What does success look like for you lately? Are you burnt out – yet again? What’s that about and why does it keep happening? I know I’ve been feeling this recently too, you’re not alone. So I want to take a hard look at why we all feel this way and work on redefining success in businesses because sometimes it just seems so hard.

It’s almost as if a barrier is up that we just can’t quite get over. But in our minds, once we’re over that wall then we’re home free. Right? Have you caught yourself thinking, “I’m just on the cusp of being successful, I just need to do what this person does to have what this person has.” Or, “I’m almost there I just need to keep working late this month to get this done.” Fast forward to 2 years down the road and you’re still chasing that elusive “success.”

If you’d like to take a deeper dive into redefining success in business have a listen to my Podcast, Freedom by Design, below!

Step One: Identify how you’ve always defined success

So for me walking through this right now, success in my mind looked like what we’re constantly bombarded with online:

• Passive income
• Taking days or weeks off on a whim
• Only working when I’m creatively charged and inspired
• Traveling the world
• Helping millions of women
• Building an empire
• 7 figure business

And I have absolutely gotten swept up in thinking that in order to have those things I see other women in business having I need to do what they do, right?

• Have over 10,000 followers across all social platforms
• Have a large Team
• Create a business that runs itself
• Have top selling products so I can afford to travel and take as much time off as I want

Now when I write it all out and say it out loud it makes me a little nauseous. Partly because I know when we see online isn’t reality and partly because I find myself still wanting it anyway. I know you feel this too.

Step Two: Be very honest about why you actually want each item

Remember we are not doing this exercise to judge ourselves or others. It’s time to be brutally honest so we can start coming up with solutions.

Passive income
Reality: I’m really just wanting to have strategic offerings that allow me to work smarter not harder while still providing as much value as I can to my audience.

Dig Deeper: Because the way my current offerings are set up, I have to be constantly present and working.

Taking days or weeks off on a whim
Reality: I want to feel like I don’t have to be attached to my phone and computer 27/7 and that the business won’t burn down if I’m out of office.

Dig Deeper: I’m telling myself a story that my business needs me constantly, but instead I can structure it in a way where I don’t have to feel this way moving forward.

Only working when I’m creatively charged and inspired
Reality: I am burnt out from prioritizing my business over my own health for too long.

Dig Deeper: I have not successfully set boundaries to ensure I don’t get burnt out. I need to make this a priority.

Traveling the world
Reality: Travel makes me happy and I fantasize about time away from work.

Dig Deeper: I can work toward traveling while also prioritizing smaller trips and adventures much closer to home so I am doing so more frequently. I can also restructure my business so I don’t feel as stressed and like I need a vacation away from it.

Helping millions of women
Reality: While Femme’s reach isn’t as large as I’d like it to be, I get to help every woman that we work with build a business they’re proud of.

Dig Deeper: With social media I’ve learned to associate larger followings equating to larger impact and that simply isn’t reality. I can focus on the impact I am having and how I can improve each client’s experience.

Step Three: Redefining success in business and focusing on gratitude

Now that you’ve done the self reflective hard work, let’s redefine what success looks like in our lives and businesses.

Income

Redefine: I define success with income as being able to afford my expenses, including my Team, while being able to put some money away into savings.

Growth: I will continue to make strategic, thoughtful, financial decisions in my business and seek help from financial advisors when needed.

Workload

Redefine: I define success with my workload as being able to comfortably manage the work that I have while still maintaining my boundaries (example: staying within my defined hours). If I take on too much it ends in burnout, exhaustion, and a lack of motivation in my business.

Growth: I will set clearer boundaries moving forward and communicate those boundaries to my Team, my Clients, and my loved ones.

Creativity

Redefine: I define success with my creativity as understanding that it ebbs and flows. I will not feel my most creative 100% of the time and that’s okay.

Growth: I can set up my environment and daily structure to help spark creativity. I will take breaks when needed and improve my time management to ensure I have enough time throughout each project to account for the ebbs and flow for my creativity.

Community

Redefine: I define success in my community as creating a safe space for our audience and for my Team to be authentically themselves. We’ll share the highs and lows unapologetically and lift each other up.

Growth: When I am burnt out I don’t show up for my community in the way I hope to. So my focus needs to be on restructuring to avoid exhaustion and create an environment for myself that I feel confident in.

Thank you so much for spending time with me! If you related to this Episode of redefining success in business, you’ll love our Overcoming Overwhelm Episode below.