Life happens. And shit happens. Boy does it ever.

fanAnd your business is still there waiting for your love and attention.

So what do you do when life seems to get in the way and it’s threatening to pull you under?

Recently I had a pretty wild ride where life was pushing me to my limits and I simply didn’t have the option to put the biz on hold. And thank God. It gave me the opportunity to problem solve and see what I’m really made of.

The short version is that I was in the process of uncoupling from my partner of 2.5 years. Why uncoupling and not breaking up? Because we lived together and it was a process of several months before a final move out could happen.

So I’m ending this relationship with this man who I still adore and then I decide that instead of signing a year lease, I’m going to rent a storage unit and put all of my belongings into it for an indefinite period of time.

Oh yeah, good times.

And when it came time to move out, I had ONE day to pack up everything. One. Travel and work just didn’t allow any extra time.

That week was as crazy as you’re imaging. But I got through it and finished everything on my plate.

So I’ve learned a few things over the last few months about to keep moving in your business when your heart is breaking and shit is hitting the fan.

Here’s what I now know…

1. Have the meltdown
Sometimes that shit just needs to come out. Overflow. Pour out of you like a long dormant volcano erupting for the first time in 20 years. Let it.

There is such a release that happens once you allow yourself to feel the emotions. If you keep holding them in, you’re unfocused and holding back. Let yourself go there to feel them so you can then move on. For me this is everything from journaling to crazy dance breaks to insane fits of crying.

Move it out!

2. Keep your heart openĀ 
There were times where I was writing and working with tears streaming down my face. In the past this would’ve been unimaginable to me. But throughout this heart break, I was so intent on keeping my heart open and not closing it off like I have in the past.

I stayed open to what the universe was bringing me. The people that showed up. All of the excitement that was buried under the tears. This allowed me to continue to experience life without curling up into a ball in the corner of the room.

One foot in front of the other. Focus on the next step. One thing at a time. All while feeling the pain. Heart breaking wide open.

3. Build your team and take the support
Entrepreneurs are the only people I know who think they can and should do it all on their own. I don’t know who started this nasty trend but it needs to stop. We’re human. We need help.

I’ve been blown away by the number of people who have supported me throughout this time. I’ve had quite the team behind me, none of which was directly related to my business. There’s been a team to help with the move, my dog, my sanity. You name it, I’ve had help through it.

I can’t stress this one enough. Take the support when it’s offered and get off that island. Find your team.

4. This is a test of your commitment
How you do one thing is how you do everything. And the themes in your life will show up everywhere, particularly in your business. Commitment has been a big one for me this year since (surprise!) I have commitment issues.

I began to notice how this fear of commitment in areas of my life was manifesting itself in my business. Getting clients who weren’t committed. Having people flake out on scheduled phone calls. Seeing people let life get in the way of their commitments to their biz.

I knew that I HAD to stay committed to my business no matter what. It was a test to see if I would keep the commitment I claimed to have.

If my business was the first thing to go out the window when things got tough then what kind of message was I sending to the universe, my clients, and my dreams?!

No way. I established it as a priority and didn’t waiver.

5. Let some things go
Since my business was a priority and timelines required me to do a ton in a short period of time, I simply had to let some other things go. This is different than the dreaded “s” word – sacrifice.

I don’t feel like I had to sacrifice my social life, daily yoga, or fun parts of my business. I simply did these things when I had the time and otherwise let go of the idea of filling my calendar to the brim with lots of activities.

So now there’s a long to do list of “wants” in my planner. Some of them I’ll do, some of them I’ll completely let go of. It felt better to accomplish the immediate tasks and stay committed than it did to think about trying to complete every last thing on the list.

There’s definitely freedom in letting go.

 

So that’s the scoop of how I worked my way through a break up to have the best month in business ever.

And now I know I can handle life AND business. No matter what.

No shame in riding the crazy waves,
Amy

PS – wine was also involved

 


amy
amy

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