I can’t tell you how many times in my stressed corporate days I said, “I wish I could work from home.” Then, “I wish I had my own business.” After I left corporate for a smaller company I received my wish. On my 45th birthday the company closed its doors.
Off into my solo-professional journey I went. I saw it as a gift; then the emotional rollercoaster hit; and finally the ups and downs became less extreme. I wouldn’t have traded this experience for anything in the world. There’s no turning back. Being a solo-professional and now an entrepreneur is in my blood. So, how do we conquer the fear and solitude as a solo-professional?
First let’s see if anything here mirrors what you are experiencing or have experienced. Feel free to add additional emotions that aren’t listed.
Solitude – No teams or individuals to work with, day in and day out. The quiet can be both good and bad.
Overwhelm – Too much to do and you’re the ONLY one to do it.
Lack of Confidence / self-esteem – It may not have started this way but do you find that your confidence and self-esteem lessen during times you’re alone?
Internal Negative Voices – This is a big one. Have you said any of these things?
Add your own to these examples.
– Who do you think you are having your own business? You’ve never done it before, what makes you think you can do it now?
– You don’t know how to do create this product; write this article or facilitate a workshop. Just go back to what you were doing.
– I don’t know how to market, how to sell and I don’t want people thinking that I’m an ‘in your face’ sales person.
– If I don’t have the answers to everything I’ll look unprofessional.
Time is filled with non-essential work and random tasks – I’ve found this to be defined as gratifying and procrastinating. Gratifying in that I see immediate gratification in a task completed, whether it’s a business task or not. Procrastinating what you really need to do because you don’t like it, don’t know where to begin or think you don’t have what it takes to do it.
Under whelm – Having too much time and not enough to do.
Diminished Focus – This can be caused by everything listed here. Solitude, overwhelm, lack of confidence, time filled with random tasks, under whelm and extreme fear. Your head gets filled and there’s no room to sort things out.
Extreme Fear – Most times we see it and feel it. A few of my personal experiences have been: 1) frozen at my desk to pick up the phone; 2) frozen in thought fearing multiple issues; 3) fear of failure; 4) fear that it’s got to be perfect or I can’t do it at all; 5) fear of success. Fear is tricky. We don’t always see it and a feeling can be masked to the point we define it as something totally different.
How could I name all of these emotions? They are all experiences I’ve been through as an entrepreneur. We all go through it and guess what, it doesn’t go away – but it changes for the better. You grow and mature in how you learn to handle your emotions. An emotion that was at 100% may now feel like 10%. FEAR has actually become a good thing for me and dare I say, exciting?
So, let’s look at ways to conquer fear and solitude as a solo-professional and entrepreneur.
1) Make appointments with yourself and go to the library, a coffee shop or a fun environment that brings you positive energy. Take one segment of your business to work on and if it’s too big, take a piece of it. Schedule the appointment for a time frame that you will stay focused.
2) Set up a weekly date with a business friend. Did you do this in high school – a study date? Each brings what you want to work on which holds you both accountable to be there. If you get stuck on something you can talk through it and help each other out.
3) Search online for business networking groups in your area. Go for a visit and see how you like it. Groups have different formats and it’s important to find what works for you. Depending on your area you may have several choices. Some professions fit very well with a Chamber of Commerce and they may have several groups to choose from. You might like to get involved with a Rotary if that’s your style.
4) When fear grabs you get on the phone immediately with that business friend you’ve connected with -talk through it. I can’t tell you how many times my business friends and peers have pulled me out of the fog and the fear, right into action. Remember, this is not a whine session; it’s an intentional call to help you through that fear.
5) Set up times with someone to check in throughout the day on a project. Again, this promotes accountability which a lot of us need for focus.
6) Create your own team of solo-professionals and meet on a weekly or bi-weekly schedule. Get out of your office for your meetings and you can also do them over the phone if the weather is bad. You can even do this nationally. You don’t have to have local team members if you’re doing a conference team call.
This team is created to help you get clear, set and achieve your goals, and help others achieve theirs. If you don’t know where and how to begin with forming your group, there is a free tip sheet offered below. It’s called The Success Team Blueprint.
Putting the pieces in place that have been mentioned in this article will help you conquer your fear and solitude. The more you bring into your daily life, the more you will succeed. Congratulations for choosing your solo-professional career. Don’t forget to ‘play’.