One of the hardest lessons I learned at Syracuse University’s Whitman School of Management through the Entrepreneurial Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities Family Program is that it’s always going to be tough to discern when to quit and when to continue.

I remember we had multiple entrepreneurs come in and speak about how much adversity they faced as they were starting and running their companies. It was like every time the entrepreneur would get a little traction, he or she would get whacked in the face by something new. This person, in turn, had to be gritty to push forward with their idea.

As an entrepreneur now, I have taken those lessons and have lived them. It was so much different hearing their stories as opposed to living them. Some days I wonder why I ever decided to go on this stupid path. It makes me angry that I can’t just be content showing up to the same place over and over again, years and years on end, and collecting a paycheck. I wish I were someone who was avaricious, money motivated or longed for stability. That’s not who I am. That’s not to say that I wouldn’t take on a job where I was able to apply my talents to drive a mission that I’m passionate about forward. I would. That’s not to say that I wouldn’t take on nearly any job should I need to do so to take care of myself. But it’s not where I would long to be. I would want something more and my heart would feel unsettled.

Social causes make me feel settled. Phoning it in doesn’t.

But when these entrepreneurs were talking about this in business school, their lessons were just words. Now, however, it’s an entirely different story. Their lessons became a forewarning: this is what you’re going to long to you. You’re going to be stubborn and want to work for yourself or you’re going to need to find a cause worth suffering for or you won’t be happy.

That’s a tough lesson and one that I never before fathomed before business school.

About the Author

Named Top 100 Leaders by 2012 Magazine, Jasmine Grimm has been nominated for Central Penn Business Journal’s “Top 40 Under 40,” and The Lancaster Chamber’s ATHENA Award.

Jasmine founded Ruby, Inc. a personal styling business that teaches women how to dress for their body types and became a two-time nominee for Inc. Magazine’s Top 30 Under 30 Top Young Entrepreneurs in America. She won the 2013 SCORE Business Development Award, won the Central Penn Business Journal’s Top 25 Women of Influence Award in 2013 and the 2013 Leadership Award from the MS Society.

She has been a popular guest lecturer at the Maastricht Institute of Entrepreneurship and has been featured in Under 30 CEO and Productive Magazine, was the cover story for Harrisburg Magazine and her writing has graced National Geographic Television and Film, Harvard University and more.

She’s a 5,3,8,3 on the Kolbe A Index and her strengths include input, relator, learner, responsibility and achievement.

For more information visit her Google + Page.