The entrepreneur hang-up: Am I wasting my time?

As a millennial, I’m ambitious. It’s a trait that many of my generation possess, and with that a tenacity to make it happen (whatever the ‘it’ is). Which is why, a lot of millennials find themselves creating projects, careers, or lives that both satisfy the ambitious, goal orientated drive, yet at the same time provide us with the creative outlet to nurture our innovative and expressive selves. And as someone who is in entrepreneur/solopreneur category of choice – which tends to offer the ability to integrate said qualities above – is becoming a popular choice.

Suffice to say as a business owner/entrepreneur/solopreneur there will never be a shortage of emotions we feel as we create and build our respective projects and passions. While we’re not a generation who are shy of hard work, there is a minor hiccup (at least speaking for myself) when it comes to patience. There’s the reality, the vision and then the ‘in between’ – which depending on which side of the fence you’re on, can be considered ‘a gap’ or ‘the path’.

The gap being that feeling of disconnect with what is and what is to be – and an awareness of what isn’t yet. The path being a more wholesome, accepting and in some parts practical way of being. Regardless, this is the space where vulnerably, fear and doubt lay its roots.

I listened to something recently that prompted me to think about how we (business owners/millennials) feel in this space. Especially when movement isn’t manifesting itself in the way that (business owners/millennials) would like it. The perspective on this – which I resonate with – was that the anxiety tended to be born out of not just a vulnerability or uncertainty for what we’ve created/are creating coming to fruition, but the time we’ve invested in it. The fear being largely around: “Have I, or am I wasting my time?”

This, I resonated with.

It’s a complex question/concept given the fact that as a generation we are, by and large, already susceptible to FOMO, reward orientation, attention and dare I admit, validation. And in a world where time is of the essence, where we’re all competing or racing against the clock for something – this fear is a valid one.

None of us want to be investing our time, energy, and effort into something that isn’t guaranteed. But that’s the nature of this type of career and life. There is no certainty, other than that which we find in ourselves vis-à-vis flow and connection when we fully focus on the passion, creation or project that we’re throwing our heart and soul into.

Is the risk, therefore, worth the reward? Even without the certainty, I would say that collectively, as a generation/business owners who will always be moving along at pace with ambition/vision/ideas for something greater – the journey of developing and creating, is possibly greater (!) than the thing we want to achieve. Because at the end of the day, it’s who we are becoming, and who we become, as part of the journey and/or gap that will pay the most dividends to us in the long term.

And time-wasting? Well, that becomes irrelevant. We’re constantly investing in ourselves.