Hey there, friends! I’ve been feeling a bit reflective lately, with it being my 1-year anniversary as a life coach and all, so I wanted to share some of my biggest wins + lessons in business so far.
But first, let’s start at the beginning, when I was terrified of making the leap in investing in a life coaching program + really putting myself out there by starting a business.
Back then, I was unsure of the fire in my belly for being a creative entrepreneur. I doubted that I had what it took to succeed. I was passionate but absolutely terrified of actually trusting myself and believing in what I could do. There were so many fears that held me back from months + months.
- What would people think?
- What if I failed?
- Are people going to judge me?
- What if I don’t make any money at all?
- What if I’m not even good at this + it was all just a waste?
As much as I was consumed by the voices in my head trying to keep me stagnant and immobile, I was more afraid of not doing anything and having regret and “what-ifs” follow me around for the rest of my life. I knew I couldn’t live with that.
It was only two years ago that I decided to finally join the Beautiful You Coaching Academy and I am so unbelievably glad that I did. Each day, I get to create content, support women, inspire others through writing, engage with like-minded women all over the world + do something that I truly love. Each. And. Every. Day.
That is a dream come true.
And now, I can hardly believe it has been a year since I started! To celebrate, here’s my journey in business in the first year, how I grew, what I would do differently and what I am focusing on now.
10 big lessons from my 1st year in business:
- More likes, more followers, and more subscribers do not equal a successful business.
- Building a business is hard work (but entirely worth it).
- You have to believe in yourself before you can expect a potential client/customer to believe in you.
- Getting support and surrounding yourself with like-minded people is one of the biggest keys to success. Find your support group!
- You can do anything you set your mind to. I only dreamed of having a business just 2 years ago, and now I do.
- People ultimately just want to be heard, understood, and validated. Remember this.
- It’s okay to slow down and take breaks from your business (yes, you still need breaks when you are doing what you love!).
- Keep your focus on your own work and do your own thing. You don’t need to do what everyone else is doing. (this one was a hard one to learn!)
- Trust the timing and be consistent, even if you aren’t seeing concrete results. Patience and consistency is key.
- Have fun and be creative! People love to be around and support people who are passionate about what they do. Opportunities will present themselves when you embrace that passion.
Not only has my business shifted and changed over the past 12 months, but I grew and changed as well. It was an awakening.
The truth is, patience is everything. It’s hard work building a business and things don’t always happen when you think they should. It takes time (+ lots of it!) but it’s totally worth it.
The key is being consistent + absolutely relentless. Over and over, day after day.
I learned how to trust myself, put myself out there (this was a hard one & still is!), believe that the work I am putting out into the world is good enough + to not take myself or my business too seriously (cause that seriously sucks all the fun out of things)!
But there definitely are some things I would do differently, and I think it is important to talk about those things. As much as you see other people killing it online, we all make mistakes + we all wish we could have done things differently.
What I’d do differently:
1. Confide in a business buddy + talk weekly
Having a support person who is going through similar things in her own business is a huge encourager + motivator. As much as your family and close friends want to support you, they can’t relate to everything you’re going through or support you in the same way a business buddy can. Find one as soon as you can!
2. Do my own thing + own it
Early on, I was so unsure about how to write email newsletters in an engaging way, how to peak potential client’s interest in my work, how to be visible online in an authentic way + how to create beautiful copy on my website that was inspiring and engaging. At that time, I was so new to the world of life coaching that I didn’t feel comfortable or confident in what I was putting out there (even though it was just fine! I was just starting out, after all). It was a hard lesson to learn, as I ended up modeling some of my work on another coach I looked up to (big rookie mistake!) and had to take a step back to re-evaluate.
Eventually, I began to create with the belief that the work I was putting out there truly was going to speak to someone, even if it didn’t look like similar to someone else’s work. Someone needed to hear what only I can say. I learned to trust that my uniqueness + my personality was enough and I’d be able to speak to the right people that needed to hear my message just by being true to me.
3. Stop trying to be everywhere all the time
Despite hearing over and over that it is better to be consistent with one form of social media than scatterbrained over many platforms, I still was stretching myself a little thin trying to constantly post on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. Looking at the conversions to my website, I found that I was getting the least amount of impact and response from the social media platform I was trying to be the most active on (Instagram), which really stressed me out! Learning to be flexible and taking into account what my audience liked most and providing value to them on the best platform was huge.
4. Create boundaries
In the first year, I was all consumed in my business. I was passionate, creative, and wanted to always be doing something every single day, which is a good idea but it can be taken a bit too far.
The problem I ran into was that I didn’t put boundaries in place so I could rest, reflect, and recuperate. Since I was always “on”, there were times I felt very burnt out and needed longer breaks then if I had created some boundaries for myself in the first place. Some things I’ve recently started to adopt are not working past 6 pm during the weekdays, not brainstorming blog post ideas while trying to fall asleep (I did this for so many nights and it was exhausting!) and keeping my mental focus on my business when I was working in my business but keeping my thoughts off my business if I wasn’t working on it. Huge sigh of relief!
IInterested in becoming a life coach? Learn more about the Beautiful You Coaching Academy!