How to Stay Committed To Your Entrepreneurial Quest and Why Loving What You Do Isn’t Enough

 

Steve Jobs gave an epic commencement speech at Stanford in 2005. I have heard that speech many, many times and have had my children listen to this speech. Jobs shared, "...The only way to do great work is to love what you do." I don't totally agree with this train of thought for a few reasons, but mainly because human beings tend to blur the line between love and excitement/lust, and what we sometimes think we are "in love" with is really just the "new-ness" or "honeymoon" phase and I know plenty of people that bounce from one thing to the next in search of "what they love." The truth is, loving what you do is important, and being committed to it is just as important. Together, they prove for an unstoppable force in business and in your relationships. In this video I share 6 tips on how to stay committed to your entrepreneurial quest.

5:35 Tip #1. Stay focused. Don't be so distracted.

The grass isn't always greener on the other side. It is greener where you tend it.

9:13 Tip #2. Don't sweat the small stuff.

We spend more time worrying about all the little daily challenges when we are going to need that energy to overcome the big challenges that will hit us on some random Tuesday morning. Additionally, we often visualize negative scenes in our heads of how things might play out, that more often than not, don't even become reality.

12:26 Tip #3. You can't change people.

If you are married, you may recall what it was like when you were dating your spouse. He or she possessed wonderful qualities AND they possessed some not so wonderful qualities or habits. You knew about them, you just chose to ignore them. When you find yourself in a rut in your relationships, professionally or personally, it usually a result of you focusing on the not so wonderful qualities-and not only focusing on them, but magnifying them. You've always known about the "negatives", you just chose to ignore them initially. Try that again. Stop trying to change people. You can't control anyone other than yourself.

14:50 Tip #4. Go Back

It's easy to leave the house during a fight. It's easy to not want to go back to the office when you seeing less than stellar results. It's hard to go back, and the sooner you develop the ability to go back even when you don't want to, the sooner you'll overcome your stresses. Conquer your demons-don't run from them.

18:32 Tip #5. Stop Telling Yourself It's Supposed to Be Easy

I don't know who started this vicious rumor that it was going to be easy. Marriage isn't easy. Raising kids isn't easy. Business isn't easy. It will be challenging. Get over it. Life isn't and won't ever be fair. Life won't give you want-it'll give you what you've earned. Accept that building a business is hard and go ahead anyway.

23:32 Tip #6. Remembering "Your Why"

If you knew how hard something was going to be in order to be proficient at it, you probably wouldn't have gotten started. Think about anything that you are exceptional at. It took substantially more effort than you initially thought it would. This is where "Your Why" comes in. When things do get difficult, and they will, remembering the reasons you got started will keep you in the game.