In this debut episode of Boutique Success Club, Ali Dee, Boutique Success Club founder, dives into the many reasons new entrepreneurs are held back from jumping in and pursuing their dreams of owning a boutique. We'll discuss the super common roadblocks new or aspiring boutique owners face that can stop them in their tracks, and most importantly, the strategies to overcome them.
Join us inside the TRENDSETTER membership here.
Work with me in The Sales Lab, DM me SALES on IG or TT for the deets
Follow the Retail Success Club on TikTok and Instagram @retailsuccessclub
In this debut episode of Boutique Success Club, Ali Dee, Boutique Success Club founder, dives into the many reasons new entrepreneurs are held back from jumping in and pursuing their dreams of owning a boutique. We'll discuss the super common roadblocks new or aspiring boutique owners face that can stop them in their tracks, and most importantly, the strategies to overcome them.
Join us inside the TRENDSETTER membership here.
Work with me in The Sales Lab, DM me SALES on IG or TT for the deets
Follow the Retail Success Club on TikTok and Instagram @retailsuccessclub
This episode of boutique success club is brought to you by boutique blastoff launch your dream boutique. have you been wanting to turn your dream of owning a successful boutique into reality? Let me introduce you to boutique blastoff launch your dream boutique. The ultimate online course designed to guide you. Step-by-step on your boutique journey. Hi, I'm Allie D your boutique bestie and chief cheerleader in this program, you'll gain the knowledge, confidence, and strategies to build a thriving boutique that stands out from the crowd. So what are you waiting for? Start the journey to launching your dream boutique today with. Boutique blast off. Head to boutique success club.com to enroll now Welcome to Boutique Success Club. I'm Allie d, the founder of Boutique Success Club, your boutique bestie, and your chief cheerleader with over a decade of experience in the retail industry trenches. I'm here to help you skyrocket your store. Get ready to dive into insider strategies and educational resources that will transform your boutique business. No more guesswork. No more struggling alone. We'll be your partner in this journey, and together we will conquer all the obstacles. This is Boutique Success Club. Oh, right. We are here. We are kicking off the boutique success club podcast. This is episode one and it is going to be. Awesome. I am so excited to dive into today's episode, which is what's holding you back from starting your dream boutique. Or really kicking it into full gear. So I'm going to run through some of the most common things that are holding you back or people who are aspiring boutique owners or really any kind of business. These are the typical things that hold them back from jumping in and starting their journey. I know that. There's definitely several of these that show up again in my lifetime and time again, any time. I go to start a new venture. And so as I was getting ready and preparing for this podcast and going through all of my thoughts and stories that popped into my mind of me when I was facing these sort of barricades along the way. It just kind of made me feel like, wow, there's some of these that I was dealing with 10 years ago when I started in the retail industry that still show up today. I'm like these little demons, they still show up and it's almost comical because. You would think that at this point you would be able to stave off those types of things, but I'm telling you I'm here to share these because they're common. We all go through them. We all feel them at some point in the beginning of our journeys. And like I said, even as we continue to grow and improve our business, These are still things that show up. In our lives. On a daily basis that can hold us back. So what I've learned is the main thing is to recognize that these exist and then figure out how we can move past them. Like what are some techniques that we can use and that we can really turn to when we're feeling stuck because of one of these. Issues. Roadblocks barricades that come up as we are on our journey to starting something new. The first one I want to talk about today is the fear of failure and boy, oh boy, does this one show up time and time again for me, this little sucker, every single time, I want to start a new business, a new venture. This podcast, even fear of failure, just creeps back in. And it's so funny because this is something that, like I said, time and time again, will show up. I can predict it. I know it's going to happen. But I still fall into the trap of the fear of failure. So let me kind of explain some of the things that may happen to you. This, these are the things that happen to me, and then I'll move into how we can overcome these challenges or symptoms. So the first thing is analysis paralysis. This is my Ooh. She's always there for me. And now as this paralysis is overthinking and just being indecisive, due to fear that you're going to make the wrong choices. So you end up not moving at all. You just end up stuck in like a stalemate of wondering and questioning, and you're just paralyzed with fear. This can definitely happen on your journey to becoming a boutique owner, or even if you've just recently started, you can get majorly stuck in analysis paralysis. And not even if you've just started, this happens to people 3, 6, 10 years down the road like me. Remember, I've been in this for 10 years and I still have these challenges and symptoms pop up another one. This is a big one for me, procrastination. So this is simply just delaying taking action on starting the boutique of your dreams or making essential decisions. Because you are scared of the fear of failure. So you're just delaying, delaying, delaying. My employees laugh at me all the time, because anytime before a market or a major event or anything, you can find me in my office or in my warehouse. Wandering around moving furniture, vacuuming, sweeping, cleaning out the refrigerator, doing anything, but actually tackling. The questions and problems at hand, because it's just like up, I've got this fear of failure. I'm just going to procrastinate. I even saw a funny meme about this on Instagram that I shared with one of my friends, because I'm like, this is me to a T. Just doing all the random things, instead of doing what I need to be doing because of the fear of failure. Another thing is self doubt. So feeling uncertain about your own ability and like questioning it constantly. Am I going to be successful? EMI for this is success attainable for me. Can I have the boutique of my dreams that self doubt can really creep in. Which also goes with negative self-talk. So like engaging in negative thoughts that fuel the fear of failure. Self sabotage, you know, like, oh, I'm not good enough for this, or I wasn't made for this, or I don't have cute enough style or why is anybody going to like me or everybody else is doing so well, why is my boutique going to do well? I don't have what it takes. I don't have all of that negative. Self-talk UDF. That is just going to build and build and build and prevent you from moving forward. And then also there's risk avoidance. And that's just a fancy term for, you're just going to stick to the safer option, which is not doing anything at all. Right. Not taking any risks, not starting your boutique, even though it's like constantly growing in your mind, like, oh, I really want to do it. I really want to do it. But then that negative little like chip on your shoulder is like, Nope, we just better stick to what's safe. Let's avoid any risk in our life at all. So if this is something that you are facing, if any of that sounds familiar, This is the fear of failure, my boutique besties. So let's discuss how we can overcome this. First of all, we need a mindset shift. We need to understand that failure is simply a natural part of the entrepreneurial journey. We have to see it as an opportunity for growth and not something that's so catastrophic and so negative because it's really not every single time that I fail. I learned from it and then I frickin kill it the next time. So I'll learn. Okay. Did I need to have a different strategy? Did I, do I just need more patience? Do I need to be more consistent on a certain strategy? Like what can I do to make sure that I don't fail again and then wow. That's when the magic really happens and that's why being an entrepreneur is so cool. And being a business owner is so cool because you're in charge of your own destiny. So you can just say, yeah, I had a little road bump. You. You know, things didn't go my way. I may be quote unquote failed, but that's totally fine because now dang, watch me grow. Watch me figure it out, watch me do it. Okay. So it's just a mindset shift. Next. You can set specific goals. So rake down this boutique adventure, starting this journey, growing your boutique. Blossoming into whatever you're meant to be into smaller achievable milestones. That's going to allow you to feel like you're making more progress. It's going to feel more manageable. It's not going to feel like such a large task that you're going to procrastinate and do this and that and decide that you can't do it. So set specific goals, break them down. Something like today, I'm going to get my URL, my domain. That's what I'm going to do today to take a step forward. I'm going to go by whatever your boutique's name is. Dot com. Boom. You just made a step towards success as opposed to not moving at all. And just being stuck in paralysis analysis and failure. So it's little achievements, little goals that you should set every single day to keep the momentum moving forward. That is the name of the game. Next, you got to seek support, connect with other women who are wanting to be boutique owners or mentors like me DM me. Like let's get in the conversation, be around other women. Who have been there or done that, or are in the same journey. They can understand what you're going through. They also have the fear of failure. They also are trying to figure out how to overcome it. So seeking support from people who are on your same journey. And then lastly, Visualizing your success. This is so important. Just focusing on the positive outcomes, envisioning yourself, successful. Stop dwelling on. You know, things that are potential failures, but start seeing the vision of what will it be like when you have your dream boutique? Wow, that is such a powerful statement. How are you going to feel, how are you going to act? What kind of satisfaction is that going to give you? What are the emotions behind that? Your why? Start focusing on that and shutting down. All of the negative, negative talk, self doubt, and anything else like that, which all just boils down to that fear of failure. We got to conquer it. I had a lot to say about fear failure, because that one just shows up time and time again for me. So it's just so relatable. I feel like that could be an entire podcast on its own. Um, but let's talk about the next one. The next roadblock you may be facing and what's holding you back from moving forward could be your lack of confidence. And this is again, so common with entrepreneurs. People that are wanting to start and run their own businesses. And there's a few ways that lack of confidence can show up for you and your journey. And one of the most common ones is the imposture syndrome. So this is like feeling like a fraud, like you're doubting your qualifications to run a boutique. Like maybe you've never ran a business before. And you're just thinking, what the heck do I think I'm doing? I'm going to start my own business. Well, I'm here to tell you, ladies and gentlemen, that I did not take. One single fricking business class, my entire life, everything that I've learned, I have learned on the go learn from being in the thick of it. And you, that can be your journey as well. You don't have to feel like, you know, oh, well I know everything there is to know about business and I'm super confident in accounting and I can figure out inventory statistics and no, no, no, we're just, we're taking little baby steps here. Okay. Don't feel like you're a fraud. Um, don't get so stuck in doubting your qualifications, that you're wondering that this could even be for you and just let go of that. And then we'll get into some ways that you can do that. But also. Lack of confidence can show up as like comparison with others. So maybe you're scrolling tech talk every night and you're looking at all these boutique owners who were on there and they're doing it and they're showing up and you're probably seeing the same ones over and over and over again. So whichever ones you relate to, or you look up to. They're going to be showing up in your feed because Tik TOK is so fricking smart that it just knows what exact content to serve you. That you're like, oh, this is so interesting. So those can be showing up time and time again in your feed. And you're just comparing yourself to them. Like, gosh, they're so experienced or they're so polished or they have great style. I look at their personality, all of those questions and comparison can really stunt your growth. And then another big one is fear of judgment, like worried about what others might think. Of you starting your own boutique. Oh, they're going to like judge me because they're going to say everybody has their own boutique or everybody thinks they can be this and that. And you know, that fear of judgment. And it could be from your family, family members, from friends, maybe coworkers. Um, if you have a nine to five, maybe even just something like the moms, you know, in your kids' school, like whatever it is that fear of judgment can be fricking paralyzing. Like, you're just like, oh, I don't want anyone to see or know what I'm doing. So all of those things really show up. In your life when you're starting a new journey, but what it boils down to is it's a lack of confidence. Doubting you have the skills doubting, you have the style, the personality, all that comes down to lack of confidence. So let's talk about how we can fix that. And what are some resolutions we can do to overcome lack of confidence, which is a very common roadblock. Yeah, one of the first things you can do is take the fricking bull by the horns and decide that you're going to become more educated, more knowledgeable. And more comfortable with the skills that it takes to run a business. So you're not going to stand in the background and just dilly dally around and just wander through life. You're going to be proactive. You're going to take action. You're going to. Consume content like listening to this podcast, reading eBooks, investing in courses, investing in yourself, learning as much as you can. That's going to help you gain confidence and really stomp out some of those feelings. Like you don't know enough, or you're not good enough. Another proven confidence building skill is positive affirmations. So what are positive affirmations? That's simply you like giving yourself a high five practicing positive. Self-talk like, Hey Allie, you can do it. Stop doubting yourself. You have the skills you are uniquely. You, you know what it takes your patient. You're good at figuring things out. You're a problem solver, like start investing time into positive affirmations. And then your mind is going to start to believe it. Real quick boutique bestie. I know you have been thinking about launching your own boutique. It's that beautiful dream that you have in your mind, but maybe you just need like a little push forward. That's why I created boutique blastoff launch your dream boutique. If you are tired of the overwhelm, the guesswork, the confusion, then this course is for you. I break everything down into modules. It is a step-by-step process where we are building on the foundation, setting you up for success. So if you've been thinking about jumping. Upping In now is the time go to boutique success club.com and enroll today in boutique blast off launch your dream boutique. The next big challenge, a lot of boutique owners face and aspiring boutique owners. Is the question. Can I balance my personal commitments that I already have with starting a new business? So, this is just something like, do I have the fricking time to dive into this? And, um, again, this is a roadblock, this is a challenge that a lot of people will have pop-up and it will just paralyze them from moving forward because they just feel like, oh, I don't have the time. Or do I have the time, or how am I going to fit more into my schedule, but I really want to do this, but I really don't know how I'm going to do it. So this is time management challenges. So this is just, you're worried about finding the time to work on this brand new venture. Is it going to take away from time from somewhere else? All of those fears or overwhelming thoughts are very valid. Because when you're jumping into something new, it is going to take time, but it doesn't mean that it has to stop your progress. You just have to figure out how can you use the time that you have wisely? How can you carve out more time in the day to do something that's so special to you? Remember, this is a dream. This is a hope. This is an aspiration. This is not just showing up to someone else's dream. This is creating your own dream. So you better believe that for me, I'm going to figure out the time I'm going to schedule it in. I'm going to maybe move some things around. I'm going to ask for help. And this is what you need to do as well. There's ways to balance this. You can use time blocking. You can create a schedule where you're allocating specific time. Like for me, for example, for this. I said to my husband on Sunday from one to four, I'm going to my office. It's quiet. There's nobody there. I'm going to be able to do a lot of work that I need to do. It's a light day for him. He can handle the load of the house and the home and the kids. Well, I come here and record a podcast, get my tech talk, videos, done, all that. So he is helping me. I figure out how I can do this. So I'm so grateful that I do have the time, but I'm blocking the time. I'm making sure that I'm here, I'm showing up. I'm not letting like the dishes take over. And then here I am not pursuing my dream of helping other boutique owners with their dreams. You know what I'm saying? So it's just making sure that you're blocking the time to do something for yourself that you're going to love. And it doesn't have to be a lot of time, but just, you have to make sure you're delegating that time. This next one is big and it's being overwhelmed by the process. Oof. There is so much to learn my boutique besties. When you are starting your own boutique, it can feel like a never ending mountain that you're just climbing and climbing. And you think you've you think you're at the top, but no. Here comes another thousand million feet. I don't know what a lot of feed is declined, but you get what I'm saying. It's just a journey that you're just climbing, climbing, climbing, climbing, and it can, it can become extremely overwhelming. You're just nonstop scrolling. You're nonstop, researching. You're just feeling bombarded by the amount of information. That's out there about starting a boutique and so much. So. That you don't even start. Because you're just so overwhelmed. You're like, I don't even know what to do. I'm stuck in the analysis paralysis. Again, it's showing up, I'm struggling to make any decisions because there's just too much information, too many options. I don't know what to do. The way to get out of that overwhelm is to simply break it down into smaller steps. So focus on the key steps, identifying what those are and starting your boutique. And that's exactly what I did in boutique blastoff. I created that because I understood that when you're starting a business, there is so much information. If you don't learn the information in a specific order in bite-sized tidbits, it's just going to feel like too much. So I broke it down. I've got module one, module 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. It's all broken down into the actual steps you need to take. So you don't feel overwhelmed, but you're continuing to build on your foundation every single day. You're not just like putting the roof up and then putting the foundation in. No we're building. The foundation, we're building the walls. We're putting up the drywall, we're putting the doors, the windows, then we're getting a roof now we're decorating inside. So you see you can't just build a house out of order. You can't build a boutique out of order either. You need to understand that there are logical steps that you need to take. And this is something that I've researched through all of my years in this journey and have figured out, okay. This is the way to do it. I have mastered starting businesses. I'm telling you I have done it time and time again. And not only businesses, I don't want to toot my own horn, but successful businesses, And it's not because it's rocket science it's because I understood there was a strategy to getting where you need to be. And you can get there too. So understanding again, that is just focusing on the key steps, breaking it down into smaller tasks. And understanding that even though yes, you may feel overwhelmed by the process. If you learn it properly, like something like my boutique blastoff, you will feel so much more relieved and you will start taking action. The final roadblock I want to discuss that may be holding you back from starting. Your dream boutique today is perfectionism. Uh, this one gets a lot of us. Perfectionism is just the belief that everything has to be quote unquote. Perfect. Before you even launch. When I say it out loud, it almost sounds silly. Like how in the world can we expect something to be perfect that we've never done before that we're still figuring out that we're just getting started with. If you're struggling with that, perfectionism, just understand that it's impossible to start perfectly. It's literally impossible to start any business. Perfect. Just absorb that, let that come into your being. Understand that, and then now you should be able to let go of the idea. That you're expecting yourself to be perfect. It's just something that's completely improbable. Perfectionism can lead you to like excessive planning, planning, planning, planning, planning, never taking action. That is something we don't want. It can also have a consequence. Have you not launching your boutique at all? Because like I said, you're never going to get to the, to the place where it's perfect. Something that I talked about recently on one of my tech talks that I got so much great feedback was one of the best pieces of advice that I got when I was starting my retail business journey. And it's so simple. It's so. It's so obvious. It's just start. You just start stop thinking about the fact that you have to be perfect. Stop thinking about the fact that you don't have the best style or you don't have the perfect. Personality, or you're not meant to make content or you're not techie enough. Like all of those things that you are thinking about that may be holding you back from jumping in. You have to understand that they're just thoughts. It's not reality. The reality is you've already taken the steps to get to where you need to be. Like, let's highlight the positive. You're listening to this podcast. This podcast is called boutique success club, not boutique failure club. We're not starting a club here about failure, right? So you're already taking the right steps, moving towards building your dream boutique. So you have to give yourself a high five for that. You have to understand that. The little steps that you're taking in your journey are what's going to make the big picture happen. So, if there's anything I want you to take away from this first episode of boutique success club is we are recognizing the fact that we may have some things that are holding us back. We may be stuck in the fear of failure. We may be stuck in lack of confidence. We may be worried about balancing our personal life, overwhelmed by the process, and even just stuck again in that perfectionism mindset. Those may be some of the challenges that we're facing, but at least now we know now we can recognize it. We've learned ways to overcome those things. So take those skills make some notes figure out do any of these apply to you and if they do welcome to the club boutique bestie and they apply to a lot of us but it's okay we're just going to learn how to tackle these road bumps we're going to get past them we're going to build the boutique of our dreams and we're going to do it all together right here on the boutique success club thank you so much for listening to this first episode of the boutique success club podcast. We're here. We did it. Listen, I overcame my fear of failure. I'm showing up here. You can do this too. Okay. We'll talk to you next episode Hey, thanks so much for listening to this episode of the boutique success club. Don't forget to subscribe and give us a five-star review. It really helps us grow and reach more boutique besties. have a great day and go get them.