Now What Are You Up To, Nicole? (Why THIS, NOW?)

Right now, I'm dying. Laughing. I know you're thinking it even if you haven't said it to my face (yet). :)

OK. Really, let me be a little serious here...

I started this blog/site/adjunct to my business for many reasons.  First, for the last 20 years, all I've really done is started and grown a variety of businesses, some successful, some awesomely successful...and some not. Even the few years that I worked for someone else, I always had something going on, a little extra way to make money.  Those of you that have known me for what seems like my entire life are saying, "Yeah, duh." 

I can't stop it. I can't help myself.  One of the things I beat myself up about for years is "why can't you just do one thing and be happy about it?" Its taken me almost a half a lifetime, but I've finally accepted: I can't just do one thing and be happy about it, and that is perfectly OK.

In 2015, as many of you know (but some don't), I was diagnosed with a rare lung disease that almost killed me. As I've grown back into health, I've vowed to myself that I am going to be my authentic self, come what may, do what makes me happy, give to the world the things within me that make me excellent.  I'm not saying that to brag or sound obnoxious.  I've come to really believe within my heart that everyone has excellence within.  The problem is that life beats it out of us.  We get on the treadmill and we don't know how to gracefully exit.  It seems dangerous.  We've done it for so long, we've built up the strength on it, but to step off....scary.  It's like stepping off a cliff! 

That being said, helping people start and grow businesses is certainly NOT a "new" thing for me.  I've done it for the last 10 years, consistently - but either on a local level, only, or as a one-to-one service within my law practice.  

I've watched other people that do this type of thing, and I've even learned from them.  However, I always feel like it is lacking.  The biggest problem I'm seeing right now is how so many online "gurus" ignore the practicalities of the things that need to be done, like - what should I do FIRST? How can I protect myself from loss? What happens if I actually do become successful (*gasp*) - have I set things up properly so I can keep growing? I'm scared of taxes, what should I do? What's the best way of tracking the return on investment of marketing dollars and other money going out, so I can keep as much of the money coming in as possible? 

Additionally, many of those teaching online simply don't know what it's like to try to start something when you have kids, a spouse, a job, and a life - one that is very secure, maybe even one you "should" feel grateful for.  You still want more, but you don't know how to get it because all your other obligations are holding you back. Even worse, those obligations cause feelings of guilt and selfishness, even when your entire goal is to make life better for not only yourself, but your family.

The difference is, I absolutely know what that's like.  Even today, I spend every day torn on some level between what I want and what I need to do.  Yet, there is a way to overcome this and make progress, without sacrificing everyone you love.

The greatest inhibitor of people taking charge of their life and starting a business is FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN.  Fear of losing money, fear of how to juggle everything and still make it work, fear of what people will think if things go wrong, fear of success, even, and what the potential cost of that means. Some people don' t mind trisk as much as others do, but those people are rare, and they aren't necessarily doing it "smarter." Smart entrepreneurs manage risk, and make caluclated decisions about risk vs. reward.

It is this way of thinking, of operating, that I want to help people with today, on a much greater scale than I can do locally or one-to-one.

SO, that's what I'm up to now, and that's the reason why.  I hope I have your continued support!