What should I wear, who is going to fetch the kids, what can I cook tonight, How am I going to pay this/that bill, why haven’t I heard from them in forever, how am I going to provide for my child’s future, will I ever find someone to love, what do I really want to do with my life????? Any of these sound familiar?

I would assume that we can all relate to at least one or two of these specific examples… beyond that we all probably have a few more of our own. I read a tweet once, possibly by one of the worlds most unpopular men - and at the risk of being persecuted for saying this, I have to admit that - as a business man, I still hold a level of respect for him. Despite your personal thoughts or feelings about the individual himself, you cannot deny the truth of this advice and it is applicable in ALL facets of our daily existence!!!

“Entrepreneurs: See yourself as victorious. Look at the solution, not the problem”. – Donald Trump

I come from a family of entrepreneurs and am inspired by people who are self-motivated. I count myself lucky in that my character appears to have developed into an “almost” equal 50/50 ratio of both of what my parents had to “give”. I am career orientated, determined, confident, stubborn and persistent but I am also caring, considerate and loving... or at least I like to believe I am lol!

Almost 19 years ago, for some reason, I decided to give employers the middle finger (yes…literally – lol) and go work for myself. I made MANY mistakes, have learnt MUCH, FAILED and SUCCEEDED – although – as an entrepreneur in South Africa, I think I have simply SUCCEEDED. Hahahaha! (Yeah…. It is BRUTAL!) I am de-railing….lol
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The point I am trying to get to is that I come across entrepreneurs every single day of my life. Some established, some not. Some motivated, some not. At the end of the day, I have noticed that a good 90% of people give up on their “entrepreneurial dreams” – or dreams in general!!! - When in truth, they haven’t actually given themselves or their dreams, half a chance!

People start out enthusiastic and they give it “their all” – but then things become complicated and they lose their footing – and along with that, their enthusiasm / passion. They start stressing about bills and suppliers, kids, bonds, electricity and a mountain of other things and then more often than not, they wave their white flag.

I am not going to lie or pretend that I was (or am) immune to these stresses… but the reality is, you are where you are! And yes! You put yourself there! – So STOP. BREATHE. And look for a solution! There is ALWAYS a solution! Take each aspect of the problem and break it down. Write it down, think about it – and then let it go. Let your focus diffuse and then let the ideas start rolling! At a moment when you least expect it, you will find your solution or at the very least, the foundation of it… and from there you can work.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day” – uhuh! – When I was 18, naive and incredibly arrogant (ok, I am still somewhat arrogant - lol - I blame growing up with four men haha!), I wanted to leave (my last) job, and one of my customers overheard me talking… his advice to me was “if you want hard work – work for yourself” - Needless to say, I laughed him off.. NEVER WERE TRUER WORDS SPOKEN!! But! (And it’s a big but) – The rewards far outweigh the toils when you truly DO give it your all. I would not change ANYTHING I have done over the last 18+ years as it has shaped me into the person I am today, and has steered me in a direction that fulfills me. Once again I am babbling… hahahaha!!! My Point?

STRESSED?

Get up with the intent of solving your problem. Be proactive in that manner. Be constructive. Bloody hell, if you can’t think of a way to be constructive about solving your problem then GOOGLE it… I can assure you – your problem is DEFINITELY not as unique as you would like to believe it is and there is bound to be some advice for you “out there”…

DESPONDENT ABOUT YOUR DREAM/GOAL?

If you can see it, if you can feel it and if it gets you jumping out of bed, excited to “plan” it – then DO IT. But remember, EVERYTHING takes time. You cannot expect to put one good sweat session in and presume to look like a Victoria’s Secret model… NO, you need to…

BEND OVER BACKWARDS, EVERYTIME! WORK YOUR ASS OFF ALL THE TIME. EVERY DAY & EVERY NIGHT! THERE ARE NO QUICK FIXES! AND THERE ARE NO EXCUSES!

The “hard” way… is the REAL way (and yes this rule applies to just about everything! Lol) – but much like the rewards of entrepreneurial independence, the rewards of your efforts towards anything in life are always tenfold. The secret is however, to do everything with a positive energy. Be grateful for EVERY single challenge (pleasing or not) and always keep the end desire / result / goal in your mind’s eye.