…is LIVING with one!
So much is made of the challenge of taking an idea from your head, making it manifest in the world, then growing it into something real and substantial. A business. A movement. A body of work. A legacy.
I’ve embraced this challenge many times, and will no doubt do it a bunch more. It’s a simultaneously glorious and grueling journey that often utterly consumes you, sending you hurtling almost violently back and forth between the edge of the abyss and the bliss of success.
Entrepreneurship ain’t easy. But, for those drawn to it, it also ain’t optional. Click to tweet
Even if it means doing it within the umbrella of a larger organization.
But, what of those who fall for entrepreneurs? What about the people who become attracted to hurricane of humanity and energy that is a person possessed with the desire to create?
How do you build a real, lasting, nourishing relationship with an entrepreneur when there’s nearly always a suitor in the room? Is it even possible? And, if so, how? It’s a dance I continue to explore in my own life every day as I build my relationship with my insanely cool wife and delicious daughter.
In this week’s Good Life Project, had the opportunity to dive into this topic with Meg Cadoux Hirshberg. Meg is mother of three, an Inc. columnist and author of For Better Or For Work.
She’s also the wife of Gary Hirshberg, the founder of Stonyfield Farms, now the world’s largest producer of organic yogurt. Over nearly three decades, she’s ridden the waves up, down, been thrown into the surf and found her way back many times as the family business grew from 8 cows on a farm to a $360 million global brand.
Meg knows what it’s like to build a family with someone who is deeply committed not only to her, but to a personal and professional quest. She’s endured the trial of a business that took 9 years to even break even, while her mother’s retirement savings funded the run. She’s lived and breathed every aspect of building a life “beyond” the family business, while also building one “around” the business.
If you’ve ever been in a relationship with a mission-driven creator or you are a mission-driven creator, you need to hear what Meg has to share.
Then, answer this question in the comments -
Have you ever been in a relationship with a mission-driven entrepreneur? What’s it been like? How have you handled the challenges?
And, if you ARE that entrepreneur, what’s it like from the inside looking out? Trying to build a substantial business or movement while also yearning to build a real, personal relationship with someone?