If you’ve heard this before, it might be starting to sound pretty freaking annoying at this point, but I gotta tell you, the process of leaving my job and launching a successful business really did come down to one thing: mindset. I spent 7 years grinding and hustling my way through a degree, a wedding industry career, writing a book, and building a brand -- and after all that time I was gifted with $20/hr and a severe case of burnout. It wasn’t until a mental breakdown and being forced to sit in my apartment for a month (hello quarantine 2020), where I felt an actual shift happen. It was in this period where I was forced to look inward and deal with the feelings of lack and worthlessness I’d been wrestling with for so long. It felt like my mind had wires and the ends of them were frayed and fried. I was willing to do anything, so I got some help and basically took my mental health to the spa.
This was a massively personal shift, but along this journey, I decided on some very different ideas of the way I approached business. Ideals that have since allowed me to quit my job, start the online business I’ve always wanted, and work with my dream clients. These are the 3 mindset shifts that helped me start my business.
It doesn’t have to be perfect.
Being a gymnast turned journalism major I’ve always had a deep-rooted perfectionist complex. Not so much that I was obsessed with perfection but that I felt like I could never achieve it, so therefore I was never good enough. I was taught that my writing had to be flawless. No spelling errors, everything had to be grammatically correct, and if it wasn’t, well don’t bother even sharing it. This hindered me for YEARS. I was terrified of ever putting something out into the world because I thought that if it wasn’t perfect my credibility and career would be shot.
Then there was a commute to work when I was listening to the Goal Digger podcast, and Jenna Kutcher said the words, “Done is better than perfect,” and it was like a lightbulb. This woman I admired so much and who was killing it in the online space was permitting me to simply produce. That I could be free to create the work that was on my heart and share it with the world even if it isn’t perfect. Of course, there was some resistance and criticism (because I expected it) but I realized that the people that were critiquing my work, were people who weren’t putting themselves out there. They weren’t publishing jack, most of the time not even doing work that they loved. Yet they found the need to tell me what I was doing wrong.
On that note, as a little bonus, another mindset shift was realizing that I was no longer going to take advice or criticism from anyone I wouldn’t trade lives with. If I don’t want to be like you, then why would I depend on you to direct the course of my life and success?
My point is, nobody expects you to be perfect. As long as you’re doing your best, acting with integrity, and have good intentions -- that’s enough. Share your work, allow yourself to be seen, and share your light even if it’s not “college professor” approved.
The more authentic you are, the more clients you will attract.
For a long time, I was trying to adopt a brand that would be “best suited” for my industry, or act and speak in a way that I thought other people would approve of. I tried on brand after brand, almost like I was stripping off my personality and trying on a new one all the time. Wouldn’t you know, my only clients were my family and friends. I was trying so hard to appease everyone that I wasn’t reaching anyone.
Then, out of desperation to pay the bills, I decided to drop the guard and simply be me. Write the way I talk, use pictures that represent who I am right now, and do work that makes me really happy. This started on my website, which was a single-page Copywriting service page. I showed up purely as myself and before I knew it, I was out-earning my previous 9-5 income, working from home, running a full-blown business. Plus my clients are amazing, and the exact type of people I want to be working with.
I found that while my mom was cringing a little, and some family friends unfollowed me, I was attracting my ideal clients when I was being myself. Which meant talking about periods, and swearing, and sharing a lot more personal content. Once I set myself free and permitted myself to do that, everything came together.
When changing your mindset I would challenge you to journal on this question:
What parts of yourself are you hiding from your audience?
The more you “feel good” the more your business will grow.
I was only recently introduced to the manifestation game, and trust me I was a skeptic at first, but there is something to be said about moving into a higher vibration. You really can think yourself into a whole different life, good or bad. Ever notice that when you wake up in a bad mood all these shitty things keep happening to you? You spill your coffee, stub your toe, hit traffic, drop the ball at work, etc., etc., etc. In these moments you’re ruminating in a low vibration which is attracting low vibrational things to you. You’re expecting it in a way, so it happens.
It’s the same with matching a higher vibration. When you feel good, and you expect good things to happen, the circumstances around you adapt. It’s in the way you think, the way you talk about yourself, the way you show up in life. You have to go about your dreams as if they’ve already happened. As if your success is inevitable. When I was first introduced to this concept there was a level of skepticism and guilt that resided in me. I felt like it was irresponsible to just feel good at the time. I felt like I wouldn’t be taken seriously if I thought that way.
Yet, when I let myself lean into what made me feel good, and what made me happy, that’s when the needle really moved forward.
I find that my business always works, I always make the money I expect, and I don’t have fear within my work because I genuinely believe that I am exactly where I’m supposed to be, doing exactly what I’m meant to do. I don’t believe that I’m “finessing” people to work with me. The right people find me, and as long as I stay true to the vision, I’m constantly rewarded. I ultimately just feel like life is hard enough, and being pessimistic or too logical about everything just takes the joy out of the good parts.
Coming from a very masculine-energy, logical, type-A person -- mindset was the key to starting my business and making it successful. As much as I tried to force my way through it.
It’s sometimes a matter of rewiring and unraveling old beliefs and ways of doing things. There were a lot of old thought patterns and habits that were programmed into me that didn't serve the kind of life I was trying to create. I had to be willing to see things differently and have the courage to look within myself. Your next big break is already in motion and your most successful self is already inside of you.
Train your mind to elevate to the lifestyle you’re striving for.
When I was going through this process there’s no way I could have done it without the help and guidance that supported me along the journey. During this time I invested in one-on-one therapy, online courses, tons of books, and coaching. With this help, I genuinely believe this allowed me to have breakthroughs faster and understand the concepts more deeply.
It takes practice and having a support system means everything, especially when you’re digging through the hard stuff. This is why I offer my business coaching services. I offer 4-12 week packages where we work 1:1 together and create a plan that’s completely customized and tailored to you. We have Zoom sessions, you can reach me anytime via voice message, and I create worksheets and guides for you to follow and implement every week.
If having a 1:1 coaching feels like the right next step for you, please email me at annafurrey@gmail.com and let me know what kind of coaching services you’re interested in!
Comments