Have you ever wondered how entrepreneurs keep going when the going gets tough?
Here are some tips to stay motivated, no matter what.
Entrepreneur Life is Not for the Faint of Heart
Proponents of entrepreneurship sometimes paint it as a life of ease, especially on social media. As is common on social platforms, you typically see the highlight reel: the luxurious vacations to Bali (what’s up with that?), the fact that they can work from anywhere, and the creative freedom that is available to those who choose a life that isn’t lived from nine to five.
What most people don’t get to see is the hard work that goes into it. The countless hours entrepreneurs spend simply building their brands and interacting with people. The time they have to spend finding leads and keeping them. The hard months where you have more work and closer deadlines than you know what to do with, and the even harder months where you’re not sure how you’ll make ends meet.
The truth is that there are two sides to everything – and entrepreneurship is no different. It’s a struggle that takes, resolve, grit, perspective, perseverance, and motivation to get through. In other words, it’s not for the faint of heart.
Sometimes it involves sleepless nights and working long hours. And most of the time, it involves working beyond your typical working hours on a passion project, networking, etc. It’s not a job for people who enjoy being passive or want to “clock out” at the end of the day.
The Unseen Risks of “Tang Ping” and “Bai Lan” Culture
In 2021, Chinese young people sparked a trend called “tang ping,” which translates to “lying flat.” Those involved in the movement rejected the idea of hard work in favor of working toward smaller, more attainable goals. The original idea was not to overwork themselves – which isn’t entirely wrong.
However, now the culture has evolved more, becoming “bai lan” (“let it rot”) culture. In this movement, proponents choose to do the bare minimum at their jobs. Some sources are calling it China’s slacker culture… and it’s arisen from a concern that they’ll never accomplish or excel at what they’ve been asked to do.
In other words, people are giving up.
The danger of giving up (or “letting it rot”) are obvious: people who feel they can’t contribute and don’t give themselves opportunity to do so will likely struggle to find joy in life. Putting minimal effort into anything is a bad approach, whether it’s work, relationships, or hobbies. It could easily become a self-fulfilling prophecy: you don’t believe you can do anything, so you don’t try, and you end up doing nothing.
The danger of lying flat – or not overworking – is more elusive, but still important. Essentially, it’s an exchange of hard things for easy things. Taking the huge dreams you have and trading them for something that isn’t as difficult and comes more naturally to you.
This can result in stagnation rather than growth. Imagine what could happen to you if you never pushed yourself to do anything you deemed too difficult. Some of the best things in life – our work, our families, and our relationships – have moments where they’re very difficult.
It comes down to this: by not risking anything, you are taking a huge risk. You risk looking back one day and thinking, “I was afraid to live. I wish I’d done it differently.”
Rest is Not the Enemy – but “Safety” Is
To be clear, there is nothing wrong with needing to rest. Rest is a good thing, and how much of it you need depends on what season of life you’re in. We’ve even talked before about the importance of rest, of setting boundaries, and how important it is to enable people to help you.
But the idea that you should make a low-risk life your goal is damaging in a way that most people don’t see until they end up with a mid-life crisis… and some people don’t see it until it’s almost too late.
Be willing to do hard things. It’s like a muscle: you have to exercise it.
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