10 Rules To Live By As A #GIRLBOSS
Good Morning #girlbosses ! In light of this amazing new blog re-design you’re seeing for the first time today and just now realizing I officially left the corporate world to blog full time and be my own boss 2 years ago last month, I thought I would share some things I have personally learned about myself while running a business from ground up and what I think has been so important while being my own boss.
For those of you who are new around here, I launched my blog towards the end of 2015 and in 2016 I realized that this was something I could actually do full time. It started out as a passion project with no intent of making any money, but I slowly realized there was opportunity in this industry to actually make a living. It then became my goal to work my tail off, do all of the research, learn what I needed to learn and truly turn this into a business model where I could leave the corporate life and work for myself. April of 2017, I did just that. I analyzed the last year and took a leap of faith and haven’t looked back. I am such a firm believer in manifesting a dream into reality. If you want it bad enough, you will find a way to make it happen.
That being said, I want to share 10 things I have learned over the years about being your own boss. These are solely my opinion- you may be your own boss and have a totally different outlook on things than what I’m about to mention, but these are the good (and the bad) I’ve learned about myself and my business.
10 rules to live by as a #girlboss
You get out of it what you put into it. I have learned this the good way and the hard way so I’m here to tell you this statement is 100% accurate. Especially in the blogging world. I have had seasons in my business where I am going going going and it pays off. When you give your business all of your attention, you will see growth, success, achievements, and purpose. On the flipside, when you halfa$$ it, you’ll see the outcome of that too. Long story short, at the end of my pregnancy last year, I was SO tired and had no energy to give it my all and I reaped the consequences. I then had Jack and took about a month off for maternity leave on top of that and things slowed down incredibly quickly. I fell behind. Once I got back into the swing of things, I was playing catch up on the months I didn’t give it my all. Working for yourself means you demand how much/how little you want to work, but you also control the outcome and how much you’ll benefit.
You don’t always have to say yes. Your time is so incredibly valuable. When I first started working for myself I wanted to say yes to every opportunity, every event, every trip. I do think there are pros to doing that in the beginning, however- you will burn yourself out, you will regret not spending weekends/ nights with your family and sometimes you just need time to yourself. I believe in quality over quantity in everything. The moment I started valuing my own time- you could see it in the quality in my work as well. Prioritize those closest to you, your health, your personal life and your business will flourish. If you can’t take care of yourself first, you can’t take care of your business
Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Everyone thinks its the #girlboss thing to do it all by yourself, but I think it takes a greater sense of confidence to find resources and ask for help.
Yes, you can create your own flexible schedule, but the work truly never stops. Like mentioned above- the moment you stop, so does your business. Sometimes working for yourself seems like it would be a joyride compared to the corporate world, but there’s no automatic salary anymore. You hold the outcome to your future and you have to be all the way in or it’s not going to work.
Being your own boss means you will learn a little bit of everything. The learning never stops which is fun! Keep doing research and trying to better your knowledge of whatever field of work you are in. You should never stop looking for opportunities to grow.
Learn Time Management. This should honestly be at the top of the list. I am still learning everyday what works best as a schedule. I finally got into a pretty good schedule and then bam...Jack was born haha! The best bit of advice I can give here (even though I don’t even do it 100% of the time myself) especially if you work from home: treat your days as if you’re still driving into an office. Get up, workout, do your devotional, have your coffee whatever it is you like to do and then get dressed and ready for the day ahead. This will help your production levels sky rocket.
Network! Yes, the obvious is to go to networking events, but I’ve learned over the years- don’t be afraid to carry business cards with you wherever you go and tell people what you do! 9 times out of 10 they’ll be so interested because it’s YOUR business.
Comparison is the thief of joy. Don’t do it. Don’t compare yourself to others. I find myself doing this when I’m in a “low season” and I always have to tell myself to snap out of it. Keep your blinders on, but keep your eyes wide open and you will kill it, I can promise you that. Good things come with time, you have to learn to focus on yourself and be patient and your hard work will eventually pay off one way or another.
Be Persistent and Drop the Fear. I can’t even count on two hands the amount of times I have been given a “no”. It hurts, it makes you feel less than and very, very tiny, but put the fear behind you, gain the confidence and bravery you sought when you decided to become your own boss and keep pressing forward. Whether that’s persistently reaching out until you get the answer you want or learning to drop it and move forward. You are your own boss now- you call the shots now and hold the power of your future. Act on it.
Having a huge sense of accomplishment. Doing something you love everyday and being able to make a living from it is such a great reminder of how amazing you are and what you’re capable of doing. When you build something from ground up and watch it succeed (even if it’s 10 years in the making) It’s a pretty darn good feeling.
If you already own your own business, I hope this post can be a reference for when you need a little pick me up reminder that you are a rockstar. If you are on the fence about taking that leap of faith and launching that business you’ve dreamt of forever- make yourself a gameplan. Write down your goals and how you’re going to achieve them to get to where you want to be. Anything really is possible if you set your mind to it.
And just a last little reminder if you need that kick in the pants: You can spend your life building someone else’s dreams or you can build your own. Which are you going to choose? It’s your decision!