Does Your Business Need a Reality Check?

September 8, 2016

Now that you know how a series of intentional choices and mindset shifts yielded big results for my life and work, and that you truly have the permission you need to carve out the life that you want, let’s define what that looks like for you, boss lady! It’s all well and good for you to know what my ideal life looks like, but if you aren’t diving into that question on your own, then how will you be able to take the thoughtful steps forward that propel onward in that journey? Without a clear sense of purpose or direction, it’s difficult to gauge your success or even determine the inch-by-inch progress you’re making. So in order to make things easier to navigate, it’s time for a quick reality check to get you back on track, and to help you determine what this next season of work and life looks like for you!

does your business bring you joy, or is it an all-consuming weight on your shoulders? It's time for a reality check, friend! Let's realign our priorities and get serious about our vision for life and work | b is for bonnie design

But before we go any further, let’s be clear about one thing — this is not another set of goals that I want you to write out on a piece of paper and then promptly forget about (or am I the only one who does that?) I want this to be an exercise that allows you to look at the big picture, dream wholeheartedly, and envision what this next season of life can really look like.

I have five questions for you, sweet friend, and I challenge you to answer truthfully. Answer these questions while keeping your life and all its commitments, your work (whether it’s freelance, a traditional 9-to-5, or a grand dream you hold close to your heart), and your relationships in mind:

  • Do you live to work, or do you work to live?
  • Is your work a blessing in your life or an all-consuming burden?
  • If you answered “burden,” what are the facets of your work that are weighing you down?
  • What are the facets of your work that bring you joy?
  • What do you want your life to look like, and how can your business fit into that?

I think there’s a lot to be said for reverse engineering an idea, sweet friend. Personally, if I can see a glimpse of what the end-game is supposed to look like, I can set my brain to work trying to figure out just how I can get there. And that’s what we’re doing throughout this brief exercise. We’re creating a tangible, desirable snapshot of what life can look like, and how your work can then fit into that, not the other way around. So often, we hear our favorite bloggers and social media influencers paint vivid pictures of how they make life happen around their business. Well, I don’t know about you, but I long for a life that doesn’t depend on the successes and failures of my business, or a life that happens in the few spare hours I have in-between work commitments. At the end of my days, I want to look back on a small, mighty business that not only blessed my life, but blessed the lives of those I served. And to me that doesn’t look like 80-hour work weeks for years on end, replacing birthday celebrations with networking opportunities, or missing out on the sweet memories that happen in the quiet moments because I was too busy to slow down.

But I want to know what you want your life to look like. And on top of that, I want to know how your work can fit into that in a way that gives life, brings joy and meets your goals. Over the next few weeks, I’ll be sharing some of the actionable steps I took to inch myself closer to my ideal life and business, and my hope is that they will serve as tangible takeaways you can implement in your own journey.

Today, we put the dream to paper. Now, let’s get down in the trenches and figure out how to bring it to life!

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My name is Bonnie – I’m a brand designer, strategist, and writer which all adds up to one eclectic conglomeration of qualities that enables me to serve you well! Past clients have dubbed me "the Joanna Gaines of brand design," and I've had more than a few call me a dream maker, a game changer, and a design wizard (my Harry Potter-loving heart didn't hate that one, let me tell you!). At the end of the day, I'm a big-hearted creative who will get teary-eyed as you share the heart behind your business; who will lose sleep over the perfect font pairings and color selections to bring your brand to life visually; and who will work tirelessly to empower, encourage, and equip you to share your work with the world intentionally. 

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