The Messy, Imperfect Side Hustle Journey

In August 2017, I purchased a domain and was convinced I had found the mission that was going to fuel my company. No, the domain wasn’t happyonmondays.com… 

I had had a “ahah moment” while running on Canal Lachine in Montreal. I was running 5 to 10 kilometers by myself almost every other day to get my exercise done for the week. I was finding it hard to get my motivation to go run outside as if I was looking for a purpose to be able to run longer and push myself even more. 

One day, as I was running after work, I started thinking about a family member that was suffering from cancer and it gave me an extra dose of motivation to get going and push myself even further. I knew this run had been dedicated to this person and I noticed the incredible energy that had fuelled my body to push through the pain and get this 10K done. In this precise moment, I realized the power of purpose for anything I wanted to accomplish. 

That’s also around the same time when I realized that my work was making me feel completely empty as I didn’t have any purpose. I knew I was on to something, and truly thought I had found my calling!

I purchased the domain doitforthem.com and wanted to build a not-for-profit fitness company dedicated to helping people find the motivation to workout through social causes. 

This idea didn’t stick in my mind for a long time, but it was the first time I actually took action and acted on one of my ideas. I bought a domain. It was this tiny commitment to myself, this $0.99 domain promising me a brighter future, running my own company. 

Rapidly I realized it wasn’t really what I wanted to build and never used this domain after all, but I had made huge progress as I took action. 

The reason why I’m sharing this with you today is to let you know that the journey isn’t straight forward and smooth. It’s bumpy, messy and freaking overwhelming sometimes, but it’s the journey I choose. On that day when I had this vision of starting a business called Do It For Them, I decided I would stop dreaming and I would start acting. I started with a domain, which then opened up a whole new world of possibilities for me. I committed to exploring business ideas, I started making plans, drafting financial models, putting concrete action towards building a business. 

If you knew all of the different business ideas I explored in the first 6 months of my journey...I went from yoga mat business to purse rental, to blogging, to culture consulting. I was all over the place!

But you know what!? Being all over the place, taking action, soul-searching to figure out your future is A FREAKING GOOD THING. It means you’re taking control of your life, you’re experimenting and not letting the world pass you by. 

If you’re in that phase right now, you feel so damn lost, like you lost your true purpose and meaning. I feel you. Oh, I totally feel you. But I want you to be gentle with yourself and congratulate yourself for aiming for more out of life, for wanting to make your mark on this earth and pushing yourself to figure this out. 

Oh, I’m so proud of you for letting yourself be in this identity crisis. Just be.

I want to share my “messy” beginnings with you, so you see the behind the scenes of the soul searching part of the journey. I used to be ashamed of the detours I took before figuring out that coaching was my true calling. I thought I had taken wayyyyyy to much time before finding myself, but you know what!? It was all meant to be. It was part of the path I had to take to find myself, reconnect with my true essence and finally build a sustainable business. 

My first business idea Do It For Them never ended up on a real website, but here’s what I can share about the steps that got me to where I am now:

I cannot express how aligned my business is now compared with the first few ones! I was getting to know myself. I’m 100% sure this is my true calling. I feel it in my soul when I’m coaching clients and producing content. I couldn’t know right from the start right!? Well, it’s the same for you my love. You’ll need to explore and be patient with yourself on this journey.

So I hope this post can inspire you to keep going, keep digging, keep exploring. You’re on this journey for a reason, there’s something huge at the end of it. Keep going, you’ve got this!

This article is brought to you by RISE. The new MBA for side hustlers. This is the program you need to get your ideas into action and build a profitable business out of your true passion.

I'm happy to say that I've opened up a few slots in my calendar to have a chat if you feel like you are ready to take action with your business and need some clarity. Here's where you can book a time to chat with me privately.