Why I Really Started My Online Business

I’m pretty sure I’ve talked about this before, but this time, I’m going to explain my WHY. Can you tell I’ve been reading Simon Sinek? (Check out his book, Start With Why).

In a previous piece, I explained what happened at my job (I quit), and I was in a kind of depressed place. I had no purpose and nothing to do and I get bored really fast. Yes, it was nice being at home with my family, but there’s only so many times you can clean the same area of wall before you start going crazy.

So…I was toying with the idea of a YouTube channel for a long time, but until I actually started, I decided to toy around with a bullet journal. I watched every Amanda RachLee video I could find, and I started getting ideas for spreads and playing around to find my style.

I started posting my planner/bujo content on IG first (because pictures are just so much easier), but then I started with makeup on YouTube. At first, it seemed easier. Plus, it forced me to be comfortable early on with my face on camera.

I guess at first, I didn’t really have an end goal in mind. I hadn’t come up with a business plan, I wasn’t worried about money…I was just exploring and having fun. I think it was much later (like two to three years later) that I started getting serious and realized that what I had, or could have would be much more than just “fun” or a side hustle.

I’m not talking about money here either. Even after five years, I’m not making oodles of cash - but it’s more of what I stand for, and my purpose and my legacy.

Probably around three years into what I was now calling my online business, I hopped on board with the Cultivate What Matters Powersheets. Yes, I am an affiliate, but before that, this is where I got the word legacy from.

In the prep work of the Powersheets (they make you do homework to realize the full potential of your goals!), there’s a spot about your legacy and what you want that to look like. They get you to envision what your life is like at 80, and you need to think about what people would say about you. What were your greatest achievements and what did you stand for? Were you proud of what you accomplished over your lifetime and did you leave lasting memories for your loved ones?

I really thought long and hard about these questions. I mean, it made me feel sad because I don’t want to be old and I definitely don’t want to think about dying. I want my babies to remain babies forever if I could! But then I thought about my kids and what they would want or expect from me.

Personally, I want my kids to remain kids for as long as they can. I think kids grow up way too fast. I remember being ten and all I wanted to do was hang out with the adults in hopes of hearing “adult things”. Other than that, and other than reading books (I would read anything and everything that I could get my hands on - I was reading Stephen King books at age 10!) I was pretty innocent. I would run into situations in my teen years and early twenties and I would feel so naive at times. I don’t regret it though. When I was born up to the age of eight, I lived on a farm - generally wholesome, no internet and no weird city stuff. This was the early eighties of course, and I had the time of my life. It seems as soon as you get into a city where everyone congregates, it’s much easier to get into trouble and run into the wrong types of people.

I know one thing - after 34 years of city living, I could never move back to a farm. (Despite wanting my kids to know what that’s like). All I could imagine is my kids complaining about how there’s no internet connection. Once you get used to something, it’s really hard to change. Plus, this modern age with computers and technology has changed the generations after GenX.

With my work online, I’m leaving behind memories for kids. I know I won’t always be here, but it’s nice to know that they can still get to know me in my videos, my blogs, the journals I’m leaving behind for them. (I’m all for new tech but don’t believe for a second that I don’t back up everything and save it!) It’s hard for newer generations to imagine this, but I only have a scant number of pictures of my father. My dad was born in 1935, and passed away Dec. 31, 2006. After 19 years, I find it hard to recall what he looked like sometimes; like his essence. The pictures I have aren‘t great - not like what we have today.

Compared to Simon Sinek’s writing, I’m not expecting my business to be a six figure business. This is personal - it’s me. If I were to start hiring employees, they can do the tasks I do everyday, but they will just be doing it to earn a paycheque. Not that they care about me, or my family, or leaving a legacy for my kids. That’s my why and it’s personal. As Simon says in his book, the WHY usually follows the CEO of a company and it’s easy for other people to continue doing the WHAT, but without the WHY, the company loses steam and eventually gets left behind in the dust.

Thanks for reading!

Sandra