Have you been left holding the screaming baby in your business life?

I had a Steve Jobs quote pop up in front of me on the computer today and it got me thinking what is it about women in business (guys speak up if I’m generalising) that we start something because we love the idea, we love what we do, yet when things start to flat line or be less than brilliant we go and diversify or come up with another concept?

Is your business life panning out as you’d planned?

As I come up to three years of being self-employed, I can answer unequivocally that the answer to that would be no. My business today looks completely different to the plan I had laid out when I started.

I started in the GFC having been made redundant, wanting to position myself as an outsourced communications and events manager for businesses to just bring in when they had a project.

One of the greatest things I have had to grow to live with about myself is the difficulty I have faced with sticking with something and riding out the lulls and doing something on my own knowing that I don’t need a partner to do it.

I have questioned a number of times over the last three years if it’s just a female brain thing. Are we genetically predispositioned to overload ourselves, team up with someone else, attract people who enjoy our enthusiasm but when it comes to the crunch don’t step up to the plate and leave us holding the screaming baby?

As a result, I have five of my fingers in pies, which leaves one hand to do everything. Honestly, what part of me is unable to say no?

Throw into the mix that I lost my entire business premises in the January 2011 floods and ended up having to find new premises, which I did, and sharing with another business who just inside the one year mark of a three year lease decided to leave more than doubling my outgoings. Today I sit here looking at my screen wondering what is it about me and my being that is like that Steve Jobs quote? What am I missing in my DNA that allows me to focus, stay focussed and be calm?

Each one of the pies I have my finger in I love. Each one of the pies I have my finger in I am good at. Is there more than one that gives me the most satisfaction? No, not really. Does each one of the pies team up with any one of the others – yes.

If I could find a magic lantern, I would rub it very hard and ask the Genie my three wishes.

1. Please tell me which pie am I making the greatest difference

2. Please make this pie the one that provides the abundance that I am worth

3. Please take away the part of me that is ruled by fear that disables my ability to focus

http://www.redfoxbb.com.au/ Pauline

Thanks for sharing these thoughts, it’s good to know we’re not alone in this big world of not knowing… Love your work, every little bit of it. And enjoy pieces of pie with cream.
- Amanda Foy
  
  Thank you Pauline. I like pie and cream….a lot!

Perhaps you inability to focus is actually your gift? Perhaps you are setting yourself limits – for example, deadlines – when you might need to relax and enjoy the ins and outs of managing many worthwhile interests, de-stress a little about the importance and value of the work you do and simply embrace the ‘now’ moment. But yes, learning to say ‘no’ is incredibly important and to do this we do need to understand ourselves – basically by knowing what we want and what we need to feel okay at the end of each day. Let our self-knowledge define our boundaries, which in time will naturally manage those stress loads.
- Amanda Foy
  
  Hi Beverley, Thank you for giving me that perspective. I should look at it as a gift. I have work to do on ‘letting people down’, I just don’t do it, but it is at the expense of me. Thanks again for taking the time to respond.

gatkinson

Great post and I totally hear where your coming from, I’ve been working on my business for 4 years.. and whilst it’s changed a number of times, but interestingly it’s been in the last 6 months with real focus that things have taken much better shape.