Throughout my journey as an entrepreneur I’ve realized something – I’m pretty impatient when it comes to my business. (Well, actually when it comes to everything.)
Especially when I was starting out, I wanted things to happen like yesterday and there were moments where I felt like I’d burst if they didn’t!
Needless to say, I had very high expectations for my new biz, and I remember how frustrating it was when I thought I wasn’t making progress as quickly as I’d expected.
I had moments of being so hard on myself when I felt I fell short on a certain benchmark I’d set for myself, and it really took away some of the joy I could’ve been feeling during that time in my life (after all, I was brave enough to start down a new path and pursue my dreams – I really should’ve been celebrating that every single day!).
I’ve since realized that those frustrations I had as a new entrepreneur are feelings that many new entrepreneurs are all too familiar with.
In fact, the other day James told me that the one thing he hears from so many of the women in our programs is this notion of wanting everything now, and not truly enjoying the moment.
(His exact words were “Is lack of patience a ‘woman thing’ or…?!” Ha!)
And I totally resonated with that because believe me, I definitely know how tough it can be to find that balance between being ambitious yet not letting the important moments of day-to-day life just pass us by.
My own coach even told me early on that I was putting so much pressure on myself to make everything happen straight away, it seemed as if I thought I only had a couple of months left to live! That comment really stuck with me and it helped me realize that being an entrepreneur and growing a business is a process that often requires drive but also enjoying the moment and each chapter for what it is.
Now I consider myself “impatiently patient”. I’m impatient in the sense that I’m unwavering in my ambitions and believe that compressing my timeline is possible, yet I’m also patient because I know that everything happens in its own time. I trust in my own journey, and I remind myself to be present in my day-to-day process.
The thing is lovely, it’s obviously important to be ambitious in your biz, and at the same time it’s essential to realize that this is your life now and that everyone’s journey is different. I often share that your dreams are possible for you now (not years from now), and I wholly believe that. But now doesn’t have to mean that you have to have everything 100% figured out right from the start.
Everything in life has its own chapter. Take time to experience the process and enjoy the small victories in your daily progress, rather than kicking yourself for not reaching your “big picture” or “Oprah” goal just yet.
Something I absolutely love about each of the women in the IHML community is that they’re such incredibly driven go-getters (that includes you, lovely!). You’re a dreamer, a goal-seeker, a woman on a mission – and that’s amazing!
But if you find you’re being super hard on yourself or impatiently frustrated, then I encourage you to take a moment to reflect on the progress you are making, and give yourself time each day to simply savor your small, daily accomplishments. After all, those small day-to-day steps are getting you ever closer to the life and biz of your dreams!
You’ve got this!
