Introduction
Welcome to Episode 7 of the Coaching Hive Podcast! I am your host, Dr. Moira and for the past two weeks we have been exploring the concept of mindset. First, we talked about the definition and last week we took to the research to find out the impact of mindset on your business. This week we continue the conversation by looking at a popular Hay House author, Carrie Green, and her book titled, She Means Business.
Here at the Coaching Hive, we want to be effective, efficient, and have fun so that work becomes a joy, and you have dedicated time for the important things in life like your family, friends, and hobbies. Go ahead and play this family friendly podcast through your speakers and let’s get started.
The Topic
Are you the type of person who sees a book that is pink with gold foil, a fancy script for the title, and a subtitle that includes the word “wildly” and writes it off as fluff?
If you are nodding yes, I’ve been there. I have passed over so many books that seemed to be fluff simply because of the cover. It is a mindset, a mental attitude or inclination, that has us prejudging something before we even take a closer look. Now we have all been told not to judge a book by the cover and this is one of those books. It has a beautiful cover and I bought it because I liked Carrie’s work, mindset, and approach to business, but honestly, I would have skipped it over in the bookstore.
Remember that pink cover I described? Carrie actually talks about the pink color used in her branding as being her favorite color. Early on she had people criticize her color choices, but she held to what she liked. This was her business and she liked pink. She adopted a mindset that helped her see these critics as people with opinions that were different from hers. She didn’t give in or give up. She kept her pink signature color and it still stands today as the primary color of the Female Entrepreneur Association. Although purple is my favorite color, pink is a close second and I happen to love her color scheme. Imagine, though for a minute if she had let critics of her color choices literally color her business. What mindset would she have had? Probably not one that was empowered, and her business might have become something she didn’t love. She might have begun to make changes based solely on what the critics thought rather than keeping her mindset focused on what she wanted for her business. This doesn’t mean that she tunes out the critics, or ignores good comments and advice. It simply means that she has a mindset that she is the business owner and ultimately, she has to be ok with the choices she is implementing. But you didn’t start this podcast to learn about book cover color choices. So let me tell you a little about my experience with the inside of the book.
The Ideas
When I opened She Means Business for the first time, I had a problem. I got sucked in. I couldn’t put it down. In fact, I had picked it up as I was getting ready for bed and Nate, my husband, came in a while later curious because I was still awake. I had a goofy grin on my face and distinctly remembering telling him that I needed to read Carrie’s book every single day. It was uplifting, it was motivating, and it really reminds us that what we achieve takes really hard work, but it is worth it when you build something that you are excited to wake up to each morning.
As a member of the Female Entrepreneur Association, I was curious to see if Carrie’s abundance mindset and positive approach to learning, growing, and exploring came through in the book. It is clearly evident in her podcast and everything she does in the FEA. And guess what? The book delivered in a BIG way.
The book is divided into three parts that are scaffolded in a way that you don’t feel like the changes and mindset are overwhelming, but if you take a step back you can see the impact the book and work can have in your life and business.
Part 1 of the book focuses in a bit on Carrie’s background, her story, and even the doubts that she experienced during her entrepreneurial journey. You know right away that you are not alone. The beauty of this part of the book is that along the way Carrie shares her secrets to overcoming the doubts and to really creating a mindset that allows for personal and business growth. Along the way, Carrie has a “She Takes Action” section that makes you stop and think. You are encouraged to get out a journal and think about her prompts. For example, one of the early prompts in the book asks you to write about what you want to experience or incorporate into your life. On the surface, this question seems broad, but when it is put in context to providing a solid foundation behind building your business, it gets an A+ from me.
Prochaska, in his transtheoretical model of change theory tells us that people change when they know how to change, when it is important, and when they believe making a change will have an impact on their life or others around them. If you think about the question that Carrie poses, what do you want to experience or incorporate into your life, this is helping the reader to create an entrepreneurial mindset. One that makes the change, the risk, worth it because with that successful launch or re-launch now new experiences, desired experiences, become a possibility. If the person chooses to stay as they are right now, those experiences may not happen. This question is on page 24 of her book, so when you get your copy you will want to be sure to take a look at that question and really imagine the possibilities. And if this is just on page 24, imagine what questions she gets into by Part 3 of the book!
But before I share about Parts 2 and 3 of the book, I want to bring up a topic that really speaks to me. There is a chapter titled “It’s all just an experiment”. This is such a great reminder that change is a process; it takes time. Nothing happens overnight and nothing is perfect the first time you try. With a growth mindset you can start in one place, and then adjust over time to get to where you need and want to be. The key is to get started on your vision and dreams.
Part 2 of the book takes your journey a step further and now that you are believing that you want to make a change, you know what the change can provide for you, it is time to really think about why you want to follow this entrepreneurial path. For you as a business owner it is a question of why do you want to build your business, who are you serving, and what do you stand for? For our coaching clients this process applies equally, if somewhat differently. It becomes a question of why is change important? What makes you want to do this? How are you going to do this? What kind of role model will you become when you make this change?
In both cases, mindset is still front and center whether we are talking about you as a coach and business owner or the client. It is a mindset of change, growth, positivity, experimentation, and introspection. Carrie talks about everything from engaging your audience to networking to beliefs about money. This last part, beliefs about money really got me thinking. So often I work with coaches who say that they need more experience before they charge for their services. Nearly every time I talk with a coach and explore what is behind those statements, the answer is fear. Fear of not being good enough, fear that no one will value their services that much. Fear that no one believes what a coach can do. The coaches I mentor are dedicated to guiding others and want to be sure they are serving their clients to the absolutely best of their ability. So we work on mindset. As we breakthrough these fears and false beliefs, coaches begin to seek out clients and find that rhythm they have been searching for. It is amazing to see the impact our mindset can have on the actions we choose to take or not to take.
Carrie’s book is thorough and thoughtful, and I haven’t even gotten to Part 3 that really brings us back to the concepts of community and connection. We need to surround ourselves with other business building entrepreneurs, we need to find mentors, and we need to work together. We have to take care of ourselves and remember to celebrate each win along the way.
In a nutshell, Part 3 lets us know that yes business skills matter, we have a lot to learn, but if your mindset isn’t there the business knowledge isn’t going to move you toward that experience that you identified in Part 1 of Carrie’s book. Mindset is essential. I’ll say that again. Mindset is essential.
Along the way, Carrie shares her journey, her ups and downs along the process, and her mindset that has allowed for such great success. She has always dreamed about being a Hay House author and with her positive mindset she was able to put the hard work in and make that vision a reality. If she can adjust her mindset to make her wildest visions come true, what can you do? How can you adjust your mindset today to see your wildest visions come true?
I’ll leave you with this quote from Audrey Hepburn on page 69 of She Means Business, “Nothing is impossible. The words itself says “I’m possible.”
If you enjoyed this podcast and know someone who might benefit from hearing this message, please share it and tag Be Healthy, LLC on Facebook and Be Healthy Hive on Instagram. You may have noticed that the Hexagonal Hive Approach incorporates many of the key ingredients that Carrie outlines in her book to help you move from a multi-focused overwhelmed coach to a poised, balanced coach. Our 6-pronged approach to coaching growth includes a business vision, community, mentoring, learning, action and exploration. If you are ready to move your coaching business forward with our Hexagonal Hive Approach be sure to check out behealthyhive.com for more details. I hope to see you in the Hive soon and back here next week for another episode of the Coaching Hive podcast where we will hear from a fellow Female Entrepreneur Association Member and health coach.
