I'm Homeless

What happened?

A friend told me the funniest thing today:

I always thought you had very rich parents behind you and that’s why you’ve made it so far.

My parents?

My brother would be rolling with laughter right now.

I love them, from a distance, and no, they haven’t done much to support me since I turned 16 years old.

I’ve worked hard to get here, and that’s a key part of the answer to what happened.

Yes, it’s true, I’m homeless.

I went public with it on Thursday (read the post here), it was a rainy afternoon and I had a “fuck it moment”.

So, I unleashed, meaning, I took to the pen.

Happy Sunday ,

If you feel ready for the real, raw, and radical answer to my homelessness - and how it may be relevant to you - read on.

Why?

By now I’ve asked myself that a hundred times.

I searched for something BIG, something special, something you know…

But it wasn’t BIG or special at all.

I’ve been giving more than I’ve been taking.

Ohhh if you know, you know. 🤣 

Giving is joyful, it gives me a sense of purpose, and I enjoy giving, but, there has been a clear imbalance in my giving for years.

And paired with…

Resilience + Reputation + Hope = you have a disaster formula.

And yet…

I don’t know a single business or leadership handbook that doesn’t praise these concepts.

That I perform well and respond readily under pressure used to be at the top of my CV.

• I got used to have ZERO days off.

• I got used to barely making ends meet each month.

• I got used to missing out on birthdays and Christmases.

• I got used to living in a noisy and dangerous neighborhood

• I got used to eating one bowl of rice per day

• I got used to…

Because I’m resilient (proud face). 😃 

Then there’s reputation…

Looking like I have it all together, not asking for help (because come on, I’m resilient), and a friend said it best:

And last but not least: hope.

That’s a real sneaky one.

Countless of times I’ve gotten stuck in relationships and jobs because I see the potential, I see where this could be going and I’m not a person who gives up at the wiff of trouble or a challenge ahead.

Are you?

Pfff, didn’t think so.

We are…

Resilient.

I kept hoping for better times, for things to get better, for…

Hope I have a lot of, and it’s the last to leave me.

Do you spot the problem with the trio above?

Topped with giving more than taking?

Becoming homeless didn’t happen overnight, it was the combination of that accumulated over several months.

Paired with a skewed system and no support from my family.

That’s what happened.

The End.

Living on one bowl of rice a day, asking friends for help buying groceries, and being unable to care for myself.

No more.

I’m fed up with seeing talented, ambitious, and passionate people suffer to make a living in their zone of genius.

No.

I’m here, and many others are here because the society we have created keeps:

• Glorifying hard work.

• Normalizing suffering.

• Highlighting struggling as a criteria for success.

To shape a world where we all live a life of joy, love, and freedom - this narrative must change.

And to do so, I encourage you to look at yourself in the mirror and ask:

1. Am I taking as much as I’m giving?

2. Am I identifying with the glory of resilience?

3. Am I asking for help and being radically honest about my situation?

4. Am I acting mostly based on hope or is there a strategy behind it too?

I’m homeless

But I’m faaar from broken.

Little e within is still kicking, happy to serve, and learning to be more vulnerable, courageous, and honest.

Do you know what the funny thing is about all this?

The more I open up, ask for help, and tell my true story, the more people reach out, follow me, and ask to work with me.

I thought I had already learned this, but life figured I was ready for the next growth period and introduced…

Drumroll…

A pocket of shame and embarrassment beliefs hiding inside of me that needed to be released.

Thank you life.

More about that next week.😉 

/ E and little e

P.S. If you would like to offer your support, here are 4 ways I can think of (but not limited to):

1. 🏡 Home: having a place to live.

2. 🤝 Clients: hiring my services / referring me to someone who would.

3. ♻️ Sales funnel: improving my process to increase my income.

4. 🚶🏾‍♂️ The Great Walk: helping us build this initiative directly or indirectly so that we finally can make a dent in the staggering amount of homelessness in the world (especially hidden homelessness).

Heinke Kauntz reached out to me via LinkedIn and tasked me to write a list of all the things I can support people with, but it’s not done yet, so perhaps this list of who I’m supporting today can inspire:

• Two women with building confidence in taking their business and brand to the next, sustainable level.

• A man creating a communications course on camera with charisma in English.

• Ghostwriting and rewriting Founders' articles to be engaging and authentic with storytelling for a PR agency.

• A woman with self-promotion and having more effective, yet authentic, sales conversations.

• Writing for Brainz Magazine in terms of personal development and business in regards to storytelling.

The keyword: communication 🤗 

Does this give you any ideas?