By Nathan Camp
- This is the 3rd part of a 3-part series. If you missed the them, you can find part 1 here or part 2 here.
8. Entrepreneurship has very blurry lines of “work/life balance”.
I’m not sure when I’ll be off from work. This second phone that I am carrying now rings and dings at really odd hours. And, as an entrepreneur, those noises don’t sound like work; they sound like opportunity and momentum. It’s been hard to put that phone away, even in the late hours of the evening. If I am not careful, I fear a rather Pavlovian response could be a new way of life with this second phone. I know there is a better way, and I hope to work on it. But, the truth for all entrepreneurs I have known is that the “work/life” is not balanced – at least not for a while.
9. Launching out in faith means walking by faith in your business.
I have been a follower of Jesus for 32 years now. I would say that He is my Lord and Savior and that I trust Him with my life. What challenges does launching a new business venture pose? Do I trust His heart toward me? Something I hadn’t assumed would happen when I started this jouney is how much launching my own business would thrust me into the space of really contemplating the nature of God toward me. Is he aloof and distant, with no regard for this story? Or, is He there – here not – as my Shepherd, Provider and King? This launch has drawn me back into the aciknowledigng He has been ever faithful. I’ve remembered stories and moments over those last 32 years (and if I am truthful, even before that) where God showed up and was faithful to me, in the most undeniable of ways. Do I wrestle with the fear of failure, you bet I do – but I am learning the successful combating of that fear is not a focus on me, but on the very heart and nature of an ever-present God.
10. When you first launch your new business, having lunch with a few friends can be more encouraging than getting a new sale.
Starting a business drains you. You are mentally, physically, and spiritually engaged – all the time, every day. Ok, that feels a bit hyperbolic, but not by much. There is an exhaustion that sometimes hits you when you are starting a business, which can lead to a sense of isolation. Like you are in this boat, rowing alone. And it’s there that the simplest of gestures from friends can remind you that you are not, in fact, alone. I can get my tank refilled over lunch with a friend or two, which can’t happen any other way. The bible says, “It’s not good for man to be alone” – certainly He wasn’t talking about entrepreneurship in that verse, but the truth applies well. And, in His mercy, if I take the time to look up from that second phone, I will see that there are those who minister to my life in these days that are happening over burgers and fries, and comments about their being both proud and inspired by me, and reminding me that I can do this.
11. Sometimes the win for the day is moving the company forward an inch.
My friend Matt Keller wrote a great book about church planting called “Up The Middle”. I genuinely believe that this should be required reading for every church planter. The premise of this book is that, while everyone likes to hear the story of the long bomb (the church that launches with 100’s and 1000’s), most churches grow “up the middle”. Faithful from day to day. Moving the ball down the field.
I feel the great truth of that very pungently as an entrepreneur. Sure, I’d love to have started a business that caught fire and landed me on some list of “fastest” whatever. But the truth is, that’s not my story. My story is up the middle. Play after play. As I write this today, I have no jobs coming up. My phone didn’t ring from any customers wanting my services. But that didn’t define my day. I worked “on” the business, not just “in” the business, and as the clock nears 5 pm, I realize this has really been a good day. I did a lot of things that positioned us to win tomorrow and in the days to come. And for the entrepreneur, it’s not very often we see the long bomb, but it’s the inch-by-inch that reminds us that we are moving the company forward, even on days like today.
That’s it, these are the 11 things I have experienced so far being an entrepreneur. What about you? As you’ve pursued your dreams – what have you experienced?