Entrepreneurship—it's not about overthinking; it's about taking that leap, pedal to the metal, no brakes kind of energy. Imagine juggling a handful of ideas, trying this, trying that – it’s a maze that leads us to our next sweet spot. We’re always looking for “The New Thing.” And once we start something new, get it off the ground, we once again start looking for “THE NEW NEW THING.” Wrong turns are inevitable and necessary to the journey because they lead us closer to the right places. It's this wild, unpredictable journey that takes guts, resilience, and a whole lot of faith.
I have owned a marketing agency for 7 years and it has employed several people and grown to a level of success I am very proud of…yet I still find myself asking God, “What’s next?”
Is there a new endeavor? Is there a new division? Where should my focus be now? While I cherish and crave that work-life balance, the thrill of business opportunity excites me.
No matter how many side hustles you try, every venture is a chapter in this epic story—some make a lot of money, some make a little money. And others make no money. They are simply passion projects.
Right now, I’m testing a new endeavor that will complement the marketing agency well. It’s a strategic move.
I dabbled in real estate and quickly realized, it’s not for me. While I’ve always been in the industry in some form or fashion, I just don’t have the time or desire to educate myself to the degree required to really serve buyers and sellers well.
I have a personal blog called Villa Haven where I write about dating, healing and the behind-the-scenes, spill your guts, vulnerable parts of life. It makes no money and is one of the things I’m most passionate about.
I’ve written two E-books and still feel like there’s another book inside of me. A real book. A published book. It’s on the shelf for now but is to be continued.
I started renting out our office space for a little passive income in 2023. It was rented out 5 or 6 times and I made 600 bucks. Nothing ground-breaking. But knowing I could make a dollar at something that required nearly zero effort really excited me to continue down that road. Follow the success.
I was paid to speak three times in 2023 and am working on a new speaking topic right now for 2024.
I get calls every now and then from young entrepreneurs, usually women, wanting to pick my brain and ask advice about entrepreneurship. I’d love to create a mentorship program one day. Right now, it’s just something I enjoy that is not monetized. And maybe not everything is meant to be monetized.
But I do believe when you are able to monetize something once, and especially 3 times, it’s time to pay attention because something is WORKING. You’re receiving a greenlight.
Every venture, big or small, monetized or not, teaches me something.
Oddly enough, when I ask what's next, I glance at my list of hustles and realize my purpose is an unfolding, multilayered masterpiece. It's not just about one thing; it's about the tapestry of experiences.
Let's be real, there are days when you'll question everything. You might feel like you're playing a high-stakes game of trial and error, with more errors than you'd care to admit. But guess what? That's the path to success. Every stumble, every misstep, every "Oops, that didn't work!" is a stepping-stone to your next big win.
Think about it—Joanna Gaines didn't create her Magnolia empire overnight, and Sara Blakely faced a lot of "no's" before Spanx became a billion dollar empire. They didn't just wake up one day and suddenly have it all figured out. They hustled for decades.
I recently saw a reel on Instagram (so it must be true) that the world's most successful people were willing to go millions in the red before hitting gold. Specifically, 3 million in the negative before they would give up on a goal or a dream. That hit home. Our journey might feel chaotic, but our readiness to take risks and persist—it's the stuff of greatness.
The best path to entrepreneurship, in my opinion, especially if you haven’t started yet…is through embracing the side hustle. It’s my mantra to literally everyone. Your side hustle doesn’t have to be groundbreaking. Try many things and see what sticks. And when you find your thing, give your all to it. Have grit, dig deep to fix the problems that arise because they WILL arise. You’ll run out of time, patience or money. Maybe all 3! There are a lot of challenges entrepreneurs face. Loneliness. High pressure. Doubt. We stay up late, we do research, we get advice, we problem solve, we write out scenarios to challenges, we rally with our business owner buddies. That’s our job. To troubleshoot, to improve, to enhance so we can continue to sustain as a business.
That's the nature of us entrepreneurs—we might not know exactly how we’re going to do it all…but we’ll die trying to figure it out. And when I say die…I mean there’s a real cost benefit to entrepreneurship. I have seen entrepreneurs in TEARS over how hard it is. I’ve seen prayer circles over the need for more money. I’ve seen leaders take 3-month sabbaticals due to burn out. I myself have hit my knees COUNTLESS times asking God to come through and open new doors. Very few people will ever see this desperation or share in the cost with you, if any.
What people will see on social media are the benefits. The Christmas spent in Paris. The elaborate, luxury lifestyle. The appearance of success. The milestones of achievement met.
It’s cost benefit.
It’s highs and lows.
It’s messy and beautiful.
It’s hard and rewarding.
So, if you're in the thick of it, feeling like you're juggling a thousand things and wondering if you're even on the right track—you're in good company! Don't let those doubts cloud your vision. Instead, use them as fuel to drive you forward. You're doing better than you think. :)