When was the last time you took the time to make improvements to yourself as an entrepreneur? If you are like many people, you ignore all of that and simply say you will find time to improve later. Or, you say you don’t have the money to spend on yourself. Or the time. After all, you are growing your business!
Self-improvement is a necessary part of your business though. You don’t need to spend a ton of time and money to tackle self-improvement. I recommend you begin this process of self-improvement by looking at a couple of key areas.
I try to focus on three key areas in my business. They may seem small to you, but once you add to your knowledge of each one, the results will be huge.
3 Key Areas for Self-Improvement
1. Mindset
2. Skills
3. Presentation
Key Area 1 – Mindset
In our industry, most of us have limiting beliefs. You may be experiencing imposter syndrome. Phrases like, “I’m not good enough” or “I’m not smart enough” can pop up in our brains out of nowhere. Those negative thoughts can break us down and make us think we are never going to be successful.
There are many things you can do to change your mindset. I love to read books that will make an impact in my life. The one self-improvement book that stands out the most to me is “The Big Leap” by Gay Hendricks. The author will make you realize you don’t have limits on yourself. Your brain may think you have limits, but you can work through those limits and breakthrough to the other side.
I understand that we all love working and staying in our comfort zones. I understand that no one loves to fail. But those limiting beliefs can be broken and reading this one book will get rid of all of those limiting thoughts in your head.
Other Books I Recommend You Read
- Start with Why by Simon Sinek
- Three Simple Steps by Trevor Blake
- The One Thing by Gary Keller
- Resilience by Lisa Lisson
- The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k by Mark Manson
- Zero Limits by Joe Vitale
I am not saying you must read all of those books at once to work on your mindset. Just one of them can get you moving in the right direction.
Meditation can also help with your mindset. There are apps out there to help you find your focus and regroup. Headspace and Calm are two that come to mind right away, but there are a ton of them. I understand if you think that meditation isn’t for you, because you can’t be quiet and sit cross-legged forever. Ten to fifteen minutes is all you will need to refocus.
When you are busy, trying to build out, trying to create things, and positioning things in your business, it can be overwhelming. Meditation will help you focus inward, if for only a few minutes, as you focus on your breathing. You will be amazed at how much clarity you have after a short amount of time.
Journaling is another option that I truly love. I actually have two journals right now. One of those journals focuses on all of my brain dump ideas. The other one includes what is working in my business and the things I want to ask for. On the pages of this second journal, I start each page with “What’s working is…”. I add bullet points underneath of what is working better than the day or week before and then under those, I write “I ask for…”. The ask for the section is where I ask for specific things. One might be asking for an idea of how to create something new for your business.
I love journaling because I can actually go back and see what I have accomplished. This is so much better than moping around because I believe I haven’t gotten anywhere in my business. In fact, journaling is an excellent way to stop those limiting beliefs we have because we have proof that we have already come so far.
Key Area 2 – Skills
One area you might be struggling within your business is skills. You may be thinking you can’t do as much as you want because you don’t have a finance degree and you are not a CPA. It doesn’t matter that you don’t have those things though. You don’t need them.
What you do need is the ability to take courses or programs that will improve what you offer to your clients. A six-week course can add to your toolkit and increase your confidence levels. It will also add value to what you are providing to your clients. If you don’t want to take a class, you can simply read a book to learn a new skill. Or you can watch YouTube videos created by reputable people who know what they are talking about. In fact, my book has just been released! It will wake you up to the possibilities you already have: https://www.lisacampbellprofitcoach.com/book
Key Area 3 – Presentation
When it comes to presentation, you must be in the right mindset and have the necessary skills that you need. If you have not completed any self-improvement in those areas, tackling presentations will be much more difficult.
Right now, you are currently trying to level up in your business. That means you need to own this and be visible to potential clients. It is going to be hard to do your first live video or podcast. But each one will get easier.
To get started, I recommend you create a private Facebook group that only you have access to. You can practice doing a live video and then go back and watch it to see how you did. Keep practicing until you feel comfortable and then go out and do one in your real group.
Take the action you need today to make yourself better. The more we work on ourselves, the more we will help others through our business. The same is true for how we think of ourselves. Self-improvement is the best way to make positive changes for both you and your business.
So, surround yourself with people who are on the same journey and those who are standing by encouraging you every step of the way. Avoid those people who doubt you and show them how strong you really are. And trust me when I say, you won’t regret one minute that you took for self-improvement!