10 Things I Learned My First Year in Business

My business turned one this week. I can hardly believe it’s been a year already and what a year it has been. There have been lots of ups and a fair amount of downs but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’m having the time of my life; confident this is what I’m supposed to be doing.

My first year in business taught me a lot and today I’m sharing the top 10 things I’ve learned over this past year.

Fear is a constant companion

I naively believed that once I took the leap to start my own business it would get easier to deal with fear. But this first year in business has taught me that the fear never goes away. It is always present. I have learned, on a whole new level, how to feel the fear and do it anyway.

The “experts” don’t know what’s right for me

I did a lot of looking to “experts” for advice on how I should run my business. There is A TON of information out there for the newbie entrepreneur and I chased a lot of it down this last year. Ultimately, though, I learned that the experts can give their advice but only I know what’s right for me.

Trusting my instincts is absolutely necessary

Connected with the above was me learning to trust my instincts more. My vision board has the phrase “trust your gut” on it and boy have I had to come back to that more than once this past year. As I have listened to my gut more, I’ve learned to trust myself more and that has made all the difference for me.

Finding a rhythm to my workday

I LOVE the flexibility that I have as an entrepreneur to set my own schedule in whatever way that works for me. It took me a while to work it out but I eventually discovered a rhythm for each workday and for my week. I learned what time of day I was most creative, when my energy was the lowest, what days worked best for me to see clients, and a lot more, all of which has helped me to stay productive this last year.

Flexibility is a must

I’m a bit of a control freak but there are many times when things happen that are completely outside of my control. Schedules change, appointments have to move, and things get disrupted. Through it all I have had to learn to be flexible and patient with myself and with others.

Coaching is a game changer

I’ve hired 5 coaches to support me during my first year in business. Not all of them were worth the investment but I walked away having learned important things including, with one coach, how NOT to do things in my own business. Without their support I would not have gotten where I am in my business today and I am grateful I made the investment.

Entrepreneurship is a spiritual journey

Truer words have never been spoken. My faith has shifted, changed and deepened over this last year on multiple levels. It’s the kind of growth that is hard to put into words because words rob it of its sacredness. I do know, though, that my spiritual growth this year has been a direct result of me being on this entrepreneurial journey. It hasn’t been easy but it has been worth it.

My relationship with money & myself shifted

How you do one thing is how you do everything. I’ve heard that phrase before but didn’t understand what it meant until this last year. I spent the year before starting my business learning about my relationship with money. I’m grateful I did that work because it gave me the tools I needed to manage the myriad of emotions around money that comes with being a solo-preneur. As my relationship with money evolved so did my relationship with myself. It has been a beautifully messy journey that is still unfolding and I love everything I’m learning along the way.

Other relationships changed

Several of the friendships I had in my previous life, by necessity, had to change. This was harder for me than I thought it would be and I spent a portion of this last year grieving those losses. But I have a new normal now and not all of those relationships were meant to come with me into my new normal.

New friends gained

The up side is that I also gained some new friends both in and out of the entrepreneur world. I met fellow newbie entrepreneur, Daphne, in Italy last year and we now meet regularly to hold each accountable. My new non-entrepreneur friend, Ann, almost quite literally saved my life when I was in the middle of a really hard time this last year. These and other new friends have been gifts I would not trade for anything.

Bonus lesson learned: It’s all rigged in my favor

This has become my new mantra. Throughout this first year in business, everything that has happened, and I do mean everything, has ultimately worked out in my favor. The good, the bad, the ugly…it has all conspired on my behalf, FOR me.

I am deeply grateful for this journey and look forward to seeing what adventures await me in this upcoming year. Thanks for being with me on this wild ride 🙂

From my heart to yours,

New things are brewing in me to serve my community even more deeply and in the coming months I’ll be sharing more details. My newsletter readers always hear things first so if you are not already on my list, you can click here to sign-up now. I look forward to welcoming you into our sisterhood.