How to Stop Your Mindset from Holding You Back and Level Up Your Practice

When I want to level up my business, the biggest shifts come from my thinking rather than my doing. However, levelling up your mindset is definitely easier said than done.?

I work with so many accountants, outsourced CFOs and financial coaches who tell themselves stories. They go a little something like this:

“I can’t offer advisory services because I haven’t before.”

“I can’t charge that amount of money because others don’t.”

“I can’t systemise my business because it’s only me and I don’t really need to yet.”

You won’t go anywhere by telling yourself that you can’t. You need to adopt a growth mindset. This doesn’t mean being arrogant or adopting blind faith. It’s about a willingness to give it a go and try something new, even when you’re terrified.?

This is the mindset that will cause your practice to thrive.?

Why Does a Growth Mindset Matter?

Allow me to tell you a story about my friend, Chris.?

He and I were discussing his latest offer, which he had just closed. I challenged him to re-open it for an extra 24 hours, giving those who didn't buy a chance to change their minds.?

At first, Chris was very reluctant. He felt that he couldn’t because a deadline is a deadline and he didn’t want to go back on his word. However, over the course of the next few days he came around and decided to try it.?

He adopted a growth mindset. He was uncomfortable, but he took action anyway and in that single day he made an extra ￡15k.?

His fixed mindset was telling him “no” and this would have kept him from earning a significant amount of money.?

These stories we tell ourselves don’t serve us; they simply keep us small. That’s why whenever I uplevel my business, a shift in mindset always has to come first. You don’t have to be sure of everything, but you have to have a willingness to try. You have to put the potential for growth above your feelings of fear.?

The Wrong Environment?

If you feel full of self-doubt and are struggling to find motivation to continue growing your practice, the chances are that you are in the wrong environment. Your surroundings are keeping you small, and it’s up to you to change this to create an optimal atmosphere for growth.?

When the people in your life constantly question you instead of offering support, it drains your energy. In this situation, the current is flowing against you and it’s ten times harder to move forward.?

If your friends, family and peers are constantly asking you things like…

“Why do you work weekends?”

“Wouldn’t you just be better off going back to your day job?”

“Why do you bother with all of this?”

If you are faced with questions like this frequently then it’s really no wonder that your energy levels are at an all-time low. When you lack encouragement, the journey becomes infinitely more difficult.?

The Right Environment?

If you’re in an environment that leaves you feeling doubtful and drained, it’s time to make a change.?

The fastest path to success is the one lined with people who motivate you to get out of bed in the morning and keep on pushing each day. They’re the ones who actively listen and offer solutions when you need to vent, instead of simply suggesting that you throw in the towel. Often, they’re ahead of you on the same journey and are able to lead by example.?

Your cheerleaders don’t have to be in the same industry as you. One of my biggest cheerleaders is my best friend, Pascale, because she listens to my frustrations and sends me amazing messages of encouragement. I’m also extremely lucky that my family is supportive of me, too.?

In the world of work, I have my accountability buddy, Matt. We speak every Friday at 9am sharp to share our problems and brainstorm solutions. We celebrate our wins, bounce ideas off of one another and offer encouragement and motivation when one of us is experiencing a lull in that department.?

I also pay to belong to a group mentoring program, even though I spend very little time actually learning from the program itself. However, the fees are 100% worth it for me because it gives me access to a fantastic group of peers who encourage and inspire me every single day.?

But this wasn’t always the case.?

I used to have a group of friends who would cajole me into spending every night down the pub, and then wonder why my business wasn’t going the way I wanted it to.?

Uplevelling my environment by investing in a coaching program truly was a game-changer for me. It was the moment I started taking my business seriously, by creating an environment that was actually conducive to success.?

Uplevelling Your Environment

Of course, not everyone is fortunate enough to have supportive family members or friends. At one time, I was certainly lacking in the latter department. However, there are plenty of ways to connect with new people and introduce motivation and encouragement into your life.?

One of the simplest ways to do this is to get into the habit of listening to podcasts when you’re doing chores, out walking or driving. Podcasts deliver goodness straight into your ears. You can listen to tips, advice and encouragement from some of the world’s leading entrepreneurs, and doing this regularly will work wonders for your mindset.

It’s also worth joining a group program, as I did. There is so much value to be learned from socialising with others who are ahead of you on their journey. I actively surround myself with people who are light years ahead of me, because this is one of the main ways I learn how to uplevel my business.?

Letting Go of Vanity?

Another thing that may well be holding you back from uplevelling your practice is an obsession with vanity metrics.?

As a society, we love nothing more than getting lots of likes and comments. Unfortunately, this vanity often costs us our sanity.?

Vanity metrics can make you feel awful. When your posts get very few likes and no comments, it feels as though no-one is supporting you, when that’s not the case.?

Worse still, doubtful friends and family members might pull you up on your lack of likes and ask you why you’re bothering with social media marketing if your numbers are low.?

When I speak to clients about content marketing via social media, one of their biggest concerns is always about getting likes, but these numbers are virtually meaningless.?

Sanity Metrics?

In a recent meeting with my accountability buddy, Matt, who I mentioned above, he told me that he was averaging twelve likes per post - and yet his diary was booked out with calls. He was surprised, but I wasn’t. It’s been this way with me for years.?

In fact, I STILL don’t get hundreds of likes or comments on my content, but my business has grown from strength to strength and I consistently sign multiple new clients every week.

The magic doesn’t happen for all to see. It’s what goes on behind the scenes that counts. It’s the customer journey, not the meaningless metrics.?

In fact, when I asked a group of my Momentum students how many of them had liked or commented on one of my posts recently, almost none of them raised their hand. Yet they had all purchased my program.?

I’m not here to help my clients become social media celebrities, I’m here to teach them how to attract the right clients to their practices.?

Focusing on vanity metrics will lead you down the wrong path. You’re not chasing fame, you’re attracting clients. If you begin to place your worth on the number of likes and comments you receive, you will start to create clickbait content to get that buzz instead of creating helpful marketing materials that serve your ideal client.?

Give value in public, and sell in private. Forget about vanity metrics and focus on the sanity metrics - the ones that will actually allow you to pay your bills and grow your practice. Vanity will never uplevel you.?

Summary?

Uplevelling your mindset is the first step towards uplevelling your practice, but it’s not as easy as a quick meditation session. If only!?

In order to cultivate a growth mindset, it’s essential that you surround yourself with supportive people who listen to your problems and encourage you to continue on in your journey. Your environment has a huge impact on your mindset and growth.

It’s also important to ensure that you are focusing on the right metrics, rather than being consumed by vanity. Whilst likes and comments make us feel good by delivering a dopamine buzz to the brain, they are no reflection on the health and success of a practice. When you stop allowing your confidence and success to be defined by likes and comments, your mindset will shift to focus on what matters.?

Don’t underestimate the importance of your mindset, because it will shape your practice. It pays to be picky about what - and who - you let into your life.

PS I specialise in helping accountants and financial coaches innovate their business model and uplevel the entire profession. When you are ready to find out more, here are 3 ways you can:

1. Join The Community

Our best training happens inside our FREE Facebook group?Superpowers For Accountants, Outsourced CFOs and Financial Coaches.

2. Connect with me on LinkedIn

Send me a message?and say hi, I would love to find out more about you and what kind of support you may need.

3. Want to find out about our programmes?

Let’s jump on the phone for a quick call, and brainstorm any challenges and if we can possibly help. This quick ten minute call is there to help you get clarity and see if we can help you.?Book here.

Thanks for reading!

At Oompf.Global we show you the exact branding and marketing strategies needed for you to turn your accounting/business advisory services into a unique VITAL product that you effortlessly market and sell for 5 figures We help accounting firms go from overlooked commodities to “VITAL” assets – differentiated positioning, productised offer, unique brand, happy clients and founders with freedom. If you would like to delve deeper into our content here are a few ways you can do that.

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