Well in my experience it can’t be better described than to say its like a roller coaster. I know that sounds cliché, but it is 100% true. There are days that I wake up and feel the fire from within, the passion in my bones and I am ready to take on the day. Then there are days where I wake up after a restless sleep where I couldn’t turn off my mind from thinking about my to do lists and going down the deep dark path of what if’s. I wish I could say I was completely happy all the time, but that would be a bold-faced lie. This is by far the HARDEST thing I have done in my life. And each day does not get easier. The problem is sometimes I do not see the light at the end of the tunnel, I feel as if I am running to a destination that is out of reach. I get those little moments of clarity or encouragement pushing me forward until I run out of gas again and wait for the next “refilling station. So why do I do this? Sometimes I can honestly say I do not know. Don’t get me wrong, I do have a passion for what I do, and I LOVE being a part of my client’s special days. So, you might ask, wouldn’t it be easier to work an 8-5 job? Simply put, yes. But its not that simple. I had been doing the 8-5 job and I hated it. It wasn’t always bad, but I found my self feeling stagnant and not pushing myself to be better. I started to feel ok with doing the bare minimum and absolutely hated that.
I have always been a go-getter. I partly have my parents to thank for that, it is in my blood and it’s all I’ve known, since my parents opened their own business when I was 2 years old. My parents never pushed me to be something that I didn’t want, they always encouraged me to do what I loved. The problem was I didn’t know what I loved to do, as many early 20 somethings right out of college can also relate to, until about a year ago when I started Wandering Blooms. It was a rough start, but I knew that I loved being an entrepreneur, I loved the challenge, I loved the journey. Am I crazy? Probably, but I think it might take a crazy person to live this lifestyle by choice.
As I transitioned out of the teaching world and into my own realm of business ownership and figuring it out as I go, I have learned a lot about myself. One being I am stubborn; I can hear my mom laughing at this right now saying you just now got this? But the answer is, kind of. I have always known I like to do things my way, but in this sense, my stubbornness drives me. It drives me to be better, to not give up, to not give in to the statistics and in many ways, it drives me to success.
Secondly, I learned that it takes a village. You can’t do this alone! No seriously, you will drive yourself nuts. You have to have a support system, someone who you can vent to, get encouragement from or someone that will pick you up when you can’t go anymore.
Thirdly and MOST importantly you must ask for help. I couldn’t learn this until I understood the last two points because I had to set aside my pride and stubbornness and do something that I do not like to do. Ask for help. I do not know why this is so hard for me. Do I consider it a weakness? Maybe so? But when starting a business there is a lot you don’t know and that you can’t find the answers to on google. So unfortunately, it has taken me multiple times of failing to learn that I have to ask for help.
So, for those of you that are considering starting a business I hope this didn’t scare you away, because that was not my intention. Other than ranting and venting about how “the struggle is real” I want to be real. In this day of Instagram and the high light reel, it’s easy to feel like everyone has it better than you, but odds are there is someone out there with the same thoughts and feelings that can help you get through this hard time, all you have to do is ask for help.