5 Lessons Learned in 5 Years of Business

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I’d like to share five lessons I’ve learned along the way in my five years of being in business. As I think about the fall season winding down and winter quickly approaching, I’m reminded of how quickly the seasons in my business have and still are ever changing.

Five years ago I never would have imagined that my business would be where it is today or look the way that it does. But taking a look back…thank God!

Some things have not changed, like my heart behind what I’m doing and the verse that reminds me to keep it that way.

As well as a few things I’ve tweaked along the way, like my tagline and how and where I share my content. And I guess, if I’m honest, that will be a constant.

But when it comes to the BIG lessons and what I would share with someone just starting out or even in the “middle of it”, it would be these five…

Learned Business Lesson #1: 
You only fail if you quit.

This means taking everything you do into account, making an assessment about it and then the decision to keep moving!

• I’ve tried a LOT of things – some worked, some didn’t. All lessons
• I’ve taken more than a few breaks, some longer than necessary, but I didn’t quit.
• Obstacles only show up when you’re moving…so keep it moving friend!

Remembering setbacks are nothing more than an opportunity for an epic comeback really helps reframe that “failure” mindset. 😉Learning to take the lesson and keep it moving is not always easy, but so worth it.

Learned Business Lesson #2: 
Your core message doesn’t really change, but your wording and marketing about it can and will.

Not sure what I mean by that lesson? Here are some of my own examples:

• 1st tagline was: Encouragement for Faith, Life & Business
• 2nd tagline was: Prioritizing Focus | Empowering Growth
• Current tagline is: Restoring Faith & Focus to everyday Life & Business

The foundation of my business has always been about encouraging and helping entrepreneurial women. There are “3 buckets” that I strive to deliver that help  and encouragement. 

The 1st step (and bucket) is to get them solid on their faith. Entrepreneur or not, it’s only after you know what you stand for and why, are you able to focus on what’s next. 

What’s next is your everyday life. Creating priorities based on your core beliefs (faith) is the best way to align your day to day life with the future you want. This is a learned skill that takes practice, but with the right mindset and tools, totally doable. It’s what the whole Prioritized Focus method is all about!

The final bucket, but the one we usually try and bump to the top of our to-do list is our business. Perhaps it’s because we believe it’s the answer to our faith and life woes and the ticket to our desired futures.

👉Whether you have a business or it’s just the work that you are committing to succeed at, it should be the culmination and intersection of your faith and life, not the focus.

Take it from me, it’s not fun to work this kind of backwards – business, life and then faith.

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Learned Business Lesson #3: 
Fill the gap and the people will find you. (the right people)

As new to the “in business” world, I get how easy it can be to follow the gurus. Even now, it can be a battle to put my faith & life before my business – especially when you throw a shiny new “expert” into the mix.

But here’s the thing and what I’ve learned:

• Convincing people you, your product, business is “the real deal”…doesn’t work
• Creating what people tell you to create for other people…doesn’t work
• Telling “your audience” you have the solution to their problem without fully understanding their problem…doesn’t work

What works is alleviating pain for a certain group of people that you see and desperately want to help. These people are your ASSIGNMENT, not your audience. This “show” is about them, not you.

Learned Business Lesson #4:
Bells & Whistles impress, but don’t always deliver

So before you jump to fulfilling your must-haves by way of marketing and growing your business, first ask yourself: 

• Do I really need a fully integrated website or will a landing page work for now?
• Do I really need ALL the social media channels or just focus on one with a link to my website/landing page/email opt-in…?
• To niche or not to niche? Sometimes yes, a specific group or person works, but others it’s a situation or circumstance you’re helping solve. Do you know which works/makes sense for you?

Bottom line – I’ve learned that your message is your best marketing tool. Build the business first, then based on that growth you’ll see what you “need” next.

Learned Business Lesson #5:
Who you are shows up in what you do 

This was a huge lesson for me because my business was exposing who I was portraying, what part of me I was hiding and the me I wanted to become. The struggle is still real – imposter syndrome is a regular battle.

👉You are not your role, title or position and by trying to “be” those things just leaves you exhausted and always feeling that “something’s missing”.

Who you become depends heavily on how you handle your past. You can allow your past to strengthen you and point you to your future or prevent you from the one you want by wallowing in it.

Actions always follow belief – so who do you believe you are? 

Is it true? I add that question, because even though this is between you and you, I know how tempting it is to police yourself into giving an “acceptable” answer.

The most powerful exercise that I know of to help you with this is to fill in the blank…

I am _________________. 

Still struggling with it? 

Go to who God says you are in Ephesians 1:3-14:

…after all, He never had to fill in the blank. Exodus 3:14

There are a ton more lessons that I could share and even more detail on each of these, but I think we can agree that these are enough for now!

Becoming better because of the lessons right there with ya,

Like I said in the post, there’s more lessons & tips I could share,
but how about I just point you to one of my favorite tools for now? 👉 Check it out!

See the video version of this post on YouTube or here as Podcast episode #64