Be the Entrepreneur of Your Life

There is a default way of life that can leave you feeling  at the mercy of your circumstances.  powerless, resigned and even defeated.   You end up feeling like you are just going through the motions and running on auto-pilot.

And, then there is another way of doing life - like an entrepreneur!

What if you approached your life like an entrepreneur approaches their business?
What would be possible?

On today's episode, I share the qualities that make an outstanding entrepreneur and show you how they can be applied to the moments of your daily life.

Enjoy!

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Transcript

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SPEAKER_00 0:00

I'm Carla Reeves, and this is Differently, a podcast where we explore the ins and outs of what becomes possible when we're willing to think, do, and show up differently to the moments of our everyday lives. So, for those of you who have been listening for some time, you've heard me talk about how there's this default way of living life. And that default way of living life often leaves us feeling at the mercy of our circumstances, feeling powerless, sometimes resigned, defeated, and like we're going through the motions, that feeling of groundhog day and autopilot. So a couple episodes ago, episode 71, called You Have the Power to Choose, I shared my first experience of really understanding the power of choice that we have in our life and the profound difference it began to make in my life. And I, if you didn't listen to that, I encourage you to go back because it will inspire you with this idea of that our everyday life can be the most incredible, fulfilling, creative adventure that you've ever embarked on. My husband and I were talking the other day. And in case you didn't know, he's been in the loop uh around my business for from the get-go and now more involved than ever. And he said to me the other day that, you know, that the work that I've been doing and the work that I do with clients, he said it's really about teaching people to be the entrepreneur of their life. And I said to him with a resounding, yes, that's that's it. That really is it. And when I think about entrepreneurs, my dad was an incredible entrepreneur. I'm sure that's why from an early age I always had this love and admiration for the entrepreneur and for entrepreneurial-minded people. And when I looked up the definition of entrepreneur in the Oxford Languages Dictionary, it talks about a person who organizes and operates a business or businesses taking on greater than normal financial risks in order to do so and reaping the rewards. An entrepreneur is an innovator. And when I looked up innovator, it has other words such as groundbreaker, pioneer, trailblazer. It's a noun and it's described as a person or group that introduces something new or does something for the first time. Being innovative means doing things differently. Ha ha. Or doing things that have never been done before. An innovator is someone who has embraced this idea and creates environments in which people and employees are given the tools and resources to challenge the status quo, push boundaries, and achieve growth. In Forbes, they had an article about the qualities of an entrepreneur. And I curiously took a look at those, and I want to share those with you. Qualities of an entrepreneur are robust work ethic, deep passion, creativity, motivated self-starter, adaptability, eager to learn. What if you took these qualities and applied them to being the entrepreneur of your everyday life? For the last two decades, this is what I have been doing in my own life. This is what Quentin and I have been doing in our marriage and family and home and life together. And it is my life's work to share, empower, and equip you to do this in your life. Let's take a look at each of these qualities and how it can be applied to your everyday life. Number one, robust work ethic. So in business, this looks like being the first to arrive at the office and the last to leave, always having work on their mind. It's this relentless pursuit for something and this willingness to do whatever it takes to make it happen. In life, what if we had this same relentless pursuit, but for the kind of life that we want to live and create, for the purpose we want it to have, for the contribution we want to make, and on and on and on. Deep passion. So in business, it takes this to keep the business strong and going and to sustain motivation, especially when things are not happening the way you think they should, or they ought to be, or you're not generating the revenue you want to, or making the progress that you intended. This deep passion sustains you. In life, what is your deep passion when it comes to life? And what if you channeled your incredible drive and energy not just into one area of your life, but intentionally into all domains of your life? Imagine the impact. In a business, an entrepreneur has a vision and a mission, and they're constantly keeping their eye on this. This forges the business forward and carries the entrepreneur's motivation and energy on days when things are not where they want them to be. What if in life you approached your life this way? What if you had a vision and a mission that you kept in front of you and that called you forward? I take clients through an exercise in my eight-week private coaching program where they create a commitment compass. And this serves as a guide, as a pillar that helps them to align their everyday actions and choices. Number three, creativity. In a business, companies that thrive are built from wild creativity. They are forced to come up with original ideas and ways of doing things. In life, tapping into your inherent creativity and using that to approach, adjust the way you show up and design your everyday life in a way that lights you up is a talent and a path that you have available to you, but that most people don't know to tap into it. This is one of my very favorite parts of working with clients and a huge part of my passion behind this podcast because helping you to think, see, and do differently is where magic happens, because this is where amazing things like doors that felt like they were shut or relationships that were stuck or falling apart or opportunities that were non-existent suddenly change and something becomes possible when you change the dance of what you're doing and you're willing to do differently. And that takes creativity. And this is what happens when you approach your life with a lens and a tool set of creativity. And if you're listening and wondering or questioning or telling yourself you're not creative, I want to remind you that everyone is creative. It just may not look like the definition that you've labeled it as in your mind. And there are ways to be creative in your everyday life that have nothing to do with artistic talent or ability. Number four, being a motivated self-starter. So in business, you know, entrepreneurs don't give up at the first sign of struggle. They don't put off what needs addressing. They take the initiative, they accept the challenge, and they keep showing up and pushing through no matter what. When you're the entrepreneur of your life, you do what it takes to continue to show up for yourself and your life despite the challenges. You address things as they come up versus letting them fester. You take initiative to solve problems and communicate powerfully and be the one to love deeply for the sake of something much greater. When I think of this in my own life, I think of the work Quentin and I have done to create something different out of the ordinary when it comes to our marriage and what that has required. It's been a lot of work, but what I will tell you is that the benefits of that work have allowed us to create a marriage and life together that I beyond what I ever imagined possible. Having that passion vision for our marriage is what helped me to show up on days when it felt like things were falling apart or everything was wrong. I kept pointing my actions towards that vision and showed up again and again in the face of feeling otherwise. That's what an entrepreneur does in the business, and this is what it takes to be the entrepreneur in your own life. What if you could put this kind of energy into one area of your life that needs some attention? What would be possible in one month, six months, or a year's time? Number five, adaptability. In business, this looks like the entrepreneur shakes off inconveniences. They choose over and over again to go with the flow and take opportunities as they come. They don't stay stuck too long. They tap into their ability to be adaptable and turn obstacles into opportunities. They looked for the gift inside of the challenge and they are relentless about moving forward and making adjustments as they go. In life, being the entrepreneur of your life means embracing what is happening and leveraging all that you have to turn obstacles into opportunities, to learn from your mistakes, and to keep heading forward towards that vision. I'm reminded of my client Karen on episode 65, where she talked about the shift, the mindset shift she made during our work together, and how changing her approach when something is changing in her business. For example, let's say, like when I think she talked about when an employee leaves, and prior to working together or early on in our work together, she would feel an oh no, like a panic, what's wrong? And feel like, what have I done? This is terrible, the business is gonna fall apart. And she's really turned that into applying curiosity and trust and looking through the lens that when something is changing, maybe there's something important happening and shifting around for the greater good of the business and all involved. And as I've watched her do this again and again and lean into this mindset, she now navigates these changes in her business and in her life with far greater ease. And everyone around her, her family, her husband, her employees, her team, her colleagues all benefit from this. And number six, eager to learn. In business, an entrepreneur makes mistakes and they learn from those. They're not afraid to fail. They know that failure is actually really an important part of the process to making things better. And they surround themselves with people to make them better and support them and cover areas where they may not be as strong. And in life, being an entrepreneur of your life means yes, you're gonna make mistakes, you're gonna fall down, you're gonna learn, you're gonna get out of your comfort zone for the sake of something much greater. And you know that when you feel stuck or things aren't moving, you know to change the dance, you know to try something different, and you take risks to do that and experiment and refine over time and keep doing what works and change what isn't working, and you learn from all of that. Being the entrepreneur of your everyday life is a mindset, it's an approach, it's a way of living that takes you from feeling at the mercy of your circumstances, stuck, resigned, and restores you with power and choice and influence over the quality of your everyday life. It happens in the little tiny moments where you try on this lens and remind yourself, I'm the entrepreneur of my everyday life experience. How might an entrepreneur show up right here and you experiment, you try something new, and you're willing to be surprised. So, are you the entrepreneur of your life? Do you want to become the entrepreneur of your life? Stay tuned next week. There's more to come. Thank you for tuning in to this episode of Differently. I hope it stirred your thinking, and I invite you to take one inspired action from something that stood out to you. If you want to hear more conversations like this, hit follow on your favorite podcast app. And if this episode could impact someone you know, please pass it along. Remember, new episodes drop weekly. See you next week.