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Business success is dependent on a solid financial foundation & success looks different to everyone & there is a lack of equity of access to resources and information for small business owners and independent contractors & there is a societal narrative making us believe “balance” is our ultimate goal & … There are so many “&”s that impact being your own boss. Let’s have some frank discussions on the basics of business with a holistic focus on everything that helps business owners define and find success.
Molly Beyer: [00:00:08] Hello, hello, I am Molly Beyer, host of The Ambiguous &: Business Basics and Beyond, a podcast where we have frank discussions on the basics of business with a holistic focus on everything that helps business owners define and find success. There are so many ands that impact being your own boss. Join us as we explore all these ands and more. Like, subscribe or follow wherever you get your podcasts and let's explore these ambiguous ands.
Molly Beyer: [00:00:38] Hello and welcome to The Ambiguous &: Business Basics and Beyond! I am Molly Beyer and I am here to lead you through frank and holistic conversations on the basics of business. Today we're going to talk a little bit about growth edge. What is growth edge? Well your growth edge is when you are disrupting old patterns, those moments when you're being challenged to do more, to be more, to grow as a person, to grow in your business. So why are we talking about growth edge today? Because one of your biggest advantages within your growth edge is focusing on challenge, how you focus on challenge, and who is on the journey with you. When it comes to challenges, we're really only ever competing against ourselves. We want to focus on that 1% incremental improvement in ourselves, in our business every day. But sometimes when you're only competing against yourself, it can kind of feel a little weird. Like, what am I doing here? How do I know how well I'm doing? Because I'm not really comparing myself to somebody else, which you shouldn't necessarily compare yourself to other people, but competing against only yourself can also feel kind of weird.
Molly Beyer: [00:02:02] So there's a huge benefit to competing alongside others. I've recently experienced the benefit of this when it came to a challenge. So I have this large group of coaches that I'm a part of, and for the month of June, they decided to do a challenge. Well, hundreds of coaches signed up to do this, and I wasn't going to do it because I really just didn't have the bandwidth. And even though I knew it could be really good for growing my business, really dialling in some of my messaging, getting some of my new products and offerings out there, I just didn't think I had the time. And then my mentor emailed me and said, hey, I'm doing this challenge, I need a little bit of competition, you want to compete with me? And sometimes when you want to say no, that's when you really need to say yes. So I said, all right, I'm all in. It was awesome because the challenge was really well structured, lots of very specific moves to make, but it was great to have people there doing it with me. That first week I played all in. I was right there.
Molly Beyer: [00:03:25] I was exhausted because in addition to all of the things I was doing, I added about ten extra hours that week to working on the pieces of this challenge. But it really, really, really helped me to dial in some of the things that are still a struggle for me. Time management, organizing my to-do list. Really, really, really nailing down my ideal client avatar. I'm really good at helping other people do this, but like most people, it's a kind of a do as I say, not as I do situation. I'm not always as good of a coach of myself as I am of other people. Same reason you wouldn't necessarily want to buy a car from a mechanic, or hell, even really look at the bookkeeping of a bookkeeper. I tell you, it's a good thing I have a team, or my bookkeeping would be way behind. Anyway, this challenge got me moving. Part of the reason, though, isn't necessarily the moves, isn't necessarily the things to do, that constant checking in. It was watching the other people who were a part of the challenge. That was huge. It was huge because as I am going through this challenge, maybe that first week I made some really good progress and then life happened. I didn't have as much support in the coming weeks, I got sick, I had other commitments, I had to travel out of town for some meetings so I wasn't able to play all out.
Molly Beyer: [00:05:05] But you know what? Every day I went in and checked in. Every day I shared, even if it was a small win that I had that day and that kept me playing even if I wasn't playing all out, so I could watch other people who were maybe keeping up with me in that same space where we were making those small improvements, that small 1% each day, and we could maybe give a hand back to the people who were a little farther behind than us. And we could also cheer on, provide feedback for, and even sometimes advice for the people who were just flying ahead in this challenge. But being on that journey with other people makes it so much easier. I'm not competing with them, but I'm competing with myself alongside them, and that is really where accountability comes in. Because owning and running a business is incredibly isolating. When business is good, it is so easy to ride that high. Just keep going even if you don't have anyone riding it with you. But when business is low, when you're feeling low, it's so important to know who is in your corner. And that is why I am a huge proponent of getting your people together who are there for support and accountability.
Molly Beyer: [00:06:43] Is it a challenge? Is it meeting every week? Is it emailing each other? Is it working with a coach? Is it getting a mentor? Whoever these advisors are in your world, you have to have somebody other than yourself to be accountable to. Because again, if it's just me, my bookkeeping is not getting done. I'm not creating that ideal client avatar because I'm too much in my way. Working with others, supporting others, being accountable to others makes a huge difference. So for me, the first six months of this year were amazing. I have had more growth than I probably have in my entire life, I think, in one go-round. My dream team accountability space was an accountability partner that I met with every week where we talked about business, we talked about our messy selves and how those things were influencing and relating to each other. I had two coaches. Two coaches that I've paid, that I am engaging with regularly, and they both support me in different ways and in different aspects of my business. One of them even became a really awesome partner in collaboration to offer a very specific space, and we're still working on that coach, you know, coach-y space, but we're also working as strategic partners and collaborators. And that is so, so cool.
Molly Beyer: [00:08:28] And then I have my mentor. She's another coach. She coaches in a similar way that I do, but she's very different. And so she can help me to really look outside of my normal space that I see things. I also have many, many other people that I engage with on a regular basis, but that's been my core for this last six months. So build your core, build your small and build your large networking events. Other people in your industry, when you're talking to those coaches, to those mentors, find out who else is working in your space and say, hey, could we all meet? Could we all hang out? Could we get together and talk about this? Can we focus group, can we mastermind? Can we really dive in and workshop together on some of this stuff? Because it is so, so, so, so, so helpful. And any time you're in a space where you are in that accountability and support space, remember that concept of givers gain and that idea of being there to support, to share, to connect, to help, but also to allow other people to do that for you. And that means being vulnerable. That means being real. When you ask, ask with an open heart. Ask with an open hand. Because it is too easy for us to just give, give, give and not ask or ask in sort of a wishy-washy sort of way.
Molly Beyer: [00:10:07] But when you're trying to build that real solid support and accountability space, you have to be open to give. You have to be open to gain. You have to open yourself and be authentic. You have invested in your business that is also investing in yourself, and you need to protect that investment. So no matter your growth edge, also remember you are always enough just as and where you are. Growth is amazing. Growth is good. When we know better, we do better, we learn more. But growth and being open to growth brings challenges, especially exponential growth. If you are in a space where you are open to exponential growth, expect exponential challenges. Growth should always be your goal, though. Always, always be your goal. Keep learning, keep growing, and keep open to the new and unexpected. Challenge yourself. Challenge others. Know who's in your corner and be in someone else's.
Molly Beyer: [00:11:14] Thanks so much for hanging out with us today. We would love to hear your feedback on today's episode, as well as any requests for future content. Drop a comment or suggestion and join us next time for more frank and holistic conversations on the basics of business. Please also like, subscribe or follow so you never miss an episode. And until next time, I am Molly Beyer and this has been The Ambiguous &: Business Basics and Beyond. Have a wonderful day!