Yesterday, I had a rant on Facebook. I rarely do that, but this time it was necessary:

Something that really burns me is when people sell services that they are not qualified to sell. Each one of us is born with tremendous talent, and for the life of me, I don’t get why folks dabble in other industries and undercut that industry. I see it all of the time, particularly in the creative industries, pr, branding, marketing, social media, etc. There is nothing wrong with studying a new craft – that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about the “I woke up like this” syndrome when all of a sudden you are a graphic designer or web developer….when people have studied it for years. Why? And, the poor folks that are being sold too…please, PLEASE do your due diligence. Not everyone that “says” they do something… does it. Stop giving your hard earned money away to folks who don’t know anymore about a certain profession than you do. Lastly, if you haven’t built a million dollar business, you certainly can’t teach me how to build one. And, no I won’t pay you to “learn.” There is a coach for everything when the coach hasn’t done the work or seen the outcome. Please stop!!!

A couple of entrepreneur friends chimed in with really great commentary…

Then, like magic, this quote posted by Miss A danced through my newsfeed:

Let’s chat about it.

I know a lot of business owners. A lot of folks building dreams and just generally tryna make epic ish happen.

I also know a good number of peeps who give up.

At the sign of (dare I say it)…. a challenge.

For some reason, and I’ll blame it on the connectivity of social media…people think that owning a business is a cake walk. They see pictures of people who have “arrived” shining in all of their entrepreneurial glory. They see the good stuff and somehow that glimpse of 1.1 millisecond into someone’s world gives them a tainted reality of what this really is.

There are good days….yes.

But there are rough ones. I joked a few weeks ago to a friend, quoting one of my favorite Langston Hughes poems, “Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.” And, by life…I mean this entrepreneurial life.

And that’s okay. It’s not supposed to be.

I’ve always, always believed that when we want something God purposely throws a wrench at us. I think that he wants to see just how badly we want it, and also he wants us to have real appreciation when we reach our moment…

Of arrival.

But, I don’t mind. Owning a business makes you stronger and ultimately teaches amazing life lessons…if you let it.

These reality-checkin’ frisbees separate the men from the boys. And, the women from the little girls. I see so many people who start a business, and quit because it was harder than they thought. Or, because the ride wasn’t smooth, or maybe their clients momentarily fell out of like.

Oh, cry me a river. Really.

Let’s be clear. I’m not talking about those whose business has truly run its course, or maybe they learned that their passion wasn’t what they thought…so they started something new.

That’s called life.

I’m talking about those who quit because they were lazy.

They were too lazy to tough it out. To study a little harder. To test a little longer. To tweak a little further. So, they start something new before they ever saw success. And they keep going…trading new for more-new.

See, the problem is…when they start that new thing (their new “business”) they are just repackaging the same old issues. They’ve put a Snoopy band-aid on their wound.

Of course, the band-aid falls off. But, the damage that they’ve done to the industry where they moon-lighted is real.

They’ve undercut pricing.

Damaged the trust of consumers.

Made a mockery of what others studied and stayed up at ungodly hours to master.

Up until this point, I have referred to the offenders in the third person, purposely.

Most of my readers are go-getters. You are serious and stick with ish until you get it right. But if you are reading this blog and have fallen prey to the little-girl or little-boy build-me-a-biz syndrome…

I am asking you to not give up.

There was a reason why this dream was placed on your heart. Don’t undervalue your gift. Don’t cheapen yourself.

You can master your gift…

If you only do the work.

Last night, I was listening to a podcast by Pat Flynn and Jamie Tardy. They stated two things (1) Don’t start a new business until you’ve mastered success in the first one and (2) the universe will test you to see just how bad you want it. See, don’t start a cycle that will just keep going.

I want to give you a few tips to keep pushing forward before giving up on your true passion:

• If you are struggling with reaching your ideal client take a look at your business. A hard one. What can you do to tighten your brand and message so that you have a better chance of reaching the folks who need and will pay for your service or product.

• If you have down time in your business think about what else you can learn. Have you studied all aspects of business ownership? If you think long and hard I am sure that you can find something new to learn. This is not buying time. It’s simply preparing you to be well-suited to serve your people even better.

• Do you talk to other entrepreneurs? If not, find a circle of 3-4 entrepreneurs that you know and trust. Talk to them about their journeys, struggles and successes. Sometimes, you just need to know that you aren’t going through it alone.

• Who is doing what you want to do? If you don’t have strong examples in your industry…who are some successful entrepreneurs in other industries? Read their stories, sign up for their email lists and connect those dots. Take the list of commonalities and work them in your business.

• Lastly, before you dive into another business ask yourself, “Why?” If it’s because things didn’t work out, then you are giving up too soon.

I have done all of these things at certain points in my business. The end result was a better business owner, brand and a new fire once I realized that I was one gigantic step closer to nailing it.

Have you almost thrown the towel in on this entrepreneurial journey? If so, share your story below. Also, check out my private community Creative Genius Society. Doors officially open on March 1 to an inaugural class of creative entrepreneurs. We will talk about stuff like this and so much more.