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Apr 26, 2010

Founder Therapy

An article in the New York Times caught my eye over the weekend: Tech Entrepreneurs Share Sentiments in Therapy That Aren’t Fit for Twitter. I read every word.

If there’s anything that I stand for in my business it’s this: giving voice to the sentiments about being in business that aren’t fit for social networking, either online or in person. Where can a business owner go and ‘bare their insecurities’? We ALL have them.

I love that these techies have found a home in a monthly support group–Founder Therapy– in the Silicon Valley. I say, let’s ALL talk about the truth behind the facade. Every entrepreneur needs a safe place to express these feelings and be heard. Having a compassionate group is a godsend and a business-building tool.

The examples in the article were about being naive about the risks of creating a start-up, and having to fire a best friend. These are the everyday facts I hear as a coach, each person whispering them as though they were the first ever to have come up against such challenges. We’re such a secretive society that the burden of making mistakes feels overwhelming, so they’re not shared, but rather borne with despair and heaviness.

Today is the final session of my Winter Mastermind Group that’s been meeting since January. The concerns shared were often not seemingly business-related, but the unburdening of these matters unleashed creativity and success without bounds. For business owners especially, there is a need to express fears, be heard and supported, and know that you’re not alone.

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2 Comments

  1. Julianne Stirling

    So true. I belong to Peer Group for Designers that meets once a month. Just recently we started a sub group to do Strategic Planning together….because the SP words are so threatening. Two meetings has made big changes in each person’s business. And it was painless because we did it together.

    Reply
  2. janepollak

    @Julianne
    Asking for help is the key to entrepreneurial success. Over and over again I need to remember that I was never intended to do this alone. That’s why I changed Sole Proprietor to Soul Proprietor. We’re not alone!

    Reply

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