I want to start by saying that I did not write this article to dissuade you from planning. Planning is indeed one of the most important parts of entrepreneurship. However, If you’re anything like me then entrepreneurship is at the core of who you are. You naturally possess the cliche personality traits of a successful entrepreneur. So planning, working hard, and not giving up will never be an issue for you. In most cases, you may be an over-planner just like me. That is why I believe that The untold secret of entrepreneurship is dreaming not planning. I’ll tell you why.

Remembering My Journey

   Ever since I was a little girl, I dreamed of moving from the small town of Copperas Cove, TX to NYC. I claimed that I would be a successful media mogul. I also said that I   would have an apartment with my sister and get a cute little dog. Instinctively, I did just that. I received a scholarship to attend St. John’s University. My family freaked out when I told them my decision. But they knew my mind was made up. So they threw me a graduation party and I sold cutlery over the summer to help raise money. And without ever visiting, I moved to the big city. 

   I immediately begin to immerse myself in my dream world of NYC. I trained as a professional dancer, volunteered for NYFW, and worked odd jobs for a little extra cash. At the end of my freshman year, I couldn’t afford the priority fee to come back and live on campus for my 2nd year. Consequently, the dorms filled up fast. So I stayed with my roommate and her family over the summer, working as hard as possible to get enough money to rent an apartment.

The Journey Continued…

    I ended up moving into an illegal basement apartment right off-campus with 3 other students. After the first semester, I raised enough money and built enough credit to start looking for a livable apartment. My roommates at the time decided that they would move with me to split the cost. However, on move-in day they did not have their part of the funds. But this was my dream apartment and I wasn’t giving up that easily. Fortunately, as well as unfortunately, I had the funds to cover the cost. So I spent my last penny paying for it all. I ended up subleasing the other two rooms. Soon after, I found my four-legged daughter, Reaùx(Rue).

She was only 5 weeks old. So laughably, I took her to work, dance, and school with me. Finally, when my little sister turned 19 I insisted on her moving in with me. Eventually, we decided we couldn’t deal with another roommate and that it would be better if it was just us. We worked hard to maintain everything while still following our dreams. In 2018, I began consulting full-time and started my lifestyle blog, Always Prai. By June 2019, I graduated with my Masters’s degree.

When Things Took a Turn

   As a result of my manifestation, I naturally worked towards achieving my goals. But then real life hit. In October 2019, My dad had to undergo major surgery to remove a brain tumor that would’ve killed him. Shortly after, The pandemic started. Many of us, including me, were left jobless with NYC rent to pay. I felt like I had lost everything. Despite my effort, I couldn’t find a job or anyone to take a chance on me. I was starting from scratch and my mental health was dwindling. Plus, being a bold and dignified black woman in America didn’t make it any easier to navigate. Without realizing it, this is the moment when my manifesting/dreaming turned into over-planning. 

Scarcity VS. Abundant Mindset

   I still believed I would be successful but instead of instinctively working toward it. I created contingency plan after contingency plan. Listening to the articles, I started to plan for failure. It worked for a second. I got a job plus a celebrity client. But I knew there was still a lot more to be accomplished in terms of my business. So I continued to spend every second of the day planning my next step. I was fearful of losing it all again. Instead of being grateful. I began to script my future. I spent so much time planning that I forgot what it felt like to dream. I started living with a scarcity mindset. And before I knew it, I had lost everything again.

   Experts in the law of attraction will tell you that this sort of thinking for a natural-born entrepreneur can negatively affect our ability to manifest. We know that we must plan for failure. But when we’re told to encourage this thought process we subconsciously attract it. You don’t attract what you want but what you expect. You start to operate from a place of fear rather than from your inner knowing.

The Revelation of Manifestation

    I didn’t realize this until I recently launched Always Prai Empowerment Boards, a personal development tool to help you plan for change while manifesting your dreams. After using My own Empowerment board for 6 months, I was able to shift my thought process to a mindset of abundance. I took the time to think, how did I  accomplish everything that I have so far? I wanted it, I believed it, So I achieved it. Forget ‘see it to believe it’. And know that believing is a feeling.

“Failed plans should not be interpreted as a failed vision. Visions don’t change, they are only refined. Plans rarely stay the same, and are scrapped or adjusted as needed. Be stubborn about the vision, but flexible with your plan.” – John C. Maxwell

   The energy we put into ‘planning’ can cause a rift in our dreams, making us doubt ourselves and what’s possible. Dreaming motivates you to put more effort into planning which leads to manifestation. It’s impossible to align yourself with your life’s true purpose without change, challenges, growth, and empowerment. Ultimate success, whatever that may be for you, is a spiritual journey. We must empower ourselves to manifest our dreams. So when someone or an article tells you to plan it. Don’t. Dream it first and allow the plans to create themselves.

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