July 8, 2024 • 42 mins
Ever wondered what it takes to achieve business longevity and hit incredible milestones? Join us as we mark the 155th episode of Secrets of Successful Business and celebrate three decades of entrepreneurship.
In this episode, I'm reflecting on my journey, from working in publishing and how this lead to freelancing (when it wasn't really a thing), right through to the thriving business I have today.
My 30-year business journey includes starting (and selling) businesses in retail, e-commerce, service-based business and online course creation. How to run a multi-passionate business with four kids to care for and how changing course is vital to business success. I also share lessons learned from some significant business challenges along the way - including overcoming a hefty tax debt.
Understanding the "why" behind your business and the changing role of success is pivotal and in this episode, we'll explore why success isn't a static goal but an ever-evolving journey. From managing daily tasks to achieving broader ambitions and maintaining personal well-being, I'll share how to stay motivated even when times are tough and why it's vital to keep learning - especially when it comes to the money.
We'll also dive deep into building a sustainable business model through simple, consistent practices that work. By focusing on your ideal clients and making all communications customer-centric, you can build loyalty and navigate even the toughest times. Learn the importance of paying yourself regularly, understanding your value, and maintaining consistency through small, daily steps. By embracing a proactive mindset, you'll be better prepared to ride the highs and lows of the business cycle, paving the way for lasting success.
This episode is packed with valuable advice for both budding entrepreneurs and seasoned business owners and is it's a treasure trove of insights on perseverance, continuous learning, and leveraging every bit of knowledge along the way.
This episode is brought to you by Become A Business Money Magnet - Simple habits to manage your money and supercharge your profits!
Want 30 Ways to Save Money in your Business? Download the guide here.
Need a business finance coach or want to get your pricing sorted? Book a Strategy Call NOW.
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Host: Justine McLean – Flossi Creative
Producer: Leah Stanistreet – Snappystre...
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
You're listening to the Secrets of Successful
Business podcast, your go-tosource for business tips, tricks
and proven strategies that willhelp you create a streamlined
and profitable business.
We chat to the best minds inbusiness about their journey,
how they started, what theylearned along the way.
How long are you going to givethis Going harder?
Speaker 2 (00:21):
to get more Focus on growing more with what you have.
Speaker 1 (00:26):
What they learned along the way.
How long are you going to givethis?
Speaker 2 (00:29):
What compromises are you going to make?
Just because you can do itdoesn't mean that you should do
it.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
It's really important to remember that it's a long
game and, of course, we'll askthem for their secret sauce for
creating a successful business.
If you're not failing, you'renot doing it right.
You should be struggling attimes.
That is part of the journey.
Join us as we take a sneak peekbehind the curtain, talk
solutions for those businesspain points working smarter, not
harder, mindset and thechallenges of fitting it all in
(00:57):
with the demands of today's busylifestyle.
If you're a business owner,side hustler or just starting
your business journey, thispodcast is for you.
Now here's your host, businesscoach and content creator,
justine McLean from FlossieCreative.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
Hello and thanks for joining me on the podcast today.
In case we haven't met, I'mJustine, a small business owner
on a mission to uncover andshare the secrets of creating
and running a profitable,sustainable and successful
business.
I've been in business for over20 years now and I get to use
(01:35):
all that I've learned along theway to help other women in
business reduce the overwhelm,gain visibility around their
numbers, charge what they'reworth and make more money.
It's about designing a life youlove that fits into your
definition of success.
So if I can help you create theprofitable business you deserve
, please reach out Now withoutfurther ado.
Let's dive into today's episode.
Hello and welcome to episode155 of Secrets of Successful
(02:02):
Business.
I can't believe that I've justhit record on this episode.
It feels like a real milestonefor me because when I first
started doing podcasts a coupleof years back, I honestly 100
seemed like a long way away.
So the fact that I've got to155 is mind-blowing for me.
And not only am I celebratingepisode 155 today, but I'm also
(02:24):
celebrating 30 years as abusiness owner.
It's very much a milestone yearfor me in my business 30 years
as a business owner.
I started back in 1994 when myfirst son was born.
Probably like a lot of you, itwas an unintentional foray into
business.
I didn't intend to start abusiness back then.
(02:46):
I thought I would have ninemonths off, which was what
maternity leave was at the timeand what we were encouraged to
take, and then I thought I wouldjust come back and work full
time or maybe negotiate parttime, because even then, back in
1994, to maintain our mortgageand our lifestyle we still
needed two incomes.
(03:07):
But this idea of me starting abusiness was floated by one of
the authors that I was workingwith.
I worked for an Englishpublishing company back then in
the tax department which isquite ironic given the field
that I've gone into now in mybusiness ironic given the field
(03:29):
that I've gone into now in mybusiness.
But they said to my boss thatthey were not prepared to work
on the book that was really acornerstone of that business and
that came out on an annualbasis unless I was there to help
them through it.
So they really encouraged me tobecome what is now more
commonly known as a freelancerand a contractor.
It wasn't so widely known backthen and certainly in the firm
(03:50):
that I worked for there was nosuch thing, so I was a bit of a
trailblazer.
I think they, on some level,were a bit anxious that I would
start a trend and that all thewomen in the business would want
to do the same thing.
But for me I was just lucky tobe working on a project that was
really holding up a big chunkof the department that I worked
(04:11):
in that business and that theycouldn't do without.
So the timing for me was reallyserendipitous.
I stayed in that business,really exchanging time for money
, until 2002, when my husbandand I decided to open toy stores
and we were early adopters ofe-commerce.
They were the days when a commain a product description would
(04:35):
crash the entire site.
So, very early adopters, we ranthat business together for 15
years.
We had a couple of locations, acouple of e-commerce sites, and
if you've read my book or you'velistened to the podcast before,
you'll know that pretty earlyon in that business we ended up
in a massive tax debt, and sofor me, the best way to deal
(04:57):
with that was to learneverything I could about money.
I went from being that personwho really didn't do numbers,
really didn't understand it, tothe other extreme.
That's probably theperfectionist in me?
I'm not really sure.
But a thousand hours ofsupervised BAS preparation in an
insolvency firm and all theeducation later and I became a
(05:19):
registered BAS agent.
Now that allowed me to branchout into yet another business,
while my toy stores were stilldoing their thing and running
behind the scenes, and I beganworking with some incredible
women and a few good men too allvery creatives, creative
business owners in a numbersbusiness where you were doing
(05:41):
their bookkeeping, theircompliance work for them, and I
began doing a bit of advisorywork where I was essentially
coaching them, giving them thetips that I had learned from a
practical sense through runningmy own business and failing in
my own business, particularlywhen it came to the money early
on so that they could grow theirbusiness early on, so that they
(06:08):
could grow their business.
And when I think back about formy business and businesses and
over the years that I haveworked because I started work at
a very young age it'sinteresting that all those
little things that you collecton the way, all those little
experiences that you have, thetidbits that you learn, that you
think, gosh, what am I evergoing to use this for again in
my life?
That at some point in thefuture, you're probably going to
(06:29):
put them to the test, you'reprobably going to use them and
again, you've probably heard mesay this before I'm a real
believer that nothing is everwasted, and so all of that
experience that I gathered overso many years working for other
people, working for myself,working in insolvency for a
while, working in the mediadifferent media organizations
that I worked for it reallyallowed me to have a
(06:51):
well-rounded advisory approachfor business owners that I was
lucky enough to work with and,of course, I did that business
all through COVID.
I had various arms in mybusiness At the time.
I've always been amulti-passionate business owner,
and so through that period, Iwas doing some writing for
people, I was running mybookkeeping and compliance
(07:13):
business with the help of someamazing casuals and part-time
people in that business, andthen I was also doing advisory
work and some financialeducation as well, although that
, at the time, was a tiny partof my business.
Then, of course, in 2023, I hadthe opportunity to sell my
bookkeeping and compliancebusiness.
(07:34):
It was a bit of a nervous timefor me, because it was by far
the biggest business that I hadsitting under my company
umbrella and certainly it madethe most money.
So giving away that fabulousmonthly income for me was pretty
difficult.
It was a pretty difficultdecision and also the fact that
(07:55):
I got to work with so manyincredible people one-on-one,
really closely, and I knew thatin selling that business, in all
likelihood I would not continueto get to work with those
people anymore.
But after some considerationand wondering what the next best
step was for me, particularlyat my age and knowing that I was
(08:17):
really entering that legacyphase of my business and I'm 58,
by the way, I'm not 70, butnevertheless so for me that next
act looked like selling off thebookkeeping and compliance part
of my business and I had anoffer, so that was a really easy
sell for me.
And then really leaning intowhat was lighting me up, which
(08:40):
was the financial education,because one thing that I had
discovered after years ofworking intimately with creative
business owners around theirmoney was that so many people
start their business with thatpurpose, just like me, whether
it was to raise their childrenor to deliver a kick-ass product
or service to people that wouldsave them time, money or make a
(09:03):
great transformation in theirbusiness.
And very few business owners inthat creative space started a
business to dot the I's cross,the T's when it came to money.
And so for a lot of thosebusiness owners, they weren't
paying themselves a wage.
They were barely covering thecost of doing business.
They were barely covering thecost of doing business and they
(09:28):
were working 60, 70 hours a week.
Their family was beginning toget annoyed with them.
They were at odds with theirfamily constantly because they
just didn't have the time orbandwidth to spend with their
family.
Something had to give.
For a lot of them it was.
I think I just need to give upthis business.
But for me, I knew that,largely because of my experience
(09:48):
, that tiny bit of financialeducation was going to make such
a big difference for them.
In my next iteration of business, the one that I'm in right now,
I shrunk my business, reducedthe number of income streams
that I had going and I leanedinto the financial education In
my group, business Money Magnet,doing one-to-ones with people,
(10:10):
continuing to do that high touchpoint, individual learning and
teaching, and then also speakingto bigger groups.
And whether that's online,whether that was in person, I
decided that was the way that Iwanted to go.
That's online, whether that wasin person, I decided that was
the way that I wanted to go.
Interestingly, I also got backinto writing and if you have
(10:33):
been listening lately, you'llknow that I have just published
my very first book, which isalso called Become a Business
Money Magnet Definitely a themethere.
It's now a registered trademark, by the way, but I wanted to
write that book.
It was something that I hadalways wanted to do.
It was definitely on my bucketlist, writing a book Not that I
was going to be writing a bookabout money, no way.
(10:53):
It was going to be a fabulouslydramatic, sweeping tome that
was very Austen or Bronte-esque.
But Big Magic sent me a moneybook, so that is what I wrote.
So I leaned into doing that.
That renewed my love forwriting and so I have that going
on as well.
(11:14):
It's been an interestingtransition into this part of my
business in the 30th year.
Was it easy?
No, because when you choose toget rid of the biggest money
earning part of your business,in some ways you're essentially
starting from scratch, orstarting again, building a
business up from the tinybeginnings into where you want
(11:35):
it to be.
But I am very much aboutcreating a business by design,
one that fits in with successand what that means for me right
now, in this legacy phase of mybusiness, and what that looks
like for me right now is workinga couple of days a week, making
the most of those couple ofdays and also making sure that I
(11:57):
am making maximum impact.
So how many people can I reachwith my book by going out and
talking to industry groups or atconferences or doing work in
group sessions through BusinessMoney Magnet, the program that I
have?
What is it that I can do toreally move the needle so that I
leave something behind forpeople when I decide to give up
(12:20):
this business life, that isreally going to make an impact
in their business and help themto create a business that they
really going to make an impactin their business and help them
to create a business that theyare going to love, a business
that works for them right now inthis period of their life and
their business?
So that's where I am in my 30thyear of business, and when I
(12:40):
was sitting down to put togetherthis podcast number 155, which
just seemed like a good numberfor me I thought what can I
share with you that might make adifference in your business too
, and so I'm going to share thethings that I've learned over 30
years of business, what I knownow that actually works, and I'm
(13:01):
pretty sure that all of thesethings are going to help you not
only achieve the success thatyou want the success on your
terms but that are going to helpyou make more money as you run
your business.
The very first thing that Iknow for sure is that it's
really important, as a businessowner, to know your purpose,
(13:23):
know your why, as some peoplecall it.
Why are you here, why are youdoing this, and what is it that
you want to achieve?
Why do you want to have abusiness?
For a lot of us, it startsbecause of something my first
son but for most of us, itcontinues for another reason,
and that's the super interestingthing about business,
(13:44):
particularly when you've been init for a while.
I think that purpose, that why,can change, and that's okay.
The most important thing,though, and the thing that I
would say to you as my advice,is never to lose sight of what
your business means to you rightnow and why you're doing what
you're doing, because it's trulyimportant, particularly when
(14:05):
things aren't going well inbusiness.
When there are things like theeconomy that's out of our
control, it's often important tosay why am I doing this?
Why do I want to have thisbusiness?
Wouldn't it be easier to workfor someone else?
And if the answer to that is no, then it's about really leaning
into that.
Why do you want to have abusiness?
In my sure, it would be easierto go out and work for an
(14:26):
accounting firm, for example,but I don't want to do that
because I, like me, I'm a greatboss and I really want to work
for myself.
So, right now, that's my why.
My kids have grown up.
Sure, I want that legacy to beable to leave to them, but I
also know that they're more thancapable of cutting their own
path through life.
They don't really need me tohave a thriving business anymore
(14:52):
to be able to do that.
So what's your why?
Why do you want to have thisbusiness?
And why do you want to have itnow?
And when you know that the nextstep is to really understand
that in this moment?
What is it that success means toyou right now?
So, that is in your life, inyour business.
But what does it mean to youright now?
(15:13):
And the interesting thing aboutsuccess is that can change.
It can change monthly, it canchange quarterly, it can change
from year to year.
Sometimes it can change fromday to day.
Again, when I started mybusiness, success for me was
being able to get up, make thephone calls that I needed to
make while my son was sleepingand hopefully have a shower
(15:36):
before one in the afternoon.
If I could do that, tick, tick,I was having a really
successful day.
Now success means reaching asmany people as I can, getting my
book into as many hands as Ican to help them elevate the
financial side of their business, get a tiny bit more educated,
(15:57):
because I know that is going tomake a massive difference for
them.
But success also means findingthe space and finding the time
in my business life to lookafter me, so to exercise, to
take some downtime.
I'm very much an introvert atheart.
I like nothing more thansitting at home in my house
(16:17):
reading a book, staring at thegarden.
I'm definitely that person.
So success also means findingthat space in my life as well.
The next thing that I absolutelyknow to be true is that you
should never stop learning,never, ever, don't be tempted to
just default to other people.
(16:38):
Sure, call in the experts whenyou need them.
I'm absolutely an advocate ofthat.
But always learn for yourself.
Numbers, for example.
Do you have to learn as much asyour accountant or your
bookkeeper or your BAS agentknows?
Definitely not.
But don't just abdicate theresponsibility for a big area of
(16:59):
your business to someone elseand expect everything to turn
out the way that you want it toturn out.
I think it's really importantto always try to learn
everything you can in lifebecause, as I said earlier,
nothing is ever wasted.
You just don't know when thattiny bit of information that
you've picked up today is goingto come in handy tomorrow, in
(17:22):
six months, in 12 months, inthree years, and whether that
has anything to do with yourbusiness or not is irrelevant.
I think if you continuallylearn, if you continually leave
yourself open to understandingsomething new, then it's always
going to be an asset in yourbusiness and your life, because
no one can ever take thatknowledge away from you and
(17:43):
that's so important.
I think one of the things thatI really learned and obviously I
learned this the hard way,because my story is that your
numbers in business inparticular, and, I guess, in
life to a degree.
They always tell a story, andit's about becoming aware of
what that story is and how towrite that story yourself,
(18:06):
because I believe that each andevery one of us deserves to be
the author of our own stories,particularly when it comes to
numbers.
Get a tiny bit more financialeducation and never stop
learning.
It will benefit you, I promise,100%.
One of the most interestingthings that I have discovered
over these 30 years in businessis that a boring business is
(18:29):
actually a good business andalso a very simple business.
So that boring, simple business, that rinse and repeat business
, is definitely the one thatworks.
I think as entrepreneurs, we'renaturally distracted by the
bright, shiny objects that wesee the next course, the next
(18:49):
thing, the next business idea,somebody to the left of us in
our industry is doing this,somebody to the right of us in
our industry is doing that, andwe're tempted to follow.
But that boring business, thatrinse and repeat business, that
simple business that you managedto perfect over many years, is
the thing that is going to findthe effort and the ease, not
(19:13):
only in your business and yourlife.
You are going to find thatthere'll be minimal effort that
you need to put in as thatbusiness grows and it will just
become easy for you.
So my recommendation is to findthat sweet spot where the
effort meets the ease in yourbusiness, and create that boring
(19:33):
business, that rinse and repeatbusiness, that thing that you
deliver over and over again.
Sure, you can put some tweaksand changes on that.
I'm not saying that you don'tadd different things, but make
that one product that you knowthat works, the staple that you
roll out again and again, soimportant to stay in your lane
(19:53):
and do what works for you.
Now the caveat on that and thisis where I probably sound like
a bit of a hypocrite here is Ithink I am one of the OG
diversification business ownersout there.
That's probably a really sillyway to put it, but you get my
drift.
When I started my business, Ihad different streams.
(20:16):
I was writing, I was doingeducation, I was doing
service-based business, weobviously had product-based
business, we had online business.
So there's lots of differentareas that certainly I was
working in over different times,but it can be really stressful
to run a whole lot of incomestreams that are so different.
(20:38):
So what I would recommend ifyou're thinking about this whole
idea of a boring business is tocome up with your business idea
.
For example, I work now infinancial education but I still
have various income streams.
So I've got my book, I've gotwriting, I've got speaking, I've
got one-to-one education andI've got group education as well
(21:02):
.
I think there are so manydifferent opportunities within
all of those different streamsin my business, but the
fundamental cornerstone of mybusiness is my program, business
Money Magnet, and that is thething that is available 24-7,
365.
It's the rinse and repeat.
(21:22):
I know that it works and so forthat reason, I found my lane in
this education field and I'mstaying in that lane.
It's just easier.
So, after many years it's takenme many years to work that out,
but that boring business whereyou can keep rolling out the
same thing is definitely wherethe effort meets the ease.
(21:43):
So have a think about that.
So the next thing and this isthe all important thing,
particularly, I think, whentimes are a little bit tough, I
think we forget about ouraudience, we forget about our
ideal client and who it is we'retrying to serve.
One of the things that I oftensee is the I I.
(22:04):
I can help you do this.
I am an expert in X Y Z, butit's not about you.
Business is not about you.
Business is about your audience.
It's about your customer.
It's about your ideal client.
Who is your ideal client?
Who is your audience right now,in this moment?
That might have changed sinceyou started your business.
(22:26):
Who is that A-list person thatyou want to talk to, and are all
your communications about them?
Are you saying you instead of I, so you might need help in X Y
Z?
Talk to me about how to do thatbest.
Think about your client inevery single thing that you do
(22:47):
in your business and makeeverything about them, because
it's definitely not about youand that is going to win you.
The people coming back time andtime again.
And while we're on your idealclient, and particularly now
when things are a little bittough, think about who that 20%
are.
Who are the 20% of people thatyou serve that keep coming back
(23:11):
for more.
The people who are loyal to you, that are loyal to your
business, and what can you dofor them right now, in this
moment, to keep them coming backand working with you?
It's so tempting to be lookingaround trying to find that next
right person to work with, andsure, if you need a bit of a
(23:32):
boost in your business, it'salways good to have that new
person coming in, but rememberthe people that you've already
got in your ecosystem and, as Isaid, it's about them.
So keep that in mind.
Now, something that is reallyimportant to me, and as I have
been on a bit of a book tourover the last several weeks,
(23:52):
what I've noticed is that themajority of business owners,
small business owners out there,particularly women do not pay
themselves anything at all.
If they do pay themselves,they're definitely not paying
themselves a full salary andthey're not really looking at
that as a priority forthemselves in their business.
(24:13):
So, please, one of the thingsthat I wish I had known way back
when was that it is soimportant to pay yourself
regularly and take charge ofyour future by paying
superannuation as well.
So think about that for aminute.
If you can't afford to payyourself a full wage something
(24:35):
that you would have earnedworking for someone else start
small.
Every Thursday, do a directdebit for $100 into your
personal account.
Forget about dipping into thebusiness account when you need
some money for groceries or youneed a bit of a cash top-up for
yourself.
Instead, get a bit regimentedabout this.
Automate a weekly payment of$100.
(24:58):
Start there $50 if you can'tafford that, and the idea here
is that it's just going tobecome a habit.
You know that every Thursdayyou're going to get your regular
wage, whatever you choose toset it to, and you're going to
wait until the next payday totake more money.
Pretty soon you're going to seewhether or not that $100 is
going to last and it probablyisn't and so my hope is that
(25:21):
will then encourage you to havea look at your business on
holistic level.
Decide how you can change thatso that you really are taking
charge of your future.
You're paying yourself what youshould be paying yourself,
because there's no point runninga business where you're just
paying the bills or paying yourcontractors and not paying
(25:42):
yourself anything.
You might as well go work forsomeone else.
The other thing to do is, everyweek when you're paying
yourself that $100, and you canincrease that every week I'm
just using that as a bit of anexample number here Pay
superannuation for yourself.
Pop that super.
It'll be 11.5% here inAustralia from the 1st of July,
(26:03):
but wherever you're listening inthe world, there will be a
superannuation 401k payment thatyou can make to yourself that
is going to help you invest infuture you Because, as I've said
a million times, when you arefed up with working or you
really don't want to workanymore, you've decided to
(26:24):
retire.
It'll be really nice if youhave the choice of whether to
wear polyester and drink caskwine or buy something better and
go on a lovely holiday, andthat all comes down to
superannuation, whether you likeit or not.
So start investing in super andthen, when you've got that,
(26:44):
when you're paying yourself andyou've got your super and you've
got that rolling out on aregular basis, think about where
else you can invest in yourself.
Should you invest in yourselfthrough education?
Should you invest in a veryliteral way, by buying shares or
going into another area savings, high-level savings account,
(27:06):
high-yield bonds, something likethat?
Where can you diversify in yourpersonal life as well as your
business life so that you areinvesting in yourself and
investing in your future?
Have a think about that Now.
Business is not a business, inmy opinion, unless you are
(27:26):
making profit.
As I said before, just like thewages, if you're not paying
yourself a regular wage, itmight just be easier to go and
work for someone else.
And if you've got a businessthat pays you a great wage, that
covers all of your expenses andbreaks even, fantastic, that is
a good place to start.
(27:47):
But for me, business is allabout profit.
So profit is that money that isleft over, that unencumbered
money that you can do whateveryou want with, and profit for me
is peace of mind.
So how much profit and I'mtalking net profit here, that's
the number, that's the moneythat's left after everything is
(28:08):
paid, including your wages andyour super how much profit are
you making in your business?
And if you are not makingprofit in your business, then
how can you make profit in yourbusiness?
How can you work towards that?
For most of us, working out whatour profit is, or working out
how to increase our profit, isgoing to start with becoming
(28:32):
really aware of what it costs usto run our business, how much
money we want to take as a wage,how much money we're going to
put away into our super fund,how much money we want to put
aside for savings and how muchtax we have to pay.
And when we know all of that,we can start to build a pricing
structure and a product orservice structure within our
(28:56):
business that is going todeliver us profit every single
time.
So have a think about yourbusiness.
Are you making a profit?
And if you're not making aprofit, how are you going to
change that?
So you do.
Now, one thing I know for sureafter many years in business,
and particularly as I've been onthis book writing journey and
(29:17):
as I've worked so closely withso many business owners over the
last seven or eight years, isthat mindset really matters, the
way we think about our business, particularly the money side of
it.
It really matters, and so dothe words that we use, about
ourselves as business owners,ourselves as people, and about
(29:40):
our business.
So think about the words thatyou're using and think about the
mindset the money mindset inparticular that you are carrying
into your day-to-day business.
Do you have a really fixedmindset where you think that
things just are what they areand nothing is ever going to
change, or do you have more of agrowth mindset where you know
(30:03):
that you are more than capableof making the changes that you
need to go forward in yourbusiness to reach those goals
that you're after, or do youfluctuate between the two?
Have a think about how themoney story.
The thing that you have grownup with, the way you feel about
money, the way you've beeneducated in your beliefs around
(30:26):
money is impacting yourday-to-day mindset and the
actions that you take as aresult of that mindset.
So, are you a risk taker?
Are you risk adverse?
Do you take a pause before youchoose the next thing to do in
your business?
Have a think about that,understand that it really does
(30:46):
matter and then, as I said, thewords you use are important.
So many of us in business gettied up in this whole idea of
what's our service worth?
What do I charge for this?
But I want you to startthinking about value.
I want you to think about thevalue that you provide and I
want you to communicate thatvalue to your clients.
I want you to think about thevalue that you provide and I
want you to communicate thatvalue to your clients.
(31:06):
I want you to embrace thatvalue when you set your pricing.
I want you to start to putthose mindset and money blocks
and limiting beliefs to one sideand to start to embrace your
value instead, because, assomeone who has been in this
game for 30 years, I absolutelyknow what a difference it makes.
(31:28):
Now I still struggle withmindset, hand on heart, I find
the money story that I grew upwith one of scarcity and lack,
still rearing its head now, allof these years later, in just
about everything I go to do inmy business.
But when I start to feel likethat, I lean into the value that
(31:48):
I know that I can provide andthe difference that I know that
I can make if I spend a singlehour with someone, and that is
the thing that fuels my energy,that fuels me to remain positive
about money and the impact thatI can have and to share that
value with the people that Iwork with.
(32:09):
So I want you to think aboutthat in your business too,
because it really does matter.
The next thing that I've learnedis that the only way to be
successful in your business, theonly way to reach those goals
that you have set for yourselfin your business, is to be
consistent.
You have to keep showing up dayafter day, no matter the
(32:34):
weather, no matter the businesstemperature, whether things are
booming or things are absolutelyterrible.
Consistency is the key andquite often, all consistency
needs is tiny steps every singleday.
You've heard about those 1%improvements that add up to big
results.
(32:54):
I'm absolutely a believer inthat.
So many of us approach businesswith that all or nothing
mentality, but what I've learnedis just being consistent every
day.
Having a smaller to-do list,not beating yourself up when you
don't achieve everything onyour list, is way more important
than an all or nothing approach, because, honestly, I would
(33:16):
much rather wake up every dayand tick off three small things
and just move the needle by that1%, then be all or nothing in
my business.
So be consistent, take thosesmall steps, because they will
definitely add up to big results, and always set a goal for
yourself, something that you arestriving for.
(33:38):
So you know what you're doing,what success is going to mean
when you reach a particular goalin this part of your business
journey, your life journey, andthen, when you reach it, how are
you going to celebrate thatgoal?
Really important.
Then, another thing that Iabsolutely know for sure and
this might resonate with you Iused to be a very reactive
(34:01):
person, and one of the thingsthat I have learned over many
years is that it's not a greatidea to build your business by
reacting.
Instead, get proactive about theway you approach your business
and build your business in thewhite space.
So what do I mean by that?
(34:22):
As I said, I used to be a veryreactive person, particularly
when it came to business.
Something would happen and Iwould immediately react to it.
I wasn't looking ahead.
I didn't necessarily have aplan, I didn't really have a
goal that I was striving for, soI was doing nothing proactive
when it came to my business.
I was that person who knew thetax bill was coming, had no idea
(34:46):
what the tax bill was, got thetax bill and then reacted to the
tax bill.
Where am I finding that money?
The difference that it made forme by being proactive getting
proactive about my tax bill gaveme so much more space that I
was able to build a businessthat had cash flow reserves,
(35:08):
where I knew what was coming,and it just made more sense.
It was much less stressful.
So how did I do that?
I found out when my tax was dueroughly how much I would have
to pay saved for that tax.
So proactive, being proactiveabout it.
So a big tip from me is that youneed to get proactive about
(35:30):
your business rather than bereactive about your business,
and one of the best ways to dothat is, as I said, building
your business in the white space.
So that is the time that youtake to work on your business
rather than in your business.
It is giving yourself that timewhere you can literally just
sit in your thoughts, where youdon't have a to-do list that you
(35:54):
have to tick off, where youdon't have a meeting that you
have to run to, where you canjust sit, you can just think and
the ideas come to you.
Having that white space allowsyou to get that clarity of
thinking, allows you to be moreproactive with your business,
and the more proactive you canbe, the better business you will
(36:14):
build.
So don't build your business byreacting.
Get proactive about it.
And one of the final things thatI think I've learned over the
last 30 years and I thinkbusiness is cyclical.
We know that it's the peaks andthe troughs.
There's always going to bethings we can't control natural
(36:34):
disasters, things like COVID,economic conditions.
They're things that we can'tcontrol.
So we have to ride the wavesand then ride the troughs in our
business as well, and thatisn't easy.
And one of the things that Inotice is when business is
fantastic, when everything isgoing well, people don't really
complain.
They just lap it all up.
(36:55):
In the moment, they probablyspend more than they should.
Everyone's happy, it'sfantastic, everyone's happy,
it's fantastic.
And then something like nowhits middle of 2024, economic
downturn, everybody's struggling, people want to give up.
They're not sure what to donext.
Again, it's that very reactiveapproach to business, but I
(37:17):
think the thing that it goesback to consistency and the
thing that I've learned, whichis so true particularly now, is
that if you want to be better inyour business, you just need to
do better.
There's no one that is going toride in and save you.
In this environment or whenthings are fantastic, no one is
(37:39):
coming to save you.
So the best thing that you cando for yourself is to really
take that balcony view in yourbusiness, pinpoint those areas
that could be better and workout how to make them better.
And that could be your systemsand processes, it could be your
team, it could be your finances,it could be the way you're
(38:01):
marketing your business.
There are so many differentelements that go into running a
business and I guarantee you notall of them are up to scratch.
How do I know this for sure?
Because I've been a businessowner for 30 years and right now
.
There are areas of my businessthat I've neglected, that are
not up to scratch.
So I know that if I want to dobetter, I just have to be better
(38:26):
in the things that I'm doing,and sometimes that will mean
letting go of some things.
Sometimes that will meanleaning into things more.
Sometimes it's going to meanputting different things on
hiatus.
It might mean hiring more help.
It might mean letting go of thehelp that you have.
I think one of the mostimportant things to remember as
(38:48):
you go through this businessjourney is it's your business.
You started the business for areason, and so what you choose
to do next is up to you.
It's your choice, and you canconsult other people about the
next right thing to do, but atthe end of the day, you're the
one who needs to make the choicearound what the right thing is
(39:11):
to do for your business andyourself right now, in this
moment.
And again that comes back toyep, you guessed what your
definition of success is at whatyour definition of success is.
So as I am sitting in this spacemy 30th year in business, and
as I am wrapping up recording ofepisode 155, what I have
(39:32):
decided to do is to put thispodcast on hiatus for a little
while.
Why am I doing that?
Because I need the white space.
I need to have more space in mybusiness to look at what I'm
doing and look at how I candeliver that in a way that
(39:53):
continues to be where the effortmeets the ease, because I know,
if I don't, that I am justpushing myself to the point of
overwhelm again.
So we're going to be taking afew weeks off.
There are so many amazing gueststhat I have had on through
these 155 episodes.
(40:14):
There are so many otherepisodes in this series that are
just full of gold.
Please go back, have a listento those, enjoy those over the
next few weeks while I take thisbreak, so that I can come back
to you with a product that Ithink is better, because I'm
(40:34):
always striving to do better inmy business.
Okay, so that brings me to theend of episode 155 of Secrets of
Successful Business.
I hope you've enjoyed thisepisode, just like I hope you've
enjoyed all the other episodesthat you've listened to, and I
guess I'm going to leave youwith this question what is it
(40:55):
that you will do in your nextact in business in life?
I'd be so interested to know.
Is it a legacy phase like theone that I'm in?
Are you just starting out?
Have you decided to scale, orare you scaling back?
Please reach out, let me know.
And until next time, keepliving your best, most
(41:19):
successful life, because here'sto your success.
Thanks for listening.
Speaker 1 (41:27):
Thanks for listening to the Secrets of Successful
Business podcast.
For more information on allthings business, head to
flossycomau and make sure youhit subscribe on the show so you
don't miss another new episode.
If you're enjoying the show,please give it a quick rating or
review, share it on yoursocials or with friends who
might enjoy it.
(41:47):
Catch you next time.
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Speaker 1 (00:33):
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Join us as we take a sneak peekbehind the curtain, talk
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Now here's your host, businesscoach and content creator,
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Speaker 2 (01:13):
Hello and thanks for joining me on the podcast today.
In case we haven't met, I'mJustine, a small business owner
on a mission to uncover andshare the secrets of creating
and running a profitable,sustainable and successful
business.
I've been in business for over20 years now and I get to use
(01:35):
all that I've learned along theway to help other women in
business reduce the overwhelm,gain visibility around their
numbers, charge what they'reworth and make more money.
It's about designing a life youlove that fits into your
definition of success.
So if I can help you create theprofitable business you deserve
, please reach out Now withoutfurther ado.
Let's dive into today's episode.
Hello and welcome to episode155 of Secrets of Successful
(02:02):
Business.
I can't believe that I've justhit record on this episode.
It feels like a real milestonefor me because when I first
started doing podcasts a coupleof years back, I honestly 100
seemed like a long way away.
So the fact that I've got to155 is mind-blowing for me.
And not only am I celebratingepisode 155 today, but I'm also
(02:24):
celebrating 30 years as abusiness owner.
It's very much a milestone yearfor me in my business 30 years
as a business owner.
I started back in 1994 when myfirst son was born.
Probably like a lot of you, itwas an unintentional foray into
business.
I didn't intend to start abusiness back then.
(02:46):
I thought I would have ninemonths off, which was what
maternity leave was at the timeand what we were encouraged to
take, and then I thought I wouldjust come back and work full
time or maybe negotiate parttime, because even then, back in
1994, to maintain our mortgageand our lifestyle we still
needed two incomes.
(03:07):
But this idea of me starting abusiness was floated by one of
the authors that I was workingwith.
I worked for an Englishpublishing company back then in
the tax department which isquite ironic given the field
that I've gone into now in mybusiness ironic given the field
(03:29):
that I've gone into now in mybusiness.
But they said to my boss thatthey were not prepared to work
on the book that was really acornerstone of that business and
that came out on an annualbasis unless I was there to help
them through it.
So they really encouraged me tobecome what is now more
commonly known as a freelancerand a contractor.
It wasn't so widely known backthen and certainly in the firm
(03:50):
that I worked for there was nosuch thing, so I was a bit of a
trailblazer.
I think they, on some level,were a bit anxious that I would
start a trend and that all thewomen in the business would want
to do the same thing.
But for me I was just lucky tobe working on a project that was
really holding up a big chunkof the department that I worked
(04:11):
in that business and that theycouldn't do without.
So the timing for me was reallyserendipitous.
I stayed in that business,really exchanging time for money
, until 2002, when my husbandand I decided to open toy stores
and we were early adopters ofe-commerce.
They were the days when a commain a product description would
(04:35):
crash the entire site.
So, very early adopters, we ranthat business together for 15
years.
We had a couple of locations, acouple of e-commerce sites, and
if you've read my book or you'velistened to the podcast before,
you'll know that pretty earlyon in that business we ended up
in a massive tax debt, and sofor me, the best way to deal
(04:57):
with that was to learneverything I could about money.
I went from being that personwho really didn't do numbers,
really didn't understand it, tothe other extreme.
That's probably theperfectionist in me?
I'm not really sure.
But a thousand hours ofsupervised BAS preparation in an
insolvency firm and all theeducation later and I became a
(05:19):
registered BAS agent.
Now that allowed me to branchout into yet another business,
while my toy stores were stilldoing their thing and running
behind the scenes, and I beganworking with some incredible
women and a few good men too allvery creatives, creative
business owners in a numbersbusiness where you were doing
(05:41):
their bookkeeping, theircompliance work for them, and I
began doing a bit of advisorywork where I was essentially
coaching them, giving them thetips that I had learned from a
practical sense through runningmy own business and failing in
my own business, particularlywhen it came to the money early
on so that they could grow theirbusiness early on, so that they
(06:08):
could grow their business.
And when I think back about formy business and businesses and
over the years that I haveworked because I started work at
a very young age it'sinteresting that all those
little things that you collecton the way, all those little
experiences that you have, thetidbits that you learn, that you
think, gosh, what am I evergoing to use this for again in
my life?
That at some point in thefuture, you're probably going to
(06:29):
put them to the test, you'reprobably going to use them and
again, you've probably heard mesay this before I'm a real
believer that nothing is everwasted, and so all of that
experience that I gathered overso many years working for other
people, working for myself,working in insolvency for a
while, working in the mediadifferent media organizations
that I worked for it reallyallowed me to have a
(06:51):
well-rounded advisory approachfor business owners that I was
lucky enough to work with and,of course, I did that business
all through COVID.
I had various arms in mybusiness At the time.
I've always been amulti-passionate business owner,
and so through that period, Iwas doing some writing for
people, I was running mybookkeeping and compliance
(07:13):
business with the help of someamazing casuals and part-time
people in that business, andthen I was also doing advisory
work and some financialeducation as well, although that
, at the time, was a tiny partof my business.
Then, of course, in 2023, I hadthe opportunity to sell my
bookkeeping and compliancebusiness.
(07:34):
It was a bit of a nervous timefor me, because it was by far
the biggest business that I hadsitting under my company
umbrella and certainly it madethe most money.
So giving away that fabulousmonthly income for me was pretty
difficult.
It was a pretty difficultdecision and also the fact that
(07:55):
I got to work with so manyincredible people one-on-one,
really closely, and I knew thatin selling that business, in all
likelihood I would not continueto get to work with those
people anymore.
But after some considerationand wondering what the next best
step was for me, particularlyat my age and knowing that I was
(08:17):
really entering that legacyphase of my business and I'm 58,
by the way, I'm not 70, butnevertheless so for me that next
act looked like selling off thebookkeeping and compliance part
of my business and I had anoffer, so that was a really easy
sell for me.
And then really leaning intowhat was lighting me up, which
(08:40):
was the financial education,because one thing that I had
discovered after years ofworking intimately with creative
business owners around theirmoney was that so many people
start their business with thatpurpose, just like me, whether
it was to raise their childrenor to deliver a kick-ass product
or service to people that wouldsave them time, money or make a
(09:03):
great transformation in theirbusiness.
And very few business owners inthat creative space started a
business to dot the I's cross,the T's when it came to money.
And so for a lot of thosebusiness owners, they weren't
paying themselves a wage.
They were barely covering thecost of doing business.
They were barely covering thecost of doing business and they
(09:28):
were working 60, 70 hours a week.
Their family was beginning toget annoyed with them.
They were at odds with theirfamily constantly because they
just didn't have the time orbandwidth to spend with their
family.
Something had to give.
For a lot of them it was.
I think I just need to give upthis business.
But for me, I knew that,largely because of my experience
(09:48):
, that tiny bit of financialeducation was going to make such
a big difference for them.
In my next iteration of business, the one that I'm in right now,
I shrunk my business, reducedthe number of income streams
that I had going and I leanedinto the financial education In
my group, business Money Magnet,doing one-to-ones with people,
(10:10):
continuing to do that high touchpoint, individual learning and
teaching, and then also speakingto bigger groups.
And whether that's online,whether that was in person, I
decided that was the way that Iwanted to go.
That's online, whether that wasin person, I decided that was
the way that I wanted to go.
Interestingly, I also got backinto writing and if you have
(10:33):
been listening lately, you'llknow that I have just published
my very first book, which isalso called Become a Business
Money Magnet Definitely a themethere.
It's now a registered trademark, by the way, but I wanted to
write that book.
It was something that I hadalways wanted to do.
It was definitely on my bucketlist, writing a book Not that I
was going to be writing a bookabout money, no way.
(10:53):
It was going to be a fabulouslydramatic, sweeping tome that
was very Austen or Bronte-esque.
But Big Magic sent me a moneybook, so that is what I wrote.
So I leaned into doing that.
That renewed my love forwriting and so I have that going
on as well.
(11:14):
It's been an interestingtransition into this part of my
business in the 30th year.
Was it easy?
No, because when you choose toget rid of the biggest money
earning part of your business,in some ways you're essentially
starting from scratch, orstarting again, building a
business up from the tinybeginnings into where you want
(11:35):
it to be.
But I am very much aboutcreating a business by design,
one that fits in with successand what that means for me right
now, in this legacy phase of mybusiness, and what that looks
like for me right now is workinga couple of days a week, making
the most of those couple ofdays and also making sure that I
(11:57):
am making maximum impact.
So how many people can I reachwith my book by going out and
talking to industry groups or atconferences or doing work in
group sessions through BusinessMoney Magnet, the program that I
have?
What is it that I can do toreally move the needle so that I
leave something behind forpeople when I decide to give up
(12:20):
this business life, that isreally going to make an impact
in their business and help themto create a business that they
really going to make an impactin their business and help them
to create a business that theyare going to love, a business
that works for them right now inthis period of their life and
their business?
So that's where I am in my 30thyear of business, and when I
(12:40):
was sitting down to put togetherthis podcast number 155, which
just seemed like a good numberfor me I thought what can I
share with you that might make adifference in your business too
, and so I'm going to share thethings that I've learned over 30
years of business, what I knownow that actually works, and I'm
(13:01):
pretty sure that all of thesethings are going to help you not
only achieve the success thatyou want the success on your
terms but that are going to helpyou make more money as you run
your business.
The very first thing that Iknow for sure is that it's
really important, as a businessowner, to know your purpose,
(13:23):
know your why, as some peoplecall it.
Why are you here, why are youdoing this, and what is it that
you want to achieve?
Why do you want to have abusiness?
For a lot of us, it startsbecause of something my first
son but for most of us, itcontinues for another reason,
and that's the super interestingthing about business,
(13:44):
particularly when you've been init for a while.
I think that purpose, that why,can change, and that's okay.
The most important thing,though, and the thing that I
would say to you as my advice,is never to lose sight of what
your business means to you rightnow and why you're doing what
you're doing, because it's trulyimportant, particularly when
(14:05):
things aren't going well inbusiness.
When there are things like theeconomy that's out of our
control, it's often important tosay why am I doing this?
Why do I want to have thisbusiness?
Wouldn't it be easier to workfor someone else?
And if the answer to that is no, then it's about really leaning
into that.
Why do you want to have abusiness?
In my sure, it would be easierto go out and work for an
(14:26):
accounting firm, for example,but I don't want to do that
because I, like me, I'm a greatboss and I really want to work
for myself.
So, right now, that's my why.
My kids have grown up.
Sure, I want that legacy to beable to leave to them, but I
also know that they're more thancapable of cutting their own
path through life.
They don't really need me tohave a thriving business anymore
(14:52):
to be able to do that.
So what's your why?
Why do you want to have thisbusiness?
And why do you want to have itnow?
And when you know that the nextstep is to really understand
that in this moment?
What is it that success means toyou right now?
So, that is in your life, inyour business.
But what does it mean to youright now?
(15:13):
And the interesting thing aboutsuccess is that can change.
It can change monthly, it canchange quarterly, it can change
from year to year.
Sometimes it can change fromday to day.
Again, when I started mybusiness, success for me was
being able to get up, make thephone calls that I needed to
make while my son was sleepingand hopefully have a shower
(15:36):
before one in the afternoon.
If I could do that, tick, tick,I was having a really
successful day.
Now success means reaching asmany people as I can, getting my
book into as many hands as Ican to help them elevate the
financial side of their business, get a tiny bit more educated,
(15:57):
because I know that is going tomake a massive difference for
them.
But success also means findingthe space and finding the time
in my business life to lookafter me, so to exercise, to
take some downtime.
I'm very much an introvert atheart.
I like nothing more thansitting at home in my house
(16:17):
reading a book, staring at thegarden.
I'm definitely that person.
So success also means findingthat space in my life as well.
The next thing that I absolutelyknow to be true is that you
should never stop learning,never, ever, don't be tempted to
just default to other people.
(16:38):
Sure, call in the experts whenyou need them.
I'm absolutely an advocate ofthat.
But always learn for yourself.
Numbers, for example.
Do you have to learn as much asyour accountant or your
bookkeeper or your BAS agentknows?
Definitely not.
But don't just abdicate theresponsibility for a big area of
(16:59):
your business to someone elseand expect everything to turn
out the way that you want it toturn out.
I think it's really importantto always try to learn
everything you can in lifebecause, as I said earlier,
nothing is ever wasted.
You just don't know when thattiny bit of information that
you've picked up today is goingto come in handy tomorrow, in
(17:22):
six months, in 12 months, inthree years, and whether that
has anything to do with yourbusiness or not is irrelevant.
I think if you continuallylearn, if you continually leave
yourself open to understandingsomething new, then it's always
going to be an asset in yourbusiness and your life, because
no one can ever take thatknowledge away from you and
(17:43):
that's so important.
I think one of the things thatI really learned and obviously I
learned this the hard way,because my story is that your
numbers in business inparticular, and, I guess, in
life to a degree.
They always tell a story, andit's about becoming aware of
what that story is and how towrite that story yourself,
(18:06):
because I believe that each andevery one of us deserves to be
the author of our own stories,particularly when it comes to
numbers.
Get a tiny bit more financialeducation and never stop
learning.
It will benefit you, I promise,100%.
One of the most interestingthings that I have discovered
over these 30 years in businessis that a boring business is
(18:29):
actually a good business andalso a very simple business.
So that boring, simple business, that rinse and repeat business
, is definitely the one thatworks.
I think as entrepreneurs, we'renaturally distracted by the
bright, shiny objects that wesee the next course, the next
(18:49):
thing, the next business idea,somebody to the left of us in
our industry is doing this,somebody to the right of us in
our industry is doing that, andwe're tempted to follow.
But that boring business, thatrinse and repeat business, that
simple business that you managedto perfect over many years, is
the thing that is going to findthe effort and the ease, not
(19:13):
only in your business and yourlife.
You are going to find thatthere'll be minimal effort that
you need to put in as thatbusiness grows and it will just
become easy for you.
So my recommendation is to findthat sweet spot where the
effort meets the ease in yourbusiness, and create that boring
(19:33):
business, that rinse and repeatbusiness, that thing that you
deliver over and over again.
Sure, you can put some tweaksand changes on that.
I'm not saying that you don'tadd different things, but make
that one product that you knowthat works, the staple that you
roll out again and again, soimportant to stay in your lane
(19:53):
and do what works for you.
Now the caveat on that and thisis where I probably sound like
a bit of a hypocrite here is Ithink I am one of the OG
diversification business ownersout there.
That's probably a really sillyway to put it, but you get my
drift.
When I started my business, Ihad different streams.
(20:16):
I was writing, I was doingeducation, I was doing
service-based business, weobviously had product-based
business, we had online business.
So there's lots of differentareas that certainly I was
working in over different times,but it can be really stressful
to run a whole lot of incomestreams that are so different.
(20:38):
So what I would recommend ifyou're thinking about this whole
idea of a boring business is tocome up with your business idea
.
For example, I work now infinancial education but I still
have various income streams.
So I've got my book, I've gotwriting, I've got speaking, I've
got one-to-one education andI've got group education as well
(21:02):
.
I think there are so manydifferent opportunities within
all of those different streamsin my business, but the
fundamental cornerstone of mybusiness is my program, business
Money Magnet, and that is thething that is available 24-7,
365.
It's the rinse and repeat.
(21:22):
I know that it works and so forthat reason, I found my lane in
this education field and I'mstaying in that lane.
It's just easier.
So, after many years it's takenme many years to work that out,
but that boring business whereyou can keep rolling out the
same thing is definitely wherethe effort meets the ease.
(21:43):
So have a think about that.
So the next thing and this isthe all important thing,
particularly, I think, whentimes are a little bit tough, I
think we forget about ouraudience, we forget about our
ideal client and who it is we'retrying to serve.
One of the things that I oftensee is the I I.
(22:04):
I can help you do this.
I am an expert in X Y Z, butit's not about you.
Business is not about you.
Business is about your audience.
It's about your customer.
It's about your ideal client.
Who is your ideal client?
Who is your audience right now,in this moment?
That might have changed sinceyou started your business.
(22:26):
Who is that A-list person thatyou want to talk to, and are all
your communications about them?
Are you saying you instead of I, so you might need help in X Y
Z?
Talk to me about how to do thatbest.
Think about your client inevery single thing that you do
(22:47):
in your business and makeeverything about them, because
it's definitely not about youand that is going to win you.
The people coming back time andtime again.
And while we're on your idealclient, and particularly now
when things are a little bittough, think about who that 20%
are.
Who are the 20% of people thatyou serve that keep coming back
(23:11):
for more.
The people who are loyal to you, that are loyal to your
business, and what can you dofor them right now, in this
moment, to keep them coming backand working with you?
It's so tempting to be lookingaround trying to find that next
right person to work with, andsure, if you need a bit of a
(23:32):
boost in your business, it'salways good to have that new
person coming in, but rememberthe people that you've already
got in your ecosystem and, as Isaid, it's about them.
So keep that in mind.
Now, something that is reallyimportant to me, and as I have
been on a bit of a book tourover the last several weeks,
(23:52):
what I've noticed is that themajority of business owners,
small business owners out there,particularly women do not pay
themselves anything at all.
If they do pay themselves,they're definitely not paying
themselves a full salary andthey're not really looking at
that as a priority forthemselves in their business.
(24:13):
So, please, one of the thingsthat I wish I had known way back
when was that it is soimportant to pay yourself
regularly and take charge ofyour future by paying
superannuation as well.
So think about that for aminute.
If you can't afford to payyourself a full wage something
(24:35):
that you would have earnedworking for someone else start
small.
Every Thursday, do a directdebit for $100 into your
personal account.
Forget about dipping into thebusiness account when you need
some money for groceries or youneed a bit of a cash top-up for
yourself.
Instead, get a bit regimentedabout this.
Automate a weekly payment of$100.
(24:58):
Start there $50 if you can'tafford that, and the idea here
is that it's just going tobecome a habit.
You know that every Thursdayyou're going to get your regular
wage, whatever you choose toset it to, and you're going to
wait until the next payday totake more money.
Pretty soon you're going to seewhether or not that $100 is
going to last and it probablyisn't and so my hope is that
(25:21):
will then encourage you to havea look at your business on
holistic level.
Decide how you can change thatso that you really are taking
charge of your future.
You're paying yourself what youshould be paying yourself,
because there's no point runninga business where you're just
paying the bills or paying yourcontractors and not paying
(25:42):
yourself anything.
You might as well go work forsomeone else.
The other thing to do is, everyweek when you're paying
yourself that $100, and you canincrease that every week I'm
just using that as a bit of anexample number here Pay
superannuation for yourself.
Pop that super.
It'll be 11.5% here inAustralia from the 1st of July,
(26:03):
but wherever you're listening inthe world, there will be a
superannuation 401k payment thatyou can make to yourself that
is going to help you invest infuture you Because, as I've said
a million times, when you arefed up with working or you
really don't want to workanymore, you've decided to
(26:24):
retire.
It'll be really nice if youhave the choice of whether to
wear polyester and drink caskwine or buy something better and
go on a lovely holiday, andthat all comes down to
superannuation, whether you likeit or not.
So start investing in super andthen, when you've got that,
(26:44):
when you're paying yourself andyou've got your super and you've
got that rolling out on aregular basis, think about where
else you can invest in yourself.
Should you invest in yourselfthrough education?
Should you invest in a veryliteral way, by buying shares or
going into another area savings, high-level savings account,
(27:06):
high-yield bonds, something likethat?
Where can you diversify in yourpersonal life as well as your
business life so that you areinvesting in yourself and
investing in your future?
Have a think about that Now.
Business is not a business, inmy opinion, unless you are
(27:26):
making profit.
As I said before, just like thewages, if you're not paying
yourself a regular wage, itmight just be easier to go and
work for someone else.
And if you've got a businessthat pays you a great wage, that
covers all of your expenses andbreaks even, fantastic, that is
a good place to start.
(27:47):
But for me, business is allabout profit.
So profit is that money that isleft over, that unencumbered
money that you can do whateveryou want with, and profit for me
is peace of mind.
So how much profit and I'mtalking net profit here, that's
the number, that's the moneythat's left after everything is
(28:08):
paid, including your wages andyour super how much profit are
you making in your business?
And if you are not makingprofit in your business, then
how can you make profit in yourbusiness?
How can you work towards that?
For most of us, working out whatour profit is, or working out
how to increase our profit, isgoing to start with becoming
(28:32):
really aware of what it costs usto run our business, how much
money we want to take as a wage,how much money we're going to
put away into our super fund,how much money we want to put
aside for savings and how muchtax we have to pay.
And when we know all of that,we can start to build a pricing
structure and a product orservice structure within our
(28:56):
business that is going todeliver us profit every single
time.
So have a think about yourbusiness.
Are you making a profit?
And if you're not making aprofit, how are you going to
change that?
So you do.
Now, one thing I know for sureafter many years in business,
and particularly as I've been onthis book writing journey and
(29:17):
as I've worked so closely withso many business owners over the
last seven or eight years, isthat mindset really matters, the
way we think about our business, particularly the money side of
it.
It really matters, and so dothe words that we use, about
ourselves as business owners,ourselves as people, and about
(29:40):
our business.
So think about the words thatyou're using and think about the
mindset the money mindset inparticular that you are carrying
into your day-to-day business.
Do you have a really fixedmindset where you think that
things just are what they areand nothing is ever going to
change, or do you have more of agrowth mindset where you know
(30:03):
that you are more than capableof making the changes that you
need to go forward in yourbusiness to reach those goals
that you're after, or do youfluctuate between the two?
Have a think about how themoney story.
The thing that you have grownup with, the way you feel about
money, the way you've beeneducated in your beliefs around
(30:26):
money is impacting yourday-to-day mindset and the
actions that you take as aresult of that mindset.
So, are you a risk taker?
Are you risk adverse?
Do you take a pause before youchoose the next thing to do in
your business?
Have a think about that,understand that it really does
(30:46):
matter and then, as I said, thewords you use are important.
So many of us in business gettied up in this whole idea of
what's our service worth?
What do I charge for this?
But I want you to startthinking about value.
I want you to think about thevalue that you provide and I
want you to communicate thatvalue to your clients.
I want you to think about thevalue that you provide and I
want you to communicate thatvalue to your clients.
(31:06):
I want you to embrace thatvalue when you set your pricing.
I want you to start to putthose mindset and money blocks
and limiting beliefs to one sideand to start to embrace your
value instead, because, assomeone who has been in this
game for 30 years, I absolutelyknow what a difference it makes.
(31:28):
Now I still struggle withmindset, hand on heart, I find
the money story that I grew upwith one of scarcity and lack,
still rearing its head now, allof these years later, in just
about everything I go to do inmy business.
But when I start to feel likethat, I lean into the value that
(31:48):
I know that I can provide andthe difference that I know that
I can make if I spend a singlehour with someone, and that is
the thing that fuels my energy,that fuels me to remain positive
about money and the impact thatI can have and to share that
value with the people that Iwork with.
(32:09):
So I want you to think aboutthat in your business too,
because it really does matter.
The next thing that I've learnedis that the only way to be
successful in your business, theonly way to reach those goals
that you have set for yourselfin your business, is to be
consistent.
You have to keep showing up dayafter day, no matter the
(32:34):
weather, no matter the businesstemperature, whether things are
booming or things are absolutelyterrible.
Consistency is the key andquite often, all consistency
needs is tiny steps every singleday.
You've heard about those 1%improvements that add up to big
results.
(32:54):
I'm absolutely a believer inthat.
So many of us approach businesswith that all or nothing
mentality, but what I've learnedis just being consistent every
day.
Having a smaller to-do list,not beating yourself up when you
don't achieve everything onyour list, is way more important
than an all or nothing approach, because, honestly, I would
(33:16):
much rather wake up every dayand tick off three small things
and just move the needle by that1%, then be all or nothing in
my business.
So be consistent, take thosesmall steps, because they will
definitely add up to big results, and always set a goal for
yourself, something that you arestriving for.
(33:38):
So you know what you're doing,what success is going to mean
when you reach a particular goalin this part of your business
journey, your life journey, andthen, when you reach it, how are
you going to celebrate thatgoal?
Really important.
Then, another thing that Iabsolutely know for sure and
this might resonate with you Iused to be a very reactive
(34:01):
person, and one of the thingsthat I have learned over many
years is that it's not a greatidea to build your business by
reacting.
Instead, get proactive about theway you approach your business
and build your business in thewhite space.
So what do I mean by that?
(34:22):
As I said, I used to be a veryreactive person, particularly
when it came to business.
Something would happen and Iwould immediately react to it.
I wasn't looking ahead.
I didn't necessarily have aplan, I didn't really have a
goal that I was striving for, soI was doing nothing proactive
when it came to my business.
I was that person who knew thetax bill was coming, had no idea
(34:46):
what the tax bill was, got thetax bill and then reacted to the
tax bill.
Where am I finding that money?
The difference that it made forme by being proactive getting
proactive about my tax bill gaveme so much more space that I
was able to build a businessthat had cash flow reserves,
(35:08):
where I knew what was coming,and it just made more sense.
It was much less stressful.
So how did I do that?
I found out when my tax was dueroughly how much I would have
to pay saved for that tax.
So proactive, being proactiveabout it.
So a big tip from me is that youneed to get proactive about
(35:30):
your business rather than bereactive about your business,
and one of the best ways to dothat is, as I said, building
your business in the white space.
So that is the time that youtake to work on your business
rather than in your business.
It is giving yourself that timewhere you can literally just
sit in your thoughts, where youdon't have a to-do list that you
(35:54):
have to tick off, where youdon't have a meeting that you
have to run to, where you canjust sit, you can just think and
the ideas come to you.
Having that white space allowsyou to get that clarity of
thinking, allows you to be moreproactive with your business,
and the more proactive you canbe, the better business you will
(36:14):
build.
So don't build your business byreacting.
Get proactive about it.
And one of the final things thatI think I've learned over the
last 30 years and I thinkbusiness is cyclical.
We know that it's the peaks andthe troughs.
There's always going to bethings we can't control natural
(36:34):
disasters, things like COVID,economic conditions.
They're things that we can'tcontrol.
So we have to ride the wavesand then ride the troughs in our
business as well, and thatisn't easy.
And one of the things that Inotice is when business is
fantastic, when everything isgoing well, people don't really
complain.
They just lap it all up.
(36:55):
In the moment, they probablyspend more than they should.
Everyone's happy, it'sfantastic, everyone's happy,
it's fantastic.
And then something like nowhits middle of 2024, economic
downturn, everybody's struggling, people want to give up.
They're not sure what to donext.
Again, it's that very reactiveapproach to business, but I
(37:17):
think the thing that it goesback to consistency and the
thing that I've learned, whichis so true particularly now, is
that if you want to be better inyour business, you just need to
do better.
There's no one that is going toride in and save you.
In this environment or whenthings are fantastic, no one is
(37:39):
coming to save you.
So the best thing that you cando for yourself is to really
take that balcony view in yourbusiness, pinpoint those areas
that could be better and workout how to make them better.
And that could be your systemsand processes, it could be your
team, it could be your finances,it could be the way you're
(38:01):
marketing your business.
There are so many differentelements that go into running a
business and I guarantee you notall of them are up to scratch.
How do I know this for sure?
Because I've been a businessowner for 30 years and right now
.
There are areas of my businessthat I've neglected, that are
not up to scratch.
So I know that if I want to dobetter, I just have to be better
(38:26):
in the things that I'm doing,and sometimes that will mean
letting go of some things.
Sometimes that will meanleaning into things more.
Sometimes it's going to meanputting different things on
hiatus.
It might mean hiring more help.
It might mean letting go of thehelp that you have.
I think one of the mostimportant things to remember as
(38:48):
you go through this businessjourney is it's your business.
You started the business for areason, and so what you choose
to do next is up to you.
It's your choice, and you canconsult other people about the
next right thing to do, but atthe end of the day, you're the
one who needs to make the choicearound what the right thing is
(39:11):
to do for your business andyourself right now, in this
moment.
And again that comes back toyep, you guessed what your
definition of success is at whatyour definition of success is.
So as I am sitting in this spacemy 30th year in business, and
as I am wrapping up recording ofepisode 155, what I have
(39:32):
decided to do is to put thispodcast on hiatus for a little
while.
Why am I doing that?
Because I need the white space.
I need to have more space in mybusiness to look at what I'm
doing and look at how I candeliver that in a way that
(39:53):
continues to be where the effortmeets the ease, because I know,
if I don't, that I am justpushing myself to the point of
overwhelm again.
So we're going to be taking afew weeks off.
There are so many amazing gueststhat I have had on through
these 155 episodes.
(40:14):
There are so many otherepisodes in this series that are
just full of gold.
Please go back, have a listento those, enjoy those over the
next few weeks while I take thisbreak, so that I can come back
to you with a product that Ithink is better, because I'm
(40:34):
always striving to do better inmy business.
Okay, so that brings me to theend of episode 155 of Secrets of
Successful Business.
I hope you've enjoyed thisepisode, just like I hope you've
enjoyed all the other episodesthat you've listened to, and I
guess I'm going to leave youwith this question what is it
(40:55):
that you will do in your nextact in business in life?
I'd be so interested to know.
Is it a legacy phase like theone that I'm in?
Are you just starting out?
Have you decided to scale, orare you scaling back?
Please reach out, let me know.
And until next time, keepliving your best, most
(41:19):
successful life, because here'sto your success.
Thanks for listening.
Speaker 1 (41:27):
Thanks for listening to the Secrets of Successful
Business podcast.
For more information on allthings business, head to
flossycomau and make sure youhit subscribe on the show so you
don't miss another new episode.
If you're enjoying the show,please give it a quick rating or
review, share it on yoursocials or with friends who
might enjoy it.
(41:47):
Catch you next time.
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