Why would you never work for yourself?
I’d never work for myself. For one, I’m a slave driver of a boss – I push myself and my team really hard. This is with one exception, as an avid adventurer I do enjoy annual leave as it’s the only time I truly relax from work. I hear entrepreneurs don’t take holidays, so I’d unlikely allow myself a break. Secondly, I’d need an entrepreneurial idea – no getting around that one.
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A few years back I read all the books: ‘The idea in you’, ‘Screw work let’s play’, ‘The 10% Entrepreneur’ – and still no big idea. Or so I thought. In hindsight it did take me one big step closer by helping me jump from the public to the private sector.
About four years after reading those books, I took time out of a regular three-week work trip to South Africa, to get away from it all in the mountains of Lesotho. A 40-minute flight and two hour transfer later (with a local driver who shared my love of old-school UK Garage), I arrived at my basic chalet in the mountains. Totally off-grid.
During early morning yoga on my deck, long walks through canyons, and donkey rides through the village, I thought about ‘what next’.
What am I most passionate about? Sustainable development, learning, exploring.
What do I enjoy most at work? Empowering and inspiring team members – I love it when they surprise themselves with what they achieve!
And if I was such a slave driver of a boss, would my teams be so engaged? I must be doing something right – could I show the same compassion and empathy to myself, as well as driving myself forward relentlessly?
What does the world need right now? What had I been investing in recently? A coach – two actually. Amelie coached me on public speaking and Cece on my current businesses. Both had an enormous impact on my ability to perform both at work and outside, total gamechangers.
Imagine if I could do what I enjoy best everyday – empowering an inspiring leaders on a mission – helping them amplify their impact. While travelling the world. Would that be worth the gamble of being my own boss?
I signed up for professional coach training the following week and had left full-time employment 6 months later. Sometimes you’ve just got to listen to your gut and take bold action.
What’s the reason you’d never work for yourself? Let me know.
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