It Ain't All Duckies and Bunnies

So you say you want to start your own business? You've heard people talk about how great it is, how liberating it can be, how you really start to live the life you always wanted. Having taken the leap of faith myself, I can assure you that all those things are true. However, as with all decisions, there are tradeoffs. I point this out not to discourage or to whine, but rather... to prepare.

In his book The War Of Art, Steven Pressfield quotes 5th century mercenary Telamon of Arcadia to preface his chapter on TURNING PRO... "It is one thing to study war and another to live the warrior's life." To put in another way, knowing the path & walking the path are two different things. Pressfield goes on to say; "The artist committing himself to his calling has volunteered for hell, whether he knows it or not. He will be dining for the duration on a diet of isolation, rejection, self-doubt, despair, ridicule, contempt and humiliation."

Yup... two months into my TURNING PRO & I can attest to all of the above. In addition, when I had a day job, my company (Whiskey Creek Media, LLC) could just save & save & save. That's one of the ways I got to where I am. Save, save, save... But now, without a paycheck coming in from the insurance gig, I find myself having to spend & spend & spend. Kinda scary. Here's the thing though, here's what makes all the despair worth it, I no longer spend energy worrying about what I should do. Now I just focus on DOING IT.

So if you suit up to fight the good fight & chase your dream, don't forget to pack a lunch, cuz it's gonna be a long haul. But it's gonna be worth it!

It's Not About Having Time, It's About Making Time

That's one of our mottos here at The Outdoor Report. One reason we use that motto is to encourage people to MAKE TIME to go fishing, or hunting, or camping or hiking. Whatever way you connect with the great outdoors, we hope you are able to make it a priority in your life. Furthermore, we believe if we wait for there to be ENOUGH time, we will miss out.

Another reason I chose that as a motto is to remind myself of my own journey. Whenever I catch myself whining about not having enough time to do the things I NEED to do, or WANT to do, I remind myself; "IT'S NOT ABOUT HAVING TIME, IT'S ABOUT MAKING TIME." Or as Fred Smith put it; "Great men never complain about the lack of time. Alexander the Great & John Wesley accomplished everything they did in twenty-four-hour days." That's it, every single day is exactly 24 hours long, and it is the same for every single person. On top of that, we don't know how many days we get! I for one, believe life is way too short, & precious, to be wasted... waiting... stuck in "The Waiting Place" as Dr. Seuss describes in the book Oh, the Places You'll Go!, waiting for something to change.

We tend to prioritize our TO-DO list according to importance. For me, simply trading hours for dollars didn't seem that important. Don't get me wrong, I like money, A LOT! And having worked in the financial services industry for nearly a decade (and what a decade it is was), I understand the importance of money. I too have bills to pay & mouths to feed, but there has to be more... doesn't there? After all, this crazy thing called life isn't a dress rehearsal. I also came to the conclusion that if I was pursuing my passion, I just might end up with more money than if I kept working jobs I didn't enjoy.

Keep in mind, it's not as if I just came home one day & told my wife I quite my day job. Years of preparation & sacrifice went into this transformation. Like any business venture, it started as ideas. I've always believed there is no such thing as million dollar ideas, there are only million dollar actions, so I went to work. I put pen to paper, literally. I wrote my ideas down, set goals, created timelines, wrote a crappy business plan, talked with people who were smarter than me, asked for advice, spent little, saved lots, payed down debt, drove crappy cars, changed my timeline, acquired equipment, booked gigs, worked hard, acquired more equipment, worked harder, hired a business coach, wrote a better business plan, booked more gigs & then, finally, I made THE DECISION. I decided I did not want to be on my death bed & look back on life & say "I wish I had."

"Dost thou love Life? Then do not squander Time; for that's the stuff Life is made of."- Benjamin Franklin

or as we like to say here at The Outdoor Report; "It's not about having time, it's about making time."