Reflecting on three months…

Shoutout to my student Paola for the lovely birthday gift, pictured in the photo. Colombian coffee and chocolate—she knows the ways to my heart!

Like many people, I tell myself lies (limiting beliefs) that hold me back. One in particular has always been: I’m not good at business. I don’t have a “head” for business. I would be bad at it. I blame this partially on receiving my lowest grade in law school in Business Organizations (woof, that class) and partially on being an English nerd/writer. It just felt like two incompatible things.

Somehow, three months ago, in a moment that now feels like a fever dream (thank you, creative brain impulsivity), I filed for an LLC for ELL Explorers and made the first steps to start my own tutoring and education business. I mostly had no idea what I was doing (still don’t), but was inspired by Ali Abdaal and Million Dollar Weekend by Noah Kagan. Both urge you to just start. Because most people don’t cross that hurdle. They don’t take that first step. They let the limiting beliefs hold them down. I was that person for a long time.

But I was staring down 40-years old, and the great thing about getting older is you stop caring (a bit) about what people think. So I did it. I pulled the trigger.

I made flyers, a website, an email address. I hung flyers around my town. I talked to co-workers about it (making sure I was correct in understanding what I needed to do as a full-time public school teacher to separate the two things). And before I knew it, I had my first student. Then another, and another. I started telling my family and friends, “I have girlbossed too close to the sun.” I was feeling a little overwhelmed, but also… alive.

I had been scared to do something. And I had done it. And it was working. It was happening. I have four in-person students/clients, and five online students/clients through Preply (my feelings on Preply must be saved for a whole other post, I’m afraid—I have manyyyy thoughts on the platform).

And so, I’m taking a moment to reflect and also feel proud of myself. I never thought I could do this. And yet, here I am. I’m also so grateful to my students for trusting me, even as a new business, to help them meet their goals. And I’m so proud of how far we’ve come! In What’s Your Dream? by Simon Squibb, one of the things Squibb talks about is valuing your early clients. Not focusing so much on growth that you neglect those that have been with you since the early days. And that’s something I’ve taken to heart.

Recently, I’ve thought about trying to grow even more—putting up more flyers, looking into social media advertising, etc. But then I remembered this advice and stopped myself. I don’t need to grow super quickly, and I don’t want to. I want to focus on my current students and nurture their growth—and also not burn myself out.

Especially with school coming so soon. In fact, that’s what I want to talk about next on my blog: how I’m prepping for the new school year as a new business owner balancing both things. So stay tuned for that. 👀

But really, what I’m trying to say is: if you’re on the precipice of starting something, and you’re scared or worried or doubting yourself, just freakin’ do it. Take that first step. It’s worth it. You got this. 💛

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