#25: GROW YOUR BUSINESS AT YOUR OWN PACE - IT'S NOT A RACE!

In this podcast episode, I discuss an important topic that we all struggle with in life and in business – comparison culture. I get into the challenges of growing your business at your own pace while avoiding the pitfalls of comparison culture. I’ll highlight the key dangers, such as debt and overspending, and provide practical, actionable steps to help you set your own pace, stay aligned with your vision, and celebrate your wins along the way. Tune in to gain insights on how to protect your business from the pitfalls of comparison culture and embrace your unique entrepreneurial journey.

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Transcript

EPISODE 25: GROW YOUR BUSINESS AT YOUR OWN PACE, IT’S NOT A RACE

What is going on my entrepreneurial friend! Leslie here and I am so glad you are joining me today. Welcome back to another episode of Financially Adjusted. This is a podcast where I break down small business finances in a fun (hopefully fun) and easy to digest way. So, today's topic is one that I think is super important and it's all about growing your business at your own pace based on your own circumstances, business is not a race.

And comparison culture is real. I feel it. I'm sure you feel it and I see many business owners getting tripped up with it. And going down paths at too fast of a pace or in the wrong direction because of comparison culture. So, I think it's a great topic to bring up and I think it's one that most of us struggle with if not all of us. You're here because you are ambitious you want to grow and you want success in your life and in your business And I absolutely love that for you but here's the thing - growing your business at your own pace is crucial and comparison culture can really throw you off track if you're not careful.

So, I want to dig in today to what growing at your own pace looks like and why it is so important versus comparing yourself to others constantly and missing what's right for you, especially when it comes to finances. There's a lot of dangerous pits you can fall into with your finances when you are using comparison culture to drive your decisions. And I did have an episode recently talking about financial pitfalls so it kind of ties into that in a way. But the trap of comparison culture is real. We have all been there whether you admit it or not, it's influenced you. Anytime you hop on social media you see someone posting about hitting six figures in six months, or someone else announcing maybe that they've opened a second location. Or, you know, say you're a chiropractor you're seeing all these other chiropractors implementing different therapies and using different machinery for different revenue streams. You're seeing it all around you no matter who you are and no matter what kind of business you run. If you're human and you're looking on social media, it's affecting you. So, what do you think about this? Like, do you see that manifesting yet in your business and in your life? Are you kind of feeling that pull and struggling with that? Have you had those thoughts of comparison? Like, why am I not there yet? Why hasn't this happened for me? What am I doing wrong? It's so easy to fall into that trap and get into that like mental thought loop when it comes to comparing your especially when we are out there, we're putting ourselves out there in the world of social media to have our own presence and it's just smacking you in the face every day. Everyone's highlight reel is right in front of us all the time. 

But what you don't see behind those posts is really the full story. What's truly happening there, what struggles and how many years have they put in? I do this all the time. As I am starting this podcast and this business, Financially Adjusted is a newer business a newer venture for me so I'm now plugged into a lot of people in the online space - a lot coaches and a lot of people doing what I'm doing. Whether it's podcasting, creating courses whatever that might be, I find myself comparing all the time, what I'm doing versus what they're doing, and when I get stuck in that process it just makes me feel crummy and it makes me feel like I'm always behind and it's creating this anxiety in me that I don't like.

And so that's why I wanted to talk about this today. It's not that I have all the answers, it's that I am struggling right alongside you and I get what you're going through. And how this affects business owners. And I see all the time the financial side of that with running a bookkeeping business. And just talking to a lot of different entrepreneurs and knowing different entrepreneurs, I see how they get tripped up and debt increases a whole lot when you're in that mode of thinking because you feel anxious to get to the next thing, And if you haven't saved money for it, whether that's equipment or buying a business - whatever that looks like, you're going to go into debt.

So, you really have to think about someone else and their story and the fact that you're seeing the highlight reel, and you don't know what's going on behind the scenes. You don't know what it took for them to get there. What the picture really looks like behind the scenes. Maybe they're racking up tons of debt to fund what they're doing. Maybe their bottom line doesn't really look that good. Even though on the front page it looks like they have a lot of success, that might not be the case. Even if it's not the case or if it is the case, that's their story. Maybe they had investors that could change the game for them. Maybe they're in a ton of debt or maybe…and this is important… maybe their journey is just different from yours. And that's okay. That's their story.

Everyone's business, like their personal life, is built on a unique foundation. What worked for someone else might not work for you and trying to keep pace with someone else's growth can lead you into trouble? Definitely financial trouble!

And I think that is very real and that is something that can threaten the future of your business. And mindset is so important to help us thrive in our business also so having that comparison culture affect your mindset kind of puts you into that mental state of discontentment.

But first I'm going to talk a little more about the dangers of comparison when it comes to your finances. Debt is of course, the big one. So, let's talk about debt for a second. Because this is one area where I see business owners getting tripped up. It’s tempting to think that because someone else is opening a shiny new office and everything's beautiful and decorated so nicely and in such a nice location..they're buying fancy equipment, that maybe we should be doing that too. But you don't know what kind of debt they're taking on to make that happen.

Debt is one of the riskiest areas to fall into when you're comparing your business to other dollars. If you're not careful you can end up over leveraging yourself big time. Debt is not inherently bad when we use it wisely, I recommend not doing debt and growing your business just with cash or debt free if you can.

But getting into debt to keep up with someone else's pace is dangerous. That's a recipe for disaster. But if you do take out debt, don't get into that mindset where…Oh I took out this debt so what's a little bit more. Or you just have no limit to the debt you're willing to take out.

I set some parameters that I think are really helpful for business owners to keep in mind. If you can stay within fifteen percent of what your annual revenue is going to be in total debt. So, let's say you are making a hundred thousand dollars a year, you wouldn't go into debt that's more than fifteen thousand dollars. And you want to make sure you're paying that off within like two to three years. If you can't stay within those parameters, walk away. I don't want you to go into debt at all but if you are going to go into debt at least trying to set some healthy parameters around it.

But I think this idea where we just have to do the thing now because someone else is doing the thing can really get us into trouble. We then make decisions based on external factors versus what's really right for you and what's right for your business in the right time. It's not that you can't have those things in your business, but you should opt to do them and take those steps forward when it it's financially smart for you to do that and when you're ready to do that.

Some businesses thrive on taking bigger risks. They’re okay maybe with the weight of that debt. Maybe they were okay getting into a tremendous amount of debt to make whatever happen in their business. But if you're not in that place, if that’s not you, trying to match that same strategy could drown your business.

Instead of looking at what others are doing, maybe you've got to be real with yourself about where your business stands and what pace is sustainable for you. Ask yourself some questions. Like, what if I saved up for this? What would that look like? How long would that take me? And ask yourself on the flip side of that -  If I took on debt ,what would that look like for me month to month? What would that do to my mental state? Would that cause me to have so much anxiety that I wouldn't even enjoy doing the thing that I went into debt for?

Everyone's situation is different. We have to remember - we all start from a different place. And we all are in a different place in business. The size of your market, your skill set, the product or service you offer - these are all variables that are different for everyone. So, when you see someone else growing faster than you, instead of thinking why am I not there yet remind yourself that you're building something unique.

You're doing what's right for you at the time that's right for you. It's also okay to have different priorities. Maybe your focus is on creating more work life balance or keeping overhead costs low or serving a smaller niche audience. Your success is defined by you and it doesn't have to be like anyone else is.

The next financial pitfall I want to talk about and touch on when it comes to comparison is overspending. The overspending that happens because you're comparing yourself to somebody else. That can look like having to have maybe a fancier location or a fancier office than you really need to. That can look like spending more on advertising and marketing so that you can put yourself out there in a certain way that involves beating your competition. And it's great to have advertising and marketing working for you and you need it to increase your business, but I do see people going a little over the top when it comes to advertising and marketing because of comparison. They are trying to compete where they don't really need to and make themselves look better when it wouldn't necessarily get them new business or increased business but it's just kind of an ego thing. Maybe you want to see yourself on a billboard… You want to see yourself with the amazing photography, but maybe you're not there yet in your business. Maybe you don't have the funds to do that. Maybe you don't need the fancy software either.

I am doing a reality check on this myself because I am so tempted to get all the new software that I see other people have in the online space that would help me you know maybe when I go to do webinars or get the fancy microphone. Even though it's not something you have the funds for right now, you might down the road but don't overspend right now just because you feel like you have to do that because all these other people in your field are doing that. No. Do a reality check and inventory on where your at. What's your situation? What can you do that's within your means to accomplish what you want to do? Chances are you can get a little scrappy to make your bank account happy. And that is what you have to do for a period of time until you do have the funds and you'll get there. It’s just all about timing for you. And I think that's where we get tripped up. We lose that patience when we're comparing, and we just feel that that urge to I have to do this now because everybody else is doing this. 

So, it's just good to have a reality check when it comes to your spending and make sure you're not overspending just because you're trying to keep up. Make sure you're spending within your means. And get scrappy if you need to. You'll get to a point where you can spend money on the fancy photography and the better office and all the fancy equipment.

Okay, the last financial pitfall so to speak that I want to talk about when it comes to comparison is about your pricing. And something that I see happening a good bit with pricing is when entrepreneurs compare themselves to other entrepreneurs. They get tripped up on their pricing. They feel like because somebody else that's doing similar things to what they're doing is maybe pricing at a certain level that they should do that too. Well maybe they've been in the field for a long period of time and they can get away with charging more because they're more recognized. They’ve learned how to offer more value or maybe their skills are a little bit different. Maybe they have more of a following and more trust behind them. If you are newer to the scene and you're comparing yourself to somebody who's been in the business for a long time, your pricing is probably going to look a little bit different than theirs. Because you don't necessarily have that know, like, and trust factor and you need to build that first and get a feel for what you're providing as far as value to your audience. Have them get to know you and trust you more before you can, maybe increase that price point down the road.

The key is when you're pricing your products, courses, or services, you have to feel good and confident about what you're pricing them at. You can’t really expect to have people attracted to you if you're shaky about what you're putting out there and how much you're charging for it. So, I think that's important to really stay in your own lane, kind of keep the blinders on when it comes to your pricing and do what feels right to you. I think it's good to look around and see what's going on in the market and compare yourself just to get an idea of what the various price points are. When you're new to the market you come in more at the lower to mid-range price point. Also look at your niche and look at the demand, you have to look at all of these different variables in your field. So, if you are super like luxury brand boutique, you're going to charge much higher than somebody who's appealing to a bigger audience who's like less of a luxury brand.

So, because I like to bring you practical and tactical steps to everything that I talk about on this podcast, I'm going to end this episode with some practical steps for growing at your own pace. So, how do you grow at your own pace without falling into that comparison trap? 

The first thing that I think you should try to do in your business is to know your numbers and you do not have to be perfect at this. I have all kinds of podcasts to help you understand your numbers, but action brings clarity, so plug into your numbers and know them as best you possibly can.  If you have a bookkeeper or an accountant, ask them to help you understand your reports and the health of your business. 

This is where a financial organization really comes in also.

What can your business actually afford to do right now? If you get organized and you have a budget and you are being proactive about your money and you have a money plan, you will be very dialed into if you can actually afford to do something and if it's within your means so that when you have those solid factual numbers, and comparison culture strikes and you get that urge to do something because somebody else is doing it, do yourself a favor and stop, look at your numbers, assess the situation, and find out if you can actually justify doing that and if you're doing it for the right reasons - if it's actually time for you to do that in your business. Don't base your decisions on what you see someone else doing. Base them on your financial reality.

Number two as far as practical steps for growing at your own pace is to set your own benchmarks. Instead of comparing yourself to someone else set growth benchmarks that make sense for your business. These could be tied to a profit margins, customer satisfaction, or personal time off. Whatever benchmarks we're talking about, decide what you want for your business, what your culture is, what you want to spend your money on, what you want to invest your energy in, and stay focused on that.

Third is staying true to your vision. Keeping your focus on your big why. Why did you start your business in the first place? What do you want that to look like for you personally and professionally? What's your mission? What does success mean to you? Let that guide your pace and just put blinders on and stay in your own lane and really focus on staying true to your big why and your vision.

Number four is important and I really have to remind myself of this all the time. It's celebrating wins along the way. Whether big or small, it's important to do that. It's easy to overlook the little wins because you're focused on the next goal and looking ahead, and I am so guilty of this. But every win, no matter how small, is part of your journey, and it's worth celebrating these wins. They add up to bigger success over time and they keep your energy positive and they keep you staying in a contentment zone without constantly focusing on what you don't have yet and what you haven't done yet. So, this is a big one for me. I'm definitely a work in progress with this so I feel you on that. I'm definitely right there with you.

And the last one I want to talk about is surrounding yourself with the right people. Whether it's your mentor, a business coach, a supportive community, other entrepreneurial friends, a spouse, a best friend, surround yourself with people who understand your vision, who understand you, and can help you get grounded and who will support you in everything that you do and remind you to celebrate your wins. My husband is this person for me. He is my partner and my best friend and he reminds me a lot of the time that I need to celebrate my wins.

The right support system can help you stay focused on your journey instead of someone else's and that is so important. At the end of the day the best thing you can do for your business is to grow at your own pace and not someone else's. Comparison culture is real, and it can steal your joy, put you in financial danger, and distract you from your why and what's really important to you. And it can make you stray from your vision. So, take a deep breath trust the process, trust why you started your business, and trust what's right for you. And remember you're exactly where you need to be. Things come to you when they're supposed to come to you. Keep showing up, keep staying consistent and learning, and your version of success will unfold for you.

Thanks for tuning in. Have a great day my friend!