Would you like to listen to this post? CinchCast audio is just above the related posts, sharing links, and comments at the bottom. Look for the purple play button.
Ever feel like the woman on the left – biting your nails nervously when you think about running your own business? Good thing you stopped by today, it’s a Tuesday pep talk!
Personal and business get so intertwined when you’re a solopreneur – personal progress IS business progress and growing as a person is required to grow your business…
My greatest challenge in business isn’t marketing, or my technical services, or writing… it’s doing the work to be a better, stronger, bolder version of myself and to have faith and confidence that I’ll succeed.
So if you find it challenging, too, know that you aren’t alone! And you can do it.
Past failures don’t matter unless you allow them to. Forget the people who discourage you, who tell you you aren’t “enough” whatever (smart enough, strong enough, talented enough) to succeed. You can learn whatever you need to know as long as you’ve got determination to make it happen.
Don’t compare yourself to others. Compare yourself to the former you. If you’re better, smarter and stepping up in a bigger way than you were yesterday, that’s success!
Celebrate every success – even the small ones. Build on those. Taking small steps in the right direction is better than taking no steps because we’re afraid of the big ones. Start as small as you need to and it’ll get easier to take bigger steps.
One step, one choice, one smart move at a time we can do it.
“Even though you may want to move forward in your life, you may have one foot on the brakes. In order to be free, we must learn how to let go. Release the hurt. Release the fear. Refuse to entertain your old pain. The energy it taeks to hang onto the past is holding you back from a new life. What is it you would let go of today?”
~Mary Manin Morrissey
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Michelle, this is a powerful post. I think we all need a reminder now and then that we ARE enough – no matter what. Those tiny voices that whisper we’re not are wrong and don’t deserve the time we give to them. Thanks for the reminder and the pep talk!
Lis
Thanks Lisbeth. It can be hard to ignore those little voices. But we can do it. They don’t know what they’re talking about. ;)
Girl, you always seem to post just what I need to hear! Thanks bunches!
((hugs)) Amy – hang in there. Don’t give up and I promise you can make it through!
Thanks! I really needed to hear that today….
You’re welcome, Dana. I’m glad it was encouraging.
Great post, Michelle! We all need to hear that.
Jeanine
I had to share this today on FB. It’s in total alignment with a principle I love about needing to practice stepping out of our familiar comfort zones in order to grow. “Comfort” in this manner is a misnomer. We are simply “used to” a lot of abuse. Some of it can be seemingly casual and perhaps not meant to maim our self esteem but to hold another’s up, while other abuse is malicious in nature. In stepping into the spotlight to possibly invite more of the same, we are allowing ourselves more courage, receiving “thank yous” and sometimes uncomfortable amounts of gratitude not only graciously but with ownership in our power. We are expanding that “bolder version” of us and reinventing ourselves every day. So I say do something just out of your comfort zone every day. It primes your brain for bigger and better more hairy audacious goals. Take credit for your decision to choose the path you do, and rejoice in the consequences that by your choices you have positively affected someones life in a meaningful way.
Love and Brilliance,
Heather
I may be a little biased, Michelle, since I like do audio posts, but I LOVE that you added a cinchcast today!
You have a very appealing voice (a voice for radio, as they say) and I’ve already become accustomed to hearing your voice since I’ve listened to the lessons in your “Marketing Brainstorm Workshop”. I hope you’ll do more audio blog posts in the future.
The message in your post today is one that I believe almost every solo entrepreneur can relate to (and admit to!).
In my case, I’m my own worst enemy. I beat myself up emotionally and tell myself I could be doing a lot more. I’m beginning to gather more faith and realizing that I have a personal set of circumstances that’s unlike anyone else’s and that it’s totally okay to take those baby steps you mentioned.
So glad I stopped by today. :-)
Melanie
Love the audio, and this post is so timely for me especially: Don’t compare yourself to others. Compare yourself to the former you. If you’re better, smarter and stepping up in a bigger way than you were yesterday, that’s success!
in gratitude
I love the audio idea. Has anyone ever tested how many folks listen to the audio… or prefer audio over the written text?
Your message of competing just with yourself is a good idea. So often we look outside of ourselves for validation. We then become “other determined” rather than “self determined.”
Hey Kathy ~
Michelle is much better at collecting stats and data than me, but …
I did a test run on audio posts during the recent 30-day blogging challenge and the results showed a definite 50-50 split. So I decided that I’ll include audios with my posts on occasion knowing that at least some folks will enjoy and appreciate them.