Last month, June 2015, my Biz turned 11! Woohoo. So I decided I would have a blog party to celebrate and invite some of my favourite biz buddies to share what they’ve learned from being in biz for many, many years. This week, my guest is the lovely Lynne Marion who started her business journey aged 15! Here’s her story and top 3 lessons from those years.
My first entrepreneurship experience was quite the adventure! At age 15, I was elected president of a company who sold ties with a condom hidden in a back pocket (HA!). This company was solely composed of teenagers (FYI, I didn’t legally own the company -as I was a minor- but I was responsible for this business just as a legal business owner would be). Under my responsibility, I managed a team of 12 (teenage) employees, organized meetings, developed marketing strategies, ensured we offered good customer service, glanced over budgeting, met deadlines, consulted the company’s vice presidents for decision-making, etc.
Becoming a part-time president of a company, for one year, at age 15, was absolutely filled with learning curves, headaches as well as enriching lifetime biz experiences! Since then, I have gained over 15 years of being in business. I have mostly been a solopreneur in my endeavours.
Through my professional experiences, I have come to the conclusion that being an entrepreneur is a beautiful, magical, and mysterious journey. It is the equivalent of holding a blank canvas before you… Drawing or painting whatever appeals to you, and then following what has been created. It is the space where anything and everything is possible.
What have I learned from living within the business sphere? Here are my top 3 lessons.
Lesson 1: Creativity is boundless.
As an employee or consultant in project management, I was often discouraged and felt helpless within the confined, limited possibilities of integrating newness and exploring creativity. I was excited when organizations would hire me to find novel ideas & projects and desired organizational changes. Unfortunately, my proposed new ideas or novel projects were rejected 99% of the time. Why? Implementing organizational changes and creative avenues were feared.
In business, it is possible to create i-n-f-i-n-i-t-e-l-y. Novelty is welcome! Creativity mode may be explored every day, every moment, every month or every new moon; whatever inspires YOU for your business is delightfully fine. There is NO limit as to when or what you may explore, produce or create.
In the business sphere, the possibilities are amazingly endless. Not only is ‘Thinking outside the box’ permitted, but living outside the box is too. It is through experimenting and implementing your ideas that you are guided along your path. There are no predefined outcomes or results.
Creativity also has a wondrous relation to uncertainty. The magic of creating lies in juggling at ease within the Unknown. In business, moving forward from this ‘Unknown Zone’ is essential. As Deepak Chopra once quoted, ‘Uncertainty is the fertile ground for creativity’. It is from this space of blankness (unknown) that everything becomes possible. Creativity is boundless.
Lesson 2: Systems are gems.
For a long time in business, I dreaded having systems in place. I believed that systems were the antagonists of creativity and uniqueness. By being so defined, systems meant confinement and induced limited space for innovation. I seriously thought they killed the creativity spirit. At the time, I felt like spontaneity was more in tune with creativity.
So, off I went, not really implementing structured business systems, improvising email messages with each client request, not planning any fixed monthly goals, avoiding budgeting systems, etc. I thought it was more inspiring to go with the flow, without using any business structures.
I was wrong. Without systems in place, things can get confusing, fast. Time and energy can be uselessly wasted. Clients can be lost in a myriad of emails. Everything may spread out aimlessly. My lesson has been that systems help to efficiently organize things. Systems even allow a wider reach.
Adopting systems allow to better structure and organize your business. They facilitate processes & methods and make life much easier. This being said, it is important to find the types of systems that enchant YOU.
There exists a diversity of systems to help YOU with your business, but not all will correspond best to your needs and preferences. Explore. Be curious. Create your own systems if you wish.
Systems are gems.
Lesson 3: YOU are NOT your business.
A few years ago, I had signed up for a Business Coaching program entitled ‘Become Your Own Business Advisor’ taught by Hiro Boga. The very first lesson given on the first day of the program was that YOU are not your business. Your business is not YOU.
This teaching deeply resonated within me… Those words profoundly struck me. Up until that moment, I was confusing my business with being (within) me. I had been feeling exhausted and meshed with my business’ developments and goals. As I heard those words being pronounced, it made perfect sense. I felt lighter and freer.
Hiro went on to explain the analogy of a parent giving birth to a child. The parent is not the child. The child is not the parent. The same applies to a business and its owner. In essence, birthing is not equivalent to being.
My perspective of having and growing a business has completely changed. I do not feel intermixed with my business anymore. I envision myself and my business as separate entities. I identify my goals as well as my business’ goals separately. This shift of perspective has allowed me to see more clearly, and to identify more accurately what is needed in the bigger picture. In a sense, my vision has become more macro (vs. less micro). It has given me more space to breathe and to be me, without carrying my business’ purpose within me. How splendid! Every business has its own soul.
The entrepreneurial journey is filled with enriching lessons and life experiences. Ultimately, a business is an expression of your passions, your joy and your gifts to share with the world!
Lynne Marion is an Intuitive Life Coach, who believes LoVe and JoY are infinite and exponential! Authenticity, fluidity & naturalness are essential to true happiness in this world.
She passionately coaches individuals & groups into journeying within, to discover the jewels of their inner wisdom. Creative, spiritual, and adventurous, she inspires people to align to their true aspirations.
Website: www.lynnemarion.com 
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