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I was recently asked to speak as part of a careers panel at my son’s school, and this week’s newsletter was inspired by the last question I was asked: what does success mean to you?
After the speaking gig, I thought more about my definition of success and realised that my answer today is very different to what it would’ve been a year ago, and that’s because I’ve changed and grown a lot since then.
If you haven’t already thought about it, I encourage you to take some time out today to do so. The chances of achieving success are so much greater if you’ve given some proper thought to what it means for you.
When I first started working online as a stylist, my goal was to become financially viable, pay off the courses I’d bought and make more than pocket money with my business.
Now, success is being able to do what I want every single day.
As I’m writing this, I’m about to head out for lunch with a friend. I woke early today, did some work, then spent time with the kids, made their lunches, and walked the youngest to school. I then took the dogs for a long walk, listened to some podcast episodes, and did more work. I’ll probably take the whole afternoon off.
Success for me is all about having the kind of day that I want and not having to work 12-14 hours, for example.
I don’t want to work in the evenings. I want to travel and go home to Ireland to see my family. I carry on working while I’m away though, that’s the beauty of being online.
I’ve thought long and hard about my strengths, and I’ve realised that working with groups suits me best. I thrive off the energy of groups and deliver my best work in that environment. That’s why all my services are group coaching programs – another example of me doing what I want to do, which ties into my version of success.
So, why am I telling you all this?
The message I’m trying to get across is that NOW is the time to start designing the life that you want.
Today is the day!
If you’re unsure where to start, think about your perfect day and write about how it looks.
Where are you living?
What are you doing?
Who is around?
How are you showing up in your business?
It’s such a powerful exercise I did with my coach a few years ago. The questions set off lots of lightbulbs for me, and I ended up with pages of detail. Now my days are pretty much exactly as I described them when I daydreamed for this exercise!
You could also think about what you’re doing now.
Write down the things that you hate doing and cut them out. Don’t take on clients that need help with these things anymore, and don’t create new packages that require you to offer them. Free yourself for more of the things you enjoy, as pursuing them will make business easier.
Think deeply about what you truly want, then take steps to make your life deliver it.
Many of us have lofty ambitions – like a fancy car or to live by the sea. I’m fortunate to now have both, and you might say I am successful BUT, actually what really brings me happiness and is success for me is being able to spend time with the kids, to walk in the woods with the dogs, to travel to see my parents and to treat my husband and take some of the financial strain off him.
All of these are simple things.
Don’t put off your simple things until you have success.
Start building them in NOW. Don’t neglect time with your loved ones and other things that make you happy in pursuing financial success. Once you get there, you’ll realise it’s not the be-all and end-all.
Most people don’t have to worry about money during every waking moment, so build time into your day for downtime now, whether that’s exercise, a walk with a friend, or going shopping for the afternoon every few weeks.
These things won’t necessarily build you physical (cash) wealth. Or will they?
If you take the time to enjoy simple pleasures, you’ll be a better version of yourself.
You’ll be more rested and enthusiastic and will have more to give to your business for taking time out.
When building systems into your business, create enjoyable systems.
Plan, design, and execute your services and products according to the kind of life you want.
Don’t let them eat up all your time.
Offer things that you love to provide and which are in your zone of genius.
Deliver them in a format that makes you comfortable and gives you the most energy – whether that’s one-to-one or one-to-many.
Carve time out of your routine to dream big.
I know how hard it is to find time to think about the future of your business when thoughts about your next session or where your next client is going to come from are dominating your mind.
It’s so easy to stay stuck on what’s right in front of you and miss out on opportunities that could make your business stratospheric. I did it myself when I first had the idea of taking my services online. I knew it would allow me so much freedom, and I could have clients worldwide, but then my mind monkeys would jump in, questioning whether it was possible, telling me just to focus on what I was doing—keeping me small.
You HAVE to dream!
Dreaming is essential in life and business. You have to dream before things can appear in your life. How do you work out how to bring things to life if you don’t have the idea in the first place?
At first, the path to getting them won’t be clear, but if you give your mind the space to wander, the way forward becomes clear.
I often see it with clients who join my 6 Figure Stylist Academy, where I teach them how to create high-value programs. When they first come to me, they don’t think they could ever charge €1,000 or €5,000 for a package they design. They’ve never done it before, so they don’t know which path to follow.
They just have to take a leap of faith and decide what they want in their life. They have to define their version of success.
You’ll be surprised at what can happen when you operate from that place of faith, trust and belief, even when you can’t see the next step yet.
If you’re ready to build success into your life, check out my 6 Figure Stylist Academy now.
