I was on another call.
I was speaking with the CEO of a successful advertising firm.
At some point on our call, he articulated the roller coaster.
This rollercoaster is described in many different ways.
Entrepreneurs refer to it as experiencing "high highs" and "low lows".
Entrepreneurs say entrepreneurship is "the most difficult thing someone can go through."
Entrepreneurs tell you how it will challenge you and grow you in ways you didn't think were possible.
And then after entrepreneurs paint this picture of entrepreneurship, this hard-difficult-most-challenging-thing-ever picture, then express or implied this is said:
"And I have been on that roller coaster!"
What do you think the entrepreneur gets out of speaking this?
If I was that entrepreneur, and in the past I have been, it would make me feel awesome and powerful and resilient and determined, of course! Maybe at some level, it would tell you how worthy I am of being able to ride the roller coaster.
When we are self-aware, we see how we create our self-imposed roller coaster of entrepreneurship.
We see the meanings and reasons we give to what happens on the journey.
Often, experiences are had, language is used to describe the experience, and then that version of reality is projected onto others.
"High highs and low lows..."
Without thought, this projection happens every day a large majority of the time.
There is a way in which we can live disempowered by language, living in so many realities projected onto us, that we begin to feel overwhelmed or unsure or indecisive. This can happen when we have misinterpreted how to see.
For example, here is one scenario experienced two different ways.
Imagine Jim. A CEO of a company who loses a large client. After the client is lost, he goes into panic mode, gets stressed, and shouts at his sales team on how they need to "fix this."
Imagine Jane. A CEO of a company who loses a large client. Instead of saying something to her sales team, she doesn't say anything because she doesn't need to. She trusts her team to rectify the issue.
Who do you think lives on the roller coaster, Jim or Jane?
Jim reacts. Jane creates.
Remember, there are over 7 billion versions of reality.
When we are self-aware, we see how we create our reality and how we live in it.
This reality is self-imposed.
The question then becomes...
How do you want to experience entrepreneurship?
What if it didn't need to be hard, difficult, and life sucking?
What if entrepreneurship was easy?
How would you approach it?
