I have to be real and honest with you: I’m a little nervous to talk about this topic today! This is the most candid I’ve ever been about my professional journey.
I recently looked back on my story and I realized there is so much value I could give if I just opened up and shared the “not so great” moments along the way. So this is me getting really real and vulnerable in hopes I can help you avoid the same!
There were six major mistakes I made on my journey which cost me time, money and confidence. I’m diving into them today to help you push past them and pull the trigger to make big things happen in your life.
Mistake #1: I let fear get in the way of making my leap
I left my salon in early 2016. But if I’m being very real and honest, I probably stayed there for two years too long, and I stayed there because I was afraid.
I know some of you work with stylists that feel like they’re on the family level. I had that with my people. I cried on the day that I left like I’ve never cried before. But I knew, they knew, we all knew that it was going to be the right thing to part ways at that time.
Looking back, I was scared that if I left they would not be okay without me. It was like I was the mom and the kids weren’t ready to go off to college yet. But they were all adults. Would it have been great if I left? No. But ultimately, I left anyway and all of those people now are doing great.
So had I done this two years prior, the end result would have been the same. Worlds wouldn’t have fallen apart; they would have gone on with their lives. But because I felt responsible for other people and afraid of what would happen to the world around me if I followed this calling, I didn’t pull the trigger. Looking back, I think it would have been better for me and everybody else if I had made the leap and followed my gut.
Mistake #2: I worried too much about what other people would think of me
I was judged hardcore, and I still am. I was definitely worried that my salon team would feel I was abandoning them. I worried that my family would think that I was being irrational and crazy. Who in their right mind would leave a super stable, salaried job that they’ve been at for YEARS to try and start their own business?
And you know what? People thought I was nuts. People did judge me. But I decided it’s my life and I’m doing this for me.
So surround yourself with people who are in your corner and those who aren’t? Prove them wrong. But don’t worry about what anybody else is going to think.
Mistake #3: I didn’t educate myself enough
I used to think I could figure it all out myself. I’ve been that way since I was a teenager.
That was stupid.
I wasted a lot of years trying to scrap stuff together when I could have just taken a class, found a mentor, paid some money to have somebody to just show me how it’s done. I would have saved months and years of precious time.
The first time I spent big money on education, believe me, it all went on a credit card. But I knew that I needed to make the investment if I wanted to push and grow. I am now an education junkie. I’m educating myself constantly and it’s making me into a better person in a personal way and a better businesswoman.
Listen, there’s a ton of great free resources out there. But nobody gives their best stuff away for free. So if you’re just absorbing free education or you’re not educating yourself at all, you’re cheating yourself majorly. I can’t stress it enough: educate, educate, educate yourself.
Mistake #4: I wasted time on things that didn’t actually push my business forward.
By the time I launched into the online coaching space, nobody else was doing it. Not one. So there’s not like there was someone I could look up to. I was like Lone Ranger, so I had to figure it out.
I spent hours and hours trying to study people who were doing things kind of similar to what I wanted to do. I looked to see what other online educators were doing, what they were posting on social media or sharing on their websites so I could get ideas.
The time I spent “studying the competition” was such a fat waste because the last thing I want to do is be like anybody else. I want to do my own thing and stand out from the crowd.
So don’t do the things that don’t actually move the needle. Make sure you’re spending your time wisely and not spinning your wheels. Do the stuff that’s going to actually push your business forward in the direction that you want it to go in.
Mistake #5: I spent way too long not valuing my time properly.
In the early years, I was doing way too much for free. I was offering free email coaching, and spending hours telling you how to run your business.
I needed to start valuing my time more. I had to start thinking about my family, coaching on a larger scale, doing things where I can really share and make a difference in people’s lives.
We have really big hearts in our industry. We want to give and help and share. But at the end of the day, it’s business. Stop discounting yourself, really start valuing your time, and take care of yourself properly if you’re going to be successful in business.
Mistake #6: I was really scared to be myself
The one thing I’ve always known in my heart is the person I am, and the way I believe and see the world. But there was a time in my career where I was afraid to be myself, occasional swear words, cheesy jokes, and all. It is exhausting trying to fake it to be somebody you’re not! So I decided that I’m going to be myself. If people don’t like who I am, it’s totally cool; they can find another business coach that fits their needs and speaks their language.
When I started being unapologetically me, my business exploded. It was like when I was just fully ready to accept who I was and take my gifts and talents for who I was and roll with it, it’s like the universe gave me a big hug and high five.
That’s the place I feel like I’m in now. And I want to encourage you to be unapologetically you. Don’t be afraid to show who you really are. Don’t act the way in front of your clients the way they think you’re supposed to act. I don’t want to live my life that way anymore and I hope that you don’t either.
So that’s it….the six major mistakes I made in growing my business. I hope that you took a handful of things away from this post and I hope it will help you live a fuller life as a stylist, as a business owner, and a happier personal life overall. You are incredibly powerful. The world is your oyster, so go out and get it. I want you to make big, huge things happen.
