Starting Out

Well, here I am. Ready to take the plunge. I am a little worried and concerned about making a mistake. But mistakes are part of life, right? And it is exciting to start a new chapter, in a book, with a movie, in life. So why do I feel like it’s a house of cards that is going to come crumbling down at any moment from just the wrong move?

This is a familiar scenario for many of us at many points throughout our life. Carl Bard (reportedly AKA Carl Sandburg, the American Author, which may be questionable, but that’s a conversation for a different time) said “Although no one can go back and make a brand-new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand-new ending.” But it’s hard, really, hard. It means turning down a road where, despite all planning, you truly never know what to expect. At its heart, this is the action phase of true change. I will talk about change later.

That’s where you find me right now. I am throwing it all in and at 61 years old starting my own business. If thinking “what if” or “how could I do that” equate to planning, then I have spent a lifetime preparing. And I have talked myself out of making the jump for years but now circumstances out of my control have made the decision for me. So, I stand on the diving board, swinging my arms together getting ready for the plunge. Cue Clark Griswold “This is crazy, this is crazy.”

While I am not taking a pollyannish approach, looking only on the bright side, I am being conscious and deliberate about my focus. I understand there will be tears and times I feel like chucking it all. But I am optimistic and hopeful that focusing on the excitement and joy of when things go right as well as commiserating when they don’t with my support systems. Looking through that perspective, helps me believe I am right where I need to be, doing my part to send positive ripples into the universe.

This is where the rubber meets the road, and I need to practice what I preach. So as a result, I have been working on identifying my emotions; overwhelmed, vulnerable, and empowered. We often feel a myriad of different emotions all at one time. Some easy, some hard. After I identify them, I validate them, by simply saying “it is ok to feel what I feel.” That is often difficult because our tendency is to use the “shoulds” and “shouldn’ts.”

One of the most important things to remember when we talk about emotions is that whatever we feel is ok. That means we might need to explore why I feel this way, but regardless, it all starts with identifying and validating.

So, I will do my best in this new adventure to not only manage the logistics of my new business, but the emotional responses as well. Identify, validate and explore as necessary. Say it again; identify, validate and explore as necessary. The more I learn about myself, I can’t help be end up being successful by my definition of creating positive change for my clients and beyond.