As an entrepreneur, there comes that stage where you hit a stumbling block. Relax, it’s not something out of the blue, neither are you all alone in it. Most entrepreneurs experience it too.
Entrepreneurship is a journey that could be exceedingly overwhelming. You’ll often find yourself multitasking, delegating responsibilities, watching out for your employees, and brainstorming, amidst other demanding tasks.
No jokes, entrepreneurship is an all-consuming involvement, and it’s not for the faint-hearted. It’s often a rollercoaster and series of good and bad, beautiful and ugly, and a host of other experiences that come tumbling your way.
Since entrepreneurs are only human, roadblocks are inevitable. It could be something as minimal as a mere creative block, and as extreme as losing revenue or going through emotional pain. How do you handle roadblocks when they come staring at you in the face? Do you sit back, fold your arms, and wait for a miracle of some sort to happen? Or do you take action to get yourself out of the situation?
Well, let’s talk about taking action in unconventional ways.
Tell your Story
Call it a therapy of some sort, telling your story is a way of healing and walking yourself through the roadblock process. Not many people understand how powerful it is to publish their own stories.
Annette Maria is the founder of Sanctuary Publishing, which is a world of hybrid publishing that helps authors to invest in their stories and allows them to have more control of their projects rather than using the traditional publishing route. By supporting the writing process and organizing writing retreats, they work alongside authors to help put their books out into the world.
“It’s like reclaiming what was taken in your story. Most times when people write about their traumas or roadblocks, they have a clearer picture of what went wrong in the first place. It’s like they’re mapping out everything. And in the process, they can take a witness perspective of the situation and profoundly reclaim their power.”
Annette emphasizes that writing your story is like redefining what has happened in your life and taking your power back.
Somatic Healing
Somatic healing is a healing modality using the body through movement and dance to move through what is coming up. Through the expression of somatic healing, we of the nervous system and how it responds to our traumas and hardships. Somatic healing is not just about adjusting your mindset alone, you also need to integrate your body into the process. Through somatic healing, you integrate the body, mind, and spirit to feel integrated & embodied.
Annette, who also has a background in somatic healing and healing journeys, believes in the holistic approach to overcoming roadblocks.
In somatic healing, there are three essential steps;
1) Connect to your breath & bring your awareness down to your physical body. Sometimes you may need to bring in a tactical experience like touching your legs or rubbing your fingers together.
2) Notice when you think of a feeling, where it lands in your body (there is no wrong answer here, just notice the first thought that comes up).
3) Breathe into that space of your body and ask that area how it needs to be moved in order to find alchemy.
“Most times, you may think that all you need to do is figure out the roadblock and contort yourself into it. In the real sense, if you step away from the roadblock, nurture yourself, then care for your spirit, you’ll come out of that space with a fresh idea to resolve the roadblock,” Annette advises.
As an alternative or complement, Insight Timer is a free meditation app with over 100,000 mindful meditations, guided workouts, and sleep techniques. The app is available for iOS and Android and is a great place to start as a beginner new to the healing process. Annette is also a teacher on the platform.
Get a Mentor
Talking to a mentor often helps. If you’re in the middle of a roadblock, first ask yourself what your intuition tells you. If you then have any issues understanding that, then you can seek the help of a mentor.
Although what works for your mentor might not necessarily work for you, they could help you mirror back your wholeness that you may have forgotten along the way and remind you that your intuition knows the way forward above every other thing. This way, deep self-trust is cultivated.
Mentors help to fuel your professional and personal development, and they often provide insights and information that skyrockets the mentee’s success. If you find yourself in the middle of a roadblock, then perhaps it’s time to seek the help of a mentor.
Final Thoughts
No doubt, roadblocks are inevitable. Whenever you find yourself in any, take a deep breath and remind yourself that tough times will shape and stretch you into your next level of growth. When you are moving through an uncomfortable period, remind yourself that you are being refined for something even greater.
Keep breathing, keep shining!
