Balancing Entrepreneurship & Corporate Life

Introduction

I had this random urge of inspiration to write about this topic. One, because it deeply resonates with my heart, my spiritual and entrepreneurial adventure. And two, it sometimes seems to be in deep conflict with my desire to build a stable, consistent and secure life for myself. So here we are, let’s marry the two.

Here’s my reflection about myself, my personality and style observed over the years that may help you to think about your own. And instead of comparing yourself to the heros in the media, you can use your own reflection to find out your own truth.

My personal reflection

When I was in high school, I knew that I wanted to be an entrepreneur of some kind. I wanted to build my own organization, doing something for myself, according to my own vision of what I wanted to create in the world. At the time, I was young, naive ( I mean, I still am, ahhahaha), but you know what I mean. I thought that I could be a risk-it-all person who could go all in on a business idea, and make it work. That’s the common story of entrepreneurship, the successful ones, who make it through all odds like bankruptcy, push through no matter what, sleep on the floor of their own office, sacrifice their family wellbeing, navigate through deep uncertainty… you know, all of the glory.

I thought I could do that. Be that person. Be that hero I looked up to.

I found out, I cannot. I am not that person.

And that’s okay.

Throughout the years of trying different things, launching a podcast, an online amazon FBA business, designing my own products, to launching my own coaching business, I found out that I could choose to go all in, but I’d rather not. Most of my experiences of going all in has costed me my own financial stability, created a lot of momentum but also a driver for burn out, a lot of hope and aspiration for it to work, and the reality of slow growth.

So the conclusion that I have come to at this phase of my life is, I am going to grow slowly. That means, I will prioritize balancing between my corporate and creative life. Stop seeing them as separated, and instead, seeing them as one. It means releasing the expectation, pressure of my own entrepreneurial project and creative endeavors to work out to help me survive. And instead, allowing it the space to be free as it wishes, grow organically on its own time, and giving me the freedom to not have to pressure it.

In addition, I get to grow with my corporate path where I continually build business, marketing, sales skills that for sure contributes to my own business, entrepreneurial and creative endeavors. Long gone are my days of going all in and hoping it will work out. My mindset now is, I am still all in, in a balanced way, with a slow-approach, longer term vision, persistence, and patience.

How do I do it?

I create routines, structure, schedules and calendars that allow me to operate in both my corporate and creative life. I don’t operate on time. I operate on energy. On a typical day, I will schedule time and space for specific tasks needed to be done at work, and my own creative world. But then I give myself the flexibility to move with the energy. If one area ends up demanding more of my energy, giving me more brain juices 🧠 🧃 flow, then I will happily give it more time of the day knowing that one area benefits both. I don’t feel guilty for putting one more than the other from time to time because I know that the act of balancing cannot be perfect.

Secondly, I switch modes effectively. In my corporate life, I am structured, logical, analytical and on-point. I put my high-achiever, leadership hat on to get things done, communicate effective, lead myself, my team, collaborate with my coworkers. I aim to be on the same page with everyone, collaboration and humility are the key principles I operate on. This works differently than when I am in my creative/entrepreneur mode. Before, I used to be so confused about who I am, myself, how I operate, what it means for me. But as I continue on to accept all parts of myself, and that I can be whoever I wish to be, in which ever situation that demands that version of me, my own flexibility had given my life more freedom as well.

So, in my own creative and entrepreneurial endeavour, I am the trailblazer, the leader, the one who paves the path. There’s no one telling me what to do, I am 100% responsible for my own actions and results. So I take a lot more charge and leadership. Less collaboration. More spear-heading ideas and initiatives. When it comes to making content and interacting with people in my own business, I operate less on logic and more on heart-centered emotions. I don’t create from my mind. I create from my heart, and I believe that is the secret ingredient to my success.

My ultimate success is my ability to balance and switch between these two modes - knowing that my identity is neither and both at the same time. This was my key breaking innovation of self-understanding that has gone on to help me create success in both my corporate and creative life.

Conclusion

I hope that by reading my short reflection on this topic of Balancing Entrepreneurship & Corporate Life, you can take the time to reflect on your own experience, your own personal style, and what works for you. You can release the pressure of building a life like everyone else, and make life work for you instead.