Curt Mercadante - Five Pillars of the Freedom Lifestyle: How to Escape Your Comfort Zone of Misery

As I lay there in bed, staring at the ceiling, it felt just like any other workday. The problem was, it wasnt a workday. It was the Tuesday of Thanksgiving week, and it was supposed to be my day off.

Had I informed all my clients? Of course. But that didnt stop them from calling, requesting memos and emails, asking me to hop on conference calls. There also was the issue about the client - planning meeting I was supposed to attend the following week.

In that same meeting the year before, we had been scolded like children for being low energy. It was an 8:30 a.m. meeting on a Monday, in frigid Washington, DC, temperatures, for which I had to fly in the night beforea Sunday. While I sat there being scolded with the rest of my client team, I vowed never again to attend this meeting.

Time passed, however, and I settled back in to my comfort zoneafraid to rock the boat and threaten my healthy retainer. But something broke in me this Tuesday morning of Thanksgiving week.

I decided then and there to shut down my seven - figure PR/ad agency at peak revenue.

As I approached my wife, Julie, to break the news, the butterflies danced in my stomach. The sweat coated my now clammy palms. What was she going to say? Would she be upset? After all, we have four kids, a mortgage, two cars, and a life.

I decided to make it quick. Short, simple, and sweet.

Jules, I cant take it anymore, I blurted out. Im done.

Julie gazed into my eyes. No anger in hers. No panic. She reached out and touched my arm. Its about time, she replied. And we hugged.

That was it. Thirteen years of building a successful agency, and now it was over.

Had I made a bunch of money? Absolutely. Had I built two profitable businesses? Yep. But it wasnt worth the corresponding pain. I had built a prison instead of a business.

Now, it was time to turn my coaching side hustle into my full - time gig. Sink or swim. No life preserver.

Scary? Yes. But it was also exhilaratingthe thought of helping others avoid the mistakes I had made while building my business.

Fast - forward to today. Ive coached hundreds of people. Clients around the world. Millions of views of videos Ive created (mostly on LinkedIn) meant to teach and provide value. All of it done with the vision of helping individuals fight for lives of freedom and fulfillment.

Thats the reason I wrote this book.

We business owners start our businesses, sometimes leaving stable nine - to - five careers to do so, because we want our freedom. Nobody watching over our shoulders. Nobody requiring us to be sitting at our desks by 8:30 a.m. No long commutes. No bosses.

However, too many business owners, like me, build prisons instead of businesses. The freedom they desire seems out of reach. The extra time they thought theyd have with their family and friends never materializes. What do they get instead? Less vacation time. Longer hours. Clients who disrespect them.

Entrepreneurial freedom doesnt just mean starting your own business. True entrepreneurial freedom means growing your business while growing your freedom and fulfillment. It means aligning your work with your family and you.

During the past year, date nights with my wife, special days with my kids, our two - week journey through California, and our five - week tour across Europe stand out to me more than any work accomplishment I achieved this past year. Id like you to feel the same way about your year.

Through my experience building three profitable companies and coaching and speaking to hundreds of entrepreneurs, Ive come up with the Freedom Fivefive key areas that must be firing on all cylinders to give you true entrepreneurial freedom:

Superpowers: Are you amplifying your true strengths and managing your weaknesses?

Vision: Do you have a clear vision that combines your purpose and impact?

Alignment: Are you aligning your work with your family and self?

Outcomes: Are you reverse engineering your vision to create detailed, simple yearly/monthly/weekly/daily outcomes?

Flow: Are you bringing these all together so that youre flowing, not grinding, every single day?

Yes, these are the five pillars of the Freedom Lifestyle mentioned in the title of this book, and we get into each of them in great detail. First, however, its necessary to recognize some of the warning signs that show you might be lacking the freedom you desire.

If I lack freedom, wouldnt I know it? you ask. Not necessarily.

Its easy to confuse numbers in a bank account for freedom, to remember that last good vacation you had with your family (even though it was two years ago) and mistake it for fulfillment, or to rationalize the long nights and anxiety in the name of a paycheck.

Thats denial. And its unhealthy.

This book is separated into two sections. Part 1 deals with the warning signs and symptoms you may be feeling of a life without true freedom. Part 2 delves into the Freedom Five. At the end of this book, theres a call to action for you to find your Freedom Index to learn the level of freedom in your lifewith the opportunity to take action today to start living the Freedom Lifestyle you desire.

Its a journey you deserve. Its an outcome you desire. Lets take it together.