your business.
I can’t compete with the research and preparation that you’ve already engaged in. That’s specialized, and you’ve done your preparation well. What I can provide you with is that second set of eyes, the objective perspective that you lack because you’re too close to the situation. I’ll help you see both the forest and the trees.
