Can we even answer the question: “what does it mean to be an entrepreneur in 2019?”.

Honestly, if I had to put myself in the shoes of someone just stepping into this big shiny world of entrepreneurship and answer this question, it would probably look a little something like:

“ Being an entrepreneur means that I can work for myself and create my own hours. It’s going to be a lot of work but it allows me to do whatever I want, whenever I want. I’m not sure where to turn for advice though? Is there a handbook for any of this stuff? I guess I’ll probably try some guides to buy, and maybe do a little looking around to see how someone in a similar field of entrepreneurship is running their business and try and create a similar path for myself. “

Sound like anything you've said before?
Same here.

Truth be told, the current state of being an entrepreneur right now is a MESS. I’m not going to beat around the bush with you all because you deserve to hear things as they are; it’s the only way that you’re going to be able to break away from this suffocating mould that is attempting to force you into buying into - both figuratively and literally - whatever myths and promises they share with you.

Having your eyes opened up to the truth is the only way that you can start today to build a sustainable business.

This is our chance to learn; to become educated on what is truly going on in the entrepreneurial world and to work towards healing our hearts (and our bank accounts) so that we can give ourselves the chance to put in the work and step onto the path of thriving, as opposed to simply surviving.

You are responsible for the current state of your own mind and business. And I know that that might be hard to hear, but the sooner we can begin to take responsibility for the state of things, the sooner we can begin to heal.

Yes, these “big name” entrepreneurs might be partially to blame for their enticing marketing tactics, get-rich-quick ideologies, or guides, podcasts, downloads with empty promises that lead you to believe that there are secrets and formulas that can make it all happen just as “easily” for you too;
But at the end of the day, it’s been your decisions that have led you to this point.

I don’t blame you, of course not. Nor to I want to shame you for making the decisions that you have in the past; we all have to learn one way or the other, and trust me, I’ve been there.

I know that this might be a hard thing to hear, but being open and honest with ourselves and each other is the very best place to start so that we can work together to heal the damage that this fast-paced, comparison filled, instant-gratification world has done to you and your dreams of being an entrepreneur.
This is a safe space.

This is a space that we can all come together in order to better ourselves.
This is a space that we can all come together in order to heal from the mistrust we feel as entrepreneurs.
This is a space that we can all come together in order to prove that there is a better way.
I know that you might be jaded, and I just want to ask that you bear with me throughout your skepticism.
I promise that I am here to help.

So what does the current state of “being an entrepreneur” look like right now?

1. BURNOUT -
Are you feeling it this year?
Have you felt it before?

Entrepreneurs are wearing burnout like it’s a badge of honour, and I need you to take it first hand from someone who has BEEN THERE that being burnt out isn’t anything to be proud of.

Proving that you can do it all - regardless of the quality of your deliverables or the exhausted state of your mental health - is running a race straight to the bottom; and it’s a race against no one but yourself.

What are you hoping to prove?
And who are you hoping to prove that to?

When I went through the biggest season of burnout in my career, I came days away from quitting. I wanted to give it all up. Nothing felt worth it anymore. I had to drag myself out of bed in order to do work that I once was overjoyed to be a part of. I cried at the thought of answering emails. I was unable to eat properly. My mental state hovered in and out of depression.

And for what?

Want to know something?
No one is going to be impressed with how much work you can squeeze into a season, or week, or year, or career.

Everyone is too focused on themselves to invest their energy into what you’re doing, so if you’re jam-packing your hours, days, weeks, and years in order to prove that you can do it, chances are that you’re wasting your time, and more importantly, your life.


2. PERFECTLY PACKAGED PROGRAMS FOR SUCCESS
- marketing is a tricky little thing; the way things are worded and shared and packaged allude to a holy grail path to success that can work for anyone and everyone (all you need to do is make 176 instalments of $79.99 and give us your first born child ;)).

Can you be successful? ABSOLUTELY.
Can someone help you get there? ABSOLUTELY.
Is there a one-sized fits all linear model to that success? ABSOLUTELY NOT.

A great example that you might be able to relate to if you’re a photographer, is: have you ever bought a posing guide from a photographer with the belief that this is going to be the key that you are needing to unlock your posing potential and revolutionize your business, only to find out that what they are doing isn’t too far off from what you’re already doing and offering your clients?

That’s because it isn’t the METHOD in which someone is doing something that is the key,
It’s not necessarily their process,
Or their branding,
Or the way in which they deliver their information,
The key is the PERSON delivering the information.
The KEY is the PERSON.
YOU ARE THE KEY.
Don’t ever forget that.


3. KEEPING YOUR HEAD ABOVE WATER
- hey you over there!
Can I pass you a life preserver?
A glass of water?
Five minutes of quiet time?
A week without the pressure of scrolling and commenting on every instagram photo that shows up in your feed?

The struggle is real.
I know that at times it feels like you’re drowning; that every time you turn around there’s a new platform that you should be implementing into your business, a new algorithm that’s throwing off your social schedule, a new set of presets that you need to be buying, more things that you need to be buying.

It’s always more, more more.
Every time you turn around you are reminded that you are not enough.
And guess what’s worse?
Every time you turn around and hear those social fabricated thoughts of ‘not being enough’, you actually start to believe them.
Do you believe that about yourself?
Do you - right now - believe that you don’t have what it takes to succeed because it’s just too damn hard to keep up?

I’m so sorry that this is what the world can feel like for you sometimes.
I’m here with you though, okay?
I’m here with you so that I can guide you back onto a path where the world feels a little slower,
A little more intentional,
A little more balanced,
A little more on your own terms.
Forget the busyness of it all.
Forget the algorithms,
And the trends,
And the marketing schemes,
And the constant chatter.
They are nothing but excuses holding you back.

Breathe in, breathe out.

I KNOW that this is so much to unpack, so if this is all too much for you to take in right now, I would encourage you to take some time when your headspace is right and go back through and reread all that we’ve just talked about.

Print it off if you need to and give yourself the space to decompress all that we’ve unearthed here today and just let it sit with you for a while.

We’re going to continue to work through all of this together over the coming weeks as I continue to invite you to settle into the uncomfortable feelings that might start showing up for you and simply meet them as they come.

We are only just getting INTO shaking off the limiting beliefs and misconceptions of entrepreneurship that the world is guiding us to believe, and there is so much more unfolding, clarity, healing, and growth to come.

If you are READY for the next email in the series, I want you to HIT REPLY to this email, and let me in on what beliefs that you’ve been subscribed to for far too long. What entrepreneurial shackles are you ready to break out of?

Here for you, and with you, every step of the way.,
Kaihla