Selling Your Soul...An Ode to the Entrepreneur

By: Alyson Franca Pollard

The term gets a bad wrap, and rightfully so given the way we have defined the phrase 'selling your soul'. When you hear those words, you likely think of someone going to any any all lengths to get ahead, mostly in ways that are non-virtuous, illegal or just ethically misaligned with ones own moral compass. And believe me, it happens a lot. Look at corporate America, politics, wars...but also, super star status celebs who would never use the products they are actually telling you to buy. There are endless examples of compromising the virtuous souls we all (yes, I mean we ALL) have dwelling inside our skin and bones. But what if we looked at it another way, for those who are TRULY selling their souls? Same words, I know it's confusing, so take a ride with me here...

A few weeks ago I had a joy of a time (as always) chatting with one of my favorite women on this earth, Kristina Baranowski, a fellow self-proclaimed serial entrepreneur who is not afraid to "fail", and breaks down the business of dreaming big on her podcast series The Bold Dreamer (our episode is out now if you want to dig deeper). We became super close when we were brick and mortar business neighbors, she sold cupcakes, I sold yoga. Sounds simple and free of any soul crushing sell out or illegal dealings, right? Accurate. But we were, in fact, selling our souls.

It takes all the heart and soul you could ever imagine to go into business. Perhaps the reason it can be so terrifying and the reason why many people never take the steps towards going out on their own in business is because it is your soul on full display. You might be thinking, ok yoga I get, its a soul awakening modality...but were cupcakes really Kristina's heart and soul? She might even be the first to say, "hell no", but I am here as a witness to tell you, hell yes they were, but not in the way you may think.

Her alarm would go off sometime in the 4:00am hour every day. After caring for her 2 giant dogs and little bunny rabbit, and maybe herself if she was really on it, she would head out in the dark to open up shop every morning. Lights on, coffee consumed (on repeat), Taylor Swift serenading (also on repeat), ovens pre-heating, and the work began. With every scoop of flour, dash of salt and crack of an egg, her soul was 100% being poured into those mixing bowls and then into each individual baked good. Anyone who was lucky enough to be around when her shop was, knows what ambition and love actually taste like. Something remarkably special and delicious that is impossible to replicate, because truly part of her soul was in every bite and that is the difference maker. Her soul was being crushed in corporate America in ALL the ways that young, attractive, fresh out of college girls souls get crushed. It was disgusting, awakening and set her soul on fire, lighting the way to an alternative means to live.

So, while the cupcakes were amazing, it actually didn't matter what she was selling. It could have been dirt, and by God the most amazing flowers would have grown from that dirt because it would have been infused with the pure desire of a soul who knew there was another way. With many twits and turns of fate, and faith in her path, she actually doesn't pour batter anymore, but that led her to something even more aligned with her soul. She still pours...the most divine, completely non-toxic candles, home and personal fragrances for her own small business Orchid+Ash. You see, it was the initial burning desire to break free from mediocracy that was the spark. Was the bakery the end game? Nope, but it was an absolutely necessary step. Is Orchid+Ash? Time will tell. Does it matter if it is? No. What matters is that she keeps going.

If you know anyone who creates their own product or service, or represents a product or service they are genuinely passionate about, use it, buy it, subscribe to it, value it like it were a long lost treasure you found. They are sharing a part of their soul with you and risking their livelihood to feed yours. What a beautiful, interconnected way of consumerism we can practice here by supporting those who are selling theirs.

In a way, I believe we all are. They words we say and don't say, the things we do and don't do, the way we present ourselves to each other and the world, we are selling bits of our souls to each other on the regular. Napoleon Hill says in one of my most cherished and repeatedly read books, Think and Grow Rich, "More gold has been mined from the minds of men that the earth itself". Let's use that perspective to mind our minds in order for our souls to shine upon and for each other. Oh, and shop small whenever possible...we literally do a happy dance every time you do!