Most entrepreneurs and creative professionals struggle with the same 3 mindset mistakes…
Especially when it comes to biz.
Mindset mistakes are the ones that really hurt you the most.
Because yes, it sucks when something you tried in your biz didn’t pan out.
- A collab fizzled out…
- Investing too much time and energy into a sale that didn’t go anywhere…
- Spending too much money on something.
Those are all mistakes.
But they generally don’t hold you back from long-term success.
Mindset mistakes, on the other hand, cause you to play it safe… stay small… and hold you back from your true potential.
They literally mind f*$k you into believing you don’t have what it takes to make a massive impact in your life… and the lives of others.
But the good news is… you CAN overcome them.
So let’s dig into the 3 biggest mindset mistakes nearly all entrepreneurs make – and how to fix them.
3 Mindset Mistakes Nearly All Entrepreneurs Make
Mistake #1: Thinking that everything has to be perfect for it to have value and impact.
I swear this comes from childhood. Especially if you grew up in a family of high achievers.
If you’re a perfectionist at heart, the biggest thing you probably learned as a kid is that you gotta be really really good at everything you do.
As adults, we often carry this mindset with us.
It often shows up in biz like…
- Writing content, such as newsletters or blog articles.
- Putting out a product.
- Redoing the same thing over and over again.
- Or never putting it out because it’s never quite good enough.
But here’s the thing…
By holding on to something until it’s absolutely perfect in your eyes…
You’re actually not doing yourself – or anyone else – any favors.
Instead of beating yourself up when you don’t get as many Likes or Comments as you think you should…
...or not getting a standing ovation every time you put out a blog article…
...or focusing on the one negative comment you got on Yelp...
Think about how many people you do help with your work.
Imperfections and all.
Adopt the mantra of “done is better than perfect” when you feel perfectionism creep in.
Here’s an example.
Let’s say you’re working on a blog article.
How long do you spend on it?
If you don’t know… then it’s probably too long. LOL
I’d say that if you spend more than a couple of hours on it, that’s perfectionism…
And it’s holding you back from success.
Look at it this way: we all have the same number of hours in a day.
It’s better to get things out into the world, learn from them, and iterate over time....
...than to focus on all the teeny, tiny details that I can guarantee no one but you is likely to notice or care about.
Instead, refine your approach by learning what does and doesn’t work.
Don’t labor for hours over something people zip through in just a few minutes.
Next time you find yourself holding on to something to make just a fewwwwwwww more tweaks… that’s your indication it’s time to let it go.
Done is better than perfect, my friend. I promise you.
Mistake #2: Scarcity mindset.
Small biz owners and entrepreneurs struggle with this one alllll the freaking time.
Particularly when it comes to asking for help in your biz.
If you’re trying to wear all the hats and you’re stressed AF…
OR you know a task is taking you way more time than it should…
This is a hint you need to enlist help.
For so long, I told myself I needed to do it all. Be Superwoman. Because I was just starting my biz.
So I was being super cautious about money. And TBH, I didn’t think anyone could do it as well as me. #helloego
So I worked myself to the bone, giving myself terrible anxiety.
If you find yourself in scarcity thinking, telling yourself you’re not ready to outsource but you literally have no work-life balance… it’s time to switch up your mindset.
The secret to scaling is to create a way to do more with less effort.
So how do you do that?
Well, when you’re constantly in scarcity mindset, this meme literally becomes your life:
Relatable AF, right?
It’s not just entrepreneurs that struggle with this. I can’t tell ya how many of my corporate friends have posted this on IG recently.
But – small biz owners do have one advantage that our 9-5 buds don’t always have.
We CAN get more help so we don’t have to feel overwhelmed 24/7.
We don’t have to get 7 bosses to sign off on it. There’s no budget review or months’ long fight to get another friggin’ set of hands to get shiz done.
You can just do it. Pretty amazeballs, if ya ask me.
But what should you hand off?
Pro tip: Outsource things that you want or need to get done… but not necessarily by you. Think both personal and biz-related.
Here’s a list of some super easy switches you can make to start outsourcing right now:
1, Hire a bookkeeper or get a bookkeeping system like Quickbooks to track all your money-related transactions.
It will make your life sooooo much easier. Yep, even if it costs you money each month. Your time is super valuable. And you’ll really be grateful for it come tax time.
2. Hire a part time virtual assistant. What are things that suck your time or that you hate doing? A VA can help.
They can often handle things like:
- Project management.
- Making appointments for you.
- Managing your social media accounts.
- Creating content.
- Personal tasks.
- Organizing things.
- Creating processes.
- Researching anything you need
- Light graphic design.
- Managing your email.
The opportunities are endless and they’re relatively inexpensive. Just do a bit of research to find a company or person you vibe with.
3. Instead of spending half a day cleaning your house every other week, hire a housecleaner.
This may sound like a luxury but truly it’s not. Once I did this, I was soooo much happier. The house gets cleaned regularly, my stress is reduced, and I get to spend more time with my daughter Madeline.
4. Hire a freelance copywriter. If you want to do more with your marketing but you labor over it all the time, bringing someone on who’s a strong marketing writer is a godsend. You spend your time reading, reviewing, and coaching and less time struggling to find the words yourself.
And actually, this kinda goes for ALL your marketing. You can totally hire out for projects you don’t feel strong in, like:
- Updating your website.
- Setting up email campaigns.
- Graphic design.
The point is… you don’t have to do it all yourself.
If something in your biz stresses you out, outsource it. You gotta value your time.
I mean, if you could pay someone to do something in two hours that takes you ten to finish… that’s worth it, right?
And ya know what? It’s probably better than what you’d do anyway, LOL.
Mistake #3: Waiting until you’re ready.
This one happens ALLLL the freaking time.
I mean, let’s get real… most of us wait and wait and wait because of fear.
Fear of making a mistake, of losing money, of being a failure.
We ALL have this little voice inside our heads.
Like, how long did it take from the time you had the idea about starting a biz… to actually doing it?
For most people, it’s usually too long. And once they start, they kick themselves for waiting so long to do it.
Because I promise you… there is no RIGHT time.
Yes, you should be smart about your biz and do your research. But if you think there’s this magic moment to do something… I’m sorry to say that in most cases, there’s not.
There’s no better time than RIGHT FREAKING NOW.
I see this happen a lot in areas where people aren’t comfortable.
For example, a big headache for a lot of people is their website. They spend weeks – months even – researching all the options. It’s information overload.
So they just… don’t do it.
Or they halfway do it because they’re scared… which obviously they won’t admit to, LOL.
“I’m sooooo busy” is usually the reason they say as to why they don’t finish something they’re afraid of.
Sound familiar?
So my advice here is… do it scared.
Yep.
Do it anyway.
You’re gonna make mistakes. And that’s OK!
It’s all part of the process of becoming a super badass biz owner and developing this crazy amazing career.
So just follow these 3 steps:
- Ask yourself why you’re scared.
- Enlist some help.
- And do whatever it is that’s holding you back.
Yep, before you’re ready. That’s when the magic happens.
If this resonates with you and you’re super pumped to take on the world… I have something I’d like to invite you to.
If you don’t know Amy, she’s amazeballs.
She’s built an 8-figure biz showing people how to create, market, and sell online courses. And it literally doesn’t matter the topic.
So if you’ve ever thought about “Hey, I should put this online”...
Or you want a way to reach more people through the power of the internet – and make money from your knowledge and experience…
She’s covering 5 little-known mistakes *most* course creators make (+ what to do instead).
I got a sneak peek at the content and let me just say…
If you were into today’s mindset mistake and want to take this to the next level, you should sign up for her training.
Because you’ll get value from it… even if you DON’T end up creating a super successful online course.
It’s really practical info ALL creative professionals, entrepreneurs, and business people should hear.
The link to sign up for free for the September 21st online class is https://www.hayleyhobson.com/amyclass/.
Hope to see ya there!
XO,
Hayley