5 Ways to Move Forward After A Big Fall

When shit really hits the fan, you know it's time to get some counsel (from your elders). My fintech startup has rolled down its curtain and I'm totally disoriented. I was also rejected by two prominent business figures for a mentoring program because I sounded so desperate.

It's a habit of mine to be reaching out to good people around me for an advice or two and It was also my intention to get Peter Gan to console me by saying, 'Ya...probably it's best to get back into the 9-to-5 game. In these unpredictable times, best to be under the safety of a company. Here are some contacts and I can be your referee'.

Wishful thinking.

Peter took me off guard by saying, "Going back to work? There couldn't be enough business people in this world! You tried your hands in business and failed, so? You think it's comforting to crawl back to work for someone again?" Before I could say that business may not be my thing, he continued with a question, "What do you like the most about doing your own thing?"

It made me paused. OK, this is Peter Gan of GanForHire, the branding guru. I can't just be telling him a lame-ass 'I wanna change the world, bietch' kind of answer. After some long seconds, I told him that I love the fact that all the time spent is at my own disposal.

Peter nodded in agreement and said, "That's it. You seriously want to hold on to that. Don't lose it. You better don't," It dawned on me that this freedom and control is the most precious thing that I could've achiev.

Damn you, Peter. Here I am trying to get you to sugarcoat me and instead, you bitch-slapped me to pick up where I've failed. But, what options do I have left? I've sent dozens of job applications, paid for LinkedIn Premium and some other online job recruitment platform to get my CV noticed and help find me an occupation but I'm just not hireable.

Nonetheless, besides that unnerving revelation, these are some of Peter's wisdom that he imparted during our nice little chat at his mini-museum cum office back in 2018. It's reassuring to know that these words sincerely came from a person's heart and mind with real live conversation. Not from an algorithm fuelled app shouting for your attention (and data).

1 - Mindfulness - Be in the present. Be in the now. Not the past. Not the future. The mind has only one task, to think yet it tends to overthink. The mind likes to dwell on the past and indulge in regrets. The mind likes to venture into the future and anxiety starts to kicks in.

2 - Heart and mind - The heart always tells you to dream bigger but the mind is a rationale organ and always hold your dream down.

3 - Mindset - You’re born a winner. From the womb, you're the product of a successful swimmer. A natural winner.

4 - On school - Our education system has robbed us of our ability to think independently. They've removed our frontal lobe. They force us to memorise things and feed us with pass year's exam questions. Generations of work-force have been built upon this very program.

5 - Discomfort zone - Feeling scared of the unknown is nothing short of regular. This is the point when you know you've stepped out of your normal zone, the discomfort zone. You can choose to stay inside or realise that to grow, this is the border for expansion.

Well, I have more points to share but it's going to be too much for you to bear. I'll continue the rest in my next-next-next post. Until next time. Here's one from me: