Struggle & Challenge …Accept & Re-Calibrate

Published on February 15th, 2011

by Amy Applebaum

Struggle & Challenge …Accept & Re-Calibrate. This has been a challenging two years for me, emotionally, as I have listened to the conversations of despair around money and have had to work hard to NOT let those conversations penetrate my own psyche. I’ve seen so much pain, fear and stress and it saddens me in ways I have never felt before.

This despair brings to the forefront the problem of needing and wanting more and more and more. And the problem of feeling that if we don’t possess more, do more, be more… that we are not good enough… that we are not successful. And these conversations are being had by beginning entrepreneurs as well as very successful entrepreneurs. People have lost fortunes and are starting over.

So I say…Enough! We must give up this negative conversation around money. Does this mean that we pretend we have money that we don’t or that we deny the fact that times have been tough? Of course not. It means… we must start a new conversation around money. Money is NOT everything and success can be defined any way that we choose. When I talk about “Releasing Your Inner Millionairess,” I’m talking about releasing the “successful person” you have inside,and that doesn’t just mean the “money making person” you have inside.

First you must define what success means to you. Then you go out and get it. For many, that means making millions, for others it’s about security and family. For others, it’s about being of service.

Try on that this is the best time ever. Repeat after me, “I LOVE THE RECESSION!” And think about why you might love it or why you might start loving it. For example, I love the recession because it has forced me to determine what’s truly important and has taught me to be a better business woman, minding my expenses and looking for new markets. I have spent more time with family. I have thought of new ways of doing business and cutting back. This recession gets to be whatever we want it to be. And we can define ourselves any way that we want to.

If times are tough and you have to move in with your parents… do it! Just do it. Who cares? Why does it have to mean that you are less than? Run your business from their kitchen table if you have to. It’s ok if you have to get a more economical car. It’s ok if you have to share your car. It’s ok if you have to take public transportation. As long as you say it’s ok…it’s ok. It’s ok if you go out to dinner less. Its ok if you shop somewhere other then a luxury market. It’s ok if you don’t have enough money to buy another jacket or pair of shoes. We have everything we need but we are constantly told that we don’t. And,that is the part of our conversation we can change.

Am I saying to accept less than what you want…NO! Work hard, work smart…make it happen…go for it. But let’s remember not to define ourselves by how much money we have in the bank. Keep giving, keep hoping, keep loving. Stay in solution mode. Think outside of the box. Move in with your neighbors. There are so many ways to make life amazing. There are so many things that define our success. Let’s get into hope. Let’s get into community.

To Your Success,

Amy

Looking to grow your business and need support, check out Amy Applebaum’s Release Your Inner Millionairess Coaching Club

  • http://twitter.com/acharlescoach Angela Charles

    You make some great points about seeing some of the benefits of trying times, specifically related to money and the recession. My husband and I have grown closer as we have had to cut back in certain areas the past year since he started law school. We can’t just buy everything we want but have to really be more selective. This has taught us to talk in more detail about what we truly want and make compromises we may not otherwise have had to make. I am sure we’ll always remember these times fondly as we think back later in life on the early stages of our marriage (where a fancy dessert on a date night was a McDonald’s shake)! Thanks for your points and I think like you said, these principles apply in business and in the larger scale of our economy and of course on personal levels as well.

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