Years ago, I started the entrepreneurial journey the same way many people start it: I had a skill I was good at, worked at a place that sucked, and decided “I can do it better than that guy…I should start my OWN business!”
I was a hair colorist, working in a salon that was, well, I’ll just call it quaint. Tiffany lamps, old fashioned barber-style chairs, a gumball machine for the kids—lots of old-school kitsch, and while the owners were nice enough, it did not fit my personal vision of amazing.
So I made the classic first mistake of being an entrepreneur: I figured that knowing how to ply my trade was the same thing as knowing how to run the business, and I forged full steam ahead into small business ownership.
Ignorance is bliss, I tell you. I had no idea what I did not know, and was perfectly content to make it up as I went along, everything from accounting systems to inventory processes to customer service standards and policies, all invented out of thin air not one moment before I needed them, and usually in response to some need I didn’t even know I had until a problem presented itself. Like, how does one calculate and generate paychecks for employees? Hmm… better figure this one out pretty quick or my brand new staff will be pissed. How do I train people to do their jobs? How do I motivate, inspire, and help my people grow so that they will want to keep working for me? How do I create and maintain excellence in all areas of this business? And so on.
The biggest problem, though, was not so much the business systems side of things. Granted, sometimes things were a bit rough and rarely worked flawlessly, but I managed to devise enough structure and flow that things more or less worked according to plan, most of the time.
The biggest problem was ME. Though I couldn’t have articulated it at the time, nearly every problem I had in the salon could be traced back to some way of thinking about things that I had, some way of interacting with problems or conflict that wasn’t working, some personal style or personality trait that got in the way of me being an effective leader in that salon.
If I had a problem with a stylist, there was a good chance that I hadn’t done my job somehow: not communicated clear expectations, not earned enough loyalty, not given them enough tough love if needed, not fired them when I should have. If I had a problem with the culture of the salon, it was because I hadn’t taken the time to tune in to what was happening, and done my part to create the environment I wanted to see. If I didn’t feel like my staff was on my side, I hadn’t done my part to create or communicate a compelling vision that they could get behind with conviction.
The thing about being an entrepreneur is that while you think the thing you’re doing is growing a business, what you’re really doing is launching into a personal development opportunity that will force you to grow you one way or another. The hope is that you’ve got enough self-awareness to recognize that you’re being called to transform and that you will rise to the challenge for the sake of your business.
I think this is true not just for owning a business, but in any area of life. Relationships, jobs, friendships, transitions—all of these situations have the potential to throw us up against our own limitations and call us forward to grow, but only if we let them: if we are willing to become our own observer, watch for the patterns, thoughts, behaviors, beliefs that limit our options, and start trying on new ones in order to change the results we’re getting.
This, to me, is a key element of what I like to think of as personal leadership: the acknowledgement that things only happen differently when WE change, not when the other people or circumstances change; and we must be willing to take on the challenge of personal growth and transformation, in service of becoming the people we are inherently capable of being.
Even now, this plays out in my life (the work is never done, I’ve decided.) As I work to grow a thriving coaching practice, I find myself up against what might look like barriers, but are really just limited beliefs I have about who I am, what I’m capable of, what’s possible for me, and so forth. So I continue to be called to change—I can’t solve my problems with the same thinking that created them, and I am challenged to find fresh thinking and more empowering beliefs that will open up different possibilities.
I have a feeling I’m not alone in this: that YOU also find yourself up against your own BS, excuses, or otherwise limiting thoughts, and want to start tackling those things head on so that you can have the richer, bigger, more exciting, more satisfying vision you hold for yourself.
If that sounds like you, I suggest you join me for The Next Level, a three month personal leadership program for solopreneurs, small biz owners, and other career women who want to stop squeaking by and start leading their life and work with intention, purpose and power. It’s a small-group, in-depth exploration of your own personal leadership style, what’s working and what’s not, where your growing edges are, and how to tap into your signature presence and brilliance to have more impact and satisfaction in your work and life. Think mastermind-meets-learning-meets-powerful-coaching, all amplified by the synergy created by a group of inspired women working together, supporting each other, and holding both challenge and accountability for you in support of your best, highest aspirations.
If you are launching a new business, climbing the career ladder, or on the front edge of a major change—this is the perfect way for you to rise to the challenge you are beginning.
You can find all the details of the program here, and we kick off on June 13th, so if you’re interested you have about a month to decide if you’re on board, and to get yourself registered!
And by the way…if you’re on my mailing list, you just might be receiving a special offer for this program, so if you’re not on it–let’s fix that, shall we? Sign up here. I promise I only send good stuff, and never give away your info to gnomes, spambots, or other internet nasties.
