How to Explain to People That You’re a Self-Starter

Your dreams need real action and that happens through identification

There are so many Millenials starting side-hustles and I genuinely love to see it. Creating content and crafting began as hobbies, and it soon became side hustles for many of us stuck at home.

I’m lucky to have discovered a platform like Medium near the beginning of quarantine. My passion for writing and desire to break up my boring routine lead me to daily blogging. I soon became accepted in top publications and I earned a top writer status; it signaled to me that Medium should become a priority. I’m writing this post after a funny encounter with my current boss — an exchange that I think has become more common than ever.

My boss saw one of my Medium articles trending in our professional circles. FYI, I work in public relations in entertainment, thus everyone knows each other and it’s our job to be in each other’s business. The post he saw was one I authored about how to write an effective pitch. He asked me, “Why are you writing about pitching instead of pitching?” I genuinely couldn’t tell if he was poking fun or critiquing my post.

Either way, I had a serious conversation with my boss where I explicitly stated that I was a writer first and whatever-job-title second. Like so many Millenials and Gen Z creators on social media, I too aspire to be my own boss. We each have our own side-hustle, mine happens to be blogging. And having to break the news to our friends, family, and even current bosses isn’t an easy conversation to have.

Breaking the news to yourself that you have an entrepreneurial drive

Besides simply being entertaining, the anecdote above is an awkward situation I think many of us have faced. (Those who are on their entrepreneurial way, brace yourself.) It’s a difficult conversation explaining entrepreneurship to people in your life. And it’s especially hard to explain having a passion project because of the ingrained ideology of living to work.

This ideology of “living to work” is exclusionary and broken. I grew up hearing from outside voices that going to college would guarantee me a good job. There was an implicit suggestion that I would always be spending to make money, rather than investing in myself. When I finally pivoted to “working to live” I felt like things made more sense. Instead of simply closing my laptop at the end of my workday, I stayed up and started writing.

It was not easy, but I woke up early and stayed up late committed to creating. I had to resist touching my day-job emails before an article was revised and posted. Breaking the news to myself that I had an entrepreneurial spark was the catalyst in my burning passion for blogging. Whether you make media, create products, or offer a service, you too know that moment “a-ha” moment of declaring that your side-hustle is more than a hobby.

Unapologetically announcing your entrepreneurial journey

A defining moment in my self-starter journey was when I updated my social media and LinkedIn bios. I stripped the title of publicist and scribbled in my truth; I am a digital storyteller. I do admit, it’s a rocky road when you take initiative as your own boss. At first, I lost followers, my engagement fell, and many people ignored my messages sharing my work. But that’s okay.

When you dedicate yourself to entrepreneurship you have to understand that it’s the road less traveled. You have to unapologetically introduce yourself, post reminders, and share your work. Honestly, my stomach sometimes turns when I share a new Medium blog because I don’t know the response I’ll get. But that anxiety I channel into excitement as well. You too need to just push your work out into the world. When you are a one-person team you are your own manager, agent, and publicist (cue more Hollywood-lingo).

Think about how to take advantage of every communication channel you have. Every single follower could become a customer. But you will never know unless you put your hustle out there. Maybe you rebrand all your socials, make a big announcement across your channels, or you start a new set of handles. Invest the time into branding yourself as a boss. It’s just as important to let the world know as it is to convince yourself that are you an entrepreneur.

I wrote this piece out of my own journey in recognizing that my hobby was actually a side-hustle. We are in an unprecedented moment where it’s more clear than ever that tomorrow isn’t guaranteed. Don’t worry about whether people will “get” your hustle or not. Know that you are not alone in aspiring to build something for yourself. Stay inspired, stay hungry, and stay unapologetic in your drive to be your own boss.