A year ago, I had a lot of uncertainty about my plan for 2020. I had some ideas about where I wanted to take my business and the type of work I could do helping small businesses.
Today, twelve months later, my business and my work looks nothing like what I planned. I am doing the work I love - helping small businesses - but my last blog post was in May 2020 and I have fewer clients than I did a year ago. The good news is my impact has scaled tremendously, and I have more knowledge and skills than I did a year ago.
However, I am not doing it though my own coaching business. Rather than being self employed, I am now the Training and Facilitator Manager for CO.STARTERS based in Chattanooga, TN. I meet with communities across the country and train their staff and affiliates on the CO.STARTERS program. Since taking on this position in September, I have trained 31 facilitators. If each one facilitates one cohort of 10 small business owners in 2021, my work will impact 310 businesses across the country.
The thing is, I never set out to do this. My dad died in February; the year started off with heartbreak. As tough as this year has been, I am blessed. It has been a good year for me. New opportunities came my way due to the timing and circumstances. As I reflect back on 2020, here’s what I did and learned along the way that made it a rewarding year.
If you want something, go after it.
Never ever, would I have thought it possible to work with the CO.STARTERS team. I love CO.STARTERS; I saw the impact of its programs firsthand as a facilitator here in Erie. It was the impetus for starting my own small business coaching company. Because of family ties to Erie, as much as I dreamed it, I couldn’t relocate to a company in Tennessee. So I thought a job on the CO.STARTERS team impossible. What I didn’t know is that CO.STARTERS had a remote team even before Covid. I told myself it wasn’t a possibility and had already formed these beliefs in my head that weren’t even true. So, my advice, forget what you think you know. Forget the barriers you tell yourself exist and just go after it. The worst that can happen is you learn from your efforts and you find a new direction.
Your hard work will get noticed.
There are a lot of times we work and think no one is paying attention. We are doing good things but feel like its repetitive and we aren’t going anywhere. We question ourselves. If you are true and authentic to your work, if you’ve built a level of expertise and skills, you will get noticed. People will seek you out. New opportunities will come your way. Watch for them. Be ready.
Do it scared.
At the 2019 Summit of Greatness, we were given an opportunity to select a word or phrase for an inspirational bracelet. Here’s a picture of mine. The phrase I chose was “Do it scared.” Something within me told me this was my greatest obstacle. When you are someone who is always perceived as having their shit together, there is this underlying anxiety about doing something that could lead to failure, to criticism, and the hushed comments made behind your back.
In May, I was contacted by CO.STARTERS and asked if I would facilitate a virtual cohort on a new program starting in two days. “What? How soon? Be on video?” It was all coming at me fast and guess what, I said “Yes, I’ll do it.”
One of the reasons I agreed to do the virtual cohort for CO.STARTERS was because I realized how inexperienced and uncomfortable I was with video and being “on camera”. Now that I look back, there is so much I didn’t know about the course I was facilitating and the zoom platform. But I did it; I did it scared. I did it with a pit in my stomach and sweat on my brow. Things went wrong and guess what, others gave me grace and I’m better for it. I am more confident and comfortable. I sit a little taller in front of the camera and I’m ok navigating technical issues and having my picture in a screenshot.
Learn as you go.
Even though I went into things scared and with anxiety, I never went in ill prepared. I worked hard to prepare for every session I facilitated. I made notes, played with technology, invested in an extra monitor and little by little learned more. I became more proficient in the content and the zoom platform. It was these little tiny steps taken that created a massive leap in my knowledge base. For example, I now use tools like Asana, Hubspot, Slack, Zoom, Pandadoc, Eventbrite, Mighty Networks, to name a few. These tools will be valuable to my own business when I redirect my efforts. You see, I know I won’t be doing this work forever. But what I am learning and the contacts I am making will help me better serve my own clients and community.
Ask for help.
I was never shy about admitting my ignorance. I believe in trying to find solutions but I also knew when it was a better use of everyone’s time to just ask someone else for help. I’m the oldest on my team and have learned so much from the younger members of the team. We all bring unique skill sets. What I lack in tech, I make up for in wisdom and leadership. I am the one who can help frame the problem and make sure the team is asking the right questions. So know your own limitations, own them and don’t be afraid to ask for help.
Acknowledge life’s blessings.
It know it’s been a difficult year for many. I think it was a good year for my family because we have a pretty simple and what others may see as mundane or routine life. Our life didn’t change much this year. Perhaps the greatest change was the limitation it made for my 90 yr. old mom. Her senior living facility has been on lock down many times and we have had to adjust. Our FaceTime over Christmas and New Years are moments I will never forget. In some ways, the technology gave us a platform to visit and be really present in the conversation. When I talk with my mom, we often speak of missing my dad but we feel the blessing of his quick passing. It would have broken her heart to endure the necessary but burdensome separation had my dad been in a nursing care facility during the pandemic.
My hope for you is that you can see your own blessings from this past year. Two of my sons graduated from college in 2019 and have yet to find their perfect jobs. But guess what, they were home during the pandemic and I see that as a blessing. To be able to be together and talk about what was happening, the world economy and politics was a gift in and of itself. Point is, life is never ideal and perfect. But if we look close enough, with an open heart, we will see how blessed we really are.
Willie Nelson said, “When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.” My wish for you this New Year is that you take time to count your blessings. Because then and only then, will your whole life turn around for the better.