Contemplating Struggles in my Entrepreneurial Journey
As I sat and had my lunch today, I noticed a spider diligently making a web among the leaves and stems of my plant friend, Pilea (who we brought in from the outside because of a big rainfall).
A spider can create the most beautiful web in the world, but if it is in the wrong place, it won’t catch any flies.
—v|c—
[For those of you that are new to Wonderlust… I often contemplate life and business with the help of my friend and confidant, Pilea, aka Pi (a “Chinese Money Plant”, as some say). Pilea actually travels with us, and has become used to the car. I’m not sure many plants have traveled in this manner so frequently. It would be interesting to find out. I think I reached a new level of weirdo taking selfies with a plant for this post. 😆 ]
Pi often helps me with a bird’s eye view of whatever issue I am dealing with and sitting and staring into the ever-growing stems and leaves is meditative and contemplative for me — and yes, I do receive messages.
Back to the spider, who happened to be in on this particular message today. There he was, weaving his thread and doing so beautifully and with such talent. My partner then uttered “He won’t catch any flies in here.” … and a lightbulb went off for me.
Most of my adult life I was diligently creating. Music, art, yoga, healing services… idea after idea and business after business. I got so caught up in my own web of creation that I was not paying attention to, or even aware of, the environment in which I was creating. Oh sure, my webs were skillful and beautiful – and even caught a few stray bugs that happened to be in the area… but I surely was not catching flies.
I am chuckling to myself, for I may have taken the analogy a little too far. This post is about struggle and perseverance, a very important attribute for any entrepreneur. However, it is equally important to be aware, and to be flexible.
I am all about doing what you love and loving what you do. My ‘work’ literally does not feel like work (most days 😆). However, as with anything — you must do what you love in the proper environment in order to attract and create success. Let me illustrate, using my own journey:
My Music Track
As a teen, I set the goal to become a world-class french horn player, play in an orchestra and travel the world. I went to college and earned my performance degree, and began a path to that goal. My vision of travel and living in a large city shifted when I decided to get married, settle down in our small-city home town and have a child. The two paths were not compatible —though not impossible, to be clear— and the environment wasn’t the perfect stage to become that world class, world traveling musician… so I shifted away from my vision.
My Teaching Path
I then planned to become a college professor and returned to school, earning a Master’s Degree. Once again, I seemed poised to complete this path – however, the small city we built our home in wasn’t offering any jobs… the environment was still wrong. So I began applying for teaching positions all over the country and nothing was landing in my proverbial web.
Wandering and Wondering…
I spent the better part of my 30s wandering from job to job and career path to career path. You could label me a ‘job hopper’ if you wanted… but in truth I was searching. Certified in Yoga, Reiki and Life Coaching long before it was trendy, I had difficulty attracting and capturing any flies. I also continued to apply for teaching positions… and finally landed an adjunct position in 2014. For those of you familiar with adjunct work — you are aware that it really is not a livable income, so my searching continued.
I was on a journey, but I had no idea at the time. It just felt like struggle and I wondered if I would ever have a “career.”
Creativity Meets Technology
Training in design and marketing landed me a marketing job in an industrial company, and I reconnected with an old creative passion, graphic design. I learned valuable skills in this position, including development and web design to compliment my graphic design skills and innate design sense. I even built a CRM for the company using a now obsolete program from Apple.
Working for an industrial company never quite settled with my values. In other words, the environment was still wrong. I ventured off and started a company with my family.
I was getting closer.
Putting it All Together
Finally, in 2019, after nearly 20 years of searching, I began asking myself the right questions.
- What is it I really want out of life?
- What is my purpose here?
- Who am I meant to inspire?
…and Wonderlust was born in early 2020.
It wasn’t about the HOW (the web) at all. Looking back on it all, I can see I actually returned to my original vision — at least the essence of it.
What I desire(d) most in life is to create and to experience. What and how I create is less important than the act itself. Further, it is a means through which I can experience. In other words…
I want to spin my webs so I can live a purposeful life experience.
I had this vision in my teens, but I was spinning my webs in the wrong places.
The Struggles are Important
It is easy to beat myself up and say I just gave up on all those other endeavors because they got too hard. The truth is, they weren’t right for me, and on some level I knew – so I shifted to something else. Each experiment, each training, each class, each job I had led me to acquiring and developing all the skills needed to do what I do now, and I truly love what I do. It also took perseverance as well as flexibility to keep going back to the proverbial drawing board until I found the right path for me.
Without all those struggles, I never would have figured it out.
Reflecting on this experience, I realize that persistence is not just about stubbornly sticking to a plan but being committed to a core vision and flexible in approach. It’s about understanding that setbacks are part of the journey of life and that each challenge brings an opportunity to learn and grow.
As you navigate your entrepreneurial journey, remember that persistence can turn obstacles into opportunities. Keep pushing forward, adapt when necessary, and never lose sight of your core vision.
The breakthrough you seek might be closer than you think.
Our spider friend sits patiently in his web now, waiting. I aim to return Pi back to the porch, once the downpour is over. The other plants and sun are so good for him. Hopefully, the return to the proper environment will also help our little friend catch his next meal.
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