The ups and downs of entrepreneurship (and life)
Don’t believe in overnight success. There are no alternative routes for success in entrepreneurship rather than to put in a consistent daily effort for a (very) long time. If you want to try your shot, you might well enjoy the journey. This is how I do it by focusing on what I learn instead of what goes wrong.
Lingfy.com is the most exciting, motivating and fun project I ever been involved with on a professional level. It‘s where I put my sweat, blood and tears.
I’m trying to make my dream come true but sometimes that dream can be a scary experience and even turn into a nightmare.
For each successful step towards promoting and growing this company, there was at least one other negative issue about it. The journey of an entrepreneur is full of obstacles and unanticipated problems.
They often are overwhelming and can give us sleepless nights. So the only solution is to put in the effort to overcome them.
Among the most exciting moments, I lived so far in my entrepreneurial journey were the online launch of our translation platform, the recruitment of our team of translators and the recent announcement we’re open for business.
But we also dealt with the other side of the coin where we had doubts about our ability to grow and compete with other established Languages Service Providers (LSPs) with recurring revenues and customers.
But personally, my biggest source of concern was to differentiate ourselves from everyone else and promote what makes us unique. The market research and business models of other LSPs only fueled our anxiety. We realized how crowded the market was despite its fast expansion.
But as we continued to research the market, we looked closer to ourselves to what we do well, so we created a company we would be happy to pay for its services but also to work for.
This way our goal is to treat others as the way we would like to be treated.
So, we defined as a service differentiator to provide translations in a simple and efficient way to small and medium-sized businesses with difficulties accessing quality contents written by highly qualified and motivated professionals.
The best way to motivate translators is to promote their work by recognizing their skills and creativity. That’s why we see translation as much more than a simple transposition of words and meanings from one language to another.
We see translation as an art form!
One step back, two steps forward
The ups and downs in my motivation levels when creating Lingfy were one of the greatest obstacles had to face. Nowadays things are different, but I still deal daily with those ups and downs and I learned they will never go away because that’s just how life is. And I now accept that.
But sometimes the mountain I want to climb leaves me overwhelmed and it looks like a mission impossible. There are goals and tasks that seem to be too complex and difficult, so I feel discouraged and I think I cannot finish the job. So I procrastinate, something that only adds to the frustration.
To reverse this, I split my goals into smaller and realistic tasks that make the final goal more manageable.
I’ve seen progress by adopting this strategy as it makes me remember Newton’s law of motion. It says “an object either remains at rest or continues to move at a constant velocity unless acted upon by a force”.
So it’s far easier to keep on motivating yourself when you’re doing something about it than when you are binge-watching TV waiting for a miraculous solution to your problems coming knocking on your door.
The consequences of inaction and paralysis can only grow your feelings of frustration and those negative effects can become serious. The only way out is to get work done no matter how small it is so you feel better with yourself.
I also realised I had to accept that procrastination is part of life! It‘s a constant issue in the literature on productivity and it affects us all albeit in different ways.
Fight hard to keep motivated
I see motivation as the same as being in a good mood because it’s a feeling that comes and goes without warning.
But we can do something about it: we can strengthen it and enjoy it more often, just like a muscle we work out. I plan my goals in the short, medium and long-term, something that makes me extremely motivated to get down to work.
However, my willpower and good intentions will eventually run out when I’m faced with requests from family and friends on my working hours or distractions such as social media or constantly checking email.
These are highly addictive habits that trigger dopamine release in our brains, the substance produced when we anticipate and seek immediate gratification.
Distractions that grab our attention are external, but we can control them by putting in a conscious effort and a strong willpower. It’s up to each one of us to focus on the core activities that bring us closer to our goals.
By controlling immediate gratification and saying no to others’ priorities, we’re saying yes to ourselves! As we assume control for our destiny and follow the path that makes sense and gives us joy.
I’m not defending we shouldn’t help others when they need, I’m only saying we should protect as hard as possible our most precious gift: time!
It’s equally distributed to everyone no matter the sex, race, colour, religion or social status. It’s up to each one of us to make the most of what’s available.
So I learned that the negative feeling that invades me when I say yes to someone else’s priorities is far worse than what others feel when I say no to them.
Dreams should always be big!
In every industry, there are professionals with doubts and hesitant about the goals they want to achieve. It‘0s hard to understand but some people try hard to doubt their ability to achieve their dreams.
Every day we’re convinced by others and ourselves that we must limit our ambitions. We need to curb our enthusiasm and be happy by following what the social norm says so.
We can only live happily and fulfilled if we are thankful for everything we have in the present moment because we can only live a fulfilling life when we focus on the power of now. We all should have a destination in mind but we should enjoy the journey.
However, to be passionate about what we do doesn’t mean we need to limit our ambition. Quite the opposite, all the dreamers that changed the world were courageous to go beyond the social norms.
Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi dedicated their lives to the cause of equal rights and opportunities for all citizens regardless of their colour or race.
Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin and Albert Einstein revolutionized sciences. Many people considered John F. Kennedy’s ambition to take the man to the moon ridiculous.
Our history is full of men and women who dared to think differently, who defied conventions.
They were labelled “crazy” before being recognized as “genius”. Nobody can achieve such great deeds without persistence, hard work and the ambition to go beyond the establishment.
Great things come for those who wait
One of the best ways to fuel our ambition and overcome negative thoughts is to ask ourselves what do we need to do to achieve our dream.
It doesn’t matter if your goal is to have professional success, pay more attention to your family, finish a marathon or become a millionaire, stop thinking about how difficult that goal and what steps you need to take to achieve it.
By taking baby steps and small changes in habits, it’s possible to reach goals beyond belief.
The Great Wall of China began with an idea, followed by a plan and finally action. It started somehow with a stone and grew each day with the effort and dedication of the people who worked there, to become one wonder of the world. It didn’t take a couple of days!
So if we want to live a fulfilling life and leave a long-lasting legacy we can start today cultivating patience and the discipline to do what we think is best.
Another tactic I recently adopted is to look at our life as an experiment as if we were scientists in a laboratory because what works for someone else might not be the best for us. So we can find comfort and freedom in our uniqueness!
I read a lot about entrepreneurship and psychology and as I try new strategies for my personal development; I realized some things work while others don’t.
So I keep on trying, picking the ones that make sense for me and adjusting them, after all I’m one of a kind as you are too!
Seeing problems as the fuel for action
“We have two lives, and the second [life] begins when we realize we only have one”, wrote Confucius. I’ve already learned so much in my short experience as an entrepreneur and how to face difficulties as opportunities to grow.
Life is about the good and bad times, when I started writing this text, negative thoughts went through my mind but now I’m about to finish it I feel happy!
I’m not fulfilling duties to someone else, but working towards myself and achieving my dreams. So as I try every day to make the most of the good times in life, I try hard to appreciate what’s important and celebrate my achievements.
It’s time to end this text, go jogging and enjoy the warm start of Fall. I’ll go with a smile on my face after taking another step, no matter how small, in the right direction: the one I chose!
Curious how quality translations could help your organization reach new international customers? Get an instant quote at Lingfy.com or drop us a line at hi@lingfy.com
