3 Simple Steps to Take Your Business to the Next Level ??

Your mindset in business (and in life) matters—a lot.

I’ve found that as I’ve evolved, my mindset, habits, environment, and who I am on a variety of levels changed. I desired to connect more to and understand who I truly desired to be in business—and become her.

I’m also very tactical and a methodical planner when it comes to my business.

So, let’s blend these together and explore the 3 specific steps I take every time I’m seeking to level up in my business, including what questions you can ask yourself to do the same in a way that truly fits you.

Evaluate (who have I been, what do I like and not like about her?)

• What’s worked well + why?

Maybe you have been growing your social media following like crazy this year and it’s been really fun! You’ve met some new partners who shared your content, you’ve been more bold in your calls to action, and you’ve changed up your content strategy to be more engaging.

• What hasn’t been working + why?

Maybe your social media hasn’t produced any more leads, though. You’ve been working extra hard to create the graphics and write the captions, and you feel a little burnt out. You also have been noticing a lot of your time going to more admin-related tasks instead of sales tasks, and your income has suffered a bit as a result of that.

• What do you desire to do differently?

You decide you’ll continue with social media but hire someone to help with the content creation. You’ll find double the partners to share your content and shift to using more templates so it’s easier for you to be consistent and not overpay for social media help.

You also pop an extra day in your calendar for rest so your burnout is alleviated as you prioritize sales actions and invest in some tools and templates to scale back your time investment on things like calendar management and invoicing.

Optimize (who do I desire to be, what do I think it’ll take to become her?)

On Episode 27 of the People Over Profit Podcast, I shared a visualization exercise I do for this that may be helpful for you. You can go listen if you like, but either way I want you to think about two things:

1. What do you think you’re missing?

A good social media manager, better billing software (less work for you), knowledge of how to capture more leads from social media (course, mentor, research) - make a list.

1. What are you already doing well?

Let's say you've been steadily gaining followers and track it back to your partners and engagement CTAs. How can you leverage these in other areas of the business to scale back your time?

Maybe use partners to promote your paid offers or lead magnets directly? Maybe invest in software like ThriveCart to bring on affiliates from your past or existing customer base? Maybe dedicate time to create a standard for engagement that’s repeatable and you can outsource to a lower cost resource?

You can also reflect on how you got your partners onboard and leverage those sales skills to bring in new partners and customers!

Automate (what will I own and what can I release as I step into this new me?)

• Make categories of what you need and decide what belongs in each. If you need new calendaring software, you can go to Google, ask friends for recommendations, pose the question in a community you belong to like a Facebook group.
• Once you find a few to try (e.g. Acuity, Calendly, Honeybook), get in there for free, pick one within a few days, and implement a process to use it.
• Don't forget to make sure it’s profitable, easy for YOU, and solves your most urgent problem(s)!

A few disclaimers:

I meet a lot of people who seek to grow and scale before they’re ready. Often, I find you haven’t moved to your next level because of your word choice.

If your budget is low, your business may not be optimized to scale yet. If you don’t feel certain of your next steps, you may still be building and figuring that out.

In each case, your best next step may be more about mastering the basics and growing within your current framework. Getting creative and keeping the stakes low testing some pathways forward can help.

For instance, if you desire to change up your social media but you don’t yet have the resources to hire help, think about what you need and the impact of it.

I’ve given myself and many of my clients the freedom to restructure a few fundamental pieces of their social media pages instead of a total strategy shakeup.

You can post more simple content less frequently to pour more into your money-generating activities and save up to outsource this later while seeing the same or better results.

I’ve also advised them to bite the bullet and invest in areas where they felt fear but already saw proof of ROI, like SEO or paid ads. You can do this, too.

Most of your results are simply confirmation bias for where you invest your best resources most often.

Keep this in mind as you think about leveling up. Also consider where you experience the most joy, what you desire to do more of, and the impact you want to see.

And remember, the process is cyclical. Don’t just do this when you’re in a phase of leveling up. Make it common practice to evaluate, optimize, and automate what you can to feel your best every day.

Need help? Email me anytime at [email protected]. I'm here for you!