30 Jul My Entrepreneurship Journey: 3 Facts That I Wish I Knew Before

My entrepreneur journey is a series of articles that document my journey but also a way for me to share it with all of you. Last week, I wrote about the importance of finding balance in your life. I received great feedback about this article but few people asked me if I would go back on the day I quit my day job. I personally wouldn’t but there are few things that I wish I knew before getting into this entrepreneur journey. That being said, in this article I want to cover 3 facts I wish I knew before.

You’ll Miss Your Previous Life (But You’ll Feel Guilty)

I miss the good old days. I remember coming home after work and casually sit down on the couch watching television and playing video games. I miss waking up late during the weekend or to look forward to the money coming into my bank account every two weeks. However, I do not miss living from paycheck to paycheck. I also do not miss going to work for 40 hours a week to do something I don’t particularly like.

I wish I knew that becoming an entrepreneur takes away most of the things that you use to love to replace them with things that will bring you more value. I used to be a big fan of video games and would play NBA 2K for hours. Now I can barely touch my PS4 without thinking about what I should be doing instead.

Your Circle Becomes Smaller

First of all, your circle of friends/partners is everything. Have you ever heard the saying ” You are who you surround yourself with”? It is necessary to surround yourself with people that can help you get to the next level and that’s an entrepreneur fact. When in doubt, most of us reach out to your friends for motivation and inspiration. When things are good, you want to celebrate with them. However, in my entrepreneurial journey, I noticed that my circle of friends became smaller real quick. In fact, a good part of it was people from my previous job. We would spend our days together so it made sense that we would talk to each other about everything (most of the times) and most of them had a similar schedule as me.

But then, what I wish I knew before going into this entrepreneur life is that your circle becomes smaller because you choose to but also because you lose friends. I don’t want this to sound negative but some people can’t deal with individuals that are most ambitions than them. In addition, it feels like your mindset change so you don’t connect as much with the people you once connected with.  I personally miss hanging out with my friends. Now, things are different. When I hang out, I try to use that time to get inspired, to discuss new ideas or to simply feel refreshed.

As an entrepreneur, you want to surround yourself with people that can help you become a better person. Your circle will get smaller but your circle will get stronger #EntrepreneurFact. 

There are Too Many Opportunities, Choose Them Wisely

If there’s one thing I wish I knew before working for myself is that there are many opportunities. Entrepreneurs are opportunists and they are looking for different ways to get to the next level. I am a big fan of saying yes and I definitely said yes too many times in the past 2 years. Unfortunately, it took me a while to understand that hustlers never work and workers never hustle. By saying yes too many times, I was where the action is but I was also in a position that I was spreading myself too thin.

Now, what does it mean to choose them wisely you may ask. Endorse and spend time on a project that matters and that can bring you back some value or money. A few months ago, I was feeling burnt out and I sat down with a good friend of mine. He told me that it was obvious that I was tired because I had too many projects on the table. It was true. I do social media marketing, I write blogs, I create vlogs, I DJ, I am a marketing director at Influence Orbis, I do consultations and the list goes on.

He asked me to evaluate these projects and categorize them in 3 ways: Time, Value and Money. The one that you should keep on top is the one that needs the less time from you, that brings you the most value and also the more money. On the other side, you should drop the projects that take you the most time, the least value and obviously that brings you the least money.

P.S. I do find that there’s a joker card in this calculation and it is passion. I believe that if you are passionate about something, you should pursue it. I don’t care if it takes most of your time, that it might not bring you as much value and no money as well. If you are passionate about something, just do it.