Hey Confident Ladies!
Boy do I have a surprise for YOU! SO much goodness has happened recently, between celebrating my one year Biz-versary in October, announcing Baby C who will be arriving in the spring, and sharing with you all the insights I learned through being forced to lean back in my business for an entire quarter in 2016. You know I am super transparent in all that I do and I feel like there has been one thing I may have not been so transparent about…...INCOME and specifically, creating over six figures year one in my business.
My goal in business has always been #1 IMPACT-- which when done right will provide an INCOME. I have held back talking about my income for quite some time because of several reasons:
#1: Wanting to be respected for the VALUE that I give + IMPACT that I make and NOT because of the NUMBERS I am bringing in.
#2: I want people to hire me based off of my clients RESULTS aka testimonials, and NOT because I am making X amount of $$ each month.
#3: Not wanting it to appear that it was EASY to create this income and that everyone can do it year one in business. We all know it CAN be done, but many factors dictate the results we achieve. For example-- support we hire, time we have, level of investments we make, having consistent 1:1 coaches, etc.
But after year end review, I feel a strong pull to share with you what it takes to create an IMPACTFUL six figure business. I want to shine a light that you CAN create a profitable business with integrity, a servant’s heart, all while making an IMPACT! I want to INSPIRE you by revealing some key points and providing you with the next steps to get you to that place you desire to be at. Each week for the next three weeks we will be focussing on one specific insight into what it takes to run a profitable, sustainable, and freedom living impactful business. Please remember that just because something worked for me, doesn’t mean it will be the same for all. Ok let’s dive in and start with Week One’s theme of Mindset:
Insight #1: Maintain a clear mindset no matter WHAT. I shared with you all that for over three straight months in my first trimester of pregnancy I was pretty sick. Non stop nausea + fatigue and the meds kept me knocked out pretty much 14 out of 24 hours per day. I was forced to focus only on my paying clients, and to let go of creating new content, maintaining visibility, and marketing my business. This was NOT easy as I had been pretty much in hustle mode all of year one. But guess what? I had worked so hard on my mindset all year that I felt complete PEACE to release the fear and just allow what was happening happen. I could have easily fallen into scarcity or lack mindset, but I was able to keep my mindset in check, maintain abundant thinking, because of the strong foundation I laid early on.
Insight #2: Get your money mindset in check early on. Way too many entrepreneurs experience fear around money which in turn BLOCK them from creating an income. I hear time and time again “ I am scared to invest because I’m not making any money yet. Once I get my first client, I’ll be ready to invest”. I try to challenge this, but sometimes I will hear back from that individual 6-months to a year later stuck in the very SAME spot waiting to invest until they get that first client. And guess what? That’s a LONG time to NOT be making money in your business. I am going to lovingly tell you today that you MUST invest and get past your $$ fears if you want to create an income and impact. If you want something bad enough you WILL find a way to make it happen. Luckily, I knew early on that if I wanted to get that first client, make an impact, and begin creating an income I would need support in my business, especially 1:1 support. And guess what? It was one of the hardest times financially for my husband and I, but I knew deep down that if I wanted to be in X place within a year, I would need to invest in 1:1 coaching to get someone’s eyes on my business and provide me with the personalized direction needed to propel the timeline of my success.
Insight #3: Let go of the income fears. Now I bet you’re wondering, “why would someone be fearful of earning an income”?!? But let me tell you this is VERY common. Many women experience mindset blocks around the thought of earning a living through something that doesn’t feel like hard work or something that is a passion or mission of theirs. Fears get in the way such as “Is it right for me to earn a living doing what I love? Can I actually earn a living doing something that I love?” I often find, especially christian women fall into this trap. They feel they must serve from a place of a free ministry. And what do I say to that? Even churches collect money to continue to run, without money for water or electricity, a church might need to shut down. Another argument I bring up is, the more income that you make, the more opportunity it provides to give in other ways such as to missions, tithing, and the giving of your TIME. I am able to factor in time set aside for the creation of FREE content, because I don’t need to worry about how my bills will get paid and how I will eat because my income covers all of that. MONEY is ONLY a magnifier. If you are a giving individual with a little, you will be a HUGE giver with a lot. I will lovingly tell you today that you HAVE to get past this block if you want to make a big impact on the world. It has been a complete blessing over the past year to see how abundant and freely I am able to give back with my time and money to make a bigger impact on the world.
Insight #4: Get into the mindset of ONLY doing what lights you up. Ladies, I can’t say this enough. Even if it's a business that’s "not as profitable" trust me, if it lights you up, you will find a way for it to bring a profit. I have seen countless coaches trying to turn other creatives into coaches or even trying to convince coaches like me (who do something a bit different) that the only way to make money is to be a business coach. B.S. Not true. I am not a business coach and have made over six figures year one in business. PERFECT example. DO NOT fall into this trap. If business lights you up then yes, be a business coach. But if mindset, photography, confidence, design, copywriting, or marketing lights you up, stick with that! Don’t let other people’s limiting mindset beliefs dictate your future loves!!
Insight #5: JUST do what feels good. Just because someone says you should do something doesn't mean it's right for you. In this industry you will find many saying “you have to do/have x, y, & z to be successful”. And they are right to an extent because maybe it worked for them because it FELT GOOD for them. However, this does NOT mean it will work for you. I would hear people saying throughout my first year “you’ve gotta run challenges and have webinars in order to sell your services/products. These are the BEST way to funnel people in”. This might be true for some people, but NOT me. In year one of business I didn’t ONCE run a challenge or host a webinar and I still brought in OVER six figures. And how? Because I ONLY did what felt good. What felt aligned. And what felt natural in my business. I checked in with myself and made sure it wasn’t fear keeping me from these things. Some of the things I felt aligned with DID scare me, but I knew they would be right for my business so I stepped out of my comfort zone and did them. And guess what? They were wildly successful.
What are your thoughts on these insights? Do any really hit home with you or confirm something you've been feeling for some time? I’d love to hear your feedback and even experience with this. Please share below in the comments. If you'd like even more support in your business, let's hop on a Discovery Call to talk about how I can help you meet your goals through some mindset coaching. Simply fill out this app and we will get your call in the books!
XO Kate