Being an entrepreneur is one of the most polarizing experiences if a person decides to do it. It's not for everyone. It certainly isn't glamourous as some would think. Maybe its because of the success of Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk... these are pinnacle success stories, which inspires people like me to strive to pursue our passions. They too have initially gone through the struggles of starting a business... the insanely huge and obvious difference is that they saw it through.

That being said, being an entrepreneur is filled with so much drama and more often than not, only those who persevere, and thats a handful, can truly say they have the end result they wanted from the very beginning. As one, who is still seeing this through and would like to say, "it’s still a work in progress", I have gone through the drama; I have experienced firsthand, the struggles of being a "wannabee" entrepreneur. This despite of years of experience and even teaching the subject, I still get called this. It stings but I know what I do, I am persistent. More importantly, as much as I have my downs as a business owner, I have had some phenomenal ups. That is what you long for and its an addicting feeling when you finally get your first win and I have had quite a few already.

I am writing this for those people who are struggling entrepreneurs and show them empathy. I know what you’re going through, my friends. We are all on the same boat. But taking from that, I hope what I write, not only gives you a sense of empathy but more so, inspiration, knowing you’re not alone; you’re not crazy; you’re doing what you’re meant to do.

I am sure most people all that we do is synonymous to life on how we live it. Entrepreneurship is no different. You know it as well as I do.

Struggling for a Decision

First, it’s all that time you are struggling to make that decision to put up your own business. From the time you got the idea in your head, it would take months and even for most, years because they put it off for so many reasons and FEAR OF FAILURE and NOT HAVING TIME are the top reasons why they don’t take that that leap of faith.

For most who are employees getting into the game, you wrestle with the idea of devoting time you supposedly do not have for this passion project. You struggle with the thought of what if it fails... you’re not sure if its good enough.

Well... as I would tell my students, "only one way to find out. Just go do it!”

The Leap

Remember that movie, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade? There was a scene that he just passed over a series of booby traps only to be confronted by a deep gorge that he needs to seemingly jump over, an impossible task. But he had to make it or else it meant his father’s life. To make the long story short, he literally took that first step and was surprised to see a bridge that was camouflaged beneath.

A lot of us are confronted with the same situation, some even have no choice but to become entrepreneurs and business owners out of necessity. It does not however make you any different. We all have our own reasons to take that LEAP of FAITH. What matters is that you did. Some will arrive at the decision of doing it but do not even go through with it.

I can honestly say that the LEAP is one of the most difficult tests an entrepreneur will have to face because it decides whether you truly are one. When they say, "On the otherside of FEAR is FREEDOM." It sounds cliche but it is true. When you go for it and you have done it, nothing compares to that feeling you get after. That feeling of relief and pride that you conquered that fear.

That’s not even the best part... the best part is that you will keep reliving that feeling for every win and success you get from your business. You will tell yourself, its the best decision you made. Yeah... there will be the downs that will make you question and second-guess that decision but trust me, the WINS are so overwhelmingly awesome!

I would rather know what happens than keep saying this, “I thought of that way ahead of time, I could have done it.” Keywords = COULD HAVE.

Life and its Curveballs

No doubt, it is always best to have your plans laid out. Hence, in this case, a business plan is the foundation of your business. That being said, you also have to be ready to change that plan if needs be.

Part of the struggles of being an entrepreneur and I know you all know this is that we cannot predict outcomes. We also have to be humble enough to realize that what maybe a great idea is to us, is maybe something mediocre or even worse, for lack of a better word, SUCKS to others. It’s with these varying opinions and criticism you are expected to come up with an even stronger idea. For a lot of times being an entrepreneur expects you to "wing it" especially if you have limited resources.

This is the other TEST, your ability to know and decide whether the direction you began with is still the direction you’re taking. Like I said, curveballs... these will alter situations you are in. Will you be willing to change your plans? These situations are humbling and will show you what people think of your idea. Nothing more humbling than no one liking your idea or much more criticizing it. If you were placed in that situation, how would you take it?

At my age, I have been humbled so many times and realized that it is with these situations you learn from the most. You instantly get ideas and direction from it. So don’t get discouraged, learn to pivot and adapt.

The Downs

I will be the first to tell you that there are DOWNS and there will be a lot of them. These disappointments will be daunting and will test your persistence and your faith not only in your business but more importantly, yourself.

These disappointments do not only come in the form of being unable to sell your idea but also in the form of criticism… even from friends and family. A lot of people will weigh in on your failures and much of it will come from your very own trusted circle and that would make things even more difficult to take. I experienced this firsthand and the first thing that came to mind is “Why?!!” MY VERY OWN SUPPORT SYSTEM TELLING ME MY IDEA SUCKS! But after a while you come at the crossroads at whether you stay the course and prove everyone wrong or pivot to a new plan and try to adapt. So what do I do?

You guessed it, I stayed the course. In my case, I have great results. A lot of it has to do with issues of consistency and fiscal discipline. That’s a whole other story. Bottom line is focus and faith through all of this. You have to believe in your idea.

Take note, nothing wrong with making changes or even pivoting to a different idea. It maybe the best decision you will ever make. Know that the first idea you came up with led you to the second one and thats what matters.

At the end of the day, despite all the ups and downs, it is still your choice to make.

Expectation vs. Reality: its EXECUTION

I have mentioned earlier about the reality of our ideas when shared to others and what happens. We all often think of the best scenario when we come up with an idea. Thats what inspires us to go take the LEAP, right?

But when we put it out there, thats where REALITY sinks in. People question the idea and even criticize it. But guess what, that is part of the process of learning. I tell my students that all of us have ideas and some of them maybe great ones. Where does it go wrong? Execution.

I also tell my students that entrepreneurship is not rocket science. That is why you can see some of the success stories, they have not even finished school and have varying degrees of situations which catapulted them to where they are. It’s what they did that made the difference despite their circumstances. They saw past the limitations, the criticism, and even the discrimination.

All of us will have moments like this… life-changing moments. Question is what will you do?

Who am I?

At this point in my life, I often ask myself, who am I? Am I successful? Is being an entrepreneur the life I am meant to do?

The easiest answer that comes to mind is that, “I am Mike Bolante, 42 year old, successful and I am meant to be an entrepreneur. I was born to be one.”

The other far more difficult and humbling answer is, “I am Mike Bolante, 42 years old. I am far from being successful. I am a struggling entrepreneur in pursuit of an idea that I believe in. I am also an educator and business consultant. I have had some great successes in my business but need to be more consistent. There are many times I wanted to give up and just find stability but yet here I am still.”

Expectations vs. Reality right? But its with all of these experiences and this one question, I really found myself. I am sure a lot of entrepreneurs can empathize with this light-bulb moment.

So who am I? I am Mike Bolante. I AM AN ENTREPRENEUR, no matter what you say.

We all at one point were younger, faster, healthier… We wish that we could get back to that and it takes a lot of effort. That being said, we also, as we grow older want to get better at everything, both physically, emotionally, and professionally.

Today, I weigh 240 pounds; having a mixture of success and struggles being an entrepreneur; and in the midst of growing as a person and as a family man. All of this is a work in progress and I would like to document it.

Right this moment, I am evaluating my plan and what I need to do but one things for sure, I need to take ACTION. This is me doing that!

Taking it day by day but definitely looking forward to the CHANGE!

2

RESETTING

Nothing wrong with resetting. Thats what I did. I needed to reset. Especially, when I saw things were not working. I assessed myself, my goals and how to reach them. I needed to buckle down to work.

For one, I needed to have to have my goal clearer and precise. I set my goals to December and set CLEAR GOALS. How much money I wanted to make.. What car I wanted to drive… How much weight I wanted to lose… It had to be precise.

Because of it, it was honestly a lot easier for me to revaluate what I needed to do and more importantly, TAKE ACTION. Taking action, regardless of what your goals are, no matter what people say, is the second part of this the equation.

A lot of it has something to do with ourselves, our apprehensions, our FEAR. It has been proven that our ability to go past this determines our success and enable us to innovate and push our limits.

Documenting all of this helps me even more and hopefully help others.

Oh yes, started my day doing two sets of the following:

Supermans (30 Reps)

Push-ups (20 Reps)

Contralateral Limb Raises (15 Reps)

Cobra ( 30 Reps)

Side-plank with Bent Knee (30 seconds each side)

Crunches (30 Reps)

I know I could have done more, NO EXCUSES.

As they say, have to start somewhere… Here I am doing that!

3

Food for your SOUL

Today was one of those days you devote time to feeding your soul.

We left early in the morning to go to the Galeo Farm. My good friend, John Gutierrez, graciously allowed us to go see their family farm in Lipa, Batangas. We decided to go because of the wishes of my daughter, Mik. She wanted to see a dog sanctuary where stray dogs are kept and cared for and it just so happens John’s Farm is doing just that.

It was a beautiful day and we left Alabang at 7 am and made the 90 minute drive to the farm. I am familiar of the drive to Lipa City but going to the Farm was a different route. It truly was something far different from what we experience in Manila. Though and with the exception of the roads were narrower and traversing both full-sized vehicles and motorcycles on the same roads, it was far less complicated than being in Manila. You just knew what to expect and the pace is certainly slower.

Approaching the Farm was even better, I kidd you not that there was a bend on the road and once you go beyond that bend you will get a glimpse of an ancestral house which is the centerpiece of the Farm. We arrived!

We alighted from the van we rode in and was greeted by the farm’s caretaker. She guided us to the stables and sprawling field. We were greeted by donkeys and ponies. We spent time feeding them with the carrots we brought.

It was a nice and pleasant experience especially for the kids. The lush greenery and the plenty of trees, plants and vegetation all around. Not to mention, they also had a baby deer and baby wild boars in the stables as well.

Soon after, we walked over to where the dogs were placed. Take note, these are stray dogs and a lot of them were on the brink of dying and were taken off the streets.

52 dogs are in that pen and counting. Their fed with rice mixed with vegetables and are given vitamins and shots for them to recover. It’s heartbreaking to see these dogs almost left for dead but it’s also makes us hopeful there are people like John’s family who would go out of their way to help these dogs survive.

For now, John and his family takes care of the costs of maintaining the dog pen and sanctuary but at some point, he will be needing help from others. To date, he has 52 dogs in the kennel and he will be building another few kennels to accommodate more dogs to be helped. Hoping a few can read this and donate in cash or in kind. John and his family are certainly heroes to these dogs, man’s best friend.

We needed something like this… this was certainly good for our family… it was good for our soul. Told John we will be back with a bigger group to possibly do more soon.

#foodforthesoul #dogs #mansbestfriend #help #letsdothis