4 Ways Nature's Magic is Good for Business & Soul

4 Ways Nature’s Magic is Good for Business & Soul

This past weekend, I threw the clock back, tossed off the covers, and went hiking! Who knew it was going to be good for business?

A little crazy considering I haven’t done anything physically challenging since surgery, and really, since March. 2 days out, I’m definitely acknowledging that I may have been a bit overzealous 🙂

Anyway, my personal Instagram and Facebook posts from Sunday night were really the start for this post – but I was just too tired to get my brain and fingers to cooperate after our adventure!!! So I’m going to recap it here and dig in.

Original Post:

Climbed my first 4,000-footer today! It was beautiful, challenging, chilly, wet, slippery in spots, cold, snowy, and amazing.

4 Ways Nature's Magic is Good for Business & Soul

Today was so good for my soul. Better than I imagined it would be, actually. Nature never fails to teach and show us who we truly are, and what we can be.

1. When you are discouraged, intimidated, or just plain WTF when you look up at what’s ahead, pause and look back at how far you’ve come.

2. Roots can save you, hurt you, support or destroy you. Keep your eyes wide open, follow your gut, and step with confidence.

3. Surround yourself with people who support, push, and encourage you; and who know the looks of fear, pain, doubt, excitement, joy, and accomplishment in your eyes. AND, be that person for others.

4. Our past is not what defines us, but how we move forward.

Today, for whatever reason, I kept thinking, “Surgery and cancer in July, another surgery in September, a mountain in November.” Cancer does not define me, but what I do with my life and how I help/serve others does. The best is definitely yet to come.

These are the thoughts that filled my mind today. And mom. She was with me. I can’t put my finger on exactly what it was…but there was something.

Here’s to life and living it fully, as the “me” I’m here to be…

***and the 47 remaining 4,000-footers in NH still to conquer***

Now…how does this translate?

When I get outside, and when I dig in and let myself just be, everything I think of has at least two sides. When I think of something in my “personal life”, I also think about it in my “business life”. But what I’ve come to realize is that I’m an entrepreneur. They are really one and the same. I do what I do, I made the decision to build my own company, because of who I am and how I want to live. Transparency, authenticity, meaning…it crosses between the different sides of life, and really brings them together.

So let’s look at these lessons that surrounded me on Sunday, and dig into what they told me about life as a business owner.

#1 When you are discouraged, intimidated, or just plain WTF when you look up at what’s ahead, pause and look back at how far you’ve come.

We’ve all been there. In life. At home. At work. And especially in our businesses.

I’ve been there. When I started LillaBlu, I knew I was on the right path, and doing well, but where I was and where I wanted to be…well, there was a really steep climb ahead. And although I had it in me, I didn’t know if I could really make it.

And hiking this weekend and seeing that ridiculously steep staircase…evoked those very same feelings.

4 Ways Nature's Magic is Good for Business & Soul

#2 Roots can save you, hurt you, support or destroy you. Keep your eyes wide open, follow your gut, and step with confidence.

To say I tripped a few times on this adventure is an understatement, but I will say I made way fewer tumbles than I “usually” do. Why? I have no idea.

However, I can say that as I navigated my way down the mountain, with wobbly legs, and cold fingers, toes, and nose, I paid close attention to these roots that my feet met. Some looked strong, and moved under foot. Some looked safe, and yet I slipped. Some braced my feet so I could navigate a nasty foothold, and some tried their best to trip me up.

When we start our businesses, we have a base. Of skills, of support, of knowing (or thinking that we know) what we should do next. Sometimes this serves us well, and other times we have to pause and do a gut check. Listen to the inner voice that says, “This may sound crazy, but it’s really the right path.” Follow your gut. And do it confidently.

What’s the worst that can happen? Especially when you…

4 Ways Nature's Magic is Good for Business & Soul

#3 Surround yourself with people who support, push, and encourage you; and who know the looks of fear, pain, doubt, excitement, joy, and accomplishment in your eyes. AND, be that person for others.

This really is summed up by “Do unto others as you’d have done to you.” Find your people. Your tribe. These are the people that understand, even when they don’t. They have your back. They push you to keep going, remind you of how far you’ve come, and let you know just how badass you really are – even, and especially when you are struggling with what’s ahead or what’s not quite perfect. (More on that one later.)

And more importantly… Be THAT person for someone else.  

#4 Our past is not what defines us, but how we move forward.

Starting a business is hard. Running one can be challenging. We all make mistakes trying to see what works best in how we bring our work to the world.

Don’t get caught up in where you fell down. Don’t get permanently stuck where you’re stuck. And just because something has gone ‘wrong’ or not as you’d planned or hoped… the best thing to do is take stock of where you are…the lessons you’ve learned and get going again.

Got it?

Good.

Now…if you want to explore how you can thrive in your business adventure, surrounded by YOUR tribe encouraging and supporting you every step of the way, drop me a line. I’d love to have you join us and succeed like crazy!