In the current information era in which we are living, the world is changing faster than ever before. It feels like a frantic rat race to share content, secure customers, and survive in a market saturated with advertising, blog posts, and evolving sales pitches. 

This saturation is most dangerous for entrepreneurs whose survival is dependent on the practical delivery of their passion. While the gig economy waxes and wanes, the number of new entrepreneurs is continuing to grow, filling the market with many versions of new solutions to old problems. 

Last week we discussed the different categories of marketing that could be used in order to stand out in your specific market as well as how to choose the appropriate marketing strategy to experiment with before trying all of them and wasting a lot of time and money. 

This week is about the pace at which entrepreneurs need to implement these methods. 

Through our work with and analysis of entrepreneurs and our observation of the challenges they face on their roads to success, a belief system has arisen that there is some kind of pace at which entrepreneurs must consistently operate in order to succeed. The problem is that none of these entrepreneurs can actually identify the pace or measure it in any way. 

Instead, it is a belief born from the fear that you are somehow behind. That you are losing and must keep up with some unrealistic pace. 

Due to the aforementioned fact that the world markets are so super saturated with content, advertisements, and new businesses all the time, entrepreneurs are see the increased amount of competition in the world and quickly internalize that as intimidating. 

The intimidation turns to fear of losing, or failure, and that fear inspires the new belief that the entrepreneurs are somehow behind the pace they should be. 

Even though beliefs like that are created in the mind in order to protect us from fear or motivate us past the fear, it only succeeds in adding more stress and pressure than entrepreneurs are already experiencing. 

So what do you do?

Of course there is competition; that is all business is. In light of that competition, however, the more important question is about the pace at which you must face that competition. The answer to that depends on your unique niche, product, and business model. 

For example, the pace by which your business can operate is very different for a solopreneur-led nonprofit than it is for Google as they exist right now. There is no one unified pace for all entrepreneurs, and each brand's pace is determined by their specific goals. These goals not only include business related systems and impact but also work life balance and employee priorities. For instance, an entrepreneur who is married with kids may adjust their work schedule very differently than a new college graduate would who is unattached and excited to pursue their passion. 

If you feel stressed that you are somehow behind, answer these questions:

1. What pace is most realistic for your specific brand and your goals? 
2. What are your work / life balance priorities that must be considered in your weekly schedule?
3. If you feel like you are not meeting your own unique pace for your specific brand, what is needed?  Is is acceptable to put in more hours yourself or should you hire help in some way?

If you can practice the reminder that we can all follow our own paces, and then answer these above questions about the healthiest pace for you, you will be able to relieve so much stress and overwhelm and clear up space for heightened productivity and excitement.