Canadian Small Business Women

Connection, Synergy, Community

When The Going Gets Tough… What Next?

yvonne

 

When the going gets tough as an entrepreneur…

When you’ve done all you know to do. When your inner circle of strong supporters have encouraged you. When you’ve repeated all of your affirmations to stay motivated… what next? Perhaps you need to go back to the very beginning. The beginning being the dream and vision of ‘Why’ you started in the first place.

Many years ago when I decided to get an MBA, I remember attending my first semester and speaking with other students who seemed so far ahead of me on the pre-assignments and required readings, and it made me feel “Wow, can I catch up?”. I actually attended the first semester with the intention of asking to defer, but the administrator suggested I give it some time and see how I feel before making a concrete decision. I did give it some time, and found myself continuing with the programme. I have to admit that my plans to continue and not defer were bolstered by a fellow student who had encouraged me saying we had it in ‘us’ and would succeed one way or the other. So hey, I continued.

However, one thing I learnt and has stuck with me through my MBA (and life now) is that I always need to have a clear picture of my ‘Why’ before me. And for all those tough times I faced or was remotely tempted to throw in the towel during the programme, it was always that picture of my ‘Why’ that kept me going, and of course many strong hazelnut lattes!

Believe me when I say there were a few tough moments juggling the MBA with a full-time job, as well as a very challenging dissertation supervisor (to say the least), who I later found out was dealing with a personal crisis, which was in turn being taken out on me. Upon graduation at the end of the three-year programme, a few of my colleagues whom we started together had dropped out, deferred the program or were struggling to complete it for one reason or the other. All I can say is I was thankful to God, and having the picture of my strong ‘Why’ always before me.

Your strong why is that dream, vision or goal that you have clearly defined and desire to see it come to fruition. In John Maxwell’s ‘Put Your Dream to the Test’, he says that “If you can see your dream clearly – and keep it in front of you continually – it will help you to understand what you must sacrifice and what you must dedicate yourself to in order keep moving forward”.

Some guarantees on our journey to living our dreams and achieving our goals is that we will face challenges and setbacks, and that voice in our minds that keep asking us ‘why bother?’, quietly challenging us to quit and play it safe. It is at those times we will need to remind ourselves of our strong ‘Why’ amongst all the other strategies that keep us on track when the going gets tough. You are not allowed to play it safe “A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for” – John A. Shedd. You can’t afford to play it safe!

When the going gets tough, we keep going because our dreams speak louder, clearer and stronger, and remind us of ‘Why’.

Confused about what you need to do to start a business or take it to the next level? Need a to ensure you are on track with building your business? Download my Free “Business Start-up Checklist” to help you get started now and keep on track. http://bit.ly/bzchlist

 

Yvonne is a Change Consultant, Speaker & John Maxwell Leadership Coach who is passionate about working with Individuals, Entrepreneurs and Organisations to implement change, drive results and achieve their goals.   She can be reached at: www.oliveblue.com . www.facebook.com/oliveblueinc . www.twitter.com/oliveblueinc . www.youtube.com/ChangeYouWantTV

Turn your business around by knowing and owning your worth!

Uchechi

I was speaking to a fairly new business owner recently, who was feeling high level of anxiety and frustrations over her business. As I was speaking to her, I could sense the fear, doubt, and frustration that were coming up for her around the security of her business.

As we dug deeper into her feelings and sharing tools to help change her perception, which would allow her to see solutions vs. feeling like a victim, an interesting realization surfaced. Although, it was her desire to succeed and thrive in her business, deep down she did not feel worthy of it. She also realized that subconsciously she felt that she had to struggle. This deep-rooted belief then became her reality. It was such a great ‘aha’ moment for her and I truly believe the start to her turning her feelings and business around. Her feeling of unworthiness and need to struggle is a perfect example of how much our past programming and conditioning plays in our lives and business.

Many of us grew up in a household where money was scarce and as such we developed the belief that money is hard to come by and struggling is a natural way to live. Beliefs like this relate to all areas of our lives, especially when we’re trying to build a successful business! This is the very reason why many personal development literatures and programs often state that we don’t go searching to ‘find’ success. It is all inside us. All we need to do is identify and remove the blocks, which we have built up against it. These blocks includes feelings of unworthiness and need for struggle that we have picked up growing up, which is now preventing us from having all the success and prosperity we crave in our lives and business.

Understanding your sense of self and knowing and owning your worth and power is essential in changing negative perceptions and programming that often keeps you from being successful and achieving your goals. Below are some tools I shared in a past workshop that will help you take back your power and start to build a better relationship with yourself. This will ultimately help you move past the need to struggle and past the feeling of unworthiness and undeserving of success.

Ditch the inner critic – Ditch that small voice of the ego that tells you that you are neither good enough nor worthy of your goals and success. It’s time to call b.s. on that voice and prove it wrong by stepping out with faith and taking action towards your goals. When that voice acts up, remind them of your power and that you were meant for success and to prosper!

Break your inner glass ceiling– We’ve all heard of the glass ceiling in the corporate world, where no matter what we do or how hard we work, there is a glass ceiling that we feel we just can’t break through. Well, the same holds true internally. We have this limited thinking of what we can or can’t do. We’ve created a set point through our past programming that limits our capability. For example, you can’t see yourself making more than $10,000 a month in your business, because you are small with limited resources and can only grow so much. We’ve set so many false limits on ourselves. It is important to realize that your limit is only based on what you choose to be true for you. You must always remember you are an abundant being and that your eyes and ears cannot comprehend the abundance and success that is waiting for you to claim. Everything you need to thrive and build a successful business is inside of you. I know this sounds like such a cliché, but it’s true! You just need to remove your self-limiting beliefs about yourself that holds you back and keeps you stagnant.

Be conscious of your internal and outer dialogue– Watch the language you use to describe yourself and your business. Many times, we say “I can’t, I don’t have enough, I’m too small” etc. We need to remember that our self-talk turns into stories, which then becomes our beliefs; thus we’ve just programmed ourselves. We then experience these beliefs and programming in our physical environment. We need to harness and master our thoughts and self talk to empower us. Using affirmations and consciously intending your wishes and desires for your business and knowing that it will come to pass is one way to do this. What words and thoughts are you using to describe your business and it’s current condition? Would you want your thoughts and words to materialize? Be conscious of your thoughts and speak words that best serve you and your business.

 

Uchechi Ezurike-Bosse is a Business & Lifestyle Strategist, Speaker and Writer, but most importantly, a proud Mother and Wife. Uchechi is Co-Founder of Elite Wellness Services Inc. (www.elitewellness.ca) and Founder of My Empowered Living (http://www.myempoweredliving.com) a website aimed at helping women change negative and disempowering mindset and live their passion! Whether it’s starting and building their dream business, or helping them create a lifestyle they crave, Uchechi is the modern woman’s secret to success! Visit Uchechi at www.myempoweredliving.com to get your FREE copy of 5 Simple Steps to Create a Life you’re Crazy About! A 15-page workbook!