View Full Version : Need more inspiration and less anxiety
Hi, all!
We are 30 year old homebodies here. I run my own biz from my home, and we are debt free (yay!) Residual income takes care of the majority (if not all) of our bills at this point. This could drop at anytime, of course, as people buying could always go away. If this did go away, we have 100k+ equity in our paid off house, and 110-125k cash, which would get us through close to 3 years if everyone left us in terms of our services, and we didn't have a single job from here on out *provided nothing goes wrong* which of course, things can, do, and will go wrong.
I am very proud & thankful for our situation. The main issue is that I am sitting here. Not motivated to bring in more work (I do computer work from home). It comes in, and I have never really had to "go get work" as it seems to find me, but motivation is low. Combine that with a higher than normal anxiety level about something wrong happening with clients. That keeps me chained to my desk so I can be here for them QUICKLY to service them if something goes wrong. The very thought of a possibility of something bad happening gets to me pretty badly.
I liken it to a squirrel who has been scurrying around for nuts on the ground, who, has all of a sudden, turned into an eagle who can FLY! Yet ... doesn't. I feel like the eagle who is just scurrying on the ground looking for nuts, instead of flying.
I would love to hear something ... anything from you all that may give me better perspective / insight / a creative WHACK to gain motivation/inspiration and drop this anxiety.
Thanks in advanced!
Welcome to the SimpLiv Boards jschmidt -
This sounds perfectly normal to me. Anyone going from a paycheck to paycheck existance type of thinking to then realizing they now actually have something they want to protect/preserve will probably experience anxiety.
Just because you own your own business doesn't mean you have to do it all yourself. Continue to do what you do best, take care of your clients, but maybe hire/outsource someone to help with that one small aspect of the business that helps to bring in new clients. Whether it is tweeking your Google Adwords or a full fledged TV commercial at the Super Bowl, there are people who do that type of work.
Dhiana
Sounds like you are in an admirable position, jschmidt! I would recommend you and your partner(s) revisit some of your core motivations for starting the business. Review your goals, not just in terms of numbers, but in terms of who you want to BE in the world. It sounds like you've reached the "enough point" as it's referred to in the Financial Integrity Program, and from that vantage point you can:
1) set new goals
2) expand your participation in your larger community (thankfully this can be done virtually for you homebodies!) Whether that community is your geographic one, or your professional/industry community, you can find that moving out from your tree line (to follow the squirrel metaphor) can help your business grow and build resiliency, in addition to bringing fulfillment for it's own sake. That's what I do when I'm feeling a little claustrophobic and/or complacently stagnant, and I find it works well.
Cheers!
Don't forget to include downtime for yourself and creative time for considering where the business could/should be going. While you're hanging out waiting for new work or evilness to help with, you can profitably consider where you want to take the business next and a plan to get there. That'll give you the roadmap you need to follow in future slow periods.
Thanks folks - keep em coming!
catherine
1-12-11, 11:01am
I'm in kind of a similar situation. I don't have residual income but I do work on projects that have a lifespan of 6-8 weeks and I never know if I'll have work beyond that timeframe, so I certainly relate to the tendency to become anxious over it... but in every other respect it's such an awesome position to be in. My concern is how to take my skills and my experience and diversify so that if by chance I become less marketable in what I'm doing now, I'll already be set up to transition to a different revenue stream.
It is kind of hard to stay motivated. When I'm in the middle of downtime, between projects, I just like doing other non-work stuff--working around the home, doing things for my family, etc. I have to learn to be more motivated to stay ahead of the curve! I've learned that if I spend 30 minutes in the morning reading the paper and industry-related stuff, and then tweeting about it, it keeps me more involved. But I usually don't have time to do that if I'm actually working on projects.
This is actually one of the things that keeps me from striking out on my own -- I know myself well enough to know that I would always be waiting for the other shoe to drop, even if I had built a successful business. I find it very hard to shut off/pull back. My current position is pretty 9-5, but I still pretty obsessively check email while on vacation, etc.
I'm not sure if this would help our hurt, but could you consider getting a blackberry and/or a small netbook? If you have that with you, then if there is an emergency you can pretty much deal with it wherever you are. Or at least know about it and reply with a timeframe you will be getting back to them. I know blackberries can be a real intrusion if you have trouble setting boundaries, but it might be some way of dealing with that worry that something is going to happen when you are out and about. I would work on setting expectations with your clients, too. Me and my team at work pride ourselves on our quick response time. But I am designing a new program, and in order to set some boundaries I am specifying that generally people should expect a response from us for non-emergency matters within 3 business days. Of course, in 99.9% of the cases the response will be within 12 hours (usually faster -- I type fast!), but I want to set the bar with what I know can be done 100% of the time. If something is going to take longer because it needs discussion or coordination between several people, I always respond immediately with an estimated timeframe for getting back. And then do my best to beat that estimate.
Not sure if this is helpful advice or not. I sympathize with you. I think it is really hard to find a balance with this and hope you do so that you can enjoy the success you have achieved!
lhamo
Hi, all!
...
1. The main issue is that I am sitting here.
2. Not motivated to bring in more work (I do computer work from home).
2a. It comes in, and I have never really had to "go get work" as it seems to find me, but motivation is low.
2b. Combine that with a higher than normal anxiety level about something wrong happening with clients.
3. That keeps me chained to my desk so I can be here for them QUICKLY to service them if something goes wrong.
4. The very thought of a possibility of something bad happening gets to me pretty badly.
...
5. better perspective / insight / a creative WHACK to gain motivation/inspiration
4. drop this anxiety
...
First off, congrats on finding us here at Simple Living! Second congrats on having your own business! Third Congrats on continuing the business. You have done three things that most personal businesses can't seem to do in the first or second or even third year that they have been around. So you first need to congratulate yourself on a job well done. :cool:
As someone had her own business for four years, I understand your anxiety. So I am going to address the things that you have in order.
1. Just sitting here - well, no, you are working. But when you are not working, then, yes, you are sitting. If you feel you need to create more business for yourself there are many ways to do it. Join a chamber of commerce, belong to some networking groups, and get yourself out there. There are tons of marketing strategies that you can use that will not cost you very much, some that will cost you more, and some you just should not touch. You put in enough time to the marketing, it CAN pay off. Word of mouth is one thing, but there are other ways to market yourself.
2. Not motivated - pretend that you have no money or put your money into something so that you can not get access to it as readily as you have in the past. That would certainly motivate you to earn more, if that is what you want to do.
- or you could pretend that you want to retire when you are 40 therefore, you work while the sun still shines (I think the quote is make hay while the sun shines....:|( )
Either way, it might motivate you to do #1.
2a. Work is coming in, no motivation to GO Out and make more - Is this business something you want to do forever? If not, and it is just something to pay the bills, then you are in the wrong business. Find something that makes you happy. That makes you feel fulfilled and motivated at the same time. If this is not the case, and I am reading you wrong, then do step #1 and #2.
2b. Something wrong happening with the clients - either they have something wrong happen to them or something wrong happens to you. With them - "OMG MY COMPUTER WON'T START COME OUT HERE AND FIX IT" sort of problem - or is it "I CAN'T FIND THAT FILE YOU SAID WAS HERE!" Two completely different set of problems, one, you have to be there, and two you do not, but can talk to them over the phone.
---- are the clients that needy? If so, and you have gone through steps 1 & 2 already, and you have decided that this is what you want to do, then you are going to have to either, figure out a way to stay in constant contact with them (does not sound like you want to do that) or slowly wean them off of being so needy.
3. - chained to a desk - first off, make you realize you really need to check on 1 and 2 again - these are not signs that you like what you do. If you do like it, chained is not a good word. I would go with the following options - if possible, like lhamo stated before, blackberry or netbook or iPad to stay in touch while not being around as much. Because you are out there marketing yourself and are very busy getting new clients that aren't as needy.
4. something bad happening/Dropping the anxiety. Well, bad things do happen but it sounds like you are prepared. I would read the book Your Money or Your Life to gain perspective. You have a good liquid fund for those in - case of emergencies and your bills are paid.
----if you still have doubts, put all worries onto a piece of paper, then burn, bury, or rip to shreds that piece of paper. DO NOT hold onto it. You will find your worries disappear.
---If they do not disappear, go back to #1 and #2 and read YMOYL.
5. a creative WHACK to gain motivation - read #s 1-4, read YMOYL, and let us know how you are doing and what you think.
Again - you have been doing a good job already, and asking a question is a great way to lose the anxiety and worry. Good luck!
great reply - thanks a bunch!
I would love to hear something ... anything from you all that may give me better perspective / insight / a creative WHACK to gain motivation/inspiration and drop this anxiety. Hi, and welcome. :)
The brain is a wonderful thing. One of its main functions is to continually scan the horizon and let us know every single possibility of what might happen to us in any given circumstance so we can be prepared to act 'just in case'.
When we cross a street, we look both ways in case a car might be coming and mow us down... When we get on a plane, we fear it might crash... Just a couple examples of the brain conjuring up possibilities. And in both cases, the actual event happening would be rare. But our brains constantly are trying to keep us ready for anything as a survival mechanism. But these possibilities are merely thoughts, not reality. They are something that might happen, not necessarily what will. And some of us have brains more vigilent than others.
When I find myself worrying/anxious about something bad that might happen, especially if it's repetitive, I remind myself that it's just my brain doing its job.
great reply - thanks a bunch!
You're welcome, please let us know if you need any more motivation - when I had my own business, I felt part of my job was to motivate people to do more. Sometimes just stating things in a different way helps people.
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