The Magic of Not Knowing
The switch from a corporate career to an entrepreneurial one was a choice I made in my mid-50’s. The journey began when I asked a question I had never considered before: “How do I want to spend my time?”
Perhaps it was the longing for the freedom to work on what I wanted, when I wanted and where I wanted. Perhaps it was a bit of urgency that a mid-milestone birthday brought, a feeling of not wanting to postpone anything I wanted to experience anymore. Perhaps it was merely the desire to put into practice all the things I learned throughout the years and test them at what felt like an epic level.
What was most exciting, however, was the manner in which this business has been built. Since inception, I’ve had the opportunity to operate differently than the way things are done in the corporate world.
I spent 33 years being the one to go to for results, to get things done, to achieve the goal. I outworked everyone. I burned out from time-to-time. I changed companies and changed jobs, got promoted until I was at the top of my profession. And then I went out on my own terms.
Now I have a chance to do it all differently.
I do not have a formal business plan. I do not have a detailed five-year plan. I don’t even have a rock solid one-year plan. This may sound reckless, but it’s not. I’ve done my homework. This business is growing organically.
When I first began my business, I intuitively understood that I could quickly recreate an entrepreneurial version of the corporate life I was leaving behind. That was not my desire.
So, I set firm ground rules:
While the business needed to be lucrative (i.e., not a hobby), it also needed to be creative and mobile, as I wanted to be in flow and free to travel as I pleased.
My professional and personal lives needed to be integrated, as I was building more than just a heart-based business - I was building a new way of living.
While I set the intention to show up for “work” as the full-time job it is, I remained open to the outcome of my efforts. To this day, I focus on following the energy and trusting my intuitive gut feelings.
Last year at this time I was scared beyond reason to make the leap from a familiar corporate life to the unknown landscape of business ownership. Today, I find not knowing exactly what’s ahead an exhilarating force that moves me forward and allows me to wake each morning excited to greet the day. I am an author, coach, teacher/facilitator, traveler and creator, open to serendipitous outcome. It’s the perfect job description for me at this stage of my life.
Journal Reflections: How has your approach to work and life changed over the years? What was the tipping point? How has it changed the way you live as a result?