We are going to be talking about excuses – zingers! There are three excuses we all – myself included – have to stop making if we truly want to be successful business CEOs; if we truly want breakthrough and incredible Kingdom impact in our businesses.
We’re going to dig straight into the nitty-gritty. I’m not going to pull any punches. I’m going to tell you exactly what these excuses are so we can take control of them and just stop making them. The reality is that we can do anything with God by our side. Excuses are simply holding us back.
Do You Want a Successful Business? You Must Stop Making These 3 Excuses.
As Christian women who run successful businesses, we are called to be wise with what we’ve been given. One of those things is our time. We all have the same 24 hours in a day. You’ve heard this before, but some of you have excuses for why you can achieve success in “X” amount of time.
The First Excuse We Need to Stop Making is About Time
One thing we have to stop saying if we want a successful business – an excuse – is “I don’t have enough time.” In reality, we become overwhelmed by the number of tasks and the things we haven’t accomplished. But it continues when we’re trying to scale. There’s always more to do as a successful business owner. It’s never done. This business has constant growth. It needs constant revising. You’re going to get better, learn more and rework pieces of your business indefinitely.
Instead of: “I don’t have enough time,” figure a way to adjust what you have to do or let go of things to make “enough” time.
What do you do when you say you don’t have time and I say it’s an excuse? Understand how much time you have. This varies, but you can get a good baseline if you inventory the last couple of weeks.
Next, look at what you have to do. If you don’t know what you have to do in your online business, there’s your problem. No wonder you’re saying you don’t have enough time. Once you figure that out, you need to know your deadlines. Maybe they are too tight, and your expectations are too high based on your time.
Take a few minutes to plan what next week looks like based on the time you have. Stop trying to tackle an entire project all at once. Break it into small chunks that fit into the time you have. Adjust any unrealistic deadlines.
This way you’re able to fit everything in and still have time for yourself and your family. Then you can throw out the excuse of not having enough time. The truth is that you have time, but you only have “X” amount of time What does that need to look like?
BONUS TIP
Create a “Love It or Leave It” list. I have my team do this. It’s making a list of all the things you love in your life and all the things you could leave. Then actually leaving the things on the “Leave It” side of the list. This might mean saying ‘no’ to some of your commitments. This might mean reducing the extracurriculars your kids are in. This may mean outsourcing some things or hiring some help for your business or your home. Doing this work will help you create more time. There are only 24 hours of it a day and hopefully, 8 of those are going to sleep and rest. A couple of hours are going to the Lord and intentional time with your family. How many hours are left? Some of you work a full-time job.
You have to be realistic about your goals and expectations. Work through the “Leave It” list to prioritize and carve out more time.
The Second Excuse We Need to Stop Making is About Knowing What to Do
If you want a successful business, you need to stop saying, “I don’t know what to do.” This is such a debilitating excuse, keeping you from taking action. “I don’t know what to do” can be the reality for about 60 seconds until you go figure out what to do. Nobody knew what to do before they started doing the thing.
Nobody knew how to write a book or start a podcast or have a baby or how to paint a house properly. Of course, you don’t know what to do, but it’s an excuse to keep you from figuring out what to do. The reality is that there’s the internet at your fingertips to figure out that next step. You don’t need to know all the pieces; you just need to know what to do next.
Is it going to be perfect? No. Is it going to be the same if you go to this coach or that one? Probably not. But at least you’re farther than when you started. At least you’re closer and you tried. You’ll be able to rework and revise based on what you learned. You will learn absolutely nothing if you never start. And you will never find success if you stay stuck. You will always keep yourself from moving if you do not go toward the next right step.
If I am your coach, I have the Stefanie Gass School which will help you know exactly what to do based on where you are. If you are building with my business model, I will help you get rid of this excuse.
The Third Excuse We Need to Stop Making is About Taking Risks
If you want a successful business, you need to stop saying, “I”m too scared to take risks.” This one is closely related to fear of judgment or what other people will think. Fear is natural when you’re starting something new. But it keeps you from taking action; from taking a risk that could lead you closer to that reward. Taking risks in business is inevitable.
Of course, you should do your research. I want you to follow my 4P plan, which is to:
Pause
Pray
People (Seek wise counsel)
Plan
But at the end of the day, “I’m too scared to take risks” is an excuse because you’re going to have to if you want to have a successful business, to step into that CEO role. You’re going to have to move your feet. Being scared is going to hold you back until you just do it. For me, I just rip off the Band-Aid. So what if my voice shakes or I mess up? Just say, “Yes!”
Remember: failure is part of learning. Until you fail, you haven’t learned. I believe that if God is with us. God is for us, and God is beside us as we do these things, as we push through these fears, He is going to equip us. Failing is just a piece of the growth journey. In all honesty, you’re probably not going to fail, you’re just going to get better.
My Recap and Prayer For You
Those are the three excuses we need to throw out if we are serious about growing and having a successful business. I think we need to be honest with ourselves about why we might be saying these things. We must recognize that there is a solution and a way to overcome whatever the root is of these excuses in our lives so we can push forward to start achieving those dreams and taking action on the calling we have over our lives.
I hope this blessed you and that you are able to throw out those excuses and start replacing them with God’s truth because He is the way and He will show you the exact path you need to take.
God bless you.
May He shine His light upon you and be gracious to you.
I pray you have everything you need to continue walking forward in His purpose over your life.
May you take big, awesome, audacious action, knowing that He is beside you and that He will give you each tool you need to get it done in His timing.
Before you go, be sure to watch the free workshop!
This free workshop is for you if you want to grow an online business in less time.
It will teach you how to explode your audience without the social media hustle, make consistent sales using a podcast, and plan, record, and launch a podcast with ease!
The more I get to know my students and the more I participate in masterminds with my peers the more I’m starting to comprehend the overarching problem and prevalence of one, perfectionism, and two, overthinking.
Perfectionism keeps us in a place of constant consumption and learning. Redoing things over and over and thinking that we can’t move forward until they measure up to some elusive standard.
Why do I believe we need a morning routine? I believe you must have a morning routine because it helps you get into the mindset of productivity and purpose.
When we get right with God we: Renew Our Minds
Get Into the Word
Are Able to Live Our Life Guided by the Holy Spirit
The difference in how my day goes when I do my morning routine and when I don’t is night and day.
Have you ever driven through a part of your city and felt completely overwhelmed by the destruction and devastation and how dark the world is?
I want us all to find strength in the word. Let’s look at what the Bible says about our feelings, emotions, and honestly, the reality we’re faced with right now.
As a Christian entrepreneur, you can include your faith in your podcast without niching down to Christian women. This blog gives three tips on how to do this.
Have you ever stopped and asked yourself, what do I really want? What would success truly mean for me six months, a year, five, or ten years down the road?
Why am I doing all the things that I’m doing? And what am I actually trying to create? What is the end result that I want? What is non-negotiable?
I am going to share six tips to help you be consistent.