A little over a year ago (14 months), I quit my job as a Wildland Firefighter to pursue my coaching business full-time. Since then, I have worked with nearly 100 clients, learned a ton about myself and my craft and others and the world, made lasting connections, invested a lot of money, had countless mental breakdowns… and more!
I’ve also had the freedom to do a lot of things that I certainly would not have been able to in my previous job. I’ve been available and flexible for the first time ever in my adult life.
There is a lot of freedom in being your own boss.
But I’ve had countless conversations with people over the last year who feel this weird societal pressure to become entrepreneurs.
As if being W-2’d is a cardinal sin.
As if they must not be driven enough or passionate enough if they haven’t “broken out of the matrix” yet.
I hate to break it to you, but entrepreneurship is still part of the matrix babe
Sure, there’s freedom in quitting your job to start a business.
But there’s a freedom that you lose, too. Freedom that you aren’t even aware of until it’s gone.
The freedom to clock the f*ck out and have some separation between “work me” and “me”.
The freedom of not having to do it alone. The freedom of celebrating the good stuff and commiserating/enduring the bad stuff… with other people.
The freedom of knowing how much money you’ll make each month.
The freedom of not having to post on social media if you don’t feel like it, without it being like.. detrimental to your marketing/lead generation.
The freedom of not constantly thinking about your business. Constantly. It’s always there.
Starting and building and sustaining your own business can be lonely, unsure, expensive, and time-consuming. It can also be the greatest thing you ever did.
But let’s acknowledge the beauty of being an invaluable cornerstone of a team. Community is hard to come by these days.
There is so much power in being someone’s favorite coworker. Millions of someone’s favorite coworkers are probably the only thing keeping this shit going.
Anyway, all this to say — entrepreneurship is not inherently a better life, just a different one. Believe that.
Take inventory of your gut instincts/inner knowing, of your goals, of the life you envision for yourself and know that there is no right or wrong way.
It is beautiful and okay to have a job that provides you financial stability, work/life separation, good benefits, etc… even if it doesn’t set your heart ablaze.
Your passions don’t always need to be monetized — and sometimes that means-to-an-end job is what grants you the resources and separation and creative freedom to engage in things without pressure of how it will be perceived or whether or not it will make you any money.
Whatever you choose to do in life, your passions can be just that — or they can be a way to pay rent. Both can be part of your colorful and authentic story, and joy is yours to have either way.
Peace & Love,
Sofia