What Losing My House In a Fire Taught Me About Showing Up for My Business
Back in January of this year, my family's home burned to the ground.
We weren’t living there at the time. We had recently purchased it and were doing some renovations before moving in.
Then there was a welding accident.
No one was hurt, thankfully.
My daughter was in daycare. I was sitting at my desk, writing an email to my list while my son was napping in the room across the hall. That’s when I got the call.
My husband (and business partner) phoned me on his way home from IKEA—he had just picked up new dressers for the kids’ rooms, which we were going to start decorating the next day.
He could see the smoke from the highway, two towns away.
We jumped into action mode. There was no time to grieve.
The house we were living in closed in two weeks. We called our realtor and she found us a rental within 48-hours. We packed up our house and moved into our new, temporary home with our toddler and 9-month-old baby in tow.
We spent the months to come unpacking our life while also engaging with insurance, lawyers, engineers, restoration companies, contractors, and the list goes on.
And somehow, we managed to handle it all without missing a beat in the business.
That’s the thing about being an entrepreneur – business doesn’t stop just because life happens.
And while it can be difficult to separate work from personal at times, this experience has reminded me that even when one area of your life is (literally) on fire, your business can still thrive.
I’m so thankful for the people, systems and relationships we’ve invested in to get us to this point.
In May, the house was finally knocked down. There’s nothing left of it. (Other than the garage – somehow it was untouched).
We’ve since had some time to process the whole thing, and I’ve realized…
Sometimes you have to let it all burn to the ground and start again.
Still, this season of life has been long and gruelling.
Over the last seven months, I’ve poured all of my energy into my family, my team and my clients.
And the truth is, this was still more than I could manage a lot of the time.
But I’ve been showing up anyway. By taking one step at a time. Putting one foot in front of the other.
And I’ll be honest, it’s felt almost impossible some days. It’s hard to lead a team when you’re struggling to hold yourself up. It’s hard to parent when you’re still healing.
It’s hard to show up on social media when you’re just trying to show up for yourself.
Still, you find a way to keep going. Little by little. Then eventually those small habits transform into massive momentum.
And while it can feel like you’re not seeing the results in the moment, over time, you look back and realize just how far you’ve come.
So, if you’ve been taking a hiatus from Instagram, or you’ve been holding yourself back from taking the leap, starting the business, or chasing that big goal, I hope this gives you the push you need to start to rebuild.
One brick at a time.
Right now, we’re looking at nothing but a giant hole in the ground. But by this time next year, we’ll be putting the finishing touches on our dream home.
It’s taking a lot longer than we intended, but it will be worth it.
Imagine what’s possible for you by this time next year, if you begin today…
In the end, it’s not about the speed, it’s about the results.
You don’t have to have it all figured out – you just have to start.
Here’s to new beginnings.
Written by Carly Ottaway
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