It’s easy to lose motivation to do something hard if the reason you’re doing it is unclear or misguided. Or maybe the vision is clear at the beginning, but then it gets fuzzy when you put pen to paper (perhaps even literally, like me). So, what then? Why keep going?

If I’ve learned anything from starting my business (I’m not even sure why I write “if”…I’ve definitely learned things…a LOT of things), it’s that the path is way more twisted and three-dimensional than I thought it would be. Left, right, U-turn, up, down. If you could see my internal turn signals, you’d think there was a tripped wire somewhere. But such is the reality of a self-starter trying to find their niche.

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I started my business with what I was going to do but didn’t have a clear picture of why I was doing it. Sure, I knew I wanted to do something different, work for myself, and follow my passion for writing. But those are all self-centered ideas, and while they motivated me to quit my job and start my own thing, they didn’t keep me motivated for very long.

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It took several weeks of conflicted feelings toward my business plan before I started to realize that I wanted something more for my business, to do more than just write and edit words as much as I enjoy those things.

I wanted to do more for people, for social good.

This seemed ambitious (especially for a novice self-starter), and I wasn’t really sure what to do with my newfound but unclear direction. Sound familiar, fellow entrepreneurs? Then, I was introduced to the idea of social entrepreneurship. I had an idea of what this was, but until I started researching it more and seeing real-world examples (TOMS Shoes being a notable one), I thought, aha, this is where my drive to start my own business collides with my innate desire to do something for social good.

I have marketed EVR Creative as a place for words because I like them and they’re fun to play with, but also because I think they make a difference in the world. Yet I didn’t have a clear understanding of what kind of difference I wanted to make and why that one. Hence why I went back to the drawing board.

On my value map (see last post for recap), I kept focusing on the line I drew between “social connection” and “cards/notes.”

I value social connection because I believe it is what makes life richer. It’s why it feels so good to perform/receive acts of kindness, or make a new friend, or have a good conversation with someone you haven’t spoken to in a while. We’re social beings, and it’s important to know that and feel that, especially now.

I value cards/notes because for one, I like words, and two, I’m old-fashioned and still write words to people using pen and paper. Call me a grandma (and I hope you do because I truly believe I’m 80 years old at heart), but I think handwritten notes are just a bit better than anything sent through cyberspace. Yes, texts, emails, and instant messages are terribly convenient, but they are often fleeting and maybe even forgotten. A note on paper, on the other hand, is something you can hold onto and feel, both literally and figuratively. You can tack it to your wall or put in your pocket as a friendly reminder of whatever message was written inside. A handwritten note is more personal, which is critical when we think about actually feeling connected to others. And that brings me to my next point.

The reason I drew a line between “social connection” and “cards/notes” is because I think these two things go hand in hand. As I was thinking about why I was so focused on this connection of all the ones I made on my value map, I was reminded of something I learned in my medical sociology class in college: a lack of social connection and loneliness are detrimental to health, both physically and mentally.

Most, if not all, humans can recall a time they felt lonely, even today when we are—in theory—more socially connected than ever because of technology. And yet social isolation and loneliness still linger (and I’m talking pre-COVID times too).

The more I stared at that line connecting “social connection” and “cards/notes,” the more the cogwheels were turning. I was beginning to realize how much I care about combating loneliness and talking about it not as a personal issue but as a social issue.

But what can I do with EVR Creative to help mitigate a social issue? What do I already do or have that can get me going? Well, a love of words and putting them in notes.

So, I started making and writing a lot of cards to spread all over like sprinkles of human kindness. Because I believe a handwritten note can make someone feel cared about (which is no small thing), and for someone that might make all the difference. It’s a very small-scale version of social entrepreneurship and is maybe better defined as “creative businesswoman who just wants to do something good for people,” but it’s a start. More likely than not, my internal turn signals will go berserk again, but for now I remind myself and anyone else looking for direction to keep your eye on your why and just go.

Big picture, small act.

Start somewhere, keep going.