Changing career. Imagine that. Going from an employee and becoming a business owner. How does taht sound to you? The idea of changing career very often feels scary, far away and hard to swallow. Is it meant for me? Can I do it? Endless ‘what if’s’… Switching from being employed to working for yourself, starting to freelance or starting your own business is not easy. Not physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Becoming your own boss can be very challenging and very demanding. There are so many variables that go into that soup of emotions and thoughts. However, they are all figureoutable, as Marie Forleo’s Mom would say. In this article I am not focused on the exact steps you need to take business-wise, but more on the inner process and opening yourself towards this experience. It’s about creating better opportunities that will easily transition you to the other side.
Making the first steps towards career changing
Every now and then I get a chance to talk to someone who works at a place they don’t love, doing the tasks they absolutely don’t enjoy. Even if it’s not a ‘hate it’ situation, which is also not as rare, it is a complete space of dissatisfaction, incompletion, or longing for something more. I always wonder whether I should go deep with this person and tell them that a whole new world is possible. But, I know how big, how far and how strange these platitude can seem to someone who is just getting started. When you put something that big in front of someone, they usually put it behind unable to overcome the roots of beliefs that they have been forming throughout a lifetime. I’ve been there.
There is always an excuse when you see someone who has made it and you’re just trying to keep your head above the water and not drown. Saying something onward, something advanced, doesn’t mean much to someone who is not even at the first step, perhaps just looking at the staircase. It’s like reciting Shakespeare to a first grader.
If you are that person, this one is for you my friend. If you have seen and heard about those creative hearts, bosses, creative small business owners who are living lives of their dreams, who are following their passion, fulfilling their mission and their purpose, and you’re thinking that they might have earned something better by the Lord itself, that their karma is not as rigid as yours, that their partners must have been more supportive, their children fewer by numbers and less demanding by character, their financial construction better by inheritance and their parents more understanding – keep reading.
Opening yourself to the possibility
If you are stuck at a job you don’t like, it’s very likely that other people around your, your partner, your friends, your family are living the same or similar. Not everyone, of course, but it is a most common narrative. Doing something just to make a living and pay for life – bills, food, and stuff, supposed to be happy only for having a job in this crazy world, enduring the hardships of this life, and standing firm for a greater cause – raising a family, or proving your worth or value to – whoever is judging. I understand this for I too have been there, and it seems that the majority of those who are making money by doing work they actually like have been there, too.
So, what’s different with them? How many of them are there? Have they something better, that you don’t? Are they smarter, richer, more clever, more supported? They mostly are not. It starts with one little thought.
The possibility.
What you give out, you get back
It actually doesn’t matter if there are other people making it happen. It doesn’t matter if there is a whole world of self-employed people who are re-writing the narrative of what Life on this planet is and how we’re supposed to make a living, and what are the values to evaluate. Here’s the first question. What is on the other side of suffering, what is on the other end of dissatisfaction? And what is the other way of being unfulfilled? Is there the other way, the other side? Has a day both light and dark? Has heaviness counterweight in lightness? Is there another possibility?
There is. If your life is miserable, just for the sake of explanation, I don’t suppose it is, there has to be a different set of circumstances where it’s not, right? Just as every action has an equal and opposite reaction as Newton Third Law states, and as the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of refraction, if you put the laws of physics in a broader perspective, or narrowed down if you will, what you give out there, it returns. It’s like a boomerang. Your perspective, your thoughts, and your habits create your life. Actually, it’s not that they create your life, they ARE your life, your reality. One is not possible without the other, they are each other’s counterparts.
So, technically, or theoretically, or according to physics – there is another possibility. The one where you are different, where you believe in it, and where you create thoughts, perspective, habits, and emotions that result in you having a different experience. If you want refraction to be different then it is now, you need to feed it with different variables. What gets in, gets out. What you sow you will harvest.
Now that we got the possibility out of the way, what’s next? This one is the simplest and the hardest at the same time. It’s about making the decision.
Making the decision to change career
Once you actually decide that you want a new perspective, that you want to look for another possibility, and create a new life – to pursue the career your were meant for, to do something your heart aches and your soul yearns for, to make a living doing something you love and are good at – this is where things start getting into motion. This is where your action gets an equal and opposite reaction. This is where sowing begins. The simplest and the hardest thing. It’s where all bets are off. Why?
It’s the simplest because it’s the first step. That is when and where the light in you gets lit, where the flame of your soul shines a bit brighter and where it all seems very, very possible. It’s the feeling, it’s the knowing, it’s the energy in the invisible world. And it’s also the hardest because of the beliefs that we have been carrying for far too long that are holding us down.
It’s the devil on your shoulder that starts finding reasons and excuses and where you perhaps start doubting yourself. Which is all perfectly normal. And of course, all bets are off because nothing is certain. Not a thing. It’s not certain that you will make it. It’s only up to you. How far down the rabbit hole do you want to go? How far behind are you willing to leave old parts of you that have no place within your new reality you are walking towards?
Changing career takes time and patience
It’s hard because of having to balance the inner and outer world by walking the mundane density. It’s the ‘how’s’. But let me tell you a secret. Every beautiful way sprinkled with flowers starts with a first step where you can’t see the flowers that are already there because you’re too afraid. It’s kinda normal, but now that you know this because I told you, and you’re just a step away from starting to walk, please remember to stop and smell those flowers. No need to rush. Career change may take a week, but making your own business successful takes years.
If you are either employed and not ready to leave the job just yet, or if you are taking a break between quitting your job and starting something on your own, or even if you are just starting out and have no idea where to start, here’s a few things your can do to start putting things into motion, creating momentum step by step, starting to roll the wheel in a desired direction.
Envision your future life as a business owner
Although there is no future in a sense of matter there really and truly is only this present moment, we humans like to think both about the past, and the future. Envisioning a better life for yourself is legit. Thinking about how it would feel in the future to have your own business, to do the things you love doing and making money that way brings you closer to the desired outcome. Again, it’s pure physics. Emotions you evoke by thinking good thoughts, positive thoughts, those that bring nice sensations into your body, that make you smile, and your heart beating a bit faster help you attract more of these feelings, thoughts, sensations into your life. The more good you create, the more good you will start noticing. This is a rule to live by.
You will soon start noticing other people who have made it, you will find people who inspire you, you’ll find yourself having conversations about changing your job/career, and there might even be others around who are quitting their jobs. You’ll start attracting the podcasts and YouTube videos that will support your decision, you’ll start attracting the right information, people and opportunities that will help you on your journey. You’re not alone on this, remember. There are hidden helpers waiting out there to help you once you open yourself to walking the Path.
Self-inquiry to better understanding of Self
While this all is happening, while you’re opening the doors into another dimension, slowly getting into the feeling of how it may look like, and adjusting your body to a new frequency, taking some pockets of time to sit in silence with yourself only and ask a few questions will help you transition into the new realm. Be gentle towards yourself. Self-inquiry can be tricky, bring out a lot of fear and anxiety, and doubt whether you want to start changing anything (cuz there’s so much to deal with), but that’s ok.
Ask yourself what kind of life you live now, and what kind of life would you love to live? If the answer surprises you, don’t let it scare you, but take it as a direction. Think about who you are, how your life has been, what has led you to where you are now? You cannot change what was, but you can slowly start making decisions today that will create a more aligned future some day. Whenever you think about these questions, they might trigger some guilt for not making it more this or that way before. And that’s ok. Holding yourself onto these emotions won’t bring you closer to the desired outcome. Remember to see what’s coming up, acknowledge what you see and feel, and start by saying ‘thank you’ to your own self. For brining you this far. For making the sacrifice.
Contemplation and mindfulness make easier business transition
All these experiences are so valuable, and important and deserve to be loved. Remember to feel love for yourself whether you like what you did or not. Love and like are not the same. Loving yourself despite the decisions you have made in the past that you don’t like sometimes needs practice, so stay with it. Also, you don’t have to take these self-inquiry moments as a driving force as they tend to be confused. When you are done contemplating, make sure to return present moment by letting go what does no longer serve your well being and remember that you are slowly transitioning towards a better place in life. That too requires courage, strength, resilience and patience, as you will be challenged in different ways.
Doing research about starting a business
One of the things you can commit to in this period of transitioning to a new career, to starting your own business is doing research. Find others who have done it and read or hear their inspiring stories. Hearing others who have walked the path before you can be inspiring, motivating and make you feel less alone. Have in mind not to over do it, for the next phase is usually comparison, which is not fair, if nothing else. You comparing yourself with others who are years ahead of you and making you feel less than is just not fair.
Research, but don’t over consume. When transitioning from being an employee to business owner look for articles, videos or other content that can help you in what you want, like how to start a business, how to get confident. Or find out how to actually open a company or register a craft in your country. Find inspiration, create vision boards, start journaling or writing ideas. You don’t need to make any plans at this moment if you’re not ready yet, but reaching out and getting the information is one of the first steps into your new life. It will do you good, help you affirm and support your decision, and once again attract good things your way.
Learning new things to become a better business owner
Think about how good are you in your skills? Are you pro level or you need to boost your knowledge and confidence? Think about what would you love to be better at or what would you love to learn new? Is there a skill you think you might need once your switch to having your own business, such as finances, accounting, social media, digital marketing, psychology, science? Take your time to learn a new skill, to learn a new language, to use a program or an app, or just to become better at what you do. Read books, take courses, online or in person and don’t limit yourself in the terms of what you’re interested at. Follow the joy, follow your gut feeling and go towards what attracts you. Be open and curios and invite new possibilities through broadening your interests.
Schedule time and make plans
Having a job and a family seems like more than we can handle many times, but taking time to nurture your idea is really important. You may be thinking that it’s impossible, but I say where there is a will, there is a way. If changing your lifestyle is important to you, then scheduling time to play with it, to water it is inevitable.
It can be 30 minutes or an hour when you will watch a YouTube video instead of cleaning the house, of listening to a podcast while ironing your kids clothes. Perhaps can be sending your partner out with the kids, or asking for time alone. Or it can look like waking up 90 minutes earlier once a week, or going to bed 60 minutes later. Your will is what will determine the outcome, not your circumstances. As you change your behaviour, your circumstances will change once the outer reality slowly adapts the new you.
With all this, you will not only start attracting new people in your life, but also give a permission to those around you to make changes themselves.
Make notes about your future business, ideas and thoughts
You can take a new notebook and start writing ideas down. If you could only see my first ‘business’ notebooks from years back… Oh my. There was least of ‘business’ inside, but I was writing down what I thought was important, and one step after another, one notebook after another I made my way up to where I am now.
So, there you go. I know it’s not easy, I know you feel alone, and a new life seems years ahead of you. And it is. And it’s not easy. You are alone. That is all truth as it can be. If it didn’t require effort and sacrifice, if it didn’t include challenges, if it was ‘easy’ anyone could make it happen. If anyone could make it, it wouldn’t be a goal worth going for. Good things come to those who wait, but better things come to those who take aligned and mindful action, every day. It really doesn’t have to be anything big, just nurturing the thought that made you click and read this article.
If you are ready to finally make that change, you can book me for creative business coaching or business consulting via my website – MarinaCosic.com. I will be writing more about it in the weeks to come.
Thank you so much for reading. I am sending good vibes your way.
