What Happened to that Child?


What Happened to that Child
Remember when you were a child and the best toy you probably had was a large cardboard or a Balikbayan box? With a few pens or crayons armed with a seemingly wild imagination, that box could become a space ship, a horse, a home or an escape room that no amount of force could ever destroy.

Inside it, you could go anywhere and be anything.


My question now to you is, What happened to that child?
 
You were once that child full of big  dreams. Until reality hit you hard right after graduation. When I was a graduating student, I was very confident I'd do good in the real world. Why not? It was pretty simple: study hard, get good grades  and then I'd get a high-paying job. So I really don't get it why people back then were having hard time dealing with life, particularly with their finances. I believed then that all I ever needed to do was to be good and to work hard.

That's it.

Or so I thought.
 
After graduating, I was offered a teaching position as my first job. It was a very proud moment! While probably 90% of my batch were still clueless on what lies ahead and were anxiously thinking whether they'd ever get a job, I was enjoying a post-graduation party, feeling secured about my future. But after months in the job, I realized I had a problem: all employees were quite good and were also hard-working, yet they still struggle financially!

I asked myself, What would make me different from them?”
 
It took me five long years before I figured it out. I was already 25 when I first encountered the words investment and business. Why not? No one ever taught me. Just like most of the people today, I was clueless.

How about you?
When was the first time that the phrase start my own business” ever crossed your mind? A year ago? Two years? Last month? How about a friend asking you to start your business together? Did you ever checked out his proposal or hardly said “No?”

Many people want to start their own business. But here's the thing: everyone can start, but not everyone will.

Let me now tell you the most common reasons people have about NOT starting:

Culture and Upbringing
Think of this: w
hen you were a child, nothing was impossible. You really believed in Someday, I'll be..” Yet today, you'll realize that just thinking of a starting a small business, such as opening a sari-sari store or doing network-marketing is very hard to do!  

   Nah, it's impossible!”
   I can't be rich!”
   I can't make money!”
   I can't sell. I can't do that.”
 
What happened? It was the result of our life-long education. We were programmed to think as an employee, to follow a standard set of rules, to do this and NOT do that! And unless you break free from those beliefs, you'll find it really hard to start doing something you have long been planning to. To break out of the norm, you need to start thinking differently. Keep your imagination healthy and believe in yourself that you can still do it!

What Happened to that Child

So what business do you have in mind? Did you know that creativity is linked to innovation? As someone puts it, “Creativity is the ability to develop something new - seeing things in a new and different way.” Just think of all these new technologies that we have today, even the food business serves innovations! Have you  heard of 'chili ice cream?'
 
People
Unfortunately, the people around you may also hamper your ideas. Remember that they were programmed just like you were, and so saying things with them might not be the best place to start with. This is critical because you may  have created an atmosphere of judgment, so you're afraid to reveal your ideas to them for fear of being ridiculed or appearing stupid in front of them. Harsh feedback from them can lead to your lack of confidence, which may result in just walking away from your ideas - and even your own dreams!
 
This is very evident every time we want to start a business. We normally consult our closest friends or relatives only to be disappointed by their opinions.
 
   That business is already saturated.”
   It will only fail.”
   Forget that, just work.”
   Only rich can make it big, others were just lucky.”
 
The problem is that we usually ask for people that don't even own a business or never had experience running one! We can't blame them. As people who really cares, it's just normal for them to protect us from a possible loss or failure. They love us, remember? The problem again? We fear what we do not understand. They don't understand how a business works (because all they have are personal biases, perceptions and rumors), so they really can't give a meaningful advise. When we started our small business a few years back, all I heard were negative feedbacks that it can't make money. That business is now four years old as of writing.

What Happened to that Child
 
Sadly, there would always be people that were just simply negative and skeptic about almost everything. And the ironic part is that the person who should be actually helping you turn your ideas into reality is the same person who would pull you down and discourage you. Some people calls them 'dream stealers.' Personally, I think a partner who is so reluctant to change, too lazy to even try or would see nothing but negative in every opportunity, should at least work four or more times as he or she is the reason behind why they're not doing well!

Choose the people you associate yourself with. I personally know a person who temporarily left his own family and chose to stay at  a friend's house so he could focus on his business and came back a year later when he already had a significant result. If your partner is a pessimist, drag him every time you'll attend seminars or workshops so he or she may start seeing things a little differently.
 
Resources
Another thing that will surely stop you from starting anything is your lack of resources: money, time and skills. Most people would say that their primary reason of why they can't start a business is money. What they don't realize is that time, and not money, is actually the more important commodity they needed to start.
Because even if you're employed and receives big salary, but have no time or lack thereof, chances are you still can't start your “passion project” anytime soon.

What Happened to that Child

Money, on the other hand, is easier to solve rather than time. You could borrow money from the bank, apply for a loan on a cooperative, ask for some personal loan from your parents or other members of the family, or you can pool funds with your friends!

The more serious problem about dealing with time though is yourself and the way you spend it. The number 1 and most popular excuse is, of course, “I'm busy.” Are you busy about attending seminars that will teach you new things but free on attending concerts and mall shows? Are you busy about reading self-help or business books but free on watching videos about a dancing cat, a singing dog and a flying monkey? The way you spend your time dictates the results you have in life.

So let me ask, “What are you busy about?”
 
If you were given an empty box to play with today, would you find as many fascinating uses for it as you did back then?


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7 comments:

  1. I agree, children want to change the world but after getting adults they stop dreaming and that's the problem!

    ReplyDelete
  2. The most important thing is not to forget what you dream of as a child, then it will come to life in the future.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Addie QuinneyNovember 21, 2017

    I missed that time when I was a child! I have no remarks cause Essay Supply - best writing service and I enjoy my writing job. But still being an adult is stressful.

    ReplyDelete
  4. have you tried to write short stories?

    ReplyDelete
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