Business Struggles: When to Push Through, Pivot, or Quit

Navigating Imposter Syndrome and the Entrepreneurial Journey

In this episode, Erin discusses the challenges and uncertainties faced by entrepreneurs, with a focus on imposter syndrome and the decision-making process in tough times. She compares two motivational camps—the 'buckle down and push through' and the 'let it happen' philosophies—and emphasizes the importance of taking action, seeking wisdom, and perseverance in building a successful business. Highlighting personal anecdotes and inspirational stories, Erin encourages listeners to overcome self-doubt and remain committed to their entrepreneurial goals.

00:00 Introduction to the Quality of Life Podcast
00:12 The Struggles of Starting a Business
01:30 Motivation from Influencers
02:46 Making a Decision: Keep Going, Pivot, or Quit
03:27 Understanding Imposter Syndrome
03:53 Personal Story: Overcoming Imposter Syndrome
07:16 The Importance of Perseverance
09:23 Seeking Wisdom and Faith
10:23 Conclusion and Encouragement

Thanks for listening! I'm glad you're here.

Be sure to subscribe to the podcast, and share it with someone who could benefit from what you heard. Also, head over to https://theerinolson.com/links and sign up for the email list, and you can get all the downloadable PDFs and tools! News: We finally have a YouTube channel! Visit us HERE: https://youtube.com/@theerinolson

See ya next week!
Erin

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Hey guys, erin here, thank you so much for joining me on the Quality of Life podcast, where I hope to help you get you from business idea to big business. Part of starting a new business that can be really hard to work through is whether or not you should keep going. I know that that sounds so dumb to say, but hang with me here. There are times where you're working like crazy and sales are coming in. Yes, there are stresses that go along with that, but those are great times and I got to tell you, most often than not, it is a constant battle to keep up profitability. Not to scare you guys, but being an entrepreneur is not for the faint of heart. It's one of the hardest things that you can set out to do, but it's also one of the greatest things that you can do To start a business. Not everyone is made up of what it takes to start a business, and that's okay. It's not their calling, but you. You are made for this. You will change the world and your world with this business idea that you have, with this small business that is growing slowly but it's not going to be easy. So this episode is for when you are struggling with your business. This is for the moments when you are frustrated and you just ask God if you're supposed to keep on going or if he is telling you to quit.

Speaker 1: 1:31

It is pretty common for us to get our motivation from the influencers on the internet, and there are two types the buckle down and push through camp and the let it happen camp. Now, the buckle down and push through camp are the things like David Goggins, jocko Wilnick, tim Ferriss and Andy Frisella and the like. This group is the group that encourages you to be tough, be relentless, don't give up, and this group is the one that makes you want to run through a freaking wall. And then the other camp, the let it happen camp, is that if it is really that hard, then it's just not right. The Jenna Kutcher's, the Gary V's Jenna Kutcher had a book that was all about how are you really? And, honestly, that book was one of the turning points for me and helped me decide to sell my last business. Points for me and help me decide to sell my last business. So they are valid too. And the Gary of ease of the world doubling down on what's working and letting go of all of the things that aren't that is a valid point too, for even Rick Warren of the purpose-driven life. Those are the ones who push you to follow your passion. And even Confucius said if you choose a job you love, you will never have to work another day in your life.

Speaker 1: 2:46

Now, both camps are right and both camps are necessary, but unfortunately we tend to get a ton of mixed messages when you are just trying to figure out if you're supposed to keep on going or give it up and quit, or the third option pivot, then quit, or the third option pivot. And you as a human, a leader and a business owner, you're going to have tons of these moments where you need to know what to do Keep going, pivot or quit. So today I am here to encourage you to do something when you are struggling with that exact question Make a decision and act. My first thing that I have got to clear up is about imposter syndrome. Now, if you don't know what imposter syndrome is, that is just business lingo and a human lingo for not feeling qualified for what you are doing as a leader, as a business owner, as a content creator, as a mom, as a wife, just not feeling like you're enough and not feeling like you are created to do this, and I'm going to tell you a little bit of story about me and Haychix.

Speaker 1: 3:58

Now, back in the day, several years ago, when we used to do trade shows all over the country, we had a booth at the Minnesota Horse Expo and that was one of our first places where we started selling our products. Now, years later, they invited us to speak because not many people in the area had heard our story about how we became a company, and so they asked us to speak, and I'm going to tell you I love speaking. Why I'm doing this. I don't get nervous hardly ever on a stage. Honestly, I'm not shy. I have done talent shows when I was a kid. I did speech competitions in high school, so being in front of people does not typically worry me. However, they wanted us to talk about how we started our business and the steps that it took to get there and how to help other people do it themselves.

Speaker 1: 4:53

And here's the problem. I honestly didn't think I was qualified to tell people. Now, at this point, you have to know we had sold thousands and thousands and probably hundreds of thousands of products. By then, we had sold several million dollars worth of revenue, and I still felt like I was unqualified. So I went back to the basics and I buckled down and we wrote a PowerPoint to keep us on track and we encouraged everybody in the audience with our story and I'm going to tell you, I felt so much like an imposter Like who in the heck am I? Here's the thing I've learned is that you are going to gain confidence as a business owner. That's something that comes with every sale that you make. Every time you tell your story and you share your passion. You are going to grow in confidence, but you are never going to feel fully qualified for the plans that you have. I'm just going to be real.

Speaker 1: 5:55

I have talked with so many mentors and I have actually listened to Ed Milet. I've met with millionaires heck billionaires and I have listened to them tell their story about how they doubt themselves on a daily basis. Everybody deals with imposter syndrome. I just listened to a podcast with John Maxwell, who has 80 books and has spoken on every stage that you could possibly imagine to millions and millions of people. He is the go-to guy for leadership and even he feels unqualified to do what he's doing. All business owners that I have ever met are just pushing through and doing what they can do and never quite feel like they are capable of running and scaling a business.

Speaker 1: 6:43

Don't bank on you feeling like you are enough, you have enough skills, you have enough talent, you have enough knowledge to do it. Because you're never going to feel like you have enough and you know what, that's okay, because you were chosen for this and you are going to do great. Just don't let that voice in your head. Who are you to be talking about all this stuff? To win the battle, okay? The difference between those who make it big and those who don't is whether or not they believe the voice and quit.

Speaker 1: 7:16

There's this quote 99% of failures come from those who have a habit of making excuses. That was by George Washington Carver, and it's so true. Because you know what, you can always find an excuse to quit. That is the honest to God truth. But in fact there's so many stories of people who just never gave up.

Speaker 1: 7:40

And one great story that I love is in the Think and Grow Rich book by Napoleon Hill, and that is a story of being three feet from gold, and it's a story of this guy who found a vein of gold and he buys all the equipment and all of the people to help him and mortgages out and borrows money from all his friends to go and get, because this vein of gold is the biggest in history that has ever been found. And you know what, after he's been into it for a couple months, the vein just stops. So he tries and he tries to find where it picks up again and he never finds it. So he just cuts his losses, sells all his crap and goes home and works at building another business. Honestly, he does win in the end, but what happened was is that he sold all of his equipment and actually his plot of land and the rights to his gold mine to this pawn shop guy and he went and did some research and found the fault lines had shifted it and it had moved over. And you know what? Three feet away from where the other guy stopped is where the gold vein started and the pawn shop guy made millions of dollars.

Speaker 1: 8:52

So today I'm going to tell you, like Winston Churchill, never give up, never give up, never give up. These moments where you don't know how to move forward are the ones that grow your faith. They grow your wisdom, they grow your ability to make decisions under pressure and they grow your ability to be a better leader and a better business owner. These are the moments that make you a better person. And if you still doubt, just ask God for help. James 1, 5-8 says If you need wisdom, ask our generous God and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking, but when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone.

Speaker 1: 9:42

Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything that they do. That's about as plainly as it can be said. Don't doubt yourself. Well, you're going to have doubts. Don't believe the doubts that you have about yourself.

Speaker 1: 10:17

Commit to one more day, like it says. Ask God to help you, ask him for the wisdom, and then commit to trying for one more day. Then do it again the next day, and again the next day, and then one year. It again the next day, and again the next day, and then one year. Heck, ten years from now. You just might look back on a legacy type of business and boom, just like that. Your business idea has become a big business. Well, guys, I hope that this gave you some hope and the motivation to persevere. You were made for this and guess what? I love you, guys and I am rooting for you. Share this episode and please like, comment and subscribe to both my podcast and my YouTube podcast. And, guys, I will see you next week on the Quality of Life podcast, see ya.