PILOT // A rollercoaster ride through business, creativity, stubborn passion and the art of doing it anyway.
Let me think. How can we translate this phrase into English? Every Italian immediately knows what it means, but explaining it to an English speaking audience is not so easy. Could it be “for the hell of it”? Or “for the sake of doing something”? Or literally, as the phrase suggests, “for the glory”?
“For the glory” sounds more heroic than ironic in English and, in Italian, Per la Gloria is often meant ironically. It suggests doing something out of passion, stubbornness, or pure will, and hanging in there even when the financial return is little to none, or none at all.
Well, my life as a business owner has been fulfilling, but occasionally rocky. I can say that I have experienced some form of “glory” at times, but failure has also been part of the journey. Failure… otherwise known as experience. Unpleasant yes, and yet necessary.
As an entrepreneur (or entreprenette, as I like to call myself), I have often felt like I’m on a rollercoaster on drugs, going sharply up and then steeply down. And like every rollercoaster, sometimes you feel ecstatic and hyped, other times you feel sick. Literally. But isn’t this what running your own thing is all about? The thrill, the success, la gloria, but also the stress, the disappointment, the constant, never ending learning curve.
And yet, even though I occasionally find myself back in a job, running my own business is always what I return to, where I feel in my element. Building things, building brands, bringing a vision to life, trusting my intuition. The process itself is how I express my creativity. It is where I thrive. It’s a love, but also a need, and when need is involved, it’s not always the healthiest or most stable of relationships, but you certainly can’t say it lacks passion.
Not everyone is cut out for this life. It suits a very specific type of person: those who can live on the rollercoaster almost permanently without completely losing their minds, getting too high or too sick. It’s not easy, but at 45 years young, I accept that I am on this ride for life.
For a long time, I’ve been meaning to start a blog or podcast to share a few stories from my life as a business owner, and it looks like the good ol’ blog section on WordPress and Substack are the perfect opportunity to do that. On the latter I’ll also be recording my own voiceovers, because I can’t stand the idea of AI replacing my own voice and weird accent.
So join me for the rollercoaster ride here on Substack. Join me and do it per la gloria, for the hell of it. It’ll be fun.
