Reframing Your Mind
Three easy ways to unburden yourself.
Ernest Hemingway was undoubtedly one of the most influential and interesting writers of his time. From suspected ties to the KGB, to winning a Pulitzer Prize, to surviving a plane crash - plus his influential minimalistic writing style - Hemingway captivated the world.
While most writers complain about how difficult writing is (and I think most of us have been there at some point - even trying to write a simple caption for a social media post), Hemingway kept his ideals as simple as his prose
“Up in that room I decided that I would write one story about each thing that I knew about. I was trying to do this all the time I was writing, and it was good and severe discipline.” - E. Hemingway
So what can we, as business owners and lifestyle curators, learn from this man, without drudging through The Old Man and the Sea?
Simplify
I get it, I get it. As a business owner myself, I play about 40 characters in a one-woman show. I balance the books. I create the web site. I develop schedules. I carry the weight.
How easy would it be for me to throw up my hands in frustration and give up?
Oh, so easy. And I have done it from time to time and have no doubt there will be moments that I do it again.
What I have learned to do though, is simplify - and be strict in my simplification.
There are two apps that I love for this (as someone with ADHD, I live for organizational help tools, but really all of us can use them): TimeBloc and Do: Simple Notes & To Do Lists, both by Reflectly ApS. I happened upon them by accident, but the functionality is great. TimeBloc allows me to block out time in my day by category - which I used to do on paper and then leave the paper behind. Do is a succinct to-do list that I can constantly change and archive.
Keep. It. Simple.
Protect
I admit it: I am bad with boundaries.
When I first started my photography business, Wild Elegance, I worked 24/7/365. We all do it. Passion and ambition fueled with caffeine allows us to work magic and make our dreams a reality because it is what we live for in the beginning.
But then comes burnout - usually followed by wavering personal relationships and sinking health.
So as a business owner, you must protect your life. For me, it was making a conscious choice, as a single mom, to schedule fewer meetings and shoots when my son was home with me. For others, it may be scheduling time in your day (using a fantastic app of course), to make it to the gym. I know one business owner who blocks of 30 minutes to sit on his favorite bench and just watch the world go by.
Ask yourself what you need to maintain your sanity and protect it at all costs.
Ask
Listen - you need help - so just ask for it.
Most people love to help, and when it involves a business, they are even more ready to be a part of it.
Being humble is one of the most difficult, yet beneficial, qualities you can have while you grow your brand. Sometimes, a logo design is too hard, or it just isn't speaking to my creativity and we are on a tight deadline, so I reach out to my experts. Sometimes, making it to the grocery store to pick up the three things we need will throw off my entire day, so I ask my boyfriend to do it for me.
It is so important to build your community and develop a village to help you manage through the good and bad times. People want to help you, you just need to direct them as to how.
Be Hemingway today and ask yourself: what do I know? What do I love? What can I do to be the most focused, best business owner possible.
Then put that metaphorical pen to paper and get to writing.