I've written before (and acknowledge that this is not my original observation) that the difficulty with calling oneself an entrepreneur is that no verbs exist for what we do. Bakers bake. Painters paint. Designers design.
And entrepreneurs? We entrepre….what?
Those of us trying to forge slow companies - where our work and life align - understand that we do a lot. And while there's not an easy verb that captures our noun, we do what's needed, when needed to build our slow legacies.
We work hard on the 78th go of the recipe even if we know it's not quite right because that means the 79th or 80th will be.
We bathe the kids and read bedtime stories and kiss goodnight and then we stay up a few more hours to figure out the P&L because we can't miss payroll.
We write another note to the reporter asking if our story is a fit yet.
We attend the conference and shake the hands because one of those hands may be the one we need to pen an email, scratch our back, or open a door.
We tell our story to anyone who will listen with as much passion as we first told our spouse, parent, or business partner.
We launch a new vertical over a weekend because it makes sense and if it is to be, it's up to us.
We say yes.
We try. Oh my god do we try.
We smile at rejection, celebrate at success, grieve at failure, wait for opportunity, and always do it bigger and better than we did the last time.
We get on planes and in cars to chase a dream and build a life worth living.
We fold boxes, deliver packages, answer phones, reply to emails, show up at parties, talk to bankers, and forge partnerships.
We roll the dice.
We ship. We launch. We sell. We close. We iterate. We pivot. We push. We move. We disrupt. We try. Oh my god do we try.
We create the change we hope to see, both in communities and in our own lives. We go forward toward the destiny we build for ourselves and our families. We don't stand still, we don't give up, and we don't let fear grip us to the point of not entrepreneur-ing.
We build.
Together, we build.