Latest / The SmallBizChat with Melinda Emerson / Reflections on My 25th Year in Business with Melinda Emerson

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Reflections on My 25th Year in Business with Melinda Emerson · The SmallBizChat with Melinda Emerson

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  3, 2, 1, 0, ignition.
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  Lift off.
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  Ending small business failure.
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  Welcome to the small biz chat podcast with the number 1 small business expert, Melinda
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  Emerson.
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  Melinda's goal is to end small business failure, and she'll give you the information
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  you need succeed and live the life you dream of.
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  Now here's your host, the small Biz chat lady herself, Melinda Emerson.
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  Have you subscribed to the small bizchett podcast?
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  Well, it's time every Wednesday we offer listeners bite sized actionable tips to start
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  and grow a successful small business.
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  And just 20 minutes or so a week you can get a ton of insight and resources to propel your
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  business forward.
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  Be sure to subscribe to the small beachhead podcast today.
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  Hi, everybody.
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  This is Melinda Emerson, the small bus lady.
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  I wanna welcome you back to another episode of the small business chat podcast.
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  Today, I'm gonna give you my solo podcast on my reflection on my 25th year in business.
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  Yeah.
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  This March, I am celebrating 25 I gotta tell you guys, I can't believe it.
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  The years went by so, so, so fast.
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  You know, Over these years, I have reinvented and expanded my business 4 times.
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  After my television career, started Quintessa's group as a video production company originally,
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  then we morphed into a social media marketing company.
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  And by 2010, we were a full service marketing consulting firm specializing in servicing
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  working 500 companies, which is what we are still today.
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  But I also realized in 2013, that it was important for me to create a division for
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  education and training.
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  And so we call it small biz lady enterprises.
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  Since a lot of you know me as the small biz lady 1st and foremost, we decided to create a
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  business specifically around that service and that brand.
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  And, you know, with small business lady enterprises, I coach and train people who wanna
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  start and grow successful small businesses.
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  And I do that through smallbizladyuniversity.com.
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  But, you know, I'm not done expanding.
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  In 2024, I have a big, big launch that I'm gonna do that I'm gonna share with you guys
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  later on, but I just wanna let you know I'm not done expanding.
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  And the reason why is because you have to grow yourself to grow your business.
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  And as you grow, you should be transforming yourself into the next big thing.
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  So what I thought I would do this year was share you guys my top 10 pieces of advice.
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  That have given me longevity in business.
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  Number 1, I think everybody should focus on having at least 3 ways to revenue in your
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  business.
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  One way isn't enough, and it's a great way to bring yourself out.
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  You've gotta have multiple streams so that you can offer different opportunities to grow.
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  And it also minimizes risk.
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  It it honestly can act as a financial buffer during challenging times.
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  It when you create more revenue streams, basically, you create a little bit more
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  stability in your business and also fosters long term growth and resilience and it provides
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  a strategic approach to building and sustaining your business model.
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  So work on how to generate your revenue streams in your business.
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  Now just to give me you guys an example, Obviously, I generate revenue from our
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  consulting services.
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  I generate revenue from my online school.
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  I also generate revenue from selling books and giving lectures and teaching.
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  Right?
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  So and I also developed, courseware for brands.
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  So we have, like, 6 or 7 ways that we generate revenue in my business, but you guys need to
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  figure out how to be generating at least 3 ways to generate revenue.
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  My second piece of advice would be to check your mental game.
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  You know, work on your internal stamina before you work on your this plan.
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  Everything rises and sets on your mindset.
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  So whatever you believe you deserve is what you believe you deserve.
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  So it's important for it to stay good.
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  Right?
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  Because if you believe it's bad, it'll always be true.
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  And so I the quality of your life is determined by the quality of the questions you ask
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  yourself.
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  So start with, you know, what you believe about yourself.
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  To be true is how you're gonna achieve your goals.
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  So make sure you're paying attention to your thoughts.
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  Unfortunately, 80% of the thoughts we have every day are negative.
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  So you gotta stop those at the door so that you could focus and reframe positive things.
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  And also too, just beware of your emotions because your emotions lie to you.
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  Your emotions are things that you can't control your emotions, things that make you angry,
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  jealous, envious.
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  Like, those are all really not how full emotions for you to think about.
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  So you really want to focus on how you can keep your mental game strong because that's how
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  you're gonna win the third thing I wanna share with you is be a good steward of your time.
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  Make sure that you know the difference between queen bee work and worker bee work and leverage
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  technology to be more effective.
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  All of y'all should be using chat GPT, especially for marketing tasks, but you can use
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  it for lot more stuff.
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  And don't start your day on social media or email.
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  Spend the first 90 minutes every day working on one goal that you want to achieve for the next
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  90 days.
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  And if you can't focus for 90 minutes, you know, picking them out of time that works for
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  you, 60 minutes, 20 minutes, done that.
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  Focus on one goal and decide the number of days you will focus on accomplishing it.
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  This is really important.
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  And each step that you achieve towards your goal is transforming you.
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  So as you learn something, you're going to become who you need to be to achieve that goal.
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  But when you create a goal, you gotta put in the work to make it possible, and the more you
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  make it possible, you make it likely attainable.
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  So, for example, if you wanna save $6,000,000 for your retirement.
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  That sounds like a huge number, but it really isn't.
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  It's $84,000 in an account for 12 years.
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  That's totally do.
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  Right?
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  So so don't just look at these big audacious goals.
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  Blank them down.
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  Make them bite size.
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  Right?
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  That's how you're gonna accomplish it.
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  Number 4, read great books.
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  Try to listen or read a book a month.
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  One of my favorite books that I read in 2023 is 10x is easier than 2x by Dan Sullivan.
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  And in it, he says that 10 x jumps first, involved making a qualitative shift, then
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  generating an elevated vision and you must have a shift in focus and strategy.
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  Because once you make this qualitative shift, you gotta focus your new 20%, your your new
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  energy on the 20% that you need to start doing and let go of 80 percent of what you were doing
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  that no longer serves you.
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  And that's a powerful thing to really think about.
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  So I'm gonna repeat it.
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  You have to make a qualitative shift, then create an elevated vision, and then you have to
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  shift your focus and your strategy.
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  Focusing on your new 20% and then letting go of 80% that no longer serves you or your new goal.
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  Yeah.
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  It's a great book.
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  Read it.
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  Now number 5, I wanna invite you to annually revisit your business strategy.
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  Strategy is defined by creating something in your business that's not easily duplicatable by
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  your competitors.
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  So you I want you to ask yourself these questions.
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  How have market trends or customer preferences evolved since the last time you reviewed your
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  strategy?
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  How have your competitor strategies or positions changed in the marketplace?
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  Have customer needs and expectations shifted?
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  If they have, what are you gonna do?
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  Are there new segments or demographics that you should target?
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  How can we leverage emerging Technologies to enhance your operations?
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  And are there projects or initiatives that need to be deprioritized or accelerated?
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  And last question is, do we have the necessary skills and resources to execute our strategy?
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  That's a big one because sometimes you just need to hire the people you need rather than
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  trying to learn something new yourself, but it's important for you to think about your
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  business strategically at least every year I like to do it every 6 months, but at least
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  every year, look at your business strategy.
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  Number 6, invest in professional development in order to grow your business.
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  You gotta grow yourself.
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  And honestly, every year since I've been in business, I've invested in business training,
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  leadership training, or coaching.
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  I participated in Mastermind groups at 10 conferences, I stay hungry to run my business
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  better, and every coach needs a coach too, by the way.
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  And it really helps me enjoy my life a lot more.
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  You know, you're operating this business to support your life goals.
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  You do not live to work.
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  That you wanna invest in your own development so that you can run your business better.
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  Number 7.
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  Be intentional about making connections.
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  The world revolves around relationships.
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  Referrals are the best kind of leads you get.
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  And when you cultivate your relationships, you give more lead, strategic introductions, and
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  insider information.
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  If your life is not where you want it to be, think on this.
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  Have you invested enough time in building and maintaining relationships?
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  In order to have friends, you gotta be a friend.
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  Number 8, social media is great for brand awareness but email is trackable.
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  Work on building your email list.
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  It is the most valuable asset in your business.
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  You don't need a big email list either.
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  A thousand engaged people is plenty to make good money.
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  If your open rate is at least if your open rate is at least 20%, then you're good.
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  If it's not at least 20%, then you gotta look at how you can get better with your content, or
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  perhaps you need to segment your list so that the content can be more focused on the audience
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  you need it, or maybe it's time to build a new list.
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  But if you're not getting 20% over rent on your content, there's a problem, and you've got to
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  fix it.
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  Number 9, as you don't go as high as your dream, you go as high as your team.
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  Do you have the right team around you to accomplish your goals?
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  Your business is likely I Melinda look at businesses like they're on an elevator, and
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  you're head to the penthouse, but you're probably gonna have to stop on a few floors to
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  let some people off who just are not ready or equipped to go with you.
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  So work on your team.
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  As soon as you get a team, everything about your business will get better.
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  I promise you.
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  So please get overthinking you're the only person that can do something.
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  How are some smart people and empower them to get the job done?
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  And last one, Crayford Health.
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  In Psalms, 121, 12, it says lift I lift my eye up to the mountains where does my help come
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  from?
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  My help comes from the lord, the maker of heaven and earth.
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  Ask god for help daily.
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  Don't let lack or your emotions distract you.
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  People have down years in business, failing does not mean failure.
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  Your current situation doesn't have anything to do with your destination, and you're still only
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  one idea from being able to do whatever you want.
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  I hope that this sage advice that I've given you over my 25 years in business has encouraged
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  you has given you some new ideas.
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  I want you to know that I appreciate all the years that you supported me and the small biz
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  lady brand and team small biz lady and we are gonna continue to fight that good fight to help
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  you learn how to run your business better.
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  So just know that I love you guys.
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  I love being the small biz lady, and I'm grateful to be an entrepreneur because we live
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  how most people won't, so we can live how most people can't.
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  God bless everybody.
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  Don't forget, my brand new course, Brandon Demand, COVID 2 starts March 20th.
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  If you author speaker coach or consultant and you wanna become a brand, you wanna have brand
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  loyalty, you wanna have corporate, opportunities come to you, then you need to
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  learn how to do it in my branded demand 6 month coaching program.
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  Check it out on smallbizladyuniversity.com.
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  Forward slash brand in demand slash group coaching.
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  Actually, it's a dash, not a slash.
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  Let me give it to you again.
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  It's smallbizladyuniversity.comforward/brandendomandashgroupcoaching,
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  classes start, March 20th, and I'm gonna throw in a free photoshoot.
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  If you sign up before my next class, we're gonna hook you up.
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  Personal glam squad is gonna make you look fantastic.
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  So I want you to be here hanging out with us So the class is virtual for 6 months.
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  So go ahead and sign up.
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  It's at smallbizladyuniversity.comforward/branded
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  demand dash group coaching.
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  Can't wait to see you in March.
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  Alright.
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  Take care.
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  Thanks for listening to the Small Biz chat podcast with Melinda Emerson.
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  Subscribe to this podcast, wherever you listen podcasts, and join us next Wednesday for more
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  fantastic information and interviews.
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  You can find more sources and small business success by visiting Melinda's website succeed
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  as your own boss dot com.
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  Thanks again for listening, and we'll see you next week.