Do you ever struggle to find joy in the entrepreneurial journey? 

In this episode (that originally aired on The CLS Experience with Craig Siegel), we didn’t shy away from the hard stuff. Craig and I discussed perfectionism, taking uncomfortable action, practicing self-forgiveness, and navigating tough conversations, which are all inevitable in the entrepreneurial journey (or any journey worth embarking on).

As you may know, in 2020, I became a mother and adopted my baby girl, Luna. One of my biggest regrets was being impatient, not trusting the journey, and not having faith that the perfect baby girl was waiting for me. 

What was the lesson here?

You must trust (and find joy) in the journey in order to stay resilient, knowing that every step forward, no matter how challenging, brings you closer to your success and fulfillment.

You can spend your life thinking that something isn’t even a possibility. But the truth is, everything is figureoutable, and it was believing that the impossible was possible that changed my life. 

How did it change my life, you ask?

When I began to believe that anything was possible, I allowed myself to take messy (and sometimes scrappy) action. I spent countless hours on YouTube and Google to get to where I am today in business. (I basically got my MBA from Google University.) 

But I must say, entrepreneurship is the school of hard knocks. The lessons, successes, and results come from taking ACTION. 

With action come many mistakes and failures, but a failure is only a failure if you don’t learn from it (this is where forgiveness comes in).

In the past, I struggled to forgive myself. I believed that self-forgiveness had to be earned. 

When I discussed this with a therapist, she said, “Well, if giving forgiveness doesn't feel natural, could you not go back and extend grace? Could you not say that given what you were given and knowing what you knew and doing what you did, did you not make the best possible decision, given the tools you had?”

When “forgiveness” was framed in this way, I realized that I didn’t need to forgive myself because I didn’t make decisions that I knew were going to cause suffering, I needed to extend myself grace.

Am I ​​stronger, wiser, better, and more ready to make similar yet better decisions in the future because of those mistakes? Hell yes, I am. 

Do you know what else I’m more equipped to do? Extend grace to others. In fact, Craig and I also discussed how we extend grace as we handle negative conversations on social media and navigate tough conversations in business. 

Click >>PLAY<<  to hear all of this and: 

[00:04:21] The importance of uncomfortable action for personal growth and success.

[00:08:53] How happiness and joy come from within, not from material possessions or accomplishments.

[00:10:00] How perfectionism can hinder growth and success, and the importance of putting things out into the world.

[00:13:54] My three-part framework for handling negative comments on the internet

[00:17:08] The beauty of creating content when nobody is following, the attachment to validation and accolades, and the impact of other people's opinions on the creative process.

[00:19:16] The mindset shift I made about failures and lessons, how I stopped defining myself by past failures, and how I used my past experiences to prepare for a better future.

[00:22:30] My journey with forgiveness and how I reframed it as extending grace to myself, acknowledging that I made the best decisions based on the information and resources I had at the time.

[00:24:50] The importance of living authentically, especially as a parent, and the fear of being judged.

[00:26:23] My experience with the adoption process and how it helped me reframe rejection as redirection.

[00:31:44] The importance of focusing on gratitude and perspective.

[00:34:21] Having the courage to bet on yourself and make courageous decisions.

[00:35:49] The need to strengthen the mind, which acts as a jockey to guide the brain in the right direction.

[00:41:24] Why lack of qualifications shouldn’t stop you from pursuing your dreams.

[00:43:36] How I hire based on core values and the significance of providing feedback for growth.

[00:49:01] My company's induction program and how it includes check-ins at 30, 60, and 90 days to assess the progress and fit of new hires.

[00:50:33] How to reframe tough conversations as just regular conversations and the importance of having them.

[00:51:18] Exploring the concept of the story we tell ourselves and how it can affect our relationships and communication.

Click >>PLAY<< to listen now!