{"id":30203,"date":"2020-09-12T10:56:45","date_gmt":"2020-09-12T08:56:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/springworks.ch\/le-parcours-dun-entrepreneur-1\/"},"modified":"2026-01-30T16:46:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T15:46:10","slug":"the-journey-of-an-entrepreneur-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/springworks.ch\/en\/the-journey-of-an-entrepreneur-1\/","title":{"rendered":"The journey of an entrepreneur (1\/6)"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"SpringWorks<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>

The journey of an entrepreneur (1\/6)<\/h1><\/div>

I have always felt the urge of becoming an entrepreneur \u2013 it\u2019s in my genes, and in my soul. It took a 20-year career, filled with experience and skills that allowed me to become an entrepreneur. At the same time, yet with unintended symbolism, I took on another dream or challenge : to walk from my house up to the top of the Jura mountain top just above. Just ? Well a mere 500 height meters.<\/h2><\/div>
<\/div>

Text published on September 12, 2020<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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Last summer marked my 3rd ascent of \u201cmy\u201d mountain, and while I was working my way up, I realized how many similarities there are between my entrepreneurial journey and my newly traditional (since 2018) annual hike up the mountain.<\/p>\n

It all starts with a vision. <\/b>Just like my ambition to walk up to the top started with the vision of a lonely tree on the crest you can see from below, the switch from a corporate to entrepreneurial career was triggered by an urge, a need for a more human approach to business, the ambition to be in charge of my life and my success, and to act on it.<\/p>\n

The path chosen is not an easy one.<\/b> The shortest way to the top is often the steepest. It can be tempting to follow easy paths, wide, swooping and progressive. More comfortable ? For sure ! Less challenging ? Definitely ! But most importantly : it is not my path. It has been laid out by others, and is filled with (often self-declared) experts eager to share tips with me.<\/p>\n

Following my own path, or even creating it, is without a doubt harder, but here I depend only on myself, my choices \u2013 and as such I owe it all to no-one but myself \u2013 successes and failures \u2013 and will make me tougher, and better for the next challenges.<\/p>\n

Even when starting my professional career, I did not choose the obvious path which was waiting for me \u2013 no, I wanted to write my own story. On my terms. Entrepreneurship is simply part II of that story.<\/p>\n

There is always a way, you just have to find it. <\/b>When climbing up the mountain, there aren\u2019t always guided pathways available or visible, so on my way to my goal, the top, I sometimes have to trust my gut feeling and just go. It may be harder and slower, but I always reach my destination. Taking risks, isn\u2019t that the essence of being an entrepreneur ? With a bit of luck (which you need from time to time as an entrepreneur), after a few hundred meters on an improvised route, your path crosses a marked route and puts you back on track.<\/p>\n

Things don\u2019t always go as planned.<\/b> When they don\u2019t, I get over it, and deal with it. There are moments, on both types of journeys, I ask myself : why ? what was I thinking ? what I am trying to prove ? I\u2019ve come to find that the best answer to this is another question : would you be happier back in you comfort zone ? The answer is consistently : NO !<\/p>\n

Getting out of my comfort zone (corporate job stability or simply my sofa, depending of which journey we\u2019re considering) is the main reason for staring this venture. I didn\u2019t come all the way to give up, go back \u2013 the only way is up ! I consider these doubts or questions simply as occasional reminders of my why, little triggers to take step back and consider the journey behind me and \u2013 more importantly \u2013 to come.<\/p>\n

The journey is hard, but the reward of success awaits.<\/b> And it\u2019s so satisfying ! As soon as I reach success, including in seemingly little things, I celebrate it. Pause, look back, reflect on what got me there, what I\u2019ve learned on my journey, and re-energise, get ready for the next step, but most of all : enjoy the moment, be proud of myself. Eating my picnic with breath-taking views on Lake Geneva and the impressive Alps on one side, and the rough Jura plains on the other, makes me feel \u201cin the moment\u201d\u2026 and truly happy.<\/p>\n

As soon as I reach that goal, I immediately start planning for the next one. I will keep on going, not despite the suffering on the way, but because of the rewards awaiting at the end : learning and progress. That\u2019s what makes my \u2013 personal & professional - lives valuable.<\/p>\n

So, do you thinks our paths will cross soon ? If you wish to meet me to share your experiences, or want to find more about mine, let\u2019s set a date for a \u2013 real or virtual \u2013 coffee at gert@springworks.ch<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":29915,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30203","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pathway"],"yoast_head":"\nThe journey of an entrepreneur (1\/6) - SpringWorks<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/springworks.ch\/en\/the-journey-of-an-entrepreneur-1\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The journey of an entrepreneur (1\/6) - 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