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Sweat Equity

damon
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Sweat Equity

Everybody doesn’t get the term “sweat equity”

Some may have never heard of it. I came across it several years ago when negotiating with an inventor who needed a web presence and branding created around his invention. I’m pretty good with turns of phrase, so even though I hadn’t come across this one before, the context of the conversation gave away it’s meaning immediately.

“Sweat equity” is a fancy way of saying “work for free”

At first thought, the idea is laughable – give away my time, knowledge and skills for nothing in return. But the term doesn’t simply mean just working for free – it promises equity, which potentially should be valuable. The idea is that your time, knowledge and skills will build something of tangible value eventually. The biggest thing to weigh in a “sweat equity” scenario is: “do you believe the thing you’re building will yield a return on investment?” Currently, I’m building a company called Churchy Life, and there’s so much to do, it’s dizzying. The first offering from Churchy Life will be a Christian dating site called Churchy Date (in beta), and it’s coming along great. Slowly – but great. I find myself getting overwhelmed sometimes with all that I have to do, and wishing there were a team of people behind me. Advertising of the site will be happening soon, and any extra money will be going towards that. So what can I offer potential team members? The promise of building something great that will eventually yield a return on investment.

I’ve got a few awesome people on board so far!

Finding more people who believe in “working for free” seems like a pretty big challenge – though, admittedly, I haven’t tried too hard yet. Hopefully, as we continue to build, the sweat equity I and others are pouring into the company will produce a strong case for others to want to join in and help. Or maybe I’ll just stop being scared of rejection, and ask people anyway. Yeah… let’s try that 🙂

It’s a Marathon

damon
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5
It’s a Marathon
A popular quote by Theodore Roosevelt says:
“Comparison is the thief of joy”
But is that necessarily true? Comparing who you are and what you’re doing in life has never been more prevalent than today in the world of social media. I promise you, I get it. I see it. If you feel like you’re losing because others are seemingly doing more than you, or doing better than you, it’s really just time for a perspective change, right? Why can’t we let comparison be a catalyst for change? If you’re breathing, then there is still time to change and do something different. Something great. Something spectacular. It is never too late. It doesn’t matter where you come from, what you currently know, what your age is… none of that matters. The only real limits we have is our perspective. I said all that to say this blog marks the beginning of a perspective change for me. Actually, more like the documentation of a perspective change. After a long career working as a web developer and software engineer for other companies, a few years back I began shifting my mentality from being an employee to becoming an employer. I have way too many ideas… BIG ideas… and what had been lacking was focus and consistency. I see other people winning at their dreams, crushing their goals, and achieving what they set out to do. Instead of letting it steal my joy, the first thing I do is celebrate them! Second, I let it stoke the fire in me to do something great as well. There’s one thing I find myself saying every day, and it keeps me on track and motivated:

It’s a Marathon, Not a Sprint

Just because it looks like others are experiencing success or achieving goals faster than you, and it might feel like you’re getting started too late, just remember – It’s a Marathon, Not a Sprint – and you will reach your goals at the end, if you stay the course.