I kicked off my work week by watching Chris Brogan's 3-part video series on Overnight Success and found myself cheering. Chris refreshingly tells us the way it is - that overnight success for him means a 10-year business that includes long hours and being on the road away from his wife and kids.
I too can fall into the myth about overnight success, especially since the media frequently portrays it that way. I'm sure you've all heard stories about the unknown actor who hits it big overnight, or the dress designer who goes from obscurity to the best runways in NYC. We all love these stories and the idea of having a magic wand. Yet, if you listen to that person being spotlighted on television or in an article invariably it comes out that their path to success has included working long hours, often strewn with financial hardship in order to make their dream come true.
Chris talks about how his family is impacted by his business and his wanting certain things for his family. Boy, can I relate with that - I want my business to attain a certain level of success so that my husband can take advantage of opportunities that will be more personally rewarding for him. Starting a business impacts everyone in the family and there is just no getting around that.
As a new business owner and Mom, my husband and daughter frequently sacrifice so that I can attend out of town meetings or go to networking events one or two nights per week. On the surface this might not sound like much, but the time I spend working also includes not only my billable coaching hours, but all the non-billable tasks for my business like invoicing, developing new programs, creating copy for email blasts, writing this blog, answering emails, and spending time "out and about" on social media. There never seems to be enough hours in the day and some days I wish that I could clone myself.
The impact Brogan's video series had on me today was to go easy on myself and to not push too hard.
A great reminder that his 10 year business success was anything but overnight! Hats off to Chris Brogan.
Yes, to the steadiness of the turtle. Amazingly how often we all get hooked around this idea. My ego does LOVE the idea though.
Posted by: Karen Hodges | November 03, 2009 at 03:20 PM
Steady goes the turtle, huh? There's so much beauty and love along the way. The destination is enticing to the ego, and the soul loves the journey. Thanks for the reminder Karen!
Posted by: Kathy | November 02, 2009 at 02:23 PM