Starting a regular business will breed jealousy around you but a CIC that receives grant funding is another level!
Yep this is a fact of life. It's a down side but in this blog I hope to flip this negative into a strategy that fuels you to push towards your success goals.
It's long been said that when you start a business your friends become your biggest critics and your customers become your best friends.
Why? Because your customers are customers because they appreciate and value what you have made and how it helps them. Your friends on the other hand may have not even taken the time to look at what you do, let alone see your value.
Peers and often family will view your success as a mirror on their lack of success.
I can't even count the times I have mentioned something I have achieved and they have instantly flipped it back to them. And I think to myself why do they do that's it's not a competition why the comparison?
It's a particularly bad problem when you're from a low socioeconomic background as I am. My area is one of the poorest towns in Britain. The average wage around here is barely £30k but a huge amount of people are not working at all.
You will likely be met with similar raised eyebrows especially when you start publicising you are grant funded. Those of you that are creatives and getting paid £349 a day for some arty farty project will be met with disbelief.
Your potential will not be recognised because to acknowledge that success is limitless and you can visualise it and go and create it from nothing but a good idea, will shatter everything our education system and society teaches us. It will make people who have clung to self imposed barriers and gave up hope believing in glass ceilings that don't exist very uncomfortable.
We do of course need to remember the world doesn't revolve around us. Most people simply don't care about our projects and impact. So when you are met with glazed over eyes when you're signing your projects success just remembers it's not about you. It's other people's stuff.
At times you may get straight criticism. Anger even that you are using public money to faff about with some bright idea of yours while the country goes to the dogs. Sometimes you just have to take that on the chin and roll with the punches as it is a hard world out there. Do not bother to argue or get defensive.
The best way to handle these negative problems are;
-Do not bother to post on your own socials or talk much about your work. Even if it's your life. When you meet with friends who are just not interested or who could be negative just avoid it all together. Find other common ground or limit seeing them.
-Utilise your community, other CIC's and partners. Because they ARE interested and will give you the attention and praise you deserve.
-Get a mentor. They will coach you like a personal trainer in the gym. Remind you of your focus, praise you, celebrate your gains and appreciate what you went through to get there because they watched the sweat!
-Journal, set goals, use manifestation boards. Being goal driven will keep you focused. It zones others out and frees your creativity.
-Accept that you have discovered a better path in your career that most won't take and they won't want to be told about how much easier you made your life!
-Don't bother inviting them to your events they will only either not go and disappoint you or go and project their negative energy in your positive space. You don't need them there.
'Don't ever let anyone tell YOU what YOU can achieve' Akala
I love this lyric as it's so true. Other people base what they think you can achieve on their own limited knowledge.
Many of you tell me you were drawn here because I was someone that did it. I made it look possible for you. You did your research and believed in your CIC idea.
Shut out the noise, centralise on your goals and push forward. Bulletproof yourself from others words for they can not shape you unless you let them.
Kexx 🫶🏼
Very sage advice thank you x