6 key business start-up lessons I learned from founding my own finance company and getting out of my comfort zone

In 2018, I challenged myself to get out of my comfort zone. It was my first whole 12 months working full-time in Hype Financial and marked the completion of my official transition to the world of self-employment.

The start of last year was daunting and challenging mentally, largely due to the unknowns I faced with growing a new business, including challenges like finding out where my clients would come from. It may sound odd, but I realised through this process that being completely in charge of creating my own success was the first time I had been 100% responsible for my life.

How I viewed success in 2018 quite simply came down to survival and learning. My goal was to get up and attack each day with a positive growth mindset. It was to be the best dad possible to our two adorable children. It was to be a supportive husband and still be present at home.

While I didn't match up to these goals every day, I did learn a lot along the way. Here are the top six lessons I learned by stepping outside my comfort zone and starting my own finance business:

1. Be You

Be all in on you. Ignore any thoughts that you need to be like someone else or act a certain way. It's easy to feel like other people know what they're doing and therefore the way they do things is the right way. But the reality is that everyone's learning and even when you're just starting out with a new venture you will undoubtedly have life experience, professional expertise, passions and quirks of personality that give you a unique insight into your work. Right from the start, you may have a fresh approach that benefits others.

You'll never be able to nurture this potential into a full-fledged offering if you don't allow yourself to find your own way of operating and risking being seen as different or out of step with the crowd. Being a small business owner felt strange to begin with, but time has helped make this new life feel normal and given me the confidence to back myself. Don't waste time pretending to be someone you're not, instead invest in your development, learn something new every day, and seek feedback from people you respect who are doing something in your area that really resonates with you.

2. Learn by taking action

Learning by doing is certainly not a new concept. Richard Branson has offered the advice "If somebody offers you an amazing opportunity but you are not sure you can do it, say yes – then learn how to do it later".

Like most things in life, to really understand this idea I needed to experience it firsthand. I found that while it was at times confusing or overwhelming, by throwing myself in the deep end I only had two options - drown or learn how to swim. Fortunately for me, it was the latter.

My advice to anyone else starting out in a new venture is to roll up your sleeves, be curious and make things happen. The world of finance is complex and the many learnings thus far have all occurred on the back of taking action. Don't be afraid to make mistakes. Some of my best lessons so far have been learnt from failing.

3. Gratitude

This one seems obvious, but it can be easy to forget in the all-consuming task of starting your own business. We all benefit immeasurably from the support of those close to us, our clients and our colleagues. It's important to me to show appreciation to everyone who has supported my journey. It often is as simple as a phone call to say thank you.

I’m privileged to have many good people who have helped support my journey to date and for that I’m genuinely thankful. One person who has been an absolute rock of support and love is my gorgeous wife. Leah has ridden all the bumps, all the highs and lows over the journey. I have so much respect for Leah, even when I’ve had some doubts, I always knew she believed in me.

4. Time

We all know that time is precious, but as a small business owner it's important to take control of your time management and learn how to work with the time you do have rather than letting it work you over. Time is our greatest asset in life, use it wisely.

Being completely in control of my own time was challenging and somewhat daunting early on. After many failings, adjustments and implementation of different practises to better manage my time I now feel that I can use time smartly and enjoy the benefit of living my life on my own terms the way that I want to.

In my specific field, I've also learned that the difference between a great outcome and a mistake for a client can be the difference of time. I've learned that time which you invest into your clients to understand where their story saves you both threefold in the long run. From the client's side of the relationship, the time they may have to spend waiting for the right opportunity or planning to make that right opportunity happen is often the key to a great outcome.

5. Your health is your wealth

Investing time into your health is essential for having more energy in everyday life, I’ve certainly found this to be the case for me. I didn’t do anywhere near enough exercise until November last year when I joined a gym to participate in group boxing classes. I started running again too. While the benefits of increased energy were great, I found the best outcomes were mental.

No matter what you're doing in your professional or personal life, if you're stepping into new territory then you're going to be working your brain a lot more and grappling with a lot of decision making. Being in new life territory means you need to be thinking constantly about the best way to handle new challenges and opportunities and one of the best things I did to prepare myself for this task was to get back into boxing and running. The mental clarity provided by pushing myself physically have helped greatly to increase focus and vitality in my work.

6. Remember why you're doing it

The self-employed journey is equally as challenging for your partner and family as it is for you. The uncertainty around income with a young family sits at the front of your mind on a daily basis. One of the ways I dealt with the pressure of income and managing the business cash flow was to be go back to why I took on the challenge as a new to industry finance and mortgage broker.

If you remind yourself of the motivations that propelled you into your new project it can help to keep you focussed through the hard times. For me I kept coming back to my desire to help everyday Australians achieve their property dreams and goals. To give honest advice and share their journey in life and financial freedom. To help Australians become debt free.

I'm excited to continue this journey of new discoveries in 2019 and challenging myself to step outside what I know to continue learning and growing.

On a professional level, creating a blog about different topics including key learnings from my personal journey feels like a fitting starting point. I enjoy reading blogs by other professionals. They make me think about things from a different perspective and promote thinking on how I can learn and improve. One of my goals for the year ahead will be to continue this blog to share my journey with you all.  

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog.

Cheers

Luke Cieslak

Director - Hype Financial