9 lessons after 5 years in business

My coaching business turned 5 last week and it's made me reflect on just how far I've come in that time. It's so easy just to keep pushing to the next income goal or product launch without stopping to smell the roses.

But looking back, I see that I'm pretty bloody close to creating the business I dreamt of back in 2018.

?? I've more than replaced my old 9-5 Head of Talent salary

?? I work flexibly around my young family

?? I get to do work that fills my cup and makes a difference

? I get to work with hugely inspiring clients every single day

?? All whilst working in alignment with my personality and purpose.

?

That said, the last 5 years has been anything but a walk in the park.??My learning curve has been mind-boggling.

?

I thought I'd pull together my?top 9 learnings of the last 5 years?in case you're in the early stages of shaping and growing your own service-led business.?They might just save you time and tears and fast-track your progress to replacing your 9-5 salary.

?

1. Get to know yourself again???

Not the old ‘corporate you’, but the?new?‘purposeful founder’ version of you! Reconnect with your unique value, personality, superpowers, values and business purpose. Your definition of success will unique to you.

Your business will only succeed if it’s grounded in who you are as a person - what makes you tick, what you value, your driving purpose etc.

This is ultimately where the energy to sustain your beautiful new business will come from and will become the blueprint around which you’ll go on to shape your entire business.

?

2. Explore your personal and professional story???

I promise you, if you know where to look, there will be ‘red threads’ which become important clues about your new business' purpose and why.

Providing you ensure this business purpose solves a problem people will actually pay you for (i.e there’s a good ‘market fit’) you’ll have a financially viable idea. Your purpose and origin story will also become gold-dust when it comes to magnetising the right people to your offers.

??

3. Shed your corporate hangover???

If you’ve ever worked for someone else, the chances are you've picked up some ‘unhelpful’ beliefs about how to ‘do business’.?

For example, the 24/7 hustle of the patriarchal world is clearly not sustainable and a recipe for self-doubt and burnout, at least it is from my own experience. Learning to tune into the best authority on your business - YOU - will be key for your sustainable success.?

Take time to reclaim your feminine intuition?(remember her?)?She’ll become your most important asset in making business decisions.?

?

4. Get crystal clear on your dream client and?exactly?how you solve their problems??

Learn how to package your unique skills, experience and approach into?signature?services that solve the?specific?problems your ‘right fit’ people have.

That way you’ll always have demand for your services and you'll also stand out from all the other people who do what you want to do.

?

5. Lean into what makes you YOU???

When you create an authentic business brand which feels like an extension of who you are; you’ll begin to magnetise your dream clients to you in a way that feels good; all without the need for any sleazy, bro-marketing tactics or hustle.

The more you shape your business around?you?- your personality, purpose and personal life, the greater the impact you will make through your work (and the more income you'll generate.)

?

6. Choose marketing approaches that feel natural???

The pressure of having to be on all the social media platforms and try?all?the things is real when you first start out in business. The noise online is deafening.

Work out which methods align best with your personality, strengths and values system. This way you’ll be able to show up confidently and in integrity, and share your magic with the people you’re best positioned to serve.

7. Reframe ‘self-promotion’ and marketing???

You’re absolutely right to feel ‘icky’ about self-promotion. But the key is not to promote *yourself*, but rather to promote your?point of view?or your?solution?that will help somebody.

Then self-promotion becomes more about expanding your capacity to make an impact in people’s lives.

So instead of feeling disingenuous and icky, you'll feel so genuinely excited to share the good news with people that you have the perfect solution that will help them solve their problem.?

8. Befriend (and then cage!) your mindset monkeys???

Running my own business has been the single biggest personal development of my 20y+ career! I definitely underestimated the role my mindset would play in the success of my business.

Finding trusted mentors, coaches and business buddies to challenge, support me and hold me to account when my inner critic took over has been?priceless.

?Learning various neuroscience-informed hacks and strategies still helps me overcome imposter syndrome and negative thinking on a daily basis.

?

9. And finally, for the love of baby animals,?please?ask for help from people who have been there and done it???

Of course you might expect me to say this - given the nature of my own business??- but I can’t stress enough how powerful?asking for help?and guidance from people a few steps ahead of me in my business journey has been over the years.?

Over the last 5 years I've invested ￡1000s in my business in the form of help with sales, marketing, accountancy, social media, branding, email marketing, mindset, neuroscience and mental health experts, coaches and mentors.

?But it took me 2+ years before I admitted I needed this help.?(This is a recurring pattern in my personal life too!??)

?

I know now that I would have?seriously?fast-tracked my results had I sought this help in my?first year?of business.

No matter how resourceful you think you are, if you’ve never done this before, asking for help will supercharge your progress, impact, income and happiness. (and save you more blood, sweat and tears than I care to mention.)

?

So if you're ready to give your own service-led business dreams wings, I have shaped my entire?Lost to Found(er) ?startup programme and Orchard founders community around these 9 learnings?(and many more besides…)

If you're 0-12 months into your service-led business journey and you're ready to stop dabbling, I'd love you to join us so you don't have to muddle through all of the above lessons on your own.?

?? We start on Friday 17th March at 12:30 (UK time).???

Drop me a line on [email protected] if you'd like to find out more and see if you'd be a good fit.