Journeys

It was at the end of the island, the start of a new day, and the trek back would begin soon.

I often ask myself why I would exchange comfort and convenience and settle for less comfortable and less convenient. Riding a motorcycle and sleeping in a small tent on a thin mattress is a lot less comfortable than driving a modern car and sleeping in a nice hotel. But, as someone far wiser than me once said, “the journey’s the thing”.

Time away from ease and comfort, as well as the relentless stress and rote pressure of your day-to-day life, is good not just for you, but for business as well. The words that come to mind are “focus”, “big picture”, “dreams”, “reflection” and “renewal”. Many of us are builders, leaders, constructors of businesses, managers, mitigators, motivators and mentors. But where do we draw our motivation, strength and inspiration from?

For me, it needs to be in quiet times, not conventions or vacations in busy areas packed with people and activities. The pace has to be simple. Get to point A sometime around noon. Have lunch someplace small, local and interesting. Get to point B in late afternoon, where an interesting place for dinner is nearby. Set up camp. Have dinner. On the ride, pay full attention to the next 100 yards of road. Look for interesting places to stop. And all along the way, even though I’m concentrating my focus on the next 100 yards of road, my mind takes me to places I wouldn’t otherwise have gotten to. Some might say it’s a form of meditation. I call it “helmet time”.

On this particular day, I had to travel from Meldrum Bay at the western most point of the Manitoulin Island to South Baymouth to catch the morning ferry – one of only two ways to get off the island. From there, the 2-hour crossing would take me to the top of the Bruce Peninsula and I’d then be on the last leg of my trip, facing traffic and busyness that would remind me that my solo ride was almost over.

It was a Sunday morning, riding into the sun rise, with mist lifting gently from the frontier-like pastureland, and a couple of small towns to change the pace a bit. In the hour and a half it took me to ride, I did not encounter another vehicle, in either direction. I had the road completely to myself.

I’ve often thought of entrepreneurship and building businesses as a great adventure within the adventure of life. Only a few choose to take that journey, because it is not comfortable, not convenient, very seldom easy, and with regards to your thoughts, your challenges, your dreams and motivations, you are often alone.

And sometimes, you need to be.    

For more inspiration or reading about entrepreneurship, check out the following links:

Understanding the Entrepreneur in Your Life

Entrepreneurial Epiphanies: "What's Your Refrigerator Art?".

Don't Ignore Your Entrepreneurial Compass