Why humans are completely suited to become independent entrepreneurs
The meaning of Uncharted is not having been there before and with little knowledge and experience of the new territory you are entering. This may sound like the adventures of National Geographic or outdoor adventurer Jim Shockey whose TV Show is literally called Uncharted. But anything you do can be considered uncharted if you have never been there before. A kid walking to school for the first time is an adventure of uncharted territory. Starting a new job, being the new kid at school, or visiting parts of your state that you have never been before. These are simple, but yet still uncharted for most anyone.
We as humans have a natural impulse to wander and explore. Having the advance frontal cortex of our brains gives us the intelligence to be curious and at the same time have the ability to take in our surroundings and carve new neuropathways in our brains for the experience. We love adventure and seeking the novelty of things we have never done before. We also have the tenacity, internal discipline, and mental toughness to handle the unexpected and uncertain parts of the uncharted lands we are to explore.
Becoming a full-time entrepreneur for the first time is not all that different, yet, entrepreneurialism seems to be the ultimate level in risk and lifestyle adversity to so many who want to become an entrepreneurs. These uncharted lands of individualism and self-reliance serve as a real jolt to the human psyche and while planning our new entrepreneur aspirations, our brains revert to the primitive reptilian mode of survival rather than the adventure-seeking and excitement side of our frontal cortex.
So why will most people risk their lives skydiving on the weekends or skiing alpine couloirs while on vacation but rarely risk professionally? The answer just might intrigue your own sense of adventure.
I heard it said once that downhill skiers make the best entrepreneurs. As a skier and entrepreneur myself, I see exactly why this is. Skiers are adventurers. They adhere to Spartan living of the skiing world very well, sleeping in their cars in the parking lot, eating Maruchan Ramen noodles and condiment sandwiches. They have expensive gear and drive a cheap Nissan Pathfinder from the 1990s. They are relentlessly determined to find a way to get on the lift at any cost; whatever it takes. When they ski, they only focus on the snow, not the trees. If they focused on the trees, they would hit a tree! All of this adventure just reeks with what it takes to become an entrepreneur. Living lean, driven to succeed, and focusing only on the end-game results.
It is so interesting to me that when most of us were young, we had no problem putting in 14 hour days and working the weekends like entrepreneurs do . Here’s how you did it if you don’t remember; you would get up early and go to school. From about 7 am to 4 pm, you were in school in some capacity. From 4 pm to 7 pm, you had sports practice. Then you went home, ate dinner, and then back to the books to study for that Chemistry test until 9 pm or even 10 pm. Then to bed and start it all over the next day. On the weekends, you were traveling to your games on Fridays and Saturdays. In college, you might have had to work even harder especially if you were on a scholarship or played collegiate athletics.
What happened to you? You use to be a badass! You used to be an adventurer. Now as you have gotten older, you have become more conservative and comfort and security seem to rule your life. The steady career, the house, and the two SUVs all have to be paid for and savings for your kid’s college and your retirement are the dictators of your life.
As a human, you were not built for this life of security and retirement. The evolution that took millions of years to give you the brain of our modern-day human nature and as an adventurer of the uncharted is being wasted on a 30-year mortgage, minimum payments on a new car, and the thoughts of retirement.
For those of you who want to be uncharted, let me tell you that you are completely built for the world of entrepreneurialism. Take me for example, I lost my job in 2013 and had to become an entrepreneur by necessity. I built a big business but now, here in 2021, I can’t find employees who will work for me so I have become a solopreneur. A new challenge, a new world, and completely uncharted for me. I now work completely by myself when only a few years ago I had a large staff of employees. Just like being an adventurer of uncharted lands, I am adjusting and pivoting into my new world with ease and effectiveness. All it takes is tenacity, internal discipline, and mental toughness to handle the unexpected and uncertain part of the uncharted lands we are to explore. We can all handle this. Now in the uncharted lands of working solo, I have discovered incredible riches and opportunities that I have never seen before.
Since Covid 19, I have pivoted my life and my business to the point of working alone and now heading for a new career path of becoming a writer, speaker, and real estate developer. All three of these endeavors are completely uncharted for me yet, I have no fear in diving into them with the sense that I have no doubt I will be incredibly successful at them. The reason I have no fear is that I am a human just like everyone else. There has never been a thing in this world that could resist the consistent human presence. In other words, if humans stick with anything long enough, it will eventually break open and create immense opportunities.
Becoming an uncharted adventurer entrepreneur is not easy. We have all had a lifetime of influence on what we are supposed to do in relation with what we think we can do. This tug-a-war in our brains serves as a real dilemma for most people. What we learned in school, what our parents tought us, and the life society has set up for us long before we were even born, makes us gravitate to the security and comfort of an average life. Believe me, I get it, it’s a much easier way to live. But if there is one thing I have learned from this pandemic, is this: Life is short and we only get to do this for a brief moment compared to the age of our planet and universe. We should not fear this world and we should live like each day is going to be our last. We should be uncharted adventurers and live the dream.
Disease and warfare have been a part of our lives for over 2000 years. It’s not going to go away, so why live in a holding pattern hoping it will? Believe me, you don’t need the courage to do this. Courage is nothing more than emotional blood doping. Why lug around the extra baggage of courage if you have no fear to begin with? Seize the moment and explore the uncharted as your ancestors did. Covid, Afghanistan, hurricanes, political rhetoric -it’s all been done before – there is nothing new here.
Go live the uncharted adventures you so badly want to do. As you can see, I’m doing it every day. I am no different than most anyone else. I’m no special case, have a spouse and two kids to support just like you. I have problems and challenges but I still insist on living my life on my terms and experiencing everything I want.
Understand, the regret of not living is going to hurt a lot more than the pain and the uncertainty of being an uncharted adventurer.
~ Daniel J Bockman
