There’s a lot of talk in the entrepreneurial space lately that you should only do things in your business from a place of “flow” and “ease”. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about both of those things, but you can still have ease (which ironically is different than EASY) and you can still have flow (which ironically is NOT the opposite of hustle) WHILE showing up daily and creating momentum and results in your business.
Yet, this requires a willingness to get comfortable being uncomfortable. To decide that not everything has to feel “amazing” in order to get it done. To recognize that many things that are new WILL be uncomfortable at the beginning.
The quicker you can get comfortable in the uncomfortable, the quicker you’ll see results in your business. How do I know? Let me share with you the 5 ways that getting comfortable being uncomfortable has helped me achieve major success as an entrepreneur…
- It’s helped me get moving and get things done.
When we first begin our businesses it can feel hard to create consistency and show up daily. This is especially true if we have another job or commitment that is still part of our lives. Being willing to do the uncomfortable work of showing up daily (even when I didn’t want to) allowed my business to really take of. If you show up daily, your business will grow daily. It’s as simple as that.
- It’s allowed me to do the “hard stuff”.
There are SO many things that feel “hard” when you start your business. For some it’s creating content, for some it’s getting visible, and for others it’s keeping track of their numbers/book-keeping. What I hear a lot of people say is to outsource the stuff that doesn’t feel good, and while I am a big fan of working in your zone of genius and outsourcing the rest, that is not always a viable option at the beginning. That leaves you with two choices… get comfortable doing the hard stuff, or stay nice and stuck. Being available to be uncomfortable while you learn about and familiarize yourself with the hard stuff will take you from stuck to success much more quickly. Trust me, posting content on Facebook did NOT feel comfortable in the beginning for me, but my willingness to move through the discomfort changed everything.
- It’s given me willingness to take risks.
It’s incredibly challenging to be an entrepreneur if you aren’t willing to take risks. Why aren’t most people willing to take risks? Because it’s too uncomfortable. Because they’re too risk adverse, and they don’t know how to self-manage around it. Personally, when I made major investments in my business like hiring a business mentor and growing my team I was uncomfortable. It didn’t feel super warm and fuzzy. It felt scary as hell. Yet, had I not done those things I wouldn’t have grown nearly as quickly as I have. The willingness to take risks and get uncomfortable is what allowed that to happen.
- It has allowed me to fail, and pick myself back up after.
What’s that saying? If you’re not failing you’re not trying? Yeah, that. If you don’t ever fail as an entrepreneur you’ll definitely never fly. If you were planning on making it through this entrepreneurial journey without a scratch, bruise or a bump you should probably just pack it up and head back to corporate now. Seriously, the faster you fail the faster you grow. But if you can’t get comfortable failing, you won’t be able to create big results either. When I fail, I am massively uncomfortable, but I’m also massively motivated to take what I learned and move on. But if I’m never willing to get uncomfortable enough to fail? I’ll stay stuck forever.
- It has allowed me to be innovative.
Let’s be serious, innovation is not comfortable, but I challenge you to show me one thought leader or massively successful business owner that WASN’T innovative in some way. Moral of the story? Getting comfortable being uncomfortable is what lets your creativity flow. It’s what welcomes innovation and allows you the chance to execute on it. Why? Because you’re not afraid of failing, of taking risks, and of doing the scary thing. Some of the biggest opportunities and results in my business have come from a willingness and a desire to be innovative and to manage the discomfort that comes along with it.
How do you start getting comfortable being uncomfortable? How do you manage the discomfort, and even make friends with it? You start being available to feel it, handle it, and self-soothe through it. We tend to avoid discomfort when we don’t want to feel it, or don’t think we can “handle it”.
For example, we say something like, “I couldn’t possible write an article, post content, or get visible because I couldn’t “handle it” if someone gave me negative feedback”. Do we want to change you “worrying about the negative feedback”? Certainly, but what we want to change MORE than that {and what will get you quicker results as you do that mindset work} is to be able to self-soothe through that discomfort, and to do it anyway. To know that you CAN “handle it” if negative feedback shows up.
If you know you want to take bold action in your business, and to create big results because of it then you have to start getting comfortable being uncomfortable. You need to find ways to self-soothe, you need accountability to get things done (think daily challenges on visibility, sales, etc.) and you need a supportive community to be behind you as you take action. If you know this is what you need join me in The Lit Up & Loaded Facebook Group.
Now, I’d love to hear from you. Where do you want to start getting more comfortable being uncomfortable? How could that change and transform your business? Share with us in the comments!