RE3EL STANCE

It’s Saturday morning. The sun will be up soon. And, I woke up this morning thinking I haven’ REBELSTANCED it much lately. I also woke up this morning though only to realize that I’m right in the middle of the messy part of entrepreneurship.

Starting a business sucks. Sure, I am as much a romantic entrepreneur as the next. I get excited thinking about the next business I want to start, enjoy constant late night chats about building a business. And, I know that I can’t do anything else but start businesses…because I love it. But, starting a business sucks and that is why I love it even more.

When you start a business you don’t know where it’s going to end up. That’s the great thing. But, the sucky thing is you also don’t know how to get to that moving destination. You don’t know what paperwork you have to fill out. You don’t know who you have to talk to. You are going up against far bigger, far more experienced, and far more entrenched companies. You have to make cold calls. You have to look like a dumbass in front of people on a daily basis. You have to go through sleepless nights. You have to be laughed at, mocked, turned down, ridiculed, doubted and marginalized. You are poor or at least a lot poorer than if you weren’t in the middle of starting a business. You have to fight to keep balance only to realize it’s an impossible feat…at least for a few months. And, you have to spend time planning your business while knowing all along that the only thing you’ll know about your business plan is it’s wrong.

But, you’re an entrepreneur. You signed up for this game and I know you wouldn’t want to playing anything else. So, here are a few things to keep in mind the next time you are in the messy part of starting a business.

1. Embrace the mess: Everybody starts out with the romantic idea of being an entrepreneur. Everybody’s romantic notions get quickly put in check. A few entrepreneurs come out on the other side. So, embrace that the messy part of entrepreneurship is just part of the journey you can’t skip and enjoy it.
2. Keep a sense of humor: When you start a business, you are going to look like a dumbass. It’s just part of the game. There will be times that you don’t know the answer….lots of times. There will be times that you’ll look crazy…lots of times. And, there will be times that you’ll have doubts, questions without answers, and days caught in red tape. There’s no way around it so just keep moving forward laughing at yourself, the journey and the world every step of the way.
3. Know you’ll have the last laugh: You’ll get through the messy part. Sure, the messes will continue but you’ll be better in due time in cleaning them up. You’ll make it through stronger, better, and on the road to success. You’ll have the last laugh and those who doubted you, made you look silly or didn’t stand by your side won’t see the humor in you having a good chuckle at their expense.
4. Keep your eye on the prize: Do what you have to do to keep you eye on the prize. It’s a lot easier getting through the rough patches. Put together a vision board of why you’re doing this. Keep a copy of your business plan with you at all times left open to the good stuff that will be happening a few years out. Make plans for a trip you’ll take in 3 years when this thing really gets crankin’.
5. Push yourself above and beyond: Going beyond your comfort zone is a requirement as an entrepreneur. Most people can’t or won’t do that and it’s why most people can’t or won’t be an entrepreneur. It’s tough but you’ll be glad you did it because the entrepreneurial journey is as much a personal discovery as anything else.
6. Put the tough stuff at the beginning of the day: Wake up and get the junk out of the way so you can focus on your big ideas. The surest way to kill the creativity necessary to succeed as an entrepreneur is to shackle that with mental to-do-lists of things you are dreading.
7. Surround yourself with other entrepreneurs: One of the greatest things about the messy stage of starting a business is that there are others going through it at the same time. Surrounding yourself with those that are going through the same part of the journey is grounding, encouraging and a great chance to build real and lasting relationships.
8. Share the housekeeping: Involve others in the process. An entrepreneur has to have big shoulders but get in the habit of sharing the burden early on.
9. Know that this is the part you’ll eventually miss: Successful entrepreneur after successful entrepreneur will tell you that after all is said and done and they most enjoyed the early part of the journey when things were messy but opportunity was endless.
10. Break the mess into smaller chores: This part of the journey can seem overwhelming so break it into as many small daily steps as possible and break your daily steps into as many small steps as possible as well.
11. Stay balanced however hard it may be: It’s tough to stay balanced when you are staring a business. Okay, it may actually be impossible but the pursuit of balance means you’ll have more balance than if you just give up and don’t even try. And, balance is so key to keeping the freshness and perspective to make it through the messy parts.
12. Be fast over perfect: Get it done well enough. Don’t try to be perfect because you just don’t have the time. There are so many things to do as an entrepreneur that perfectionism can be your ultimate downfall.
13. Enjoy the journey: It’s all a journey. As much as you want to get to the destination it’s the journey there that is really the life-changing experience.

So, with that…just suck it up and keep yourself in the game.