Boundaries created to protect a personal brand essentially fabricate an identity. Our personal brand can be anything beautiful, exotic, original, expanding, but can also limiting. To be clear, a brand creates boundaries while boundaries modify brands. I've worked in business for years working in sales, marketing, branding and such. I have watched people brand their businesses and selves with creative brilliance and from there either win or fail. Some failures happen as one holds too tight to boundaries, and others win as they test and modify boundaries. Much like our personal lives.
I've also watched business believe that no branding was needed, and the business would survive on personal sweat. SURVIVAL through effort is key here.
The businesses that survived on their own without an intentional brand - offered something desirable such as a great service, or had identified a niche unmet by anyone in the local market. These businesses generally created a brand without focus.
Business that had no identity and didn't meet any niche died nearly overnight - or appeared successful, but behind the scenes existed with huge struggle. From the outside, some of these unbranded businesses that grew in what one would consider success were failing behind closed doors. When truth reveals the actual lost opportunity as evident from market research, the hidden struggle of these businesses becomes completely obvious.
Living in struggle takes energy - as much energy as creating prosperity.
Identity loss can happen when a business grows so fast it loses focus on its boundaries. In this quick growth the company’s power, unification and direction become weak. The company begins to grow randomly and irrationally without a clear purpose. Lacking the ability to hold true to its original brand and boundaries. Losses and wins become the focus and struggle of this erratic growth. When a company or person stays aware of its original essence and continues in its integrity and control of fluctuating boundaries, that company can move in an authentic conscious path of growth and sustainability while all the gains and wins arrive as a natural consequence.
Finding the way out of struggle for a business is much like a person. Strip away all the illusory stories, the limiting boundaries, check fear at the door, step onto the uncomfortable edge and jump. Boundaries are important, they provide stability, but they must also be tested, pushed and moved as one grows.
Identify the core in your business, drop into the core of you, and grow consciously from there.
Coaches can help see beyond self-imposed limitations and as a result can offer simple solutions to bring you and your business harmony and growth.
