I wonder if you grew up like I did. I was a “Good Girl.” I generally did what I was told and obeyed my parents’ standards: Don’t make a noise and don’t make a mess.
I was a high-achieving kid who followed the rules. I excelled in school, music, and dance. I was expected to grow up, get my education, get married, and have children. Period. End of story.
I wasn’t raised to be a breadwinner, but I was raised to be ambitious, high achieving, disciplined, and competitive. Striving for excellence was always top of mind.
It was clear to me that if I followed the rules, exceeded expectations, and was a Good Girl, I would be happy and fulfilled. Life was a straight line.
As adults, we know life is full of twists and turns. With a surprise divorce when I was thirty-five with three little kids at home, my life turned upside down. How could this happen when I did everything “right”?
I think of this as The Good Girl’s Dilemma™, always wondering:
Do you secretly feel unfulfilled in your business because you know you can do more and earn more but aren’t sure where to start?
You grew up, got your education, built relationships, and became an expert in your field. You likely had a corporate career and worked for some good bosses and some terrible bosses until you took a leap of faith and decided to build your own business.
You love the work you do and care deeply about your clients. You’ve made it this far, delivering excellence and great results. Your clients sing your praises.
And yet . . .
Running a business is hard. You need to learn new, complicated information and processes. You need to (gasp!) sell. You need to figure out how to price your services and get prospects to understand who you are and how you can help them solve their business issues.
You need to find ready buyers, network productively, manage your client relationships, and work efficiently. You need to use technology effectively, handle your accounting, and manage people.
You need to set boundaries and expectations, have difficult conversations, innovate, and improve.
You need to generate a healthy profit so you can continue doing all the above.
Many of us – especially Good Girls – were raised to think everyone else has “the answer.” We were not raised to be breadwinners or to trust our own instincts and intuition.
We weren’t raised to create businesses that operate on our own terms. We have continued to believe some cookie-cutter approach will magically solve all our problems.
We may spend so much time and energy comparing ourselves to others that we lose sight of our real gifts. This “comparitis” can keep us stuck and feeling embarrassed, exposed, and vulnerable.
We often fall victim to other people’s “proven success formulas,” thinking others have the “right” answer. We live in an age of so-called gurus who keep telling us we’re doing it “wrong.”
After decades of working exclusively with women business owners, I’ve experienced and witnessed patterns and roadblocks that keep us unfulfilled.
There is no one “right” way to run a business – there is only your right way.
As a woman business owner, you can take back your power so you can run your business your way. A way that:
My goal is to transform your thinking and help you reimagine how to develop your business with more revenue and less stress.
I’ve done it, and I’ve helped countless women do the same. Since 2006, I’ve guided women business owners to redefine what it means to be powerful and successful on their own terms.
Specifically, I guide them to design a more profitable future for their business by unlocking their Hidden Advantage™.
-- Excerpt from Patty’s book, Your Hidden Advantage: Unlock the Power to Attract Right-fit Clients and Boost Your Revenue
Do you struggle with The Good Girl’s Dilemma? I'd love to hear how this may be affecting you and your business. Simply respond to this email. I read and respond to every email personally.
P.S. Are you giving 'invisible' discounts to prospects who didn't ask for them? The anxiety you feel when talking with a potential client leaks out when you slash your price because you're afraid you'll lose the opportunity if you don't. We think we're hiding our fear but others can sense it.
I've broken down exactly why this 'discount dilemma' happens in an exclusive training called The Value Equation, which you can get for FREE by signing up for the bonuses that are companion pieces for my book, Your Hidden Advantage.
Business advisor, pricing expert, and bestselling author, Patty Block empowers women business owners to turn up their power by shifting their mindset, attracting right-fit clients, and boosting their revenue to achieve a more profitable future. Isn't it time to run your business with more confidence, profit, and joy?