Intro

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Hello. I’m Caroline Marshall, and welcome to Bump to Business Owner the podcast speaking to mums in business. You. I’ll be in conversation with some of the most inspiring women and mothers in enterprise about their journey, how they created their successful businesses alongside raising their children and what that looks like in work and family life.

Caroline:
Hello and welcome back to Bump to Business Owner. I’m your host, Caroline Marshall, and today we’re back with another solo episode. I can’t, like, it still feels a bit odd to be just sat here talking on my own, and I feel like it’s one of those things. I’m hoping that if I’m consistent with these minisodes, eventually it’ll start to become normal and that I’m not six years old again recording my own radio show on my cassette player. If I’m your fellow millennial that did that, I actually listened to Alice Benham before this to feel inspired.
(01:37):
I’m like, wow, she sounds so natural. This is really normal talking to yourself. So I hope I sound like that because I don’t feel like that right now. But anyways, if I’m consistent enough, which is the theme of this episode, maybe it’ll happen. And actually I was going to talk about consistency. I actually feel it’s so easy when you’ve done something really amazing or you’re in a really successful place with your business and it’s like, this is how I got here. And I guess maybe I am at a successful place in my business, but it’s just feeling quite January still. And budgets are hard for a lot of clients, a lot of potential clients. And I’ve been speaking to people outside of my client scope and lawyers, just friends who’ve been saying odd things have been happening. So I think it’s really good way to push you through if you are feeling in a similar way to help you stay consistent is that we’re all in this together and here’s some consistent tips to try.
(02:36):
I really believe alongside optimism is being consistent with some things, not giving yourself a hard time. If you’re not and you’re not having a good day, a good week because we’re normal, but I’m head down hustle mode. And now what is keeping me going during this time? I’m also in this weird spot. I start this business growth programme in February as I’m recording this, and I have actually read from others who started it last year that they felt in a weird spot. They think you’re about to do all this work on your business and you kind of feel like a little bit of, there’s only so much I can do right now. I know it’s probably all going to be thrown out the window, come this growth programme, but we’ll see what happens. Yeah, and I also, I’ve just been doing a post on productivity and is it always bad if you’re not super productive or if you’re procrastinating on things because actually maybe you are procrastinating for a reason.
(03:31):
So I thought we talk a little bit about that. So what does consistency mean to me? I think consistency is when you keep going, when things aren’t going to plan or not what you thought and also, but choosing what is manageable over what you think you should be doing. I think such a case, an example of this is LinkedIn. So many business owners want to gain traction on there, and I see this all the time. And so people are like, we should be posting, I think the LinkedIn gods tell us we should be posting five days a week. It’s like, actually my friend Jassy says this, shout out to Jassy if you’re listening. It’s always like we’re business owners. It is not our full-time job to be creating content five days a week. And is that consistent for you as you scale, as you grow, even if you get help in it?
(04:17):
So I do it three days a week and people always say they see my LinkedIn content and I’m not doing it five days a week, three days a week is still a lot, it’s still a commitment. So that might not be right for you and I’ve had to build up to that. But just so you know, this is why I bring up, I think that’s such a good example of people say they see my LinkedIn content and I’m not doing it five days a week, but I am consistent on three days per week or try to be not necessarily consistent on days, so probably could be better with that. But here are things that help me be consistent and I think I will shout about this until the cows come home. It’s all about a process. So if there’s something I have to do regularly, I have the process that it’s scheduled in my calendar regularly.
(05:03):
So for things like on a Thursday, we are in the routine that I provide content video for my content person, Rachel, shout out to schedule Instagram. And so now I’ve had to have that scheduled in my calendar on a Thursday. And trust me, I’m not always consistent with the timing or when, but I know it’s around. Then along with a Monday, I look at my LinkedIn content for the week and it is scheduled there and it’s also in my clickup where I have things scheduled. And that is really how I stay consistent with stuff or even with things like when I was trying to build a habit of reading every day, which has got so much easier since my kids just got older. I actually scheduled try to read five pages a day just to keep that consistency there. And that’s quite unique. That’s not for everyone, but that’s still in my clickup to read every day and it’s just kind of that prompt and reminder.
(05:54):
And I think having a process for things really helps along with, I think what also is a real, it comes back to content again, but staying consistent with a podcast, I’ve made it quite clear from day dot that I wouldn’t have been consistent without the team there. But also we have a process and we have a process and we’ve stayed consistent with that process. We’ve changed things up, which we’ll talk about in a minute, but we have a process, we have a format, and that is how we stayed consistent with the podcast and that is how results start to show. So utter geek there, and I’m afraid that’s not sexy, but having processes and processes always sounds really scary. Like, oh, where do I start? But it could be a two step process or just having something in your to-do list that regularly pops up and you tick it off and then it comes back for the next day or the next week.
(06:45):
So I always like to say, have a process for things and what works you. But next on that, which I’ll come back to with the podcast process, is also consistently do a lessons learned and feedback with yourself and what and what isn’t working. I would love to do my LinkedIn content on a Friday and that’s going to take a bit of a shift. And so I’m constantly reviewing what’s working, what isn’t. And we do the same with our podcast process as part of, we have a monthly team meeting for the podcast. I’m like, what are our lessons learned? Do you have any feedback for me? And we have had to tweak stuff and I’d be like, well, I want the guests to get this more in advance, so how do we do this and how do we get there? Can we do this by then?
(07:31):
This is the process. So we all start to learn the process. So we’re a bit quicker that happens, but we’re also doing lessons learned feedback. And we had our meeting recently and I was like, was there anything? And we are like, actually we’re all in quite a good rhythm. I’m about to start on this business growth programme. Is there anything, we changed a lot in September following feedback from a podcast agency. Is there anything we really need to change right now or would we be changing it for the sake of changing it? And we decided not to change anything because we’d be doing it for the sake of it. And it’s through constantly having that feedback though we proactively chose not to change anything and just stay consistent with what we’re doing for now and maybe come June we’ll readdress it and that will be something then to bring in September if there is anything we want to change or adapt with this podcast.
(08:18):
When I say feedback as well, that comes back to asking for feedback if you’re working with other people, if you have a mentor or a coach, feedback on what you’re doing consistently well and what you’re not doing consistently well. I do think though, on a caveat to that is you got to be flexible and kind to yourself. So I am probably getting a bit boring talking about how much I’m obsessed with wellbeing, but if this was a Tech Row podcast where they don’t have kids and they’re in hustling, they’d be talking about wellbeing and getting up at the same time every day doing X, Y, Z at the same time every day. I am a mother, I don’t have time to do the same stuff every day and even I just don’t, don’t think I probably work well like that, but we’ll find out when the kids leave home.
(09:15):
I’m too stuck in this parenthood mode to know what that life is like without kids. But I like to meditate every day. I like to have a cold shower every day. I like to do some form of journaling, manifestation, gratitude. It’s not at the same time every day. And while that would be ideal to have that rhythm, it just doesn’t work like that. I just meditated before this podcast. So it is ideal that I do do my meditation before I have any meetings, before I have any calls, but it really just doesn’t work like that. Or yesterday I did get really stressed in my business. I had my workout class, I was meant to come back and work and I was like, no, I need to go meditate. So it’s kind of having that awareness to change up. You’re flexible and staying consistent with it and not beating yourself up if you don’t do something one day and the next day maybe you double down on doing extra work on whatever that is.
(10:13):
So I really think that is a key for being consistent. And I really think if having been in business for five years, while it’s not actually that long in the grand scheme, I do think it’s from continuing to find ways to change the business, work on the business, stay consistent when things aren’t always going to plan, and how we can change things and things like sales. I’ve had a consistent process on that that isn’t perfect, isn’t going to scale as maybe to the next stage of doubling the business, but it’s really works. And I can go back to it like I did yesterday and be like, right, who should I keep in contact today? Who should I chat to? Or even yesterday I put on my stories that I finally got my inbox down to zero again, am consistent in wanting to get my inbox down to zero.
(11:08):
I am consistent in trying new ways to get the inbox down to zero. Am I consistent with a X inbox? No, I’m probably more consistent than others though. So it’s probably the EA in me giving myself hard time and I am going to have someone doing my inbox again soon because I do think that’s life changing, always plugging the VA support for how it can change your life, including for me. But literally someone who was a fantastic business owner, who I really respect has been on this podcast was like, how have you done that? And it is through I am obsessed with getting my inbox down to zero. And that isn’t for everyone, but it means that I am consistent with keeping it down. And I’ve talked about on this podcast how I try not to look at it during the day. It does mean last night I did stay up late to work to get it down there.
(11:56):
I just knew I’d feel better. And I think that is ultimately the point of being consistent is if it makes you feel better, then keep going even during those times. So I have got down to zero unbox again. Is it back up to 20-30 emails? Absolutely. But I will get it back down to zero tonight, I promise you. Fingers crossed. And also don’t look at my to-do list, which I’ve just been moving things onto to a later date, but it makes you feel so much better being assistant with it. And so join me on this journey. Bear with me on the fact that I think this is such a good example that I’m still feeling a little bit awkward about what I’m chatting to you about on a solo episode. I’m like, does anyone even really want to hear this about what’s getting my business from here to here?
(12:44):
We are one and a half years into the podcast, yes, almost one and a half years into the podcast. And these solo episodes still feel really icky for me. A bit like I said, like I’m a 6-year-old recording on a tape player, which makes me feel really old, but I am being consistent. I’m going with the process. It can always lead to somewhere. And I think me finding things to talk about, sharing with you the things that I’m finding challenging, I know I’m not alone in this. And if there’s someone out there start your podcast and they just feel a bit icky recording like this, then come listen to this episode and just keep being consistent with it and keep going and ask for feedback and give yourself a bit of kindness. Thank you so much for listening today.

Outro

Thank you so much to Ancient + Brave for sponsoring today’s episode of the Bump to Business Owner podcast. Try their Find Your Ritual quiz online to find out which of their products will help you achieve your wellness goals. Subscribe and not only will you get your order regularly delivered to your door, you’ll also receive a ritual scoop. As a member of 1% for the Planet, 1% of Ancient + Brave sales go towards helping environmental partners, working towards a better future for our planet. For more details go to ancientandbrave.earth

Thank you so much for listening to Bump to Business Owner. I hope you enjoyed the conversation. Please do rate, review, follow or subscribe wherever you’re listening. It really helps us to connect with more mums and business owners. You can DM me at Bump to Business Owner on Instagram and I’ll be back next week.