Facing and Embracing Change
If the last twelve months has taught us anything, it’s that we are all capable of shifting and pivoting when we need to and as entrepreneurs, being able to embrace change, whether it be in your business or your personal life, is one of the most important parts our journey.
When things don’t go according to plan, it’s that ability that look at what happened and identify shifts or changes that can be made that will ensure that you (and your business) build up that all important resiliency muscle and keep taking consistent steps forward.
Here’s my top five tips for how you can face and embrace change in your biz!
Drop your ego
This one’s a bit of a gut kicker but it’s necessary. You have to be able to get out of your own way in order to build a business that embraces change and consistently moves forwards successfully. Listen, we all make mistakes...HELLO we are human! Rather than viewing them as failures, reframe your mindset to the positive and let them be an opportunity to re-assess, re-align, re-direct, and kick ass. In fact, celebrate them (like I did!).
Silence your inner self critic
The biggest thing standing in the way of your success is you. You have built the walls you face, you are telling yourself you can’t move forwards and you are halting your progress with your limiting beliefs⠀
For me, my inner critic’s name is Cruella. She has a talent for highlighting my "failures", causing me to sabotage my goals, and stop me from chasing my dreams. About a year ago I decided that it was time for Cruella to take a hike, and that I needed to put an end to the negative self talk once and for all.⠀
My coach introduced me to the SOS method and I have been using it ever since. The next time your negative self talk starts sabotaging you, try using these steps to silence it.⠀
Stop. Actually tell yourself stop. Say it mentally, say it out loud, whatever you need to do to interrupt the negative voice.⠀
Observe. Take a moment to analyze what your inner critic is saying, what may have triggered the negative self talk, and how it's making you feel both physically and emotionally.⠀
Shift. Now squash that voice! Adjust your response to the critic by using positive self talk, as well as personalized techniques like your favourite pump up song (mine is "Fighter" by Rachel Platten!). ⠀
Expect the unknown
Business is unpredictable, we know that. We can’t control a client’s decisions, the number of service providers in our industry, when technology decides to crash, or what small business laws will be instituted a year from now. What we can control is how we react to these unknowns! We get to choose if they make us or break us.
Embrace failing
Yes, you read that right, I am encouraging you to fail. Hard, often, flat on your face. Why you ask? Because I don’t actually believe that failure is a thing! Maybe you didn’t sell as many program seats during launch week as you hoped, or maybe you read an email wrong and wasted a day putting together an incorrect proposal, or maybe you lost two clients this month. None of these scenarios depict failure. Instead what they provide is an opportunity to grow. A chance to give your program launch a facelift, a reminder to slow down when reading emails, or a lesson on customer retainment best practices. I ask this of you. The next time you think you have “failed”, stop, assess the situation, and see what you can learn from it! Ask yourself what is this experience designed to teach me?⠀
Get your support system
You’ve heard me say this again and again and there’s a reason for that! Here’s the thing: when things change, especially if it’s unexpected, smacks you in the face, you need a team to have your back! A team of friends and family and colleagues and mentors and motivators and employees….you name it, you need them! You can face change alone, but I promise you you will be less stressed and stronger and quicker to recover if you face it with others.
Whatever stage of business or career lifecycle you are in, know that you can welcome change, face it head on and forge ahead to the accomplishment of big big dreams!