Run Your Business Your Way
How You Really Can Have Pretty Much Anything You Want – Part 1: How I Created A New Life In Paradise (Before Starting My Business)
I’ll admit it, I am concerned about this three part series sounding self-absorbed, but there’s a reason behind my potential ‘oversharing’.
I talk to a lot of people who have trouble seeing this truth:
You really can have pretty much anything you want.
Okay, if you want to become an astronaut then there are some pretty stringent requirements, but for most things in life a lot more is under control than you might realise.
I think we all know this at some level, but once we really internalize it our lives become much much more a product of our own design.
Rather than bumbling along and feeling stressed and busy and then noticing that life happened to us.
I’m going to show you what designing your life can look like by sharing three personal stories about big changes that I’ve created in my life.
Of course building a business is a HUGE change that I’ve made happen but what I find is there has to be a mental shift before you can think about starting a business. So I’m going to share some different stories that I hope will inspire and empower you to create big changes in your own life.
Those changes could be related to business, or something completely different. It’s all about stepping into a bigger version of your life and taking a more active role in designing it.
So does this mean I’m perfect?
No, of course not. I am always making new ‘designs’. At the moment my big project is losing 30 kilos of ‘new to Australian fat’. I’ll update you on that one a few months down the road, maybe ;-)
There’s nearly always something, but the point is if there is something in your life that isn’t serving you – truly dramatic change is possible.
A Story Of Personal Connection ( & Another Reason Why Having A Business Is Awesome)
I didn’t share this story when I first got back from my recent round the world trip because first, I wanted to see what would happen, and second because it felt (and feels) very personal.
I am sure there will be people who disagree with what I did and think it should have been handled differently. When I feel a connection though, I like to go with my heart.
During my recent trip to New York (here’s all other business-related stuff I did if you want to check that out as well) I made connection that was super meaningful to me and I hope this relationship will grow and develop over many years.
I spent a lot of time in the city with high-level entrepreneurs, which of course was amazing fun. I love hanging out with people who are kicking goals and making things happen in the world.
But one of the connections that meant the most to me was making friends with a homeless woman.
Observations And Learnings From Taking My Business On The Road
Right now I am road-testing ‘the laptop lifestyle’. It’s been over three years since I started my business and the first real time I’ve tried this. Every other trip I was on holiday or I was only away a couple of days. So far I’ve been to Frankfurt, Hannover and Dusseldorf in Germany visiting friends and hanging out in my old stomping grounds. Mid July I move on to New York City. Woo hoo!
Honestly though, as much as I love freedom and having control over my schedule, I’ve always been nervous about trying to work away from home. I like having a proper desk with everything set up – think note pads, coloured pens, printer, comfortable chair etc etc. I’m the kind of person who can’t even work in a cafe because it’s too distracting. So this trip has been quite an experiment!
So here’s what I discovered so far:
When To Break The Rules And When To Stick With What Works
In the online business world there are a lot of coaches who talk about “breaking the rules” in business. They advise people to think outside the box, colour outside the lines, follow their hearts and most of all – do it their own way.
Let’s face it, who likes rules? Being a rule-breaker is fun, just like the idea of entrepreneurship. We all want to do it our own way.
I believe in choosing a business that lights you up and being true to yourself.
But as for breaking all the rules?
Maybe not. At least, maybe not AT FIRST…
Cat LeBlanc – The Who, What and Why!
Hi, I’m Cat and I specialise in finding the right idea to get your business started! Welcome to my very first blog post.
My aim with my blog and business is to help you escape the daily grind of your day job by guiding you through the process of finding an idea and building a business that supports the life you want to lead. Maybe you want to spend more time with your friends and family, maybe you want to do more meaningful work. Either way I’m your catalyst to get things started!
I always wanted to travel and be free and not follow the standard ‘study, work, kids, more work then retirement’ path. I also love to experiment and bring my ideas into reality. I wanted to learn languages and live abroad so I lived in Brazil and Germany. I wanted to be a freelancer so I could work though winter and then take the summer off so set myself up and did just that. Then I moved into business.