Entrepreneurs! It is OK to Cry, it Doesn’t Make You Weak, it Makes You Powerful

He is a strong young man, and he was crying in a public space. 

A young entrepreneur I was mentoring was in a difficult spot. His business was not getting anywhere at that time. I shared with him that these times come, often, and in my 21 years as an entrepreneur, I have broken down at least five times where I just curled into a ball on the floor and started crying. 

I cried and cried for maybe half an hour, got up, wiped my face and started making decisions again. Decisions got me here, and decisions will get me out. 

He looked at me and said, “That was me yesterday”, and he started crying. We sat there in silence for a moment. After a while, he composed himself, and we started working on getting his business sorted. 

That was a turning point for him. From that day onward, his creativity bloomed, and daily he came up with new ways to get customers. He was focused and had clarity of action every day, and things started shifting.

You are not giving up; you are simply hitting a limit.

Being a business owner is not easy on the best of days. The pressures of finding new revenue and keeping costs down while making a profit are not easy, and this simple recipe does not always work. 

I remember times where I tried new things constantly for months with little or no result, probably the most demotivating thing that can happen to someone. 

And it is a situation like that that can lead to where you break down in tears, hitting an internal wall. It does not mean you are giving up or that you are a failure.

First and foremost, it makes you a human being. Humans have limits; only the fake superheroes we see in movies can always take more and more. Remember, they do not exist and never compare yourself to them. 

Having limits is a good thing. It means you can find people who can help you fill you where you lack, and facing tough times is much easier together than doing it alone. 

See the moment when you break down as a reset, a mental restart. Crying lets out all the old, making space for new thoughts, new ideas and new beginnings to come.

You are not weak; you are powerful

Some might think that me breaking down in tears and crying due to pressures in my business makes me weak and that I should man up, work another 100 hours and just put my head down and work. That, in my opinion, is a recipe for disaster, burn out and maybe even suicide when it just becomes too much. 

I see crying as a way of letting go, and letting go is a powerful thing. The following words have helped me many times, and it is applicable in all areas of life. 

“The more you try to control things, the more they control you.”

When you let go of things, it is the moment you truly become powerful. It means it has no control over you. It gives you the freedom to think, the clarity to see what is and the power to make better decisions.

If you were as hard on your kids as you are on yourself, how would they turn out?

In conclusion, be nice to yourself. Don’t be a slave-driving, emotionless tyrant to yourself. Imagine treating your kids or anyone else close to you like that. How would they turn out? Not very good. It is ok to be nice to yourself. 

Just remember, decisions got you here, and decisions will get you out. If that turning point means lying on the floor and crying for 30 minutes, that is ok. You are only resetting and becoming powerful. I believe in you.

A helping hand

Due to the pandemic, many people are struggling, and times are tough. If you are in that spot and need someone to talk to, I can chat if you need to. Reach me at [email protected] 

Otherwise, reach out for professional help, there is nothing wrong in doing so.