Tag: business owner

Why I’m Proud of Millennials and Proud to be One

It wasn’t until one of my assignments during my master’s program a couple years ago when I realized how much older generations didn’t like millennials. Actually, how much they strongly disliked millennials, especially in the workplace. This program was for Business Psychology and had a couple generations in the program, so I got exposed to several opinions. The answers were eye opening & made me a little bit upset because I was not expecting everyone to be so harsh.

Since the class was online, the assignment was to make a post in the online classroom space describing working our own experiences with each generation in the workplace. 

Almost every single person who was in older generation described millennials as “lazy” and that they didn’t have any social/interpersonal skills, relied too much on technology, constantly glued to our phones. Even other millennials were complaining about our own generation. Granted, maybe they did have their own bad experience, but I have a hard time believing that everyone was “lazy”. But it’s like we hear how lazy we are & are disappointed to be a part of the generation.

I was shocked. It honestly never occurred to me to think that millennials were lazy at all, especially because I see how hard we all work. I see how many amazing things that millennials are doing and the amazing impact they are making on the world. We are taking what are learning & making some really great change that this world needs.

I was also confused because it’s not our fault that we were born right in the middle of the booming digital era. We were handed phones, learned how to use computers in school and then now we were being blamed for it. Doesn’t make much sense to me.

I see people complain so much, that our own generation is complaining about ourselves. That some people do believe that millennials are just lazy people and there’s nothing good to say about them other than “they’re good at technology/social media”.

The point of this post isn’t to say that the following things aren’t prevalent in other generations, because they definitely are! But, while everyone is complaining about millennials, I just wanted to touch on some of the things that I’ve observed to be true for the millennials. We aren’t a bunch of lazy, self-centered people that have nothing to put out into the world.

Here’s why I’m Proud of Millennials and proud to be one.

Millennials are inclusive

Nothing warms my heart more than seeing how much we all care for each other for the most part. Now, more than ever we are seeing support for everyone, allowing everyone to be who they are. I’m able to see so much growth in society allowing people to be free to be who they are. 

We are the first generation to really be inclusive for the LGBTQ community, allowing others to be truly who they really are. For the most part, we all want everyone to be who they are and to feel like they are supported and accepted, because everyone does deserves it.

Millennials support and stand up for one another. 

For the most part, millennials truly care about one another and want to see each other treated with respect. I see so many people standing up and doing the right things for one another. Seeing someone being treated unfairly, we stand up for them. We are creating this conversation to make sure that everyone is being included. There’s still a lot of work still to be done, but this is a good start! 

At the end of the day, we truly care and want the best for everyone. This is one my favorite things I love about being a millennial. We are truly making a difference in shifting how we treat others. Like I already mentioned, everyone truly deserves to be happy.

“Work smart, not hard” mentality. 

Baby Boomers are known for how hard they work and I truly do admire their work ethic and their passion. I’ve seen it and know that first hand how hard they work and it’s truly admirable. With advancements in technology and growing up around it, we know how to do things faster and more effectively. Why waste time “working hard” when we can do things faster, more effectively and more productively?

I have also noticed that millennials are working multiple jobs, multiple side hustles to be able to pay off student loans. So, we are also willing to put in the extra work to make ends meet. Trust me when I say that we are not “lazy”, we want to get things done faster and more efficiently. Who doesn’t want that?!

Millennials want to do meaningful work. 

Passion is a big deal for us millennials. While that might frustrate some people in older generations, I don’t see anything wrong with it. When you are passionate about something, you are more likely to show up even better in work. But, this passion is about making a difference in the world. It’s something that we truly believe in and want to make a significant impact on the world.

We want to make a difference in the world and want to enjoy what we are doing. Yes, “work is work”, but why not do something that makes us happy & proud to do it? I have to admit, I actually strongly dislike the phrase, “work is work”, like it’s supposed to be miserable and you just have to hate it.

At the end of the day, what’s the point if you are truly miserable doing what you’re doing every single day? We want meaningful work that we enjoy doing & is making a difference in the world. I see absolutely nothing wrong with that. Life doesn’t have to start when you retire. That’s just ridiculous to me.

Millennials want to get the most out of life. 

Us millennials think that whole “life starts after retirement” is ridiculous. We don’t want to just work our lives away and wait until afterwards to be able to enjoy life. Why wait when we can build a happy, enjoyable life right now?

I’m starting to see more and more people drift away from the typical 8-5 Monday-Friday work schedule. While a majority of people still do, I am starting to see people drift away from this schedule. I’m also starting to see small businesses become flexible in allowing employees to work from home if they need to. What’s wrong with that?!

Millennials are smart. 

Yes, believe it or not, millennials are incredibly smart. It is even harder to get into college. Not to mention a bachelor’s degree is becoming less and less relevant anymore, let alone affordable. A lot of times, you need at least a master’s degree to be able to qualify for many jobs, even “entry-level”. 

Even then, it’s even harder and more demanding to just get a job. Qualifications are ridiculous and it’s very hard to find a job that fits your unique set of talents. Despite the growing demand, I know many millennials who are going back to school to get higher degree and landing very prestigious jobs.

Personally, I failed at getting a job. You can read more about this in Getting Fired Was The Best Thing to Happen to Me. Nobody had what would capitalize on my individual strengths and nobody wanted to actually give me a chance. It took a lot of work and a lot of time trying to convince employers that I “had what it took” and it didn’t work.

Trust me when I say that we aren’t lazy!

Innovative “Outside the Box” thinking. 

Let’s be real, businesses need young employees on their team. While traditional methods might work now, it’s not going to work forever. Millennials bring so much knowledge and talent that make all the difference in business and production. Not to mention ideas that increase efficiency and productivity. Remember the “work smart not hard” mentality? That’s what I’m talking about here.

Every business needs new, up-to-date, innovative thinking on their team in order to stay relevant in business. Whether older generations want to admit it or not, millennials are needed on the team because we can bring so many ideas and talents to the business. 

Millennials are building businesses and making a difference. 

We all have something to learn from everybody. Nothing is perfect and I’m not saying everything about millennials is perfect. But, we all have something that we can learn from each other.

I have noticed that a lot of millennials are becoming freelancers and building their own business making their own impact. If nobody is going to give a chance to make the difference in the world that we are meant to make, we will create it ourselves and do an AMAZING job!

You can read more about my experiences in these posts about building my own business:

My journey from a struggling high school student to starting my own business

First month of entrepreneurship

Six Month Business Recap : What I’ve Learned

2019 Reflection + What I Learned In My First Year Of Business

BUSINESS PLAN FOR 2020 / CHANGES TO BUSINESS

At the end of the day, I am VERY proud of millennials and I am definitely proud to be one! We can’t help that we grew up during the time when technology was booming. We can’t help that we grew up with a phone in our hands. We can’t help that we have more efficient technology at our fingertips. But, we are trying our best to use this knowledge to make a difference in the world and do work more efficiently.

I’ve talked to my mom about this and she says this happens with every generation and everyone is always hesitant when a new generation grows older and enters the workforce. But, every time a new generation makes their presence, amazing things happen!

Just wait until you see what the NEXT generation can accomplish!

xx

7 Fool-Proof Social Media Strategies

Let’s be honest, social media can be extremely frustrating, especially when it comes to utilizing it for business. There’s so much to learn about the different platforms & the algorithms, let alone figure out how to use the platforms to your advantage.

Social media can be a very powerful tool in business & can be used to build your business, but only if you are able to use them strategically and work around the algorithms. So, I want to let you in on some of my most powerful, game changing strategies for thriving on social media!

I spent one year in Social Media Management, worked with several clients, spent HOURS learning, testing, studying, pulling information together and have seen proven results with the information I am sharing with you. 

I’ve been able to gather so much information over the last year & I want to share all of this information & secrets I’ve been able to learn & see proven results with!

Here are my top 7 tips for conquering social media!

Do Your Research

Do some research on what your competitors are doing on social media. By locating your competitors & doing a little research on their platforms, this should help give you an idea what you can do for your business!

Come up with a plan

I have always been one to need to be organized at all times and I think this is incredibly important for being successful on social media. The more you can plan ahead, the better off you will be!

When I was working with clients, I would sit down at the end of every month and map out ideas for content throughout the upcoming month. I found that working with pen and paper first helped in brainstorming ideas.

Get organized

Planning what content you are going to post & getting into a planning system is one thing, but actually preparing the post is another story. After you figure out what you want to post, you need to get everything ready to go to make your life a little easier!

Be consistent

On average, it takes around 7-11 touches to actually get someone’s attention. So, one solid social media post is not likely going to gain a lot of traction. Let alone result in multiple sales. So, we have to make sure we are being consistent so your potential customers/clients don’t forget about you forever.

Write good captions

Captions can be tricky. Do you write long captions? Do you write short & sweet captions? Do you write the same caption on all platforms? It depends. If you can get your point across in a couple sentences, stick with that. If you feel that you need to tell a story to get your point across, do that. Instagram tends to be better for longer captions, but it isn’t always necessary!

Use the right hashtags

If you don’t already know, hashtags are incredibly crucial for making sure your posts are searchable & getting in front of the right audience, especially on Instagram & Twitter.

Making sure you are using the right hashtags for your business & industry takes a little bit of research. There are infinite amounts of hashtags out there that are being used every day & can be used to potentially get in front of your target audience.

Pay attention to your page & post analytics

I can’t stress this enough! If you want to be successful on social media, you HAVE to pay attention to analytics! There is no one-size-fits-all formula for social media. You have to be monitoring how your posts are performing so you know what you need to continue doing and what you can do without.

Need these strategies to be explained in further detail?

I have put together 3 comprehensive social media guides explaining these tips in detail, explaining EXACTLY what you should be doing on your social media platforms!

These guides are perfect for those who don’t want to hire someone to take over their accounts, but need some solid guidelines on EXACTLY what they should be doing to optimize their platforms!

I spent a year in my social media management business learning all of the strategies for conquering each social media platform and I am so happy to be able to provide you with these comprehensive guides! 

The information included are exactly what I’ve spent HOURS learning, testing out, studying and have seen proven results with. I have chosen to focus these guides on Facebook, Instagram & LinkedIn, because those are the platforms that I feel I have gained the most knowledge from and have seen the most results from.

After pulling together all of the information I’ve gathered, I have compiled them into 3 guides: Ultimate Social Media Guide, Social Media Strategies Per Platform & Social Media Checklist.

WHAT YOU GET WITH THESE GUIDES

ULTIMATE SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDE:

  • 18 pages full of strategies I’ve used to transform several client’s platforms
  • My system to getting organized & planning your content
  • Tips for writing captions for your posts
  • Tips for using the correct hashtags on your posts for the most exposure
  • How to monitor your analytics so you can best optimize your platforms

SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIES PER PLATFORM:

  • 11 page breakdown of social media strategies per platform for Facebook, Instagram & LinkedIn
  • Strategies for setting up personal & business profiles
  • Tips for posts on the different platforms
  • Various tips & strategies that are unique to each platform

SOCIAL MEDIA CHECKLIST:

  • This checklist is what I use to perform & analyze platforms for social media audits
  • I took the information included in the Ultimate Social Media Guide & Social Media Strategies Per Platform guide & put together an organized checklist for making sure you have included everything needed to optimize the different platforms

The information included are exactly what I’ve spent HOURS learning, testing out, studying and have seen proven results with! No fluff here, just exactly what I used to increase my clients social media engagement & presence up to 700%. You want these guides if you want to know my secrets!

>> CLICK HERE to get your hands on these comprehensive social media guides!

Getting Over Extreme Burnout

If you’ve ever experienced extreme burnout, you know just how frustrating it can be. It’s something that happens to just about everyone at some point and it can be really difficult to get over it. 

Over the last year of building my business, I had to go through a really important learning experience about building a business. The most prevalent thing that I had to figure out was how to schedule my time to best fit my schedule and how I work best.  [You can read more about this in my post about 2019 Reflection + What I Learned In My First Year In Business.]

When you have a job, there’s already a process in place and you just have to learn it and adjustments are made when necessary. When you are building a business, you have to figure all of that out on your own. Especially if you are building your own business and just starting out, it’s most likely just YOU. A one woman/man show. Which is a very wonderful thing because you get to be in complete control of the business and build it exactly how you want. 

But, it also means that you are to figure everything out by yourself. Figure out how to do everything, when to do everything. The best process that makes the most sense and works FOR you, in your favor. 

What I learned is that you have no idea what you don’t know. You have to go through a learning/trial & error time period before the puzzle pieces start coming together. After the first year of my business, I definitely understand how a lot of people decide to stop pursuing their business because it can be incredibly mentally draining. You don’t know what you’re doing. You keep standing up, just to get knocked back down again. You question whether you have what it takes. You take on the wrong clients. Money isn’t flowing in like you wanted it to. You start feeling discouraged and maybe a bit burnt out.

You feel like you’re constantly shouting into the abyss, working way more than you have before and not getting very far. After you try so hard for so long with no system or understanding of what to do, it gets tiring, frustrating & overwhelming.

I’m learning that starting a business is a mental test.

It’s extremely hard and exhausting at first, but if you keep standing up, the pieces start falling into place. For me, I ended up falling into a really extreme burnout. I started despising my work. I had a hard time just getting myself to figure out what I needed to do when I sat at my desk in the morning. I was constantly exhausted and felt like I just needed to lay around all day. 

It’s confusing and it’s hard. I’ve had to experience so many mental breakdowns. Moments of frustration because I just wanted to figure this out so I can finally get my career going. There were so many times when I just sat there and thought that maybe I didn’t have what it took to run a business and be successful like I thought I was capable of. 

After dealing with what I describe as an extreme level of burnout for about 6 months, I can finally say that I have finally found myself climbing out of the dark whole that I accidentally worked myself into. It took lots of hard work. Lots of trusting the process. Lots of making myself stand back up even though I just wanted to stay down at times because it was easier… and less disappointing. 

I know lots of people deal with burnout at some point and I know just how frustrating and exhausting it can be. I know my example I just talked about was about building a business, but burnout can happen to anyone at any time. No matter what situation you are getting burnt out from, all you want to do is feel excited and energized about what you are doing, but all you feel is exhausted and don’t feel like doing a thing. You want to get it figured out, but can’t seem to figure out how.

I wanted to share my tips about how I dealt with major burnout and how I managed to keep myself going, even though I really wanted to throw in the towel at times.

give yourself A BREAK

My number one tip is absolutely, without a doubt, TAKE A BREAK. When I say take a break, I mean give yourself a real break. I spent months trying to just lay down and give my body a rest, but I wasn’t giving my mind a rest. Meaning, I while I was laying there, I was still thinking about everything I still needed to do & trying to come up with a plan to get those things done. I would find myself scrolling on Pinterest trying to find helpful advice & get the inspiration I was so desperately looking for. 

I was doing this pretty much everyday for several months, everyday getting more and more frustrated because I wasn’t getting anywhere. I was feeling an active resistance in my mind, just couldn’t focus on ANYTHING. Which was even more frustrating because I felt like I had so much to do and I was so deep in a mental funk that I couldn’t even figure out how to be productive. 

It wasn’t until my business coach told me to take 3 FULL DAYS rest to do nothing. Clear my plate for 3 FULL DAYS and let myself [especially my mind] rest. The thought of taking 3 full days can be a really daunting thought at first. I thought there was no way I can take off 3 days because I have SO MUCH to do! I take about this more in 5 Steps For Getting Back On Track & Shifting Your Mindset!

But, it was either take the break, or let myself struggle with burnout & being productive. So, I took the break. I had to tell myself that this is what I needed to reset because what I had been doing thus far just wasn’t working. Sometimes, you just need to allow yourself to surrender and trust that this will work. I had to convince myself that what I was currently doing obviously wasn’t working & I HAD to try something different.

It did work. I came out of the 3 day break just feeling so much lighter and calm. My energy started coming back and I could just feel the difference. I am so happy I decided to trust that it would work because I would still be in that mental funk if I didn’t.

Take the break, friends. Like, a real break. It can be the best thing you do for yourself [& your business if applicable!]. 

Are you trying to do too much?

The answer is probably: YES! Holy moly, I was trying to do too much at once, it’s no wonder I started feeling burnt out when I looked back at everything I was trying to do. It’s really important that you take a step back and really think about all that you are doing and trying to do and if it’s really worth your time & effort at the moment.

However, I’m glad that I was trying to do a little bit of everything because I was able to figure out where I really wanted to focus most of my time. Everyone always tells you not to try to do too much at a time, which I agree because you simply can’t. But, if you find yourself getting overwhelmed, make sure you take a step back and really figure out what is worth your time at the moment and what can take a back burner.

Being able to identify the things that overwhelm you the most will be helpful in figuring out what you can hold off on at the moment. It’s OK to not do everything at once! This was also where I found it helpful to hire a business coach, because she was able to help me identify where I should be focusing my time and would give me the OK to hold off on some other things.

When you give yourself permission to let go of some things, you are letting your mind focus on ONLY the things that are really important at the moment. Trying to do too much is just exhausting.

JOURNAL & journal some more!

Am I sounding like a broken record yet? If you’ve read any of my other posts, you know that I’m a HUGE fan of journaling! I’ve mentioned journaling so many times in my most recent posts and you’re probably like, “OK Jess, we get it! You think journaling is great.”

If you’re new here, I invite you to read all about my transformative experiences with journaling in my posts about The Importance of Self-Care & The Power of Journaling.

I’m just saying… Maybe if I keep talking about it, you’ll start believing me! I just think that journaling about what’s going on can really help with getting everything that is bothering you out of your subconscious and onto paper can be incredibly powerful. This is one of my favorite things to do to start my work day because it helps me get some kind of clarity. It helps me understand what is going on in my mind and what I am struggling with that particular day. It also helps track progress and notice patterns. 

TALK ABOUT IT

In addition to writing about what’s going on, I also find that talking to someone helps as well. This doesn’t have to be in a therapy session, it can be a friend or anyone who you trust with what is going on at the moment. I’ve noticed that there’s certain people that are easier to talk to about certain things. But, just talking to someone about what’s going on can make a HUGE difference. 

Not to mention, they can help you see more clearly. Some things that might be foggy to you, might help getting some outside perspective. There are just some things that are helpful to seek help from and this is definitely one of those things. 

move your body/EXERCISE

I think everyone can agree that you feel so much better after getting in a good, sweaty workout. Even though you feel like just sitting on the couch all day doing nothing, just getting up and getting your sweat on can help turn your mood around. 

I have been going to the gym first thing in the morning on weekdays for a year and a half now and it has been a game changer for me! You can check out my blog post on How/Why I Go To The Gym At 5AM & My Fitness Journey | Choosing Yourself First. Going to the gym early has ultimately helped my mental health, helped me stay on track with my workouts and has become my non-negotiable. Some of my best workouts have happened when I felt like I didn’t want to workout.

However, I do agree with giving your body a physical rest if that’s what you feel like you need. As long as you don’t continue to stay there. Give yourself a rest from the gym and get right back into it. I personally did this a couple times and I think this is also a good idea if you feel that’s what you need. Definitely listen to your body!

Seek inspiration, where ever it may be

For me, I get inspired by reading into and watching other women do what I want to be doing. I love to watch YouTube videos and even insta-creep. There’s something about seeing others killin it that gives me inspiration to keep going.

HOWEVER….

Try not to get too consumed by social media! There is such thing as too much of a good thing. If you find yourself going down a rabbit hole and not getting much benefit, it might be a good idea to turn it off.

This might not work for everyone! But, this is something that works for me. Maybe you find inspiration in other ways?? If you do, maybe try exploring that and see if it helps you at all!

Read a good book

I have also been talking about reading a lot lately. I’ve been talking about it a lot, because it really has helped me a lot. I’m not usually one to enjoy reading, but I have found reading to be very helpful when I was going through burnout.

I remember feeling desperate to find answers. I actually craved reading, which was odd for me, because I usually don’t like reading. But, I ordered some books and I started feeling myself get motivated.

I would give myself time to myself, away from social media, away from work to just read for 30 minutes to an hour. I was hooked and I started feeling better. But, you have to be consistent with it.

I mention about 5 books in my post A lot can happen in just ONE year & My Favorites, but here are my 3 favorites right now that I can’t stop talking about!

You Are A Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life by Jen Sincero
You Are a Badass at Making Money: Master the Mindset of Wealth by Jen Sincero
Everything Is Figureoutable by Marie Forleo

I hope you found these tips helpful! Trust me when I say I understand how frustrating burnout can be. I was struggling with burnout for what felt like 6 months and I just couldn’t seem to pull myself together.

For me, giving myself a break and taking a step back from everything is what really helped bring myself back together. When I’m in a constant state of chaos and overwhelm, it’s hard to do just about anything & I think that’s true for a lot of people.

Just know that you are not the only one going through this and you are going to come out on the other side stronger and more knowledgabale than you were before! These times can be seen as a great learning experience and opportunity for growth. Coming out, you will have a better understanding of yourself and know more about what to do and not to do in the future!

xx

BUSINESS PLAN FOR 2020 / CHANGES TO BUSINESS

If you know me or have been following me over the last year, you know that I began a journey of starting my own Social Media Management business in 2019. It was an opportunity that fell into my lap and I decided to give it a try. I spent two months putting together a business plan and preparing to launch the business on January 1, 2019. At the same time, I decided that I wanted to start a lifestyle blog because I wanted to figure out a way to also help make a difference in people’s lives. I wasn’t sure what my main goals were for starting the blog, but I felt a desire to start one and see where it would take me. 

>> Have you read my 2019 reflection blog post?! <<

Towards the middle of the year, I started noticing a major shift in my energy towards my Social Media Management business. I started noticing myself almost having to force myself to get my work done and force myself to be creative when I really couldn’t get myself to think creatively. I was feeling extremely burnt out and I just didn’t know what I was supposed to do next.

After several months of trying to get myself to feel passionate about my business again, I realized that Social Media Management just wasn’t for me. It wasn’t where my true passion was and what I’m ultimately supposed to be doing. 

In October 2019, after much contemplation, I decided to close the doors on my Social Media Management business and dip my toes into something else. This was a hard decision for me to make because I had to make a decision to decrease my income tremendously so I have the time and energy to build something that I love. I am very blessed to be able to be my own boss and create a life and a business that truly fulfills me. 

I’ve mentioned this before, but I’ve always wanted to pursue a career helping others. In high school, I was always the friend that people went to for advice and I loved it. I loved helping others work through whatever they were going through and I loved that people felt comfort in coming to me for that advice. Helping others has just always been that one thing that came naturally to me.

Over the years, I’ve received my BA in Psychology, conducted research projects, got experience in clinical work, learned ethics & the importance of interpersonal communication, dipped my toes in other industries including childcare & sales, received my MS in Business Psychology, overcame depression, made the mistakes, started my own business, learned the hard way & worked through every obstacle that tried to stop me from continuing to move forward. It’s taken a lot of time, tears, confusion, frustration, feeling defeated and continuing to stand back up when it felt like it would be easier to just throw in the towel & accept that I just didn’t have what it takes. 

So, going into 2020, I am going to be focusing my energy on building a Female Empowerment Coaching business. 

I hired my own coach and we have been working through the process of getting this new business started and I am SO EXCITED! It’s a scary leap, much scarier than the last time I launched a business because I now know what I didn’t know last year. I’ve had to work through the mental blocks of worrying that I won’t be able to be successful at starting my own business. However, that fear is telling me that this is the direction that I am supposed to be going. 

Life is a crazy journey. Sometimes frustrating, but also fulfilling if you choose. I believe we were all placed on earth for a reason and I want to help as many people as I can reach their full potential. I have the degrees, but most importantly, I have the experience.

So, going into 2020, I will be embarking on yet another entrepreneurial journey. I’ve made it through the first year of trial & error of building a business and I know so much more than that I did last time. I’ve made it through all of the mental blocks and I’ve learned what it takes to run a successful business. I know so much more about myself and I can’t wait to teach others how to get the most out of their own lives. 

My Social Media Management business will always hold a special place in my heart. It definitely fulfilled a part of my life that I needed to prepare me for where I am supposed to go next. Through that business, I was able to learn from those around me and I will take those learning experiences with me into my next adventure.

I’m excited to take everything that I have learned and really turn it into something amazing. I’m getting to the point where I want to spread my wings and really delve into what makes me truly happy. I’m getting very excited about embarking on a journey to really hone into my true potential. 

I am very grateful for the internet to provide me with the ability to make this impact and reach as many people as possible. I truly believe there’s more to life than just living for Friday. I want to live everyday and feel completely fulfilled. I want to be able to go into everyday loving what I do and make the difference that I want to make. Not only that, but I want to help others do the same as well! 

The time is now to make the difference. I hope you decide to join me on this adventure to live our lives to the fullest potential! ❤ 

>> Click here to join my FREE facebook community (females only)!

In this group, you will find daily inspiration, encouragement, find yourself in a community of like-minded women who strive to accomplish the same things and an opportunity to work with yours truly directly.

Let’s start 2020 off right, with support and positivity. I hope to see you there!

xx

2019 Reflection + What I Learned In My First Year Of Business

As 2019 comes to a close, it’s natural to dive into some reflection about how the year went. I honestly can’t believe that it’s already been a whole year since I started my business & I have to say, 2019 did not end up being quite like I had expected it to be, but… does it ever? 

Towards the end of 2018, I was full of excitement and eagerness to get my business going and to see all of the opportunities that were about to be right in front of me. I was excited and had no idea what to expect. It was a leap that I had no idea where it was going to take me or what the experience was going to be. But, I was so freaking excited for it. I took the leap with little-to-no expectations, just letting the universe guide me to my next adventure.  I went into the experience with very little expectations because I had no idea what I did and didn’t know about starting and running a business. 

I was full of excitement and eagerness to get started and see what could come from working from home and being my own boss. Honestly, I wasn’t even nervous or hesitant to get started. After years of trying to get my career figured out & months of not knowing what my next steps were going to be, I was just excited. 

Looking back, I can’t even begin to explain the amount that I’ve learned & the growth that happened over this year. At times, I felt  like I was just crawling to the finish line, on the brink of exhaustion and mental break down(s). But, I’ve made it to the end of the year &  it’s time to stop and really take the time to appreciate everything that happened this past year. 

Check out these other blog posts:

My journey from a struggling high school student to starting my own business

First month of entrepreneurship

Getting Fired Was The Best Thing to Happen to Me

Six Month Business Recap : What I’ve Learned

A lot can happen in just ONE YEAR!

I spent 2 months (November & December 2018) preparing for the launch of my new business on January 1, 2019. I was so excited and on January 2, 2019, I started learning what I did not know. For those of you contemplating starting your own business, I am talking about what I’ve learned in my first year starting my own business. However, while I wish I knew some of these things before starting, I’m happy I experienced & went through everything that I did because I have learned SO MUCH!

Here’s what I learned:

1.I DIDN’T HAVE A PLAN

This might seem like a no brainer, but when you are the one trying to put this together, it doesn’t come as easily as it may seem. During my 2 months of preparing for my launch, that’s all that I was preparing for.. Just the launch. I put together my website, packages, announcement video. But when I woke up on January 2, I thought “OK…what’s next”… I didn’t have a PLAN. I had no idea what I was going to post on my social media accounts or how I was going to sell my services. So, I immediately started feeling like I needed to frantically come up with a plan. I started signing up for webinars, downloading guides, joining facebook groups, trying to do research and try to start pulling together a plan. I was trying to work all day long, just doing as much research as possible. Some days I would work for like 12-14 hours. It’s probably no surprise that I quickly started getting burnt out and exhausted. 

I very quickly realized how much I did not know. I also very quickly realized that I needed a plan moving forward if I wanted to get anywhere in this business. So, a year of trying to figure out my schedule and a plan that works for me and my business began coming together. 

2. YOU CAN’T DO THIS ALONE

The entrepreneurial journey can be a very lonely journey. At home, by yourself, trying to put the pieces together by yourself. I’m  in charge of all the job functions because I’m not making enough money to pay someone to help me with various tasks yet. I didn’t have anyone to turn to for entrepreneurial advice because no one I know is also an entrepreneur. 

I started joining Facebook groups to see if I could start gaining connections there & eventually started investing in coaches. 

We all want to be that one person who figures it all out on their own, without investing in a coach or spending any money at all. We try to google answers, pulling answers from a million different directions. We don’t want to ask for help, because we want to do it all ourselves. I so badly wanted to do be that person. 

BUT IT IS SO FRUSTRATING.

I would get some answers and think I started figuring something out then I would hit a wall and get confused. It’s freaking frustrating. At times I just wanted to throw in the towel and say, “Forget it. I have no idea what the heck is going on.”

That’s why we invest in coaches. Nobody wants to do it at first. I know I didn’t. It took me 7 months of floundering until I finally decided that I was done floundering in the abyss of my own confusion, trying to figure it out on my own. It’s seriously impossible. 

Plus, being on this journey completely on your own is very lonely and boring. When you connect with people that are in the same journey as you, understanding your frustrations and helping you work through your situation is so.much.better. As someone with a psychology background, I very much value talk therapy. Not that I think it should be seen as talk therapy, but just simply talking and working through the issues on the surface and figuring out how to work through them is VERY important! Whenever I get off a call with any of the coaches I’ve had, I always feel 10x better than before I got on the call. 

Trust me, don’t put the pressure on yourself to try to figure this out on your own. 

3. I Didn’T KNOW HOW TO PLAN MY OWN SCHEDULE

Lol.. what? But, seriously. I didn’t. I had no idea how to plan my own day.

The hardest part has been figuring out how to adequately schedule my day. I was so pumped to be completely in charge of my own schedule and create a daily plan that works for ME. Being in complete control of my schedule is wonderful and I love it, but figuring out how to actually use my time to my advantage has been a learning experience. For the first time, I had no structure and I didn’t know what to do with all the time in the day. 

I remember thinking: “Do I just work all day?” It seems like most entrepreneurs are always working. So, I should be working all day, right? Hint hint: Not true..I quickly worked myself into burnout and exhaustion. I had to learn that I don’t have to sit at my desk, typing away on my laptop to be productive.

Whenever someone would say “what does your ideal day look like”. If I knew, I start trying to implement those things!!!

Coming out of 2019, I have a MUCH better understanding of a schedule for myself. It’s actually shocking the difference that was made over this year to get to where I am now. It has taken so many mental breakdowns, burn outs, endless amount of frustration, business courses, trial & error and never giving up to get here. A whole year later and I think I am starting to scratch the surface of what I am doing.

But, it’s all trial & error. Unfortunately, you learn what doesn’t work before you figure out what does work. It’s very frustrating & discouraging at times, but the experience is very rewarding. It’s actually pretty cool to see everything that I had to go through to finally get to a point of understanding.

4. THE POWER OF MANIFESTATION

I’ve heard of the term manifestation many times but never really gave it much thought. In connecting with other online entrepreneurs and in my research, everyone was talking about the power of manifestation. The thought that you can really achieve anything you put your mind to just by shifting your mindset seemed just about impossible to me. It can’t be that easy, right?

While I am still learning about this concept and experimenting with the power of manifestation, I have turned into a believer. I think it’s interesting that we are conditioned to think negatively about things and think that a level of success just isn’t in our reach.

It comes down to mindset, as I’m learning. If you believe that you are capable of success, you are more likely to be successful. If you stay stuck in your own pity party, constantly thinking and talking about your sad situation, then staying stuck you will be. From what I understand, manifestation is an energy shift. It’s a shift that happens within you & it takes work to actually believe.

Why not give it a try? The resources I have listed in the next section have helped me in understanding & believing in the power of manifestation.

5. the importance of CONTINUING EDUCATION

By continuing education, I don’t mean going back to school necessarily. But, continuing to read, stay up to date on what’s going on in the industry, reading blog posts, watching helpful business YouTube videos, etc. 

When you think about it, at a job, you’re usually continuing to learn something. It’s important for entrepreneurs to continue their own education and keep learning. I didn’t start realizing this until very recently. So, I’ve been trying to at least read a helpful book, blog posts or watch a YouTube video. 

Here are some of my favorite books right now:

You Are A Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life by Jen Sincero

I absolutely love this book! When I started reading this book, I had such a hard time putting it down. Jen Sincero is such a breath of fresh air and knows how to relate to her readers. She breaks down & explains how you are holding yourself back from getting the most out of life. Using her own experiences, she talks about where she was mentally in her own life, constantly feeling sorry for herself and her situation. She talks about the importance of changing your mindset & shifting your energy to allow yourself to reach your fullest potential.

If you’re anything like me, you’re going to want to get your hands on this book. If you want to be able to reach your fullest potential and start shifting your energy to realizing that you have what it takes to reach that potential and believe in yourself, this book is a great place to start! Go ahead and grab this book & get ready to get massively motivated to start changing your entire outlook on life. >> CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR HANDS ON THIS BOOK NOW!

You Are a Badass at Making Money: Master the Mindset of Wealth by Jen Sincero

Raise your hand if you have ever wished you made more money! 🙋🏻‍♀️ UM, YES! OK, now raise your hand if you don’t believe being rich is possible for you, however you wish you were rolling in the dough… 🙋🏻‍♀️

If you answered YES to those questions, you also want to get your hands on this book. I am on my second round of reading this book & I have never truly believed that I have what it takes to live my dream life. The thought of making enough money to live your dream life seems completely out of reach and those who are rich, are just lucky.

You see, we get so caught up in lack of money that we don’t even see all of the possibilities in front of us to make that money. Jen Sincero does it again, making me see that I am the one holding me back from reaching my full potential & understanding that I am in control of my financial situation. Yes, it’s hard to figure out, but Jen Sincero really makes you think hard about if you are just holding yourself back. What if the money opportunities are truly right in front of you, but you’re just too busy focusing on your lack of money to see them? The time is now to change that mindset! >> CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR HANDS ON THIS BOOK NOW!

Everything Is Figureoutable by Marie Forleo

THIS.BOOK.IS.AMAZING. In addition to Jen Sincero, Marie Forleo is really helping me see my true potential as well. This book revolves around the phrase, “Everything Is Figureoutable”. Meaning, no matter where you are in life, what situation you are currently in, no matter how sucky or sad, it is figureoutable.

Like Jen Sincero, Marie Forleo helps you get out of your mental BS to start living your life. To help you get out of that mental funk that you’ve found yourself in and start taking actionable steps to changing your mindset.

In my opinion, Jen Sincero + Marie Forleo = life changing authors. Seriously. I have read these books and really felt the energy shift happening. There were so many “aha!” moments when reading these books making me realize that opportunities are right in front me. Where I choose to place my energy is what’s holding me back.

The time is now to start taking action to change your life. >> CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR HANDS ON THIS BOOK NOW!

6. THE IMPORTANCE OF WORKING WITH YOUR IDEAL CLIENT

This one is hard because when you are just starting out in business, you don’t really have much direction. You are pretty much willing to work with anyone that is willing to work with you. Plus, you need to learn who your ideal client really is. 

Working with the wrong client can be extremely frustrating. You learn this all the time in business and I definitely learned first hand the importance of this. I appreciate all of the clients that I worked with and I definitely learned a lot about who I do and don’t want to work with in the future. Both parties have to be on the same page and work well together for the relationship to work. If it doesn’t, that’s OK. It’s OK to not be able to work with everyone. The more you hone in on your niche, the better!

7. EVEN THOUGH I LIKE HAVING A PLAN, I CAN’T FORCE MYSELF TO BE CREATIVE. 

I started writing out a content plan for each month. Typically about what I was going to post on my Facebook business page, as well as an idea for a blog post I was going to publish. I quickly started to learn that I can’t force myself to be creative about a topic. I have to let the ideas flow and work from there. 

While I’ve learned more about being organized and more prepared, there are just certain things that are hard to plan for. Sometimes I’ve even come up with a blog post idea and put it all together in one sitting. I just have to let myself go with the flow and write as the content and creativity flow to me naturally. Forcing doesn’t help anything. 

Lastly and certainly the most boring…

8. KEEP A SPENDING & INCOME LOG FOR TAXES.

When you work from home and work for yourself, it’s important to keep a log of all that you’ve spent & your income. When you work for an employer, they keep all of that organized so that you don’t have to. They pay for computers, office supplies, rent, electric bill, and anything else needed to run the business. Same goes for you if you are working from home. These are things that are important to keep track of to file for taxes when the time comes.

I just made an excel spread sheet and I tried my best to log everything and keep receipts for anything that I spent money on that would help me run my business. Keeping a running list as the year goes will be so much easier by the time tax season rolls around. Super boring, but also super important!

This has been a long post, but it only covers just a small portion of all that I’ve learned this year. I’m going into 2020 with something very important that I didn’t have in 2019: A PLAN. Not just a launch plan, an actual business plan. I have a better idea of how to schedule my time. What times of the day work best for me & understanding that taking breaks is very crucial. I have a business plan and a plan for myself. 

As I am writing this, I am truly baffled by the amount that I learned this year. I might not be as energized like I was last year, but I am feeling much more prepared. I am taking every single thing that I learned this year, every tear shed, every mental break down, every hour spent researching and pouring it into my new business and my new approach. 

Overall, 2019 was a great year! Even though I didn’t reach some of my own goals and I’m ending on a different foot than I started, it was a great year. There’s so much more to learn and I just know that I am going to come out of this next year even more knowledgeable than I am now. I’m just so excited to have the experience of 2019 in my back pocket. Just thinking about how much I have learned & how much more equipped I am going into 2020, makes everything worth it.

It’s time to say goodbye to 2019 & hello to all the possibilities coming in 2020! Let’s do this.

xx

What I learned from unplugging

Sometimes when we put too much pressure on ourselves, it can be overwhelming. This can also lead to exhaustion, stress, lack of motivation and decreased creativity. It’s frustrating because all you want to do is be productive. But, sometimes all you need is to take break from everything. Over the last couple months, I’ve been experiencing quite a few changes- although good changes, they’ve been a little overwhelming. While these changes were happening, I also felt like it was time to make some changes to my business plan. While it was an exciting thought, it made me even more overwhelmed. I felt like I always had to be “on” and I didn’t know exactly how to approach these changes that I wanted to make.

I spent some time completely away from posting on social media, revisiting my plan and trying new things. But, everything that I tried, I didn’t see the results I was hoping to see. This ultimately lead me to feeling even more overwhelmed and pretty discouraged. This feeling of being discouraged ultimately lead me to feel lack of motivation.

Sound familiar?

So, over the past couple months, I’ve been taking a step back from my own social media accounts- a little unplugging, if you will. I wasn’t expecting it to be as long as it ended up being, but I felt like it was the best thing for me and my business. I didn’t want to just post something on social media, acting like everything was completely fine and I was feeling like everything was “together”. These moments are definitely necessary because it always, always  means that an incredible breakthrough is about to happen. It’s very uncomfortable in the moment, but knowing there was something incredible on the other side is what kept me going.

Rather than stressing myself out about needing to constantly be making posts, I took a step back and began observing. Most people feel like they need to “unplug” from scrolling and seeing others posts, but that’s what I felt like I needed. I needed inspiration and I needed to see how others were handling themselves. Seems a bit odd, I know. Building your own business is absolutely incredible because you get to use all of your talents and expertise to build something amazing. But, it’s also challenging because how exactly are you supposed to do that? There were SO MANY things that I wanted to do with my business. I knew that my abilities and capabilities were much more than I knew what to do with at the moment. I was on the brink of something amazing, but I didn’t know how to get there!

I also had to understand that this is just a part of the journey.

By the time July came around, I was experiencing mixed emotions from being super proud of where I’ve come over the past year (which you can read about here) to feeling extreme overwhelm. So, I spent A LOT of time on YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram and really paying attention to those email subscriptions I have. I observed how other online entrepreneurs handle themselves and their schedules. I absolutely admire those who are able to handle so many things on their plate and do so many amazing things with their business. I wanted to be that person so bad.

We put so much pressure on ourselves, which can actually be a good thing. But, without necessary precautions, it can lead to burnout. Which I started experiencing quite a bit in the first six months of business. There’s so much that I wanted to do and I wanted to be successful so badly I was willing to do anything to get there.

Unplugging from my own accounts for a few months helped me tremendously. I was able to completely focus on my client’s profiles and use the extra time to rest. Watching YouTube videos and reading other blog posts helped slowly make my vision more clear. I took notes and started thinking about how I could possibly make changes and incorporate the various tips into my own business. Doing this also made me feel like I wasn’t alone in this journey.

During this time, I also realized that I wanted and needed to make some (bigger) investments in my business to keep moving forward. I spent  A LOT of money on various services that would help me more efficiently show up and run my business.

Then, I started to come up with a game plan to implement those things that I wanted to accomplish in my business. Slowly, I started gaining that clarity that I was longing for. That sense of passion for what I was doing slowly started coming back. In just a couple weeks, I went from feeling completely overwhelmed and unsure if I had what it takes to run this business to gaining the most clarity I’ve experienced yet.

The main turning point?

After weeks of seeking inspiration, I decided to pick up my camera to gather content.

I started gathering more content for my business, as well as my clients. I felt the sense of passion rush right back to me. In gathering content, I started getting all kinds of ideas for my business, blog posts, videos, etc. I kept gathering content and kept a running list of these ideas.

The passion is back and I am working on even more incredible content than I was before. Slowly, I’m building this business that I never even thought to dream of.

All of this happened just because I decided to unplug for a while. Unplugging will look different for everyone. But, it’s necessary for everyone. For me, it took taking a step back and observing others around me. Letting myself feel the emotions as the came to the surface, especially the ones that were extremely overwhelming, and slowly starting to get myself back into the game.

During this time, I also noticed that a lot of other entrepreneurs talk about doing the same thing. Often we feel like we are the only ones going through specific hard times because it looks like everyone has it completely together. But, we all need it. Our brains need it. Our body needs it. Our business needs it.

I have a new approach to running this business now. I have a content calendar for blogs, videos and posts and I am ready to crush this journey!

Unplugging can be hard. It can be hard to get yourself to just stop for some time while you gain some clarity. With it can come with confusion, frustration in yourself for not being able to keep going. We’re all learning, we’re all growing. It doesn’t stop. But, unplugging when you need it just might be exactly what you need to keep moving forward.

I actually wrote this post a month prior and had it scheduled to be posted a month prior. It was a week before I was going on vacation and I thought it would be the perfect time to introduce some things and start my blogging schedule. The day before I planned to launch everything, I realized that I needed to take my unplugging even further. So, I decided to hold off until I got back from vacation. I needed the week to completely turn everything off before I got overwhelmed.

So, that’s exactly what I did. I decided to give myself an extra couple weeks to unplug [even more] and get everything planned out so I didn’t get overwhelmed. During my time away on vacation, I learned a lot about the importance of completely taking a break, which I will write a post about very soon!

Make sure you take the time off and unplug when you need to! Do you let yourself unplug and give yourself time away when you need to?

Six Month Business Recap : What I’ve Learned

It’s been SIX months since I launched my business! I feel like so much has happened and I’ve already learned so much along this journey so far. Starting your own business is hard work & comes with different struggles that you would never think of. So, I wanted to take the time to recap what I’ve learned so far and provide some advice to those who are beginning their journey, or thinking about starting their own business.

There are so many things that you encounter when you are starting your own business, things that nobody teaches you and you have to figure out on your own. I definitely ran into some unexpected obstacles on this journey so far. I am well aware that I’m not done learning (never will be). It’s a process and you learn something new every single day.

THE IMPORTANCE OF ONLINE CONNECTIONS

There is great importance in making connections with those who are in your industry/making connections with like-minded people. For me, I don’t know anyone else who does what I do. So, the connections I’ve made in the online space has been extremely helpful and important for my continued success.

When I first started my business, I joined several Facebook Groups & started making connections with other female entrepreneurs through Instagram. Being able to connect with other, like-minded people who have been in your shoes before has been super helpful. It’s always reassuring to know that you’re not the only one experiencing great anxiety and frustration in your business, especially starting out.

I highly recommend looking up joining any Facebook groups and start making connections!

BEING OKAY WITH TAKING CHANCES

You can’t learn if you don’t make mistakes, right? Starting out, I had a world full of amazing opportunities waiting for me. I wanted to test the waters in every way possible and see where it would take me. Maybe I tried to take on too many things at the start, but I’m honestly very grateful that I did. I started blogging and a video series on my Facebook business page. I knew that I wanted to try something different and take chances and I knew I just had to do it in order to learn.

The series didn’t turn into what I expected it to be, but I think that the experience has opened the door and given me many more ideas of where I want to go next. You can’t expect the very first idea to be a game changer, but it can at least be a learning experience and guide you in the right direction. If anything, it’s given me even more confidence to continue trying new things and do it even better than before.

As an introvert that over-thinks and over-analyzes everything, this was a hard thing for me to do. But, I had to do it in order to continue moving forward in my business and give me more ideas.

ORGANIZATION & COMING UP WITH A SYSTEM

This seems like a very known thing, but I had no idea what I needed to do and what was the best system to put into place to make my day run smoothly. It was hard figuring out exactly what I needed to be doing. When you work in the corporate world, there’s already a system in place and you make changes when needed. Having to start from scratch, figuring out the best system for me, how to organize my time has been a challenging experience. It’s been an amazing experience to being fully in charge of my time, but that also comes with it’s own set of roadblocks that I was unprepared for.

What has helped me is taking on less clients to let me figure out a schedule and experiment with different things. There was so much I wanted to do and figure out that I needed some extra time to get it all figured out. I needed the opportunity to try things out, make mistakes and learn from them.

Over the last 6 months, I’ve been able to experiment with my system and my schedule, do some research and adjust where I thought was necessary. It’s been quite the journey so far, but I’m so happy and proud of the chances I’ve been able to take to continue learning and moving forward with my plan.

TRYING TO FORCE MYSELF TO BE CREATIVE RATHER THAN DOING WHAT COMES NATURALLY

As a Social Media Manager, I know the importance of planning content ahead of time. I’m good at planning content for my clients, but I’ve found this to be different for myself. I would try to plan out what blog posts I would write, what I wanted to post on Instagram, videos I wanted to make etc., all at the beginning of the month. It sounded like a great plan. I would write down what everything that I wanted to do at the beginning of the month, but I wouldn’t have anything to say about the topic when the time came and it didn’t come off as natural. There always seems to be another topic that came to mind that I ended up talking/writing about.

Having the set plan in place stalled my creativity and made the task more of a chore and frustration. What I’m learning to do now is carry around my planner and writing down topics that come to mind and jotting down notes in a word document, adding to it as ideas come. Doing this has let me exercise my creativity and speak from my heart, rather than forcing myself to be creative.

Planning ahead of time is always great, but I’ve learned that I need to make sure that I’m doing it right and not forcing myself to be creative about a topic when I’m not at the time.  

RECAP

Overall, these 6 months in my business has been the most incredible experience that I could ask for. I never saw myself starting my own business, so this has been quite the journey. But, sometimes you just have to follow the path and the signs as they come. I’ve learned so much, I’ve been challenged in many ways and I’ve put myself out there in ways that I didn’t even know were possible.

It’s been an amazing start to 2019 and I am so very excited to see what else is in store for the rest of the year! Just remember- take as many chances and go through all the open doors that come your way. They can be the most life changing and amazing experience. 💗

First month of entrepreneurship

Who else thinks January flew by?!

IMG_2449

The first month of the year did not go as I expected, but it never does, does it??

In November & December, while I was planning my business, I was super excited & energized to be working on my business. It was a cool feeling and I truly enjoyed working on it. But, the moment I made my announcement, everything shifted. I found myself getting overwhelmed and exhausted. A week in, I was thinking to myself, “what did I just get myself into?” It’s like everything became real. Up until that point, I obviously knew it was happening, but it didn’t really hit me until it became official. I immediately started feeling frantic, like I needed to get everything figured out. I felt like I had so much to do, I would get up early, sit down and have no idea what to do.

I did not decide to start a business because I thought it would be “easy”. But, I did quickly realize that I wasn’t as prepared as I thought I was going to be. That’s probably a main reason for why I was feeling so unsure when I would sit down to get work done. My schedule & tasks have changed so much over the last year and all of a sudden everything I do is completely up to me to figure out. I am running a one woman show. I do the planning, creating, developing, analyzing, making phone calls, initiating emails, etc.

A week into January, I felt like I failing at running a business. I got to a point where I had to ask myself,, “what am I even failing at?” I had to give myself a reality check and slowwww downnnnn. I had multiple messages on LinkedIn, a handful of people that were reaching out wanting to collaborate and build a partnership, a handful of people wanted to help me network. I mean, I had to remind myself that opportunities were sitting right in front of me.

I always like being prepared and no matter how long & hard I worked to prepare for the launch and get my business organized, I wasn’t ever going to be completely prepared. The unknown & unpreparedness are two top things that stress me out and overwhelm me. I quickly realized that I had no idea the opportunities and the work that I had to do. I also understand that this happens. I did lots of research afterwards to make sure this was “normal”. I now have those targeted Facebook Ads about being a stressed out business owner & realized that what I was experiencing is normal.

The important thing that I had to understand & remind myself is that you have two important choices: 1. Let yourself continue to be overwhelmed & let the situation control you OR 2. Learn from this situation & continue moving forward. This has been a life motto of mine forever & when you’re in the moment it can be so hard to follow through with the latter option. Especially when you don’t know how to move forward from the situation. It’s like you know that you’re doing something wrong & there’s a major life lesson, but you’re not entirely sure what it is or where to go next.

So, I began overworking myself, stressing myself out… falling asleep between 6pm-7pm because I was so exhausted. I was more exhausted by the feeling that I wasn’t sure what I needed to do to keep moving forward. This goes back to my feeling that I just want to be successful. I was so focused on trying to be successful right away & make enough money that I was getting overwhelmed.

So, I had to take a step back and analyze the situation and figure out what I needed to do to get myself on track and moving forward. Burn out is a very real thing & I knew I was heading in that direction if I continued doing what I was doing. I needed to get my mind & my focus back on track. I decided I needed to stop writing blogs for a little bit (even though I only had written 2 lol), let myself sleep in & start reintroducing a self-care routine! Towards the end of January, I decided to attend webinars, educate myself even more & developed an even better system to keep myself organized. I even came up with even more things that I want to do with my business. I’m continuing to gain more confidence in my abilities and where this business will take me.

This is an adventure. Honestly, working from home, being my own boss, building a business that I love & I am proud of, making a positive impact on people’s lives… that makes all of this worth it. At the end of the day, I am so grateful for this opportunity. I am truly blessed to be able to be building a life & a business that I love & gives me so much energy.

One of the most important lessons I learned in January was: Say “yes” more often. I had a handful of people reach out & want to learn more about what I do and see if there was an opportunity for collaboration. I ended up meeting a handful of people and learned a lot from each person. I’m learning more and more how to get out of my comfort zone & be as successful as I want to be.

I am young. I’m still learning. I’m still growing. But, we all are, right? You never stop.

So, how was your January?!

- Blissfully Jess2

My journey from a struggling high school student to starting my own business

Ten years ago, I was a struggling high school student. I remember spending all of free time trying to figure out homework assignments & studying hard for tests. I would go into school early and stay late to get extra help. I still failed almost every single test I took. I was constantly worried about being eligible for extracurriculars. I literally passed high school with test corrections and test retakes. It was hard not to feel discouraged because it seemed like everyone around me had no problems & I was on the brink of ineligibility.

I so badly wanted to be successful. But, I often felt like I was just not smart enough or capable of reaching the level of success that I wanted. At the time, I wanted to be a psychologist and get my PhD. But, how could I possibly achieve that if I can barely pass high school? Let alone get into a PhD program.

I have a super smart older brother who was just a year ahead of me in school. He is gifted academically, had artwork displayed in the hallway and has his picture hanging in the athletic wing.

“Don’t compare yourself.”

I have heard that so many times it’s not even funny. But let me tell you, it’s almost impossible. You can’t tell a teenager not to compare themselves to someone. It’s going to happen. You don’t want to be the sibling that was unable to achieve anything. Everyone knew my name before I even got there and had high expectations that I was never able to reach. It was hard. It was frustrating. But, I used it as fire to never give up on myself. I so badly wanted to be successful. I wanted to prove to everyone, especially myself that I am smart & capable of success, just like everyone else.

I wanted to go to college & get my education so I worked hard on my college applications. I flunked the ACT 3 times and barely got into Otterbein University. Otterbein was the only school that I got into & it was on the very bottom of the list of schools that I wanted to go to. They actually accidentally sent me a rejection letter then apologized and sent me my acceptance letter. Talk about BARELY getting in. Even though it was the school I originally didn’t want to go to, it ended up being the biggest blessing. I was taking classes related to my major that I was really good at and had an amazing, supportive faculty helping me along the way.

I failed my first exam.

This is when I knew something was wrong. So, I went to my doctor and ended up getting diagnosed with ADD. Some people might read that and think it was a cop out. But, let me tell you what. That first exam in college was the last test I ever failed. I was so relieved to be able to read a sentence and not have my mind drift into la la land. That’s literally what happened before I got treated. No wonder I could barely pass high school, I couldn’t pay attention long enough to read a sentence. ADD medications don’t make you smart. They help you focus.

Getting my ADD under control, taking classes I was good at and having a supportive faulty, I finally started feeling smart. For the first time in my life, I was actually able to fully embrace that feeling. For some people, that might sound incredibly cheesy. But, you have no idea what it feels like when you feel dumb for a majority of your life.

I remember being so excited. I figured out a study strategy that worked for me and made a schedule to help me be successful. I worked hard and ended up becoming a straight A student. It was amazing. I had so much stress lifted off my shoulders and I finally felt like I was capable of achieving so much.

By my senior year of college, I decided I wanted to take it another step further. I decided to take on an independent research study on top of my regular academic schedule and other obligations I had going on at the time. I ended up not only completing the project, but graduating with honorary distinction, presenting my project 3 times & getting accepted to present my project at the Midwestern Psychological Association in Chicago. Holy Crap.

Guys. I went from a 2.5 GPA student in High School to graduating college with honorary distinction & presenting at a conference in Chicago.

During my senior year, I also flunked the GRE to get into grad school. I studied so hard for the test and put everything I had into it. I remember getting home and looking at where my scores landed- 20th percentile. I remember crying because I tried so hard & hadn’t had the feeling of failing in a long time. What it proved is that I am not the “smart” measured by general education & society. I’m smart in my own way. That score doesn’t accurately measure the level of my intellectual ability. But, it’s also hard to understand & comprehend when that score is used to determine your eligibility to continue your education. The unfortunate thing is, most schools don’t take applicants who scored below the 50th percentile.

I didn’t get into grad school.

I remember feeling discouraged, frustrated & confused. My plan was to go to grad school right after college. But, I still never gave up and kept trying. Everyone kept telling me “You will end up where you’re supposed to be”, “Everything happens for a reason”, “This will open the door for bigger & better opportunities”.

One of the biggest lessons that I learned is that you have to trust the process. This is something that is much easier said than done & very hard to do when you are going through a similar situation as me. I had it in my mind that everything had to work out a certain way and something was wrong if it didn’t. I was comparing myself to others & seeing others reach the goals that I had set for myself. It’s hard not to compare yourself to others.

When I got let go from my 3rd job of 2018, people kept telling me, “This will open the door for an even better opportunity”. Great! Can I know what this great thing is because I’m about to lose my mind?

Starting my own business never crossed my mind. It was a goal that I never set for myself because I didn’t think I had the personality or what it takes to do so. I was fine with it & didn’t really care. But, it ended up being what was meant to be. Everything that I went through, the process, now makes sense because this is what I’m supposed to be doing & where I’m supposed to be. I was struggling to fit in to the “smarts” of everyone else and keeping up with everyone else because I’m supposed to be building my own path. Just because I failed every standardized test doesn’t mean I’m “dumb”. Just because I’m an introvert, doesn’t mean I don’t have what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur.

Same goes for you.

If you are reading this and questioning how “smart” you are, feeling discouraged and/or don’t feel like you have what it takes to be successful, you do. We were all placed on this earth for a reason, to make a difference in our own way. We often have to go through certain experiences and situations to make things clear. It’s hard not to give up and get discouraged. Sometimes the path that we envision for ourselves isn’t the right path for us, that’s what ended up happening for me. The right path will become clear, after we hit certain obstacles along the way.

I’m extremely stubborn & if you are anything like me, you don’t really want to hear any advice. But, just take it day by day. Let yourself feel the emotions you are feeling with each day. It’s OK to feel angry. Just don’t give up on yourself.

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The feeling of holding that LLC document brought on so many emotions. I felt so proud of myself for working through all the obstacles & never giving up. I finally made it!

If you or anyone you know would like to talk to me more about my experiences & journey, please feel free to reach out to me! I would love to help out in any way that I can.

Read more about my business experiences in my most recent posts:

First month of entrepreneurship

Six Month Business Recap : What I’ve Learned

2019 Reflection + What I Learned In My First Year Of Business

BUSINESS PLAN FOR 2020 / CHANGES TO BUSINESS

- Blissfully Jess2