I know with 100% certainty if not for Entrepreneurs’ Organization and its Accelerator program, I would not be in business today.

During our early days of growth when trying to get over the hump of my first few employees and $300k of revenue, I had come to a pretty resolute determination that owning a business was not something I was good at or should be doing.

It seemed like no matter what I did or decision I made, it was never enough or right…and to make matters worse, every time I would talk to any other young entrepreneurs and ask them how they were doing “We are absolutely crushing it. We are kicking some serious butt!”

Obviously, I had no idea what I was doing and really should stop since everyone else is kicking butt and I’m just getting mine kicked…all over the place…all the time. 

It wasn’t until I joined the EO Accelerator program that I realized I had it all wrong. Everyone else was getting pummeled as much, and often even more, than I was, but it wasn’t until in a safe, confidential space did their stories come out. 

I realized I was comparing my inside to their outside. Much in the same way that Facebook and other social media profiles showcase the curated highlight reels of people’s lives and not necessarily the moments when your kid shoves too much candy in their mouth no matter how many times you told them to stop and pukes all over themselves, their car seat, and your car. The car seat got thrown away. We kept the kid…for now. 

I realized that entrepreneurs and leaders have to be optimists by necessity…they have to convince others, and sometimes themselves, everything is going fine and will turn out amazingly, which may be a more important skill than ever right now.

I realized that the journey of leadership and entrepreneurship is lots of learning, lots of growth…and growth hurts. But when I learned the struggles were not just normal, but a necessary part of the whole thing, my perspective shifted dramatically, allowing me to better lean into the pain and embrace it—knowing all others ahead of me walked this same exact path before me. 

It’s really the same as if you hadn’t gone to the gym in a while and then went and got a really hard workout in. If you didn’t know being unable to walk normally or lift your arms up the next day was a normal part of the re-entry process, there’s no way in hell you’d ever go back to the gym again. Exercising? Nope, not for me. My body rejects that stuff. 

What “muscle soreness” actions do you need to stop avoiding and get back to the gym on?

Where are you letting the comparison of others curated, polished narratives to your messy director’s cut negatively impact your outlook?