Business

Ep 44. 5 Things that Will Make or Break Your Business

I'm Ashley!

My mission at The Purpose Gathering is to help driven momtogs like you level up, so you can build a sustainable business AND a fulfilling family life. I do that through authentic brand photography for mompreneurs and my signature program for mom photographers: Side Hustler to CEO.

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2020 has definitely been the year of endless curveballs. But it’s not about how you start, it’s about how you finish. So as this year comes to an end, what are you doing right now to plan for an explosive new year?

  • Are you reflecting on what has/hasn’t worked in your business this year?
  • Have you had any relationship growth this year?
  • Are you stopping to celebrate the wins, even if they’re small?
  • Are there areas in which you need to work on moving forward, personally and professionally?

I always love the start of a new year. It’s a fresh start and the perfect opportunity to re-focus. I have a podcast episode where I talked about how to plan for your next quarter; if you missed it, go back and listen to it here. Thoroughly planning the first quarter sets the tone for the entire year.

During my yearly planning session, I took a critical look at all of the things that were and weren’t working in my business. Then I began to make my master plan for how I wanted to move forward into 2021. As I was reflecting and projecting for the new year, there were five things I believe are going to make or break your business growth in the next year.

1. Get Crystal Clear

Get really specific as to what it is that you offer and what the goals for your business will be. Think about the strategies you will need to implement to get you where you want to go. If you want to be able to grow your business, you need to have clarity behind what that looks like.

I have a recorded masterclass that I would love to share with you all about time blocking your schedule. It’s going to give you a clear picture of how to purposefully plan out your time and how to manage your time. Go grab that free masterclass at thepurposegathering.com/productivity.

2. Keep it Simple

The second growth strategy really coincides with the first. I want to give credit to Haley Burkhead, because she’s the one that introduced this concept to me of keeping your business super simple.

And what I mean by that is really focusing on only one product or service that you offer. So if you own multiple businesses like I do, then I encourage you to pick one main thing that you focus on. You want to market this product/service and ensure it is the best product/service that you offer. It’s difficult to do this when you have multiple things juggling all at once.

If you want to scale your business and make sustainable long-term income for yourself, then automation is key. Institute systems for your business, and have different steps in which you accomplish things.

In every area of my business, I have created systems that include checklists. I encourage you to constantly ask yourself, “How can I make the process more simple, easier and faster?” The more you do this, the more you will curate your systems and make them work.

3. Taking Action

We get so fixated on learning ‘the next best thing’ and this overwhelms our mind because we don’t have any output. Output is actually taking action and trying new things based on the new information you learned. An example of output is journaling our thoughts. Having output is equally as important as input.

I did an entire podcast episode called ‘Is Your Follow-through Lacking‘, where I discuss the idea of why it’s easy for us to follow through on commitments when other people are involved, but it’s difficult for us to follow through when it comes to our own commitments or personal and business goals.

4. Gaining More Visibility

Determine the different ways you can be visible aside from social media, podcasts, and blog posts. This will inevitably introduce you to new audiences. Think about email marketing as it is so much more effective than Instagram marketing and allows you to get in front of a wider audience with your service or product.

Start to look for other ways in which you can be visible in your community, Social media is great, but it can be hard to stand out in a sea of so many people.

Try networking and relationship building. I learned this when I went to the Rachel Hollis conference in November 2019. She said something that stuck out to me like a sore thumb and still resonates with me today. She said that if you are the smartest person in your circle, you need to find a new circle. In other words, surround yourself with people who will challenge you and help you grow.

Think about your industry and what you do or what you provide. Who could you connect with and collaborate? It is so much easier to piggyback on someone else’s audience than it is to go find new people for your audience one by one.

5. Stay in your own Lane

This is the last and final growth strategy that will make or break your success: stay in your own lane and trust your instincts. Staying in your lane means not constantly comparing your business to someone else’s and trying to copy them. Don’t feel like you have to be doing everything that everyone else is doing.

Remember, you are the CEO of your business. You call the shots and get to decide what your business structure or core values are, as well as the direction the business will take.

The heart and mission of The Purpose Gathering is to help you grow your business without sacrificing your family or your sanity. In order to do that, sometimes your business may grow slower. If you feel that your business is slower, but your family life is great, then you’re in a great spot. All you have to do is focus on the areas to make the biggest impact for the growth of your business.

On the other hand, if you feel like your business is thriving, but your personal and family life is suffering, then you need to slow down and focus on your self-care and prioritizing yourself.

I will be elaborating on these strategies during my upcoming podcast episodes. Know that you’re not alone, as there are so many mompreneurs that are in your same season of life. They are experiencing the same struggles that you are experiencing, and they feel what you feel.

As always mama, I am here rooting for you and you are not alone on this journey. See you next week!

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My mission is to help fellow momtogs (mama photographers!) experience success in business and in motherhood. As an Arizona brand photographer for mompreneurs, I’m passionate about capturing authentic images that show off my clients’ unique personalities so they can connect with their ideal clients. And as an online business coach for momtogs, I LIVE for helping mamas experience incredible transformations that help them build a business they love, without sacrificing their precious time with their littles.

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