Have you ever left the safety of the corporate world in preference for a dream life, on your own terms, to your own schedule?  Only the tremendously brave or stupid would opt for this in contrast to the security of a wage each week.  And as I’m teaching my daughter who is finishing year 12 and contemplating The Rest Of Her Life, it’s never that simple.  Regardless of your career path, it is rarely a straight trajectory.
Life has a sense of humour and a way of surprising you if you’re open to it. Earlier this year when compiling my vision board, International Speaking had a prominent place there.  My ego would have me in London, Brussels or Massachusetts – pretty, inspirational, clean cities with millions of people to talk to. And where is my first assignment?  Goroka, Papua new Guinea.

Goroka is the capital of the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea; a town of just 19,000 people.  I’m called there as part of an inter-government initiative to help guide entrepreneurialism in the villages.  What makes this intriguing is that the audience is all women.

These women have startups in aquaculture, fashion, trade, micro-lending, real estate, manufactured homes, coffee, saw-milling and the fitness industry.

My questions to them:

• How much do you want what you’re seeking?
• What are you willing to give up to get it?
• How uncomfortable are you prepared to be to ensure it’s successful?

These are three questions I pose in my book The Pink Hard Hat, Building the Resilient Woman and reflect on carefully.

You see, the road of an entrepreneur isn’t straight. 

In developed economies, if you want straight, go Government (or Corporate): embrace the security of a regular payslip and work your way diligently up the ladder; mindful of cultural values that are rewarded and be prepared to throw yourself in as though your life depends on it.

According to the Social Economist, Marc Ventresca, entrepreneurialism is often seen as the highly creative domain of risk-tolerant individuals with vision. His insight about what it really entails is outlined in hisTedX talk “Don’t Be An Entrepreneur, Build Systems.”

Although the truth is far less glamorous.

Successful entrepreneurs need more than grit and vision.

We need discipline.

The discipline to build systems to produce outcomes.

Even as I pivot and move from building storeys to telling them, I’m reminded of the need to create systems to build a sustainable enterprise. 

Quite honestly, systems haven’t been my strong suit, but something I’ve had to cultivate deliberately – practicing what I preach.
As you go about your week, consider your progress and the systems you are cultivating to move forward.
If you do something more than once in your workplace, create a procedure for it & record it so that you can duplicate your efforts and move beyond.
Entrepreneurialism is less the domain of celebrities, risk takers and “special” people, and more about systems builders:

• Understanding what elements are available;
• Combining them in new and different ways; and
• Generating value (and solving problems).

If you master this, you will have the key.

Notwithstanding all I have said about celebrity, I did enjoy my own moment of fame on National Television; Sunrise’s morning program this week! I invite you to check it out. 
Until next time, plan but don’t be overly rigid.  Most of life’s interesting insights are from the detours…..