Staying outa the RED zone…

Don’t be fooled by once off success.

Don’t be fooled by what you see.

Don’t be fooled by the splendor of what you see on social media.

Just don’t be fooled by the things you think are simple and yet it’s not.

Because I tell you now, success, social media and the highs of self-employment is almost nothing… Cut open the pie and as you slice you realise the inside is not as marvelous as the golden crusty bits on the outside.

What does this mean?!

It means what you see is sometimes not real.
What you perceive is not always 100% correct.
And what you think happens behind the scenes is not half of what actually happens.

Look around until you spot the entrepreneur – the ninja!

Ninja!  Yes – because you don’t know how you do it, but you GET IT DONE!
Like a ninja!

Being an entrepreneur is exciting and fulfilling but also overwhelming and incredibly stressful at times.
Usually no one sees this side of the deal and there are also times no one smells the success you are working towards.

If I have to write down the amount of times I have given up, I don’t think I would have enough paper or even words to put it into a story for you.
We all give up from time to time, but for the average entrepreneur, for me – it’s almost every 30 minutes.
I want things to be perfect.
I want my work to stand out.
I want things to be polished well enough so I don’t have to re-do anything.
I want people to say “…She really works hard…”
I want to be faithful and not fearful.
I want to jump up with a new idea and execute it smoothly each day without any negativity attached to it.
But I am only human.
And I also want to be real, because what you see is not always what you get.

What you see sometimes means buckets full of tears and monstrous moments of giving up.
Not because you don’t believe, but because you believe so much.

I have been mocked.
I have been written off and I have also done some of the writing off.
I have had to fight my way through emotional battles, because my fighting spirit does not know when to calm down.
I have also battled with having to explain and convince others of my sentiments attached to my passion.
I have also done some of soul searching, in fact I think I still am.
But it all comes down to the same idea, concept and vision.

I am an entrepreneur.

I am a fighter.

I am a winner.

“… You are wasting your time…”

“… You don’t have a real job…”

“… You work for yourself, you don’t have to worry…”

“… Dis lekker…”

“… Jy is fancy…”

If I have to tell you now how worked up I get about having to answer these statements, you won’t believe me.
But I get this all the time.  So I have learnt to deal but also not deal with it.
Is it silly?
Nah!  I think they just don’t get it.
And I don’t have the time or energy to school you on this but it really puts me down at times.
Everyone sees the glamour and no one sees the tears or even the little bit of sweat.

But today I want to answer some of those questions, today I want to maybe share a few seconds of light into what and why I do what I do.

No I am not wasting my time, because I am building an empire.
I am building my dreams, and I am building a better future for myself and generations to come.
When I was a 1^st year drama student, the thought of running my own business crossed my mind, but I had no idea of how it all would come together or even what it really entails.
I also had no idea that this could be a career.
My dream was to be on stage, and yes I am on stage but on the side of the stage, and while no one except those who are on stage see and understand what I do, there is so much value to the person who sits on the side of the stage.
So no, I am not wasting my time.
I am adding VALUE.

And so because I understand and honour the value I add to sitting on the side of the stage, I embrace the fact that this is my job and believe me it’s real.  I am at complete peace with being in the service of the most amazing things that we get to experience in life, the colourful world of THEATRE.

The next one is my most favourite, “you don’t have to worry because you work for yourself!”
HA!  If you think because setting your own work hours make things nice and easy, then think again!
You don’t sleep, or sleep in, you keep working!
You see for someone who is trying to grow a small business, a clock does not exist.
You are up first, and you don’t sleep in because you need to make up the next month’s salary, and you just realised that you’re in the red zone.
Red zone – that’s the zone I find myself in when I give up all hope.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not all red lights while rolling out a self-employment plan.
There is another zone, this here is the  zone you love being in.
The green zone, where you are allowed more time with your family because your schedule might allow more flexibility VS having set work hours.  You can also explore your creativity, while sitting in front of your make-shift desk with comfy pj’s and have as many cups of coffee or tea without anyone watching LOL!
Although, I sometimes find myself not switching off because unless my husband reminds me my tea is getting cold or that it really is time to go sleep now, I just keep on working.
I guess you can say that that is the good part.

The bad?
The fact that you have chosen this as a lifestyle does not always mean that things work out as you envisioned.
And while you are building the dream, it might mean a whole lot of sacrifices first before anything else.
Someone wise once reminded me that the day you plant the seed is not the day you eat the fruit.
In fact I think you don’t even see the first leaf.
But with constant nurturing and sunshine and love, that seed will grow.

So go on, remind yourself of the little things and the small victories before you put yourself down.
Remind yourself that your seed will grow.
Move out of the red zone and step into the green and flourish.
If you find yourself in the red zone, it’s okay.
You will be okay.
And don’t worry about what people say.
Keep your eye on the goal.

Stay focused.
Be faithful and not fearful.

Until next time…
LOVE & LAUGHTER

BigMouthRae