(I’m going to get really personal here…)
I hate to admit it, but in 2018, I really missed the mark in both my business and personal life.
I was overworked, and exhausted.
You see, it was my first “real” year in business… and I wanted so desperately to make it work. To have the perfect work-from-home, stay-at-home blended entrepreneur-mom thing going on.
So much so, that I kind of “forced” it to work.
I spent a lot of time, money, and energy doing all of the things the “experts” said I should be doing to get my business rolling.
I hustled… working 60 hours a week so I could avoid going back to the 9-5, 40 hour week. (And I justified this by saying to myself, “well at least I decide when and where to work”… ha!)
I spent almost all of my savings on marketing experts to write copy, create ads, and “do all the things” that would MAKE my business work. Guaranteed success!
And then, I also became everything to everyone. Meaning, I picked up whatever project I could, and do anything that was within my skill set. (Ok people – do you know my about my compulsion with learning? I have ALOT of skill sets!)
Where did this leave me?
I was spreading myself thin across different markets and industries. I was offering a huge range of products and services that required my brain to constantly shift in a 180, multiple times a day.
It was incredibly inefficient, not effective, and most importantly, exhausting!
At one point, mid-summer, while I was sitting at the beach with my iPad (yes, I was working on the beach… because I was literally working day and night while my kids were home with me).
(Here’s the view of my daughter doing handstands on the shore, while I’m working away on my iPad!)I had a part nervous breakdown, but also part epiphany…
Whoah!
I took a step back.
And then, I took a deep breath.
I realized, the business that I was creating, was not any better than my old 9-5! And, if this was the brighter side of working corporate… I wasn’t so sure it was what I wanted!
In true Lindsay fashion, I decided to jump into a self-analysis project.
I identified the projects that I loved. And, as soon as I knew what those were… I doubled-down on them immediately. Making sure that they were my top priority.
Then, I identified the projects that didn’t make me feel good. The ones that felt icky, and unmotivated to work on.
And to be honest, those projects are the ones I felt I “had” to do… because they were “safe.”
(But, we all know, nothing is “safe” and this type of “have-to-do” mindset is 100% fear-based).
Even though at the time, the projects that I loved were not producing me enough income to live off of, I still moved forward and put in notice to end the contracts on the projects that I wasn’t feeling the warm and fuzzies about.
This is when the magic happened.
It turns out… the projects in the “things I love” pile were the projects that I had the best client relationships with and where I was actually making the most money.
And those clients, they continued to support me because of our awesome relationships and the value I provided them. A few of these clients, even sent referrals my way which turned into new contracts and more good-for-me work.
Coincidence?
Nope. Your energy flows where your attention goes, my friends… and my attention is now on the work that I LOVE.
Entrepreneurship is a journey… and a tough one at that. In fact, 9/10 start-ups will fail. And part of that statistic is because the founders lose passion, focus, and burn out.
As we move in 2019 my vision and mission are more clear than ever. I’ll be selective on choosing projects that I LOVE and passing on those that I don’t.
(Side note: If you need some motivation to do this for yourself… when I implemented this in the second half of last year, I doubled my revenue both quarters!)
Moving forward, here is what you can expect from me in 2019:
A focused strategy on products (yes, products! More on this soon!) and services center at building systems, tools, and technology so that you can promote efficiency within you business; not hinder it.
Leveraged content from my Active Campaign and Digital Marketer (yes, this is new too!) partnerships, so that I can provide you with more value-added resources.
(…In fact, I already have 52 weeks of content planned… you can expect a new blog in your inbox every Tuesday with sprinkles throughout the week on my Facebook page and LinkedIn profile).
Finally, I will continue to share my experiences, both positive and not-so-fun with you… because this journey isn’t just about me. It’s about us… creating awesome experiences for our audiences together and we can’t do that, if I’m aren’t sharing the truth.
To be honest, I’m feeling a little bit uncomfortable dropping out of my safety zone (12+ years of instructional design)… but also SO excited to focus on the future.
And just in case you were wondering, I will be continuing to offer products and services that enable you to implement digital products within your business, leveraging all of my knowledge and skills gained from my background.
It is my mission, to provide you with valuable, actionable content, that you can learn from and implement directly into your business… not a load of fluff or theory.
I’m talking strategy, tools, and tactics.
Are you ready for 2019?
I sure am!
Let’s go get it!
