3 Signs You’ll Be Successful While Pursuing Your Passion
These signs are for you whether you're a solopreneur, freelancer, or writer.
These signs are for you whether you're a solopreneur, freelancer, or writer.
Pursuing your passion can be a lonely, tiresome journey.
Irrespective of how glamorous it sounds on the outside, people who are their own bosses know how much struggle is involved in making a business out of your passion.
I’ve been on the solopreneruial route since late 2021, after I quit my civil engineering job to be a full-time writer. The past year has taught me so much about myself and my business that I doubt a single article could encompass all the lessons.
Nevertheless, in this article, I’ve compiled three subtle signs you’ll be successful while pursuing your passion. Read on, and if they apply to you, pat yourself on the back, for you deserve it. If not, consider these tips as mindset shifts you need to apply to have a successful solopreneurial journey.
1. You’ve mastered your self-talk to design your success
On the verge of a new product launch, I found myself filled with anxiety. My brain went into overdrive, thinking, “Will this work out?”
In an instant, I realized that doubting myself would lead me nowhere.
If I don’t launch, there’s no way for me to know how my digital product will perform.
And so, instead of being afraid, I chose to be curious about it. “Let’s see how people respond to my proven strategy.” This is how I tailored my internal talk to make room for optimism.
As a solopreneur, you’ve got to be your own cheerleader. No one can pep you up (or pull you down) as you can. And so, instead of choosing fear, choose curiosity.
There’s going to be anxiety every time you venture toward something new.
But if you’re smart, you can fool your brain into thinking the anxiety is actually excitement. And when you’re excited about something new, is there any way it can fail?
After I changed my self-talk, I trained my brain to think positively about the new product launch. I told myself to be patient and wait for the first reviews to come in.
And when they did, I used the initial positivity as a launchpad to usher in more creative curiosity. And by the first week, there was no fear in my heart, only positive anticipation. I made $2000 in a single week from that product, and I couldn’t have been more grateful.
If positive self-talk can work such wonders for me, who’s to say what magic it will unlock for you?
The only way to know is to try and see for yourself.
2. You don’t fear technology, but embrace it
People always keep asking, “Will AI help or replace us?”
The question is rooted in fear. If you worry AI might take your job as a writer, then you’re depriving yourself of all the amazing ways it can help your business grow.
Here’s my tech-stack that I rely upon to grow and monetize my writing business:
- Motion: Syncs across calendars and creates a productive schedule for you to get more done in less time.
- Lightkey: AI-powered predictive typing software to 4x your writing speed and remove all errors while typing.
- QuillBot: Paraphrases original content into multiple unique versions that you can repurpose and distribute across platforms.
- Simplified: Allows you to create stunning designs and videos in seconds. Use them to grow your social media presence.
- Candor: Creates the most authentic profile to show your “true self” to the world. Ditch boring resumes and pitch to clients with creative and well-designed CVs.
- Friday AI: An AI-powered tool that helps you write 10x faster.
- Burb: AI-powered automation, bots, and chat support to help you nurture and grow your online community.
- Instaminutes: Summarizes virtual meetings and gives key insights. Making meeting notes has never been this easy before.
3. You know how to put the care in the self-care
When it comes to self-care, people often picture luxury salons, bubble baths, and soothing music. But there’s so much more effort involved in taking care of yourself than just going to a salon.
Here are three *difficult* ways of self-care that every individual must adopt (these are especially relevant for creators, authors, and solopreneurs):
1. Journal your deepest fears.
These will help you understand why your heart of afraid of what it is.
Once you figure that out, you can work on ways to move past the fears and take action despite them.
2. Stay connected with your purpose.
When you work on your business, it’s easy to get lost in the motions and only think about the mechanical things, like creating wealth and nurturing your personal brand.
If you lose touch with the reason you started doing what you’re currently doing, you’ll feel lost and demotivated. Burnouts will become common.
To avoid that, it’s important to keep reminding yourself the reason why you ventured down the path of solopreneurship.
Journaling helps, as does meditation. Sometimes, a good heart-to-heart with a close friend can give you more clarity than you get anywhere else.
3. Take enough breaks.
It’s easy to lose yourself in the grind and stay glued to the computer screen for hours in the hopes of making progress. It’s hard to actually take some time off to re-evaluate your goals and give yourself some much-needed time away from the computer.
Find the balance that fuels you, and make sure to give yourself time to recover from exhaustion. You’re not a machine to keep working for 16-hour days without taking time off for some introspection.
Final words
There’s this common misconception that if you hate your 9-to-5, you should hop onto the entrepreneurial bandwagon.
But if things were that simple, everyone would have done it, wouldn’t they?
The truth is the solopreneurial journey is riddled with ups and downs. Not all days are good, and not all good days add up to your final goal.
To succeed, you need to embrace positive anticipation while talking to yourself.
You also need to make friends with technology, not fear it. This will not only help you scale your business faster, it will also make things much easier along the way.
Lastly, you need to find the perfect balance between work and pleasure. Take enough breaks and reconnect with your core values, so you don’t feel lost on the way.
How many of these tips apply to you? Do share your thoughts in the comments.
Want to be a successful freelancer but struggling to find good clients? Check out my 90-day guide to finding your first high-paying freelance client. You’ll find 5 pitching secrets, 2 email templates, and a framework to start your freelancing career.
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