See the full list of needs here.

This point, in addition to being its own topic, is also a companion to the diverse opinions post. While I firmly believe in the good of getting other voices and opinions and advice in your head, they can never drown out your own voice.

Every business is different, and a polyentrepreneur’s even more so. No matter how good others are at giving advice, no matter where they are in life, you have the final say in your own businesses – and that’s how it should be. This isn’t your boyfriend’s t-shirt company, your voice coach’s career, or you sister’s dance studio; it’s yours and yours alone. You need to learn to trust your gut – and to know when it’s your gut talking (not your fear).

Do your research.

I mentioned this in the last post too – it’s that important. No matter how good your gut is, if you don’t have all the facts you’re pretty unlikely to make the best decision! Making sure you do research can also prevent you from jumping into something you’re not ready for, or even just confirm your own suspicions/let you know you’re on the right track. Research can also make you aware of other ideas you might not have had before. So track down the facts!

Listen to yourself.

This applies to everything from making day-to-day decisions to deciding what passions you really want to pursue in life. To make the best decisions, I usually first do my research, then take some personal time – meditating, writing lists of pros and cons, talking to my sister or boyfriend; just feeling out the decision in front of me in my mind. Within a few hours I usually have an answer that I come to so organically that I can’t remember a time when I didn’t think it was the right decision – and when using this process I have never regretted my decision!

This point also applies to little thoughts that come into your head at times that you might be inclined to dismiss – thoughts like “I should start a blog” or “I should go back to school” or “I should audition for something.” You may want to brush them off because you don’t want to change, or think you have enough on your plate already, or think that you being able to achieve something is out of your reach, but DON’T. I nearly let fear and complacency convince me to merely finish an English degree I no longer cared about rather than go for the vocal performance degree I always wanted but assumed I wasn’t good enough for – and now, with one year of vocal performance down and three to go, I can’t believe I nearly didn’t follow my dream.

Try things out.

You can never be sure what the results of your actions will be, but instead of letting that uncertainty paralyze you, try things out! Throw yourself into a new project, a new class, a club, or a training series and give it the best you’ve got. Even if you don’t get the result you’re hoping for, if you really apply yourself you’ll almost certainly at least learn something. For example, it was a kind of out-there and eventually a failure of a product that led me to create my popular thin bracelet sets.The bottom line is that your business needs you in order to thrive, and you need to be confident in yourself in order to thrive. Only you can make the best decisions for yourself and your business.