The freedom of self-employment is real, but so is weight of every decision landing squarely on your shoulder -Daniel H. Pink
Being your own boss is considered to be the “ultimate destination” of your life. After getting there, it seems as if everything has ‘clicked into place’. No alarm clock waking you up, no permission note from a parent to go on a trip or do whatever you choose, no boss or people telling you how or what to do, etc. Only freedom. This is the word most people use. However, the one thing that isn’t discussed is how difficult it is to live a quiet, peaceful life after the excitement has faded away.
When “I’ll start tomorrow” is the real enemy
Initially, it seems unbelievable to have freedom. You get to wake up when you want, select what you want to work on, and set the course for the entire day to your own liking; it is an incredible power, almost an addiction. However, as you go about living your life with so much free will, you begin to see that every choice you now make is only your choice, and if things are not accomplished, you cannot blame anyone else but yourself.
There are no impending deadlines pressuring you to complete your project, nor is there a boss giving you constant reminders or pressure to report to work. It is just you with your unfinished project that you continue to say, “I will begin tomorrow.”
Freedom feels wonderful at times but feels so much more difficult at others. It’s almost like being given a responsibility without any guidelines on how to fulfil that responsibility and having an overwhelming number of questions in your mind because you have too much room for thought, and suddenly you feel you are constantly asking yourself, ‘Am I being productive?’ Am I wasting time? Is it really this hard?
When you become everything at once
Being self-employed means that you aren’t only responsible for your work, but you are also responsible for doing everything. You are a planner, a worker, and a critic and have to be able to stay motivated when you are exhausted or unsure of yourself. When something doesn’t go right, you don’t see it as a mistake; rather, you view it as a reflection of who you are.
Applause is not given for minor achievements; no one sees the little things we put in, the late nights, or the days that you can’t even consider starting. Your confidence is also lost when your motivation disappears. You then begin to doubt whether or not you have what it takes to succeed. If you consider succeeding at a pace you’ll never believe, try this best-selling book: Dream Big and Win: Translating Passion into Purpose and Creating a Billion-Dollar Business.
“Some days, it feels like the world has disappeared and it’s just you and the work you promised yourself you’d do. There’s no one to check if you’re late, no one to praise the small wins, and no one to tell you it’s okay to fail. The freedom everyone talks about? It’s heavy when you realise that every choice, every mistake, every late night, rests entirely on your shoulders.“.
If you’re trying to build something on your own and feel like no one warned you about this, the book is for you, not as a solution, but as a reminder that you’re not alone in it. Try to get ahead with this: Dream Big and Win: Translating Passion into Purpose and Creating a Billion-Dollar Business