I’m livin’ it up in Japan all week:
:: Epic, Michelin 3-Star, world famous sushi.
Money made it all possible.
Chasing money didn’t.
Most women entrepreneurs set sail on our journey to successful business ownership from a “spiritual” place:
:: Love for our craft.
:: Connection to the good it can provide for people.
:: Deep desire for personal freedom.
We are, after all, the ones who are brave (and crazy) enough to believe that somehow, in our own little way, we just may save our families and the world. We love people.
Then, usually somewhere around the time that paying the rent gets hard or you have to turn down yet another outing with friends due to too little time, cash, or both, that bright glow of our purpose begins to dim.
We knew why we were doing it in the first place, but now we feel less connected to that reality, and much more connected to the realities of the bank account and calendar. What once felt like a thrilling – sometimes scary – journey, now feels overwhelming and confusing.
The To Do list no longer looks like the certain path to success, but a mile long noose designed to suffocate your life of time and fun.
Then, if sh*t really starts hitting the fan, we secretly reminisce about our 9-5 days…those days when we socialized with co-workers and cut loose on the weekends.
Here, down-time is fraught with guilt; it’s not even relaxing anymore.
When work begins to feel like our primary form of enjoyment and money becomes our primary measure of success, we’ve done it.
:: We’ve manufactured our own cage and are now in the grips of the illusion that we must work more-harder-more to make it work.
:: We’re building a business of struggle that will take struggle to maintain.
:: We can no longer TRULY stop to savor, because guilt prevents our enjoyment of life.
In this place, we are addicted to work and we are addicted to cash.
This is a kind of spiritual suicide.
Old Success Paradigm :
If I work hard enough and save my money, when I’m 65 I can retire and drive around a golf cart in Florida. This is success.
New Success Paradigm :
My life is happening NOW, not after [6pm; 6 figures; etc], and I’m going to enjoy it now. Enjoying my life IS success, and leads to more experiences of success.
3 Rules for thriving in the New Success Paradigm
1. Live now.
There is a story of a Tibetan Buddhist monk who was help captive for 30 years. When he was released, he was asked, “what was the most difficult moment for you?”. He replied, “When I almost stopped feeling compassion for the man who beat me.” This kind of in-the-moment presence is what living is.
Waiting for [fill-in-the-blank] to enjoy your life is a great way to never get there.
You have incredible fortune right now.
What will you do with it?
2. Desire with depth.
People tell me “I want to make 6-figures”. Great! Just curious…
Why that number?
What will you do with it?
What feeling will that give you?
3. Take care.
Do you know your estimated revenue for the year and exactly how you plan on getting it? You should, love. Chase feelings and experiences, not cash…and, recognize that the currency we use is money. Be responsible for your wellbeing.
Run the numbers even if you don’t know how.
Plan ahead, be clear and be bold.
