Over the last 6-9 months, I've taken a huge step back on my go, go, go lifestyle. Ever since I was a college student, I always had 100 things to do, morning, noon and night. At one point I was working FT as an office manager, going to school FT, worked as a hostess PT, and took dance lessons- making virtually no time for me. I was in my late teens/early 20’s so I had energy to spare.
In 2009 I co-founded a marketing firm here in Chicago; my first time owning a business. You know they say owning a business is a lot of work? They lied. It’s ALL work. Every waking moment is work. You are always thinking of either your clients, ways to improve, ways to sell, problems to solve- I mean, its life consuming. I always envisioned myself owning my own business as a teen, so this- for me, was a dream come true. I didn’t mind doing the work or staying at the office until 10pm or 11pm sometimes. It was MY business, and I had to take care of it.
Networking for me and on behalf of my company made a huge difference in my career. I think it’s a tremendous skill to polish; if you don’t have time, make time! I started networking in college, thanks to Mr. Gramillano. While in business, I would often find myself networking 3 – 4 times a week at after-work events, luncheons, breakfast roundtables- you name it. I networked far and wide with professionals in and out of my industry, local chambers and political figures. Aside from in-person networking, I would network heavily online too. I knew I was making an impact when people I had never met would approach me at an event or on the street and say “Hey! You’re Daisy, right? We’re friends on Facebook/LinkedIn/Twitter!” or "Hey! I saw you at the theater/restaurant/train..." While it was kinda cool, It became a little scary too… you never knew who was watching.
On top of networking, I was serving on committees, advisory boards, mentoring and volunteering - not because anyone made me, but because I genuinely wanted to be involved and give back to my community. Needless to say, all of this mingling wore me out cold. I never had time to make myself a proper lunch or dinner, I always eating on the run. I didn't have time to workout- I would leave the house really early or get home too exhausted to lift a finger. Mentally, I thought I was on the right track, but truth be told, I was burning myself out and fast!
I had to take a step back and analyze my situation but most importantly, my health. I started my hiatus last August when I realized I was burning myself out for things I didn’t really believe in anymore. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE marketing and the field I have chosen, but the pieces weren’t adding up. My inner voice tried to tell me several times but I was too busy trying to keep up with it all; I never took the time to listen. I was networking with the wrong crowd and working for the wrong clients. What I really wanted to do with my future career was not here; I would need to reinvent myself- but first- I needed to take care of myself. I needed my sanity back and I desperately needed to find a healthy work/life balance.
It took a giant disconnection for me to think clearly. And there is nothing wrong with that. I’m neither a quitter nor a failure- I am human. I am changing the way I was doing business for me :) To say the last 3 and a half years were good to me is an understatement. As crazy as they were, I met so many amazingly talented people and learned more than I could ever imagine. If I had to do it all over again, the changes I'd make would be minor. I am where I am today because of my successes and mistakes. I was definitely on the fast track to something big... but that (big) wasn't the right fit for me.
Life is far too valuable to waste on something you don’t enjoy doing. Sometimes you have to give yourself permission and say "It’s okay, stop and smell the roses. We'll revisit this later."
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| Celebrating my first year in business |
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