When You Hit The Wall

All Creative Entrepreneurs hit the wall sooner or later. You know the wall I am talking about. The one that just won’t move. You push and push, working your butt off, talking to potential clients, sending out estimates—but it doesn’t budge. The wall remains standing, unaffected.

Jobs are not coming in fast enough, the ones you do land are not in the big leagues where you want to play, and profit margins are too tight. It’s like dancing the tango on a dollar bill. You keep moving but stay in one spot.

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I remember when I hit my wall. It was a long time ago when I was a photography representative and a producer. I knew I had a lot more in me and that I was playing too small. I kept thinking there had to be something else out there for me, something bigger and better. Frankly, I was ready to play with the big boys.

When you are ready to step up it means what you are doing now is too small. When you change your energy to a higher vibration by playing bigger, all the small stuff has to break away and is mostly left behind. Why? Because the small stuff is your security net and as long as it’s there, you have no reason to venture out too far and take risks.

For me, in my heart I knew there was something else I needed to do. And that’s when I entered my decade of bad luck. My trusted employee got too close to a key vendor and they decided to set up their own shop that was just like mine, but without me. That sparked a lawsuit which spanned a year. My photography representation business went down the drain and I never recovered from this betrayal. Nine months later, 9/11 happened and the production business shattered leaving me and what was left of my business in ruins.

I fought the fight of my life during the lawsuit, and afterwards the fight continued as I tried to figure out my next move. I had no security net of any kind. When my daughter flew to Germany to meet me for my father’s funeral, I remember thinking that I didn’t even know if we would have anything to return to in the USA.

Often in the darkest times is we find our greatest strengths. I will always go down fighting. If I drown it won’t be in a puddle, it will be an ocean. My bad luck decade was the testing ground for my big play.

Would I fold in fear? There was much to be fearful about. Or would I rise up and accomplish what I said I was capable of doing? After all, I had asked for something more, right?

When I mustered the courage to do what was meant for me—to play bigger—my ship came in. I cashed out with millions.

My question to you is simple: Is where you are now your end game, or are you simply not stepping up? If it feels too small and not challenging enough to showcase everything you’ve got, it probably is. You have it within you to change your entire life. Maybe the wall you are hitting is a sign that says: this is not the way for you, find another route.