Tough Days
The days full of rejections are tough. Sometimes, the culmination of a not feeling great combined with a day full of rejection can really make you think about whether you’re on the right path or not. Those days can make the most headstrong and gritty people question everything they’re doing or working towards. Recently, I had a day where I was told thanks, but no thanks several times. The last couple of weeks have been martyred by endless growing pains, putting out fires, and getting the trains back on course. Occasionally that little inner bitch inside all of us rears its head out and starts talking. Thoughts of doubt and retreat come to mind. Being a small business owner is exhausting and stressful.
Reliance on Machines
For me, my businesses almost exclusively rely on the operational status of different machines. There are vending machines, margarita machines, and breathalyzer machines. The machines in all my businesses have become an everyday obsession. I find myself constantly checking up on their performance, uptime, and sales trends. Sometimes machines fuck up. Sometimes machines get damaged, they stop working, or they throw faults. Some machines have awesome sales figures and others lag. All these variables spin in my head throughout the days, and I am constantly strategizing and thinking about my next five moves to improve the operations. As a business owner, when there is a problem, nobody is going to give more of a shit about it than you. It sucks. The problems can’t be passed on to the oncoming shift or escalated to a supervisor. It’s up to you and you alone to figure shit out.
What Failure Looks Like
However, all the projects, businesses, and any other endeavors only become failures when you decide it’s a failure and quit. Quitting, above all other actions and outcomes, is what failure actually looks like. Every action short of quitting is still progress. The second you decide to quit is when the project fails. “Don’t stop and don’t quit” has been the motto of my 30s and early 40s. I do take days off and force myself to let go of certain situations, but I rarely completely quit anymore.
The Dream
It’s been a busy off season from Life of the Party this year. As I reach more milestones, I’ve become even more aggressive with being a doer and setting bigger goals. Even though I consider myself to have the best W2 job in the world, a goal of mine has always been to be my own boss. Even the best job in the world is still a job and I still have someone else telling me where to go and when to be there. I was never fond of the W2 lifestyle. I’ve always longed for more freedom and despised the idea of working a 9-5 only to look forward to the weekends. Only lately have I even begun seeing the slightest possibility of no longer having to live the W2 lifestyle. That slight possibility excites me and has been one of the biggest driving forces of my hustle in recent years. So, when there are days or times that my machines are fucking up, businesses need attention, customers aren’t happy, or when shit just isn’t going right it’s a big gut punch. Every little set back pushes my dream slightly more out of reach.
Loving the Grind
Every day now, I anticipate and look forward to waking up early and grinding while competitors and comfort seekers lie in a warm bed and sleep. Facing new challenges, networking with other entrepreneurs, learning new things, making business deals, and investing in my education has been deeply rewarding and satisfying. There is not a formal education in the world that can teach you as much about life and success as just jumping in, stirring shit up, and not quitting.
When you have a dream and you’re making progress, it brings excitement and purpose into your life.
Final Thoughts
They say the number one regret on your death bed is not “going for it”. That “it” is different for everyone. Right now, I believe my “it” is going after my goal of financial freedom. If all these side hustles and businesses fail I might get laughed out or talked about, and honestly, I don’t give a shit about the opinion of others. What I do give a shit about is setting a good example for my kids. How am I supposed to tell them that any dream while I don’t, myself, take any action to make my dreams possible? I want them to see that I tried, that I am a doer not a talker, that I left it all out on the field and that I took calculated risks in pursuit of what I was passionate about becoming.
