The Dread | Being in business
Oh, the initial rush of being in business – the excitement of new ideas, the joy of trying things out for the first time, and stepping into a market with confidence.
And then, after a while – maybe a year, maybe more – the doubt creeps in. Suddenly, it’s all about offering more. More services, more products, more skills.
And before we know it, we become pet groomers selling baby clothes, or coaches marketing organic candles, or jewellery makers pushing yoga classes.
For me, it looked like this: I started as an organised creative offering graphic design, but somehow, along the way, I added building websites, closet organising, and even fixing web tech issues to my plate.
And all of this can be a good thing or a draining one.
For me, the dread crept in. I started to fear client calls, afraid they’d ask for something I could do, but didn’t want to. Back then, saying ‘no’ wasn’t part of my vocabulary. I ended up sabotaging even the parts of my business I loved.
Being in business for years means we accumulate a lot. We learn, we add new skills, and with time, we pick up wisdom and experiences. But to keep ourselves ‘safe,’ we might keep doing everything, even the things that drain us. For me, it was coding websites, installing wordpress, advising on newsletter platforms — thinking it would help me and my clients in the long run.
At the same time, I started doing what I think many of us do: feeling the pressure to “up my game.” Offer ”high-ticket services”, aiming to take on bigger, more strategic projects.
Looking back now, I see some sensible choices — however I also see the weight of all the things I’ve added out of scarcity and pressure to ‘do it all.’ Now, it’s time to, again, bravely weed out what no longer feels good to me.
Have you ever felt weighed down by all the things you’ve added to your business? What have you done to change that?
P.S. The closet thing? That was way before Marie Kondo. And it’s been years since I let it go… though sometimes I wonder, should I bring it back? (Just kidding—or am I?)
Heart of Service
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This series was initially posted on Instagram when I was literally in the midst of not knowing what to do or where to go with my business.
Advice on being in business is mainly focused on the whats and the whys, and it’s not surprising that we lose sight of the love we have for what we do.
To keep going isn’t always the answer. Pausing, or fully stopping, is scary, but I believe it’s necessary to be able to reassess our priorities and rediscover our passion.
To keep ourselves ‘safe’, being in business we might keep doing everything, even the things that drain us.
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