Years before I launched two successful online coaching businesses, my days (and often nights) were dedicated to my career in advertising.
It was the true picture of hustle and grind we Health Coaches talk about, and hope to help our clients avoid in their own lives.
I was working in a fast paced corporate job, including a grueling daily commute. And, even after a very long work day, it wasn’t unusual for six o'clock to hit and to hear someone yell out “All nighter!” Everyone would cheer and think it was amazing because that meant free alcohol and free pizza while we worked through the night. (Remember those late work night scenes on Mad Men? Similar to that!)
The same thing could happen on a Friday afternoon and we’d be in it for an entire weekend. Sure, in my 20s, there was a kind of thrill to this. And there were some very real consequences that would show up in my 30s.
I found out I had stage three adrenal fatigue - something I was told I wouldn’t be able to come back from. And, I knew I had no choice at that point but to heal.
That’s really what led me into health coaching and starting an online business of my own. However, old habits die hard and this message today is a cautionary sign to all Health Coaches…
Into my first year of entrepreneurship, things got way worse before they got better. I was recreating a work culture that I vowed to leave because, at the end of the day, we have to really examine our own working behaviors.
We have to look at what we believe about money and what it means and takes to be successful. Because, chances are, if you’re still carrying these beliefs that you have to sacrifice your health and energy to make money in your business, your health-focused coaching business could end up being what sabotages YOUR health.
AND…it doesn’t have to be that way, I promise. I now have two successful coaching businesses under my belt and I had to make some major shifts in my personal beliefs and habits to make that happen in as sustainable a way as possible. Because chronic fatigue is no joke and it won’t let you off the hook if you start down that path of hustle and grind again.
Here are 3 non-negotiables in my life and business now that I want to share with you in hopes you find it useful as you dream up or build your own health coaching practice:
1. Have a non-negotiable routine every day that’s focused purely on you and centring your own healing.
We know the value of healing. We understand the power of healthy habits and routines. So, we have to know how powerful and important it is to do that for ourselves. For me, it’s my morning routine. It’s non-negotiable. It’s the time of day I claim for me. It’s when I take the time to fill up my energy first in the morning. I focus on a light energy and really opening up to the universe and what intentions I want to set for the day. I encourage you to create a daily energy routine of your own.
2. Don't let your business happen TO you. Decide what kind of work culture YOU want to create and plan it out.
It’s one thing to say you want more freedom, more self-care time, and more spaciousness in your schedule. It’s another thing to make sure you have a solid plan in place to make sure you honour your needs. Our beliefs about hustle and working hard are so deeply embedded in us, we will re-create that in our businesses unless we support ourselves with a plan. How can you set up your work schedule in a way that creates space for time off, for nourishment, for creativity, and for your morning routine?
3. Let your business be a balance of energies; a combination of planning, strategizing, and doing with self-care, slowing down, and trusting the process.
Think about masculine and feminine energy. We all access masculine and feminine energy. However, in entrepreneurship, the scale often gets tipped too far over to the masculine that we end up burnt out and resentful of our own businesses. The feminine is about flow, slowing down, receiving, being curious, self-care, deep breathing, and being present and grounded in the moment. The masculine is about motivation, structure, making the ask (aka sales), pitching your services, giving directions and delegating. The masculine has a push energy to it while the feminine knows how to receive.
Are you pushing yourself too hard? Or, are you even too far in the feminine in that you’re waiting to receive from the Universe but not taking a whole lot of action?
Play with these tips. Apply what works and let go of the rest. At the end of the day, it is YOUR business and you have to be a huge part of how it is shaped every day.
What tip stood at the most for you?
Love,
Amanda xx
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