Turning ideas into a business is an emotional and financial roller coaster for sure. Unlocking your creative potential often means navigating the world of rejection. But the moments of success make it all worth it. Seeing your ideas come to life continues to be a feeling that is indescribable.
To thrive in the rejection business, you need a survival plan. While that’s easier said than done, you can learn to brace yourself for the emotional rollercoaster and keep your inner child alive. Here are some strategies to help you along the way:
Protect your creativity. Recognize the difference between your creativity and the business of licensing your ideas. They are not the same. Do your best to keep them separate.
Build long-term relationships. Stay in one or two industries long enough to build relationships and get feedback on your ideas, which is critical to your success. Endlessly jumping around won’t be as fruitful.
Create every day. Reward yourself each and every day by setting time aside to create. Creativity is a muscle that must be exercised!
Be inspired. Keep your mind stimulated by being curious and regularly experiencing new things. These new experiences will nourish and aid you creatively.
Be disciplined. Being creative is extremely fun. You must also be disciplined. Set aside time every single day to reach your goals.
Cultivate supportive environments. Surround yourself with people who have your best interests. Wherever there is negative noise, do what you need to do to turn it off.
Freelance. There is a lot to be gained by working with other creative people on their projects. You don’t have to take the leap into entrepreneurship right away. It’s perfectly fine — even advisable — to work a job using your creativity.
Take responsibility. Don’t blame others for your lack of success. You alone are responsible.
Find a mentor or coach. Learning from someone who has done the hard work of becoming creatively successful is the quickest way to reach your goals.
Don’t sit by the phone. This is a waiting game, there’s no doubt about that. Keeping yourself busy doing other things will help you move forward instead of being creative.
Always be a student. Never stop learning. Read, read, and read.
Celebrate small victories. Learning to enjoy the journey is key.
Challenge yourself. Keep learning new things. Be willing to fail.
Learn to live in the moment. Stop waiting for the future.
Find your community. You need other creative people in your life to learn from and offer mutual support. LinkedIn is a great place to start looking. It’s never been easier to reach out to someone whose work interests you.
Find a partner. Working with a partner can be rewarding in many ways. You can share the work you don’t enjoy, feel supported, and inspire one another to new heights.
Take away financial stress. Make sure you can pay your bills and take care of your other needs. This added burden won’t make it any easier or more enjoyable to be creative.
Stop comparing yourself to others. This is much easier said than done. We are all on our own journey. Your only competitor is you.
Protect yourself financially. Financially, this is a tough game. Be frugal. Don’t celebrate too much when the money is coming in and things are going great, and don’t get too down when things aren’t going well. Always keep coming up with lots of ideas.
Learn to laugh at yourself. Don’t take yourself so seriously.
Don’t give up on your dreams. It’s going to take longer than you think, but you can do this!
We’ve all faced doubters, but the magic really is turning nothing into something. The feeling of creating is what keeps us all going, even during the tough times. Remember, the opportunity to compete and work with other brands is always exhilarating. Success means waking up every day doing what you love!!
