It’s April, which means that it’s English with Kirsty’s birthday! 14 year’s ago, I decided to give the idea that I’d been hatching a chance! I’ve been teaching for a bit longer than that, but
these last 14 years have been an adventure! Here are 14 things I would tell my younger self before starting my business
🎉 There’s a lot that you don’t know! This is a chance for you to discover all kinds of new things! The parts of running a business that you haven’t even considered yet and the knowledge you’ll need to bring your ideas to life! Every day is a school day!
🎉 Find your people! You don’t have to do everything alone and your business buddies will become some of your best friends!
🎉 Follow your curiosity to discover new things – and when you get the idea to start a podcast, don’t worry – you’ll have at least 300 ideas for episodes – probably many more!
🎉 Don’t be sad when things don’t work out as you want them to! Sometimes it’s because something even better is around the corner. You just don’t see it yet.
🎉 Beginnings are hard, but Once you’ve spent some time letting people know what you do, you’ll be able to travel around Europe every day, sometimes further afield, without leaving your desk! You’ll support others to learn, but you’ll learn a lot on the way too!
🎉 Make time for yourself! Working the first year without any propper breaks isn’t good for you! Neither is insisting that you’re ok when actually you’re ill – it will take you longer to recover if you don’t get the rest that you need.
🎉 Show up consistently. It’s easy on the days when you feel like it, but equally important on the days when you don’t! You might not know who’s taking notice till weeks, months, or even years later!
🎉 Don’t say yes to stupid projects or to people who don’t align with your values because you’re worried you might not find something better. And listen to that inner voice. If something doesn’t feel good, you don’t need to rationalise and figure out exactly why. You’ll save yourself a lot of time and trouble if you pay attention to those nudges about when to say yes and when to walk away.
🎉 Your best ideas will come when you least expect them. If you’re feeling stuck, go for a walk.
🎉 Your website will never be finished – it will grow and evolve with you.
🎉 Check in with yourself every month! Find out how things are going – you like the numbers, but also make space to see how you feel about each part and what you want next. You’ll probably surprise yourself if you make room for these “conversations”!
🎉 Your ideal customer may change over time – stay flexible to see which projects bring you joy and where you are adding most value.
🎉 Be curious and open to try new things – but you don’t need to follow every trend. The best marketing ideas are those that work for you.
🎉 There are probably people around you who can give you the help, advice, or support that you’re looking for … if you let them. Will you let them?
Do you relate to any of them? What would you add?
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