Friday evening, some friends of mine and I got together for an “Entrepreneur’s Roundtable”. The call was great, and my good friend Stef (having been a software entrepreneur in a previous life) was fantastic at answering questions on all sorts of things from neurolinguistic programming as a marketing technique to strategies for setting up one’s own business with little or no money. (Here’s a link to the podcast.)
My question was simple: How do you know when to go full-time?
We’ve been hitting some constraints on the growth of inspirIT due to my current schedule. Marketing, responses to inquiries (and, sadly, blogging) have had to take a backseat to actually Getting Stuff Done for our delicious and delightful clients due to the 12 hours a day I currently spend working for The Man.
I’ve been going completely mad thinking about all this. It’s literally almost all I think about every day. I think about how much I’m missing out on by not being on Twitter, responding to brilliant blog posts, helping people with tech questions that they post and I only see 7 hours later, how much I’d love to get a healthy stable of pre-written posts for this blog, really making a go at marketing, etc.
Apparently, that’s the answer…
Without my mentioning just how much I’ve been thinking about this project and wanting to dedicate myself to it full-time, Stef came up with exactly that. Think about going full-time when you run into constraints (i.e. you can’t grow the business any bigger than it is without going full-time), and when you’ve become so obsessed that it’s impossible not to do it.
Check.
…And I already knew it.
I knew it, you see, because as Stef spoke, I couldn’t help but laugh. I couldn’t help but feel this welling sense of joy – the sheer joy of being alive and seeing doors thrown open and roads unwinding.
But what was valuable was getting that validation from somebody else – especially a somebody else that I admire and wholeheartedly trust.
In exactly one week, inspirIT will become my full-time job.
How am I feeling about that? Light. Joyous. Scared. Giddy. I’m feeling everything – at once. It’s overwhelming, yes. And it’s fantastic.
So yes, I had been applying for some other jobs, even while planning for my last day at the Dreaded Day Job. I’ll admit it: I was hedging my bets. I was letting the lizard brain dictate the terms of my existence. While that’s understandable (the lizard brain is there for a reason – it’s trying to keep me safe!), it’s also not what’s conducive to my final happiness.
You know, I keep saying that we only get one go of life. I keep saying that our joy is only in the living of that life – and that we should not have to regret any single one of our hours on this earth. I know this to be the case – that each hour is precious and irreplaceable, and that our choices are what make those hours worth living.
What sealed and set the decision was this: that I knew I would regret the hour when I chose the “safe” route. I knew that no matter what that “safe” route would bring, it would not and could not bring me joy. No matter what becomes of me or this project – whether good or ill – the only decision that reflects my values and my fundamental life goals is the one I’ve made. I’m proud of having made that decision.
I’ll be a little quiet for the remainder of this week, while I work on wrapping up current projects at the DDD.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi Charlotte,
Oh, how your post made me sing, and pump my fists in the air for you. It felt like the epitome of:
one bright moment when you know you can fly.
We are gifted with these times in our lives when something feels a bit magical inside. Many people ignore or run from those moments. But as you’ve noted, life’s true meaning comes when we choose a path of joy. I’m thrilled you’ve chosen the joyride.
A toast to you, and a great hope that you’ll continue to blog more. There is much value in your words.
Hi Charlotte,
Through a series of blogs I stumbled upon yours and I am so glad I did…what you wrote is just lovely!! Thank you for sharing this…I almost (well let’s say 80%) share your dilemma and completely (let’s say 110%) share your passion
Keep blogging and filling us in your progress. Good luck and much love!