Tidbits on Commitment

In July of 2022, I celebrated forty years of marriage to my soul mate and we took a trip to Hawaii. I have never looked back, and I have never regretted anything about those forty years. As I pondered this, I am amazed at our journey, growing together and growing individually. I’m amazed at our strong bond. I’m reminded of the commitment it takes to have a strong marriage and the commitment it takes to have a strong business.

A few thoughts about relationships:

First, there is this major attraction. It’s magnetic; it feels right. You can’t get enough of one another. It’s fun and exciting, and you can’t stop talking about it. We go into this commitment with our dreams, passions, emotions, and values. Just as we are attracted to that one special person, we are attracted to a career or a business that also appeals to our passions and dreams. Somehow this attraction catapults us into what we find important in life.

Then, during the dating and courtship process, we talk about the dreams we have, about how we see ourselves and how we complete each other. We talk about our passions and what we want to be. We talk about kids and careers, about income and location. We talk about spiritual, familial, and political values. I could go on, but you get the point. We have similar considerations when we start a business. Does this business move us in some way? What is the big vision and dream? Will it last? What core value or values fit together in our business and life? Will it sustain us?

Does this all sound familiar?

Okay, here is where I’m going to be blunt. Some of us begin our businesses with no goals and no commitment. But after a while, it will become stale and empty if it doesn’t have a bigger purpose or a bigger reason for being and thriving.

Commitment is so important in running a business and in marketing. Social media, by the way, is a big commitment. Thirty-five years later, this has a much bigger meaning with regard to commitment, honesty, trust, and loyalty.

Marriages have ups and downs, too. We have had many—the usuals— finances, kids, life, promotions, sicknesses, weddings, birthdays, elderly parents, etc.

When we own our own businesses, it’s the same. We have ups and downs. And that’s where the commitment comes in. We have to be committed to the ups and downs in our businesses.

Here is something I have never put in words before. It’s the involvement in a deeper relationship—the knowing, the caring, and the element of not being able to wait until you can tell them your next idea or act of brilliance —that makes everything worth it. The same is true with your business— does it still have so great an emotional appeal that you can’t wait to get to work? Does it energize you? It’s that deep commitment you have when working with one of your clients, that sincerity in really caring, that makes your work authentic and rewarding.

In my case, my biggest and deepest “why” is serving and helping others. So is my husband’s; that’s why we work and live so well together. There’s that bond, like in business, when you just know you’re in a groove, in your sweet spot. You’re doing business the way you want to do, and who you want to do it with!

So, yes, the honeymoon for me is never over. It’s a journey of discovery and growth in my relationship with my spouse. It also will be a journey for my business. Here’s hoping you and I will continue to nurture all the principles of passion, dreams, visions, loyalty, and commitment, which are not only part of a successful marriage, but a successful business, as well. 

Are you committed to your business?