Connect Inspire Create

153 Transform Your Business Mindset with Liz Wolfe

• Liz Wolfe • Season 5 • Episode 153

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Ever wondered how a seasoned business coach can transform your entrepreneurial journey? 

Liz Wolfe is a seasoned business coach, author, and speaker who coaches entrepreneurs to get unstuck so that they can launch and grow an abundant business.  With over two decades of experience, she has empowered people with her three-part coaching system starting with a clear vision coupled with purposeful action, and removing hidden barriers to get breakthrough results for her clients.

 Liz brings her unique perspective on building a business with ease and abundance, sharing her personal stories and practical tips. She emphasizes the critical role of having a coach or mentor, especially in the early stages, and reveals how the right support can make all the difference. 

Join us as we tackle common entrepreneurial hurdles and uncover strategies for maintaining a clear, goal-oriented mindset while embracing abundance principles. 

Discover her three essential tips for boosting sales: asking powerfully, giving wholeheartedly, and receiving graciously. 

Connect with Liz Wolfe:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizwolfecoach/
https://www.instagram.com/lizwolfecoach/
https://www.facebook.com/lizwolfecoach/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiZPlPhb8fgW3sjD2vd6VZA

Link for quiz https://lizwolfecoaching.com/quiz

I’m Carol Clegg, your host, an accountability coach and curious conversationalist inviting guests from a wide range of backgrounds to share insights on how they live, think, and navigate change.

Here, we explore:

• living with intention and self-trust
• alternative ways of thinking and being
• creativity, purpose, and personal growth

If you enjoy reflection, fresh perspectives, and honest dialogue, this space is for you.

If you’d like to experience this work in community, I host a complimentary monthly Accountability Circle a supportive space to pause, gain clarity, and choose a gentle next step forward. More info at https://carolclegg.com/accountabilitycircle

For those ready for deeper, more consistent support, I also offer a 90-day Accountability Package, designed to help you move from scattered ideas to steady, sustainable momentum.

You can learn more at carolclegg.com,

Let’s connect on LinkedIn and Instagram, or join my LinkedIn Group Flourish: A Community for Women Business Owners







Strategies for Abundant Business Growth

Speaker 1

Well, hello and welcome to Connect, inspire Create. I'm your host, carol Clegg, a progress and mindset business coach, here to help you thrive and flourish and turn those challenges into opportunities for growth. I'm so pleased you're here. Join me for the discussions that I hope will not only encourage you but also provide the dose of inspiration that you might just need today. This podcast is all about giving you your weekly dose of practical strategies, motivation and insightful conversations designed to boost your business skills, personal growth and happiness. So, whether you're looking to find balance, say goodbye to procrastination, or just in need of a friendly nudge towards your goals, remember we're all on this journey together. So grab your favorite cup of something, be it coffee, tea or something else, and let's dive into this conversation today. Well, welcome everybody to the next episode of Connect, inspire Create.

Speaker 1

In today's episode, our focus is on growing an abundant business without the typical frustrations, and I am joined by my guest, liz Wolfe. So welcome Liz, thank you for being part of the show. Thank you so much for asking. Absolutely Can't wait to dig in, because I think that that word frustration and overwhelm is so typical when we are business owners and we don't have to be in that space. So I'm looking forward to you walking us through how we don't have to be in that space. So I'm looking forward to you walking us through how we don't have to be in that space. But let me introduce you first to our listeners today.

Speaker 1

Liz is a business coach who got her entrepreneurial start growing up on a sheep farm in Western Pennsylvania. Later she moved to New York City to get as far away from farming life as possible we're going to have to ask about that. And then she started her business with her husband 25 years ago. Fantastic, and coaches individuals to get unstuck so they can launch and grow an abundant business. And you play the ukulele and I am going to get you part of the singing duo. I'm going to let you pronounce it, because I know I'm going to mess it. Upucalicious, eucalicious.

Speaker 1

That sounds delicious and I love the fact that you noted that a previous guest of mine. You just happened to listen to that episode yes, the ukulele. I was like wait a minute this is a conversation we need to have. That's right, I've shared, you know, your sort of official bio introduction, but I'd love to hear from your perspective. When you're meeting someone, you know, what do you give them? Not quite the elevator pitch, but tell us how you'd introduce yourself.

Speaker 2

Yeah well, I am a coach for entrepreneurs and I do mostly work with newer entrepreneurs or people that are have a business idea and want to get started with with their business or they're they're feeling stuck in their business and they are not sure.

Speaker 1

So I mostly work with people in the zero to three to five year range of side hustle, that kind of thing perfect yeah, that's good to know because, yes, somebody needs somebody to walk with them at that beginning stage of the journey when you've got so many ideas and not quite almost like a mentor, perhaps in a way. Yeah, absolutely.

Speaker 2

I have one client who I'm the only person she's told her plan or idea to. She doesn't talk to anyone else about it.

Speaker 1

Wow, that's hard, you know. I realized that in having a conversation the other day with somebody who she said this was the first time she was sharing something and it's like we can't carry that by ourselves. We need someone to walk with us, that's right, which is where a coach comes. Yeah, but everybody should have a coach.

Speaker 2

Yes, and you've got to talk to the right people. Not, yeah, but everybody should have a coach. Yes, and you got to talk to the right people, not the people that are going to tell you it's a bad idea.

Speaker 1

You got to talk to people that say yes, you can make that happen Absolutely and then guide you through that process. So you have to tell me a little bit more about this journey from the sheep farm to where you are now.

Speaker 2

Yeah. So what's so interesting is that my parents were actually born and raised in New Jersey and my mother so we weren't farming folk, my mother is. We found this one picture of her dressed as a little boat peep and we always said is this something you always wanted to do, mom, you know, when you were, even when you were a kid. So no, it wasn't until I was five years old that my mother bought this property in Western Pennsylvania, outside of Pittsburgh, and she started buying sheep. And then you have to figure out how to make a earning from a living from having sheep and it's you know. I'm sure everybody on this call has heard about family farms and their demise. So we had to be very creative about it and it turned out to be more of a cottage industry of selling things we could make with the wool, rather than just the wool or the meat in bulk. We would actually spin and make sheepskin coats and we did lots of things with with that as a you know, survival.

Speaker 2

You know it's funny, as you were reading, that like to get as far away from the farming life as possible. Actually, I have a country house and people are always like are you going to buy any animals. Of course I'm not there nearly enough to do any such things. I'm just happy my neighbors have chickens so I can get the eggs from them. I love it, and I often say that if my mother had had a coach like me at that time, it probably would have been a lot more successful.

Speaker 2

Now, of course, there was no social media. There was no, you know, hashtag sheep are the best. There was none of that stuff. But you know, you see all these fun people getting all these millions of views with their pet goats and stuff like that but she didn't. She didn't have a coach like myself to help her get through some of these times of feeling stuck, and so that's one of the reasons why I really enjoy working mostly with solopreneurs and people who want to get their business started, because they know what a struggle it is, and probably that's what I wanted to get away from more than anything else, and I also had a big interest in music and where else to go for music but New York city, so that's that's where I came to that and I have to.

Speaker 1

I took a peek at your Instagram profile. Oh my goodness, the picture that you have up of your dad. He looks so young. I mean that's not possible that he's in his nineties.

Speaker 2

He's 95 and he looks like he's 70. It is absolutely. What is the secret? Sheep he well, no, he left. Probably not sheep, he left the farm pretty early on. My dad played tennis until he was 89 years old.

Speaker 2

wow yeah, he looks amazing the only reason he stopped is because he got pancreatitis and that's a really debilitating and I wouldn't say to see it is a disease, but like it was a real hit to him at the time. Yeah, but yeah he is, he's 95 and fantastic, going strong, fantastic well on that note, I'm going to spring a question at you.

Speaker 1

That sometimes gets my guests like, oh, and other times they've got the answer. But who has been the kindest to you in your life? Who comes to mind straight away? Who's been the?

Speaker 2

kindest to me. Wow, that is an interesting question. Well, I'm going to nominate my husband for that. We've been married 27 years and I'm, to this day, amazed at how stalwart he is. I posted a picture of him the other day on Father's Day. I ran off to play music with friends and he was finishing painting outside of our we have a townhouse here and he was doing some work.

Speaker 2

You know that he even pays attention to it, but he's so gracious he doesn't hold any resentment to me at all that I that I want to express myself creatively, and one of the reasons that my parents got divorced and one of my fears growing up was that if I expressed myself creatively the way my mother did, that actually my husband would leave. He wouldn't tolerate that. He wouldn't be interested in supporting me. There's a cost to being able to be. There's a cost, right, that's what I learned growing up. And then I really had to work because my husband and I have been in business together for that most of that 27 years, and that's you know I mean. Again, the good news is we have separate skills. I'm more on the HR marketing side, he's more on the accounting, sales side, and as we've developed and grown as a couple and as a company. You know, things have changed a lot over those years, but yeah, that's who I've been on.

Speaker 1

Congratulations, because working with your spouse is not the. It can be beautiful and it's got to have its whole own dimension. Um, that comes with that.

Speaker 2

So you've had way more arguments over the fact that I lost a receipt than we ever did over the kids or anything like that. That's a true story right there, oh my goodness, oh my goodness.

Speaker 1

Well, I don't know if there would be something else, but if you weren't doing what you're doing now, what would you be doing instead in business, in business or in life?

Speaker 2

Okay, well, interesting that you asked that question. So, as you mentioned, I play the ukulele, but I also play the guitar and I also run a lot of bluegrass jams in New York City. Bluegrass Jams in New York City. Okay, and so my future life, which is hopefully sooner than later, is a lot more bluegrass stuff, where I'm getting in an RV and I'm driving to festivals and things like that, and I recently registered the URL bluegrassjamsnearmecom. Cool, so something's going gonna grow out of that. I am, right now it's only the jams that I run, but I envision that it's a place where, hey, you're going to nashville or you're going to new york or you're going to wherever, and you want to know where there's some bluegrass jams that people can go on and find what's close to them.

Speaker 1

That's cool yeah.

Speaker 2

I mean, I don't know if anybody listening has any either experience with or desire to do anything with bluegrass, but it's a really wonderful musical genre because it's very inclusive and it's very community-based. Wonderful, it's not about performance.

Speaker 1

Yeah, good to know, good to know. So any listeners out there take note, give us the domain name again, just so that we know.

Speaker 2

Bluegrassjamsnearmecom.

Speaker 1

Perfect.

Speaker 2

All right.

Speaker 1

Lovely. Well, liz, I'd love to just find out you know a little bit more about your coaching style and the advice for these business owners, as you said, kind of starting off or moving in. So what system you've mentioned that you have in your coaching that you find creates the greatest impact for your clients?

Navigating Entrepreneurial Challenges in Business

Speaker 2

Yeah, actually there are two things. One is the system that I use for coaching and the other is excuse me, the other is the principles around which I do ground my coaching. Okay, so the system is a clear vision. So you have to start with the vision. You have to know you don't just get in the car and start driving. You have to know what your destination is. So clear vision and then plus purposeful action. So this is a way that many people are tripped up. They don't know what should I be working on right now?

Speaker 1

Right.

Speaker 2

And so they're doing a lot of action. That's where the overwhelm comes in, the overwhelm and frustration, because they feel like I don't know so much. I mean, there's literally endless things that you can do, absolutely yeah.

Speaker 1

And then they feel they spread too thin Spread too thin, and then you give up.

Speaker 2

Don't have enough time, don't know how to prioritize, yeah, and as you're in action, once you get more clear and get focused on that purposeful action, then it's minus the hidden barriers. So there's nothing. There's no personal development course in the world that's better than being an entrepreneur. You will face every fear, every scarcity thought you ever had. No one likes me, you know, whatever it is.

Speaker 2

You will face every one of those as an entrepreneur. So those are the hidden barriers, those are the things that you're not really aware of and if you follow that system, know where you're going, take actions that will take you there and then acknowledge and work through those hidden barriers, that it's a combination of many of the coaches out there that are very like goal, goal, goal, goal, goal. And then there's the other side, which is love attraction.

Speaker 2

Right right, right, so wonderful, right, and that's great. Both of them are wonderful, but bringing them together is my methodology, because what that means is that you're going to run into both. You're going to need goals, but you know you need some ease and flow. You need some ease and flow, that's right.

Speaker 1

Yeah, I love what you said. And then again, as you know, as we share this, there's somebody, for somebody is, you know, it depends on the personalities, your business, everything else, and so there's abundance. Um, there's enough to go around for everybody, and it's just finding the coach that you align with, that's right, inspires you and you go okay, I want to take action with them.

Speaker 2

Um, yes, and you just mentioned, I'm sorry to mention. You mentioned abundance, and that's the principles around which my work is based. No coaches. What coaches do for you is they help you to make distinctions that you can't make on your own because you're too too in it. So, and a good example of that is being able to distinguish scarcity-based thoughts versus abundant thoughts, and so a scarcity-based thought would be I have too many competitors. That's a scarcity-based thought. An abundance-based thought would be well, there must be a lot of work out there, because there's a lot of people doing this, and I know I can see these people have been successful doing it. So that's a model I can follow, because I could do it, yeah, and so it's the same. It's the same people, right, right, a lot of competitors versus a lot of successful people, right, yeah. So helping you to make those distinctions is important.

Speaker 1

And I think what you said up front which is so important getting into the car, knowing where, having a destination, having that clear picture kind of almost tying in with your why. I'm kind of feeling that I don't know if you'd agree oh yeah, you know, but having your why clear and coming back to your why so that it keeps you moving forward.

Speaker 2

Yeah, this is something that I've seen, especially with newer entrepreneurs that are trying to figure out what they would do. You know, what should I do? I want to be an entrepreneur. What should I do? And there's a lot of problems that some people can solve. So, for instance, for many years I was a computer trainer. If you ask me how to use Excel and you want me to teach you how to use Excel, I could, you're the girl. Oh man, I'm so good, right, so I can solve that problem. But I don't care about solving that problem anymore. So there's a lot of things that people can do. Like I have a client who's a book excuse me, an accountant and a lot of people ask him about well, can you do my books for me? Can you be a book? I could, but I don't want to. But it's, it's tricky, because you think, yeah, but I can make money doing that and I don't want to turn away money. So then what happens? The universe sends you a million people that want bookkeeping services instead of accounting services.

Speaker 2

We don't want that. So yeah, we want to be clear about what we care about solving the problem for Interesting when you share that.

Speaker 1

Now, it's just something I was having a conversation the other day about how often we end up coaching the challenges and the struggles that we've had ourselves, as opposed to jumping into a pool that we know nothing about. I don't know how that sort of fits into. If you have any thoughts on that.

Speaker 2

Well, absolutely. I always like to tell people they're in the one step ahead program. In other words, I'm one step ahead of them. Everything they're doing, I have to do too. I need to market, I need to post on social, I need to find clients, I need to face rejection. I need to. And the other saying you may have heard, is the new level new devil. So yeah, that's a fun little one, right? So new level, new devil, meaning every time you commit to the next higher level, you're going to face a lot of the same things you thought you overcame already.

Speaker 1

Right right. So that imposter syndrome is not going to happen.

Speaker 2

Who am I to make five figures, Well. Who am I to make six figures, Well. Who am I to make seven figures? Right, right or eight?

The Power of Entrepreneurial Abundance

Speaker 1

figures, so I know when we're talking about figures and sales. You had mentioned you've got three tips that you can give entrepreneurs who want to increase their sales.

Speaker 2

Yes. Well, this is again I go back to the three keys to an abundant business. So that is based on the abundance principles, the abundance principles. So, very typically, I think it's philosophy out there or culture I'll use, rather than philosophy a culture out there that in order to be a successful entrepreneur, you need to work really hard, you need to have really good connections and you need to have a lot of expertise, you need to be credible, and what I like to say is those are things that are great in your entrepreneurial toolbox. Of course, I work hard, let's face it. I mean, I worked till 11 o'clock the other night, you know. I, of course, want to create relationship. Relationship is very important and I'm constantly learning and people want to know they hire me that I have experience.

Speaker 1

Right.

Speaker 2

Okay. However, those things are not always in the realm of your control. In other words, no matter how hard you work, you may not see a result, or you may go to a million networking events and nobody wants to talk to you. So what I've done is I've said, okay, those are things you can have again in your entrepreneurial toolbox, but there are three things that you can always be in control of that are totally anything you can turn on right now. And here they are. The first one is you can ask powerfully. I'll give you all three first, then I'll go back Ask powerfully. The second one is to give wholeheartedly. And the third one is to receive graciously.

Speaker 2

Okay, so just going back to the asking one for the moment, asking if you're on sales at all is very common to people like are too vague, they're too vague. They never actually say would you like to work with me, or so what are your? When are you going to make a decision by or any of those types of things? Right, they don't. They don't ask those questions. They're not. They don't ask. Yeah, they're very powerful, they, they, they don't ask for help, they. There's many ways that we're not asking. And if you can practice asking, and it can be as simple as anything asking for discounts, asking for, um, you know, a free night in a hotel. Like I am so good at asking, I just automatically ask, no matter what it is. Well, do you think we you know we're doing some things with my dad. Well, do you think, instead of Tuesday, we could do Wednesday, like it's just natural?

Speaker 1

Just ask Because somebody can say no if they wish. Somebody says no, but you know what Most of the time, they say yes.

Speaker 2

Right, right. So there's lots of reasons we don't ask. We don't have time to talk about that right now, but rejection, of course being a big one, yes, okay. And then the second one, which is give wholeheartedly. People automatically think, well, once I ask, then I'm ready to receive. But we have to insert this next step, which is whatever you want, start giving it. So, if you want referrals, for example, give other people referrals, help other people with sales.

Speaker 1

Because you'll come top of mind as you do that Right.

Speaker 2

So giving wholeheartedly is about creating the energy and that flow. What you're doing when you're giving something is you're creating more of it in the universe. Abundance there's more referrals, right? And then, finally, the third one is to receive graciously. Graciously, referring to gratitude, of course, but you would be amazed at how bad we are at receiving we are actually. Yesterday, I took my daughter and, um, her boyfriend I don't know if she would call him her boyfriends, but very nice young man. We went out to eat and I was just expecting to pay, you know, because they're they're in their young 20s and he pulled out 11, which was nowhere close to covering what it was that he got. But he said oh you know, can I pay Contribute? Give me your $11. You know, I'm not going to. My philosophy is, if you're, that's about receiving.

Speaker 1

It is, and I also think that we need to give people permission. When they want to do something and give us something, then we need to not question it and turn it back and turn it down, because they're responsible for that decision of digging in his pocket, opening up his wallet, taking out the money. That's what he wants to do. Who are we to stop it?

Speaker 2

That's exactly right, and he's in the space of giving wholeheartedly and if I go? No, I don't want that yeah.

Speaker 1

Or knock it off. Yeah yeah, wonderful reminder, because it's so easy. We kind of feel we need to say no because we want to be the gracious one. We think we've been gracious, but how gracious are we being? When we turn it down, we think we've been. Yeah, that we're giving so much more, but we're robbing somebody of the ability to contribute.

Speaker 2

You know another really good example that's so absolutely 100% accurate. Another good example is a friend of mine had a anniversary party and she was so clear on the invitation no gifts, no gifts, no gifts. It is really hard to show up to an anniversary party with no gift. It's hard to do that Like I brought a bottle of wine. I was like she was like oh, and I was like you can't show up without something, so I just don't say anything. Yeah, you don't want to bring a gift, don't bring a gift.

Speaker 1

And it's when you share that it makes me just think of the love languages, the five love languages. And if you're a gift giver, it's like ouch, I can't bring a gift, I have to bring a gift.

Speaker 2

That's a really good point. I've never thought of that. Right, that's your love language You're squishing.

Speaker 1

Yeah, it's my daughter's love language and it's so tough because it's not mine, and so she loves gift giving and wrapping them up and making them so beautiful. And I just had my birthday last week and it's like, yeah, we'll go and celebrate, but I don't need stuff. I'm taking myself to Florida for a self-retreat on the beach. That's my gift to myself. Yeah, so I can't wait for some ocean time. But, liz, I'd love to ask I know you mentioned up front that you know we want to let people know how to work with you and where to find you, and I'm going to make sure to have that link in my show notes. But tell me about the quiz that people can do.

Speaker 2

Yeah, it's a quiz to help you discover what your entrepreneurial style is. You can get to it very easily on my website, lizwolfcoachingcom. Forward slash quiz. That's wolf with an E. Quick side note wolf on a sheep farm just saying.

Speaker 1

That was our saying. Wolf's the name sheep of the game.

Speaker 2

So there's a quiz you can do and it helps you to discover what your style is. Because one of the things that happens is if you're not aware of your entrepreneurial style and what the pluses but minuses are of that, then what happens is you feel even more stuck, because you feel like you're beating your head against the wall, like why can't I make progress? And it could be shiny object syndrome, or it could be, you know, overanalyzing or different ways. So this quiz helps you figure out which style that you are and then, uh, of course, I provide much detail to that when our follow-up.

Speaker 1

Fantastic, wonderful. I'll make sure those notes are all there. The links are all there.

Speaker 2

Best place to find you on social media. The best place on social media is through Facebook, for sure, that's where I spend all of my time, which is I think I'm LizWolf10. But if you go, to my website. Yeah, lizwolfpagingcom that's the best you know. You can reach out to me and, by the way, you're welcome to set up a time. Anyone is welcome to set up a time to speak with me. If you're feeling stuck in your business, I'm very happy to do that. Wonderful.

Speaker 1

Do an exploration call and see what you need. So, liz, this was wonderful, very just, yeah, very invigorating, very inspiring, and so, for those that are listening, if you have taken a nugget or two away from this, I hope that you will share this episode with somebody else. Get hold of Liz. Her contact details are in the show notes and if you'd like to connect with me, you can find me on.

Speaker 1

LinkedIn at carolclaguecom. So until the next episode, bye-bye, thank you, liz. Thank you, and today I encourage you embrace your own unique way of connecting, inspiring or creating, and let it bring a sense of joy into your world. In my role as a coach, I love to work with women, business owners, entrepreneurs, solopreneurs, and help them explore fresh ways to focus on their projects, find the right tools for accountability and learn how to build a positive mindset which, in turn, allows for more empathy, not only for yourself but for others and situations. With my personalized accountability and progress coaching, which I combine with the powerful positive intelligence program, you will find ways to shift into an overall happier space. If you would like to take the complimentary saboteur assessment, I offer a follow-up complimentary coaching session to help you explore your results. Do take a note of the link in the show notes or visit my site, carolcleggcom. Until the next time. Thanks for listening.

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Carol Clegg

Host
Head Shot

Carol Clegg

Host