Lessons From The Last 10 Years | Ep 29

As my business gets clearer on the new direction and focus, I have been reflecting on the last 10 years and all the things it has taught me.

To some it will seem like I am "pivoting" again, when in truth I am just finally seeing how to succintly bring everything together in a way that makes sense 

Remember, it is never too late to make a change!

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Hello and welcome back. So today's episode is similar to one I've done in the past, um, but it's a very reflective episode, reflecting on my tenure journey. So recently, obviously, I've been going through a bit of a transition. Um you'll have noticed that the podcast has a new title, a new kind of introduction is coming, I'm I'm working on it. Um and as part of that, I've been reflecting on everything that I've learned over the last 10 years. Because part of me was feeling that I've wasted 10 years to get to this point. However, the last 10 years have led me here, and that sounds a bit woo, but we're going with it. Um and it struck me this week when I went to networking, and we were we're being our own business coach because too often, as business owners, we we seek outside validation, outside answers, and actually we've got the answers ourselves. And I realised that no wonder it's and you can take this in two ways, so so bear with me. No wonder it's taken me 10 years to get to here. I started my self-employed journey at 22. So no wonder I didn't know who I was, what I wanted to do, what my message was, how I wanted to help, who I wanted to help. Because I literally went straight from education into self-employment with no clue what I was doing. Made it up as I went along, COVID hit, lost it all, restarted, the whole shebang. So no wonder it's taken me 10 years. On the flip side of that, you've also got I started this at 22. How incredible is that that I went from education right through and started a business. So I went from primary school to secondary school to college to uni, did my teaching degree, graduated at 22 and started a business. How incredible is that? A lot of people wait. They wait for later in life for various reasons. How incredible that I took the leap at 22. No, I'm not full-time self-employed. I never have been full-time self-employed. I've always had some sort of employment alongside my business. And I've realized that actually, and this is kind of what I realised at the networking this week, that I haven't been doing it wrong. But if I'd have had a more stable job from the beginning, things could have looked a little different. Because, as you've probably heard me say on previous episodes, I love my current job. That they're so supportive, it's just so super flexible. So, yes, it's full time. I work 8 till 4, Monday to Friday. I get an hour lunch. That hour, I get to either when the weather's nice, like it is currently in the UK, or it's getting to be, I get to sit out and read my book. Or I can use it as admin time, or I can go and run errands, or I could go for a bit of a walk if I wanted, but I get an hour to just decompress for a bit and then go back in, do another afternoon, finish at four, go home, and then the evenings are mine. And that's allowed my business to develop because I'm in a better headspace than I was with my previous job. I didn't have the flexibility, the support as such. So it was quite a toxic environment in places, um, very male-dominated. In fact, I was the only female within the team, really, by the time I left my department, and that was tough. That was tough. Um, so yeah, that yeah, you can see it in two sides. So one thing I realised is that if I'd listened to family and had a more stable job to begin with, and done maybe one dance session a week, and built that one dance session, things could have been a hell of a lot different. However, that wasn't to be my journey. This is what I was meant to do. And the thing I've realized is yes, to some people, it will seem that I have flitted around, come back to dance, become a wedding planner, become this, done this, done the other, done umpteen network marketing companies. I'm still with two now. Um, one of them I was with before, and I've gone back to. Um, so you'll have seen me talk online and here about Auraflame. I left it, I've come back to it. I'm with Viva MK. They both do very different things. I've done multiple network marketing. And some people see the flit and go, oh, when's she gonna stick? And yeah, there is that. I've I've said it myself. When am I gonna just find my thing? When's it just gonna fall into place for me? And it kind of is now because I'm putting me front and centre completely in my business. Um, but the thread that has always run through everything I do is confidence and being you. Whether that was the first dance lessons, which are still happening, the first dance lessons, and the confidence doesn't come from learning the routine perfectly and on your wedding day, it's the process, it's trusting yourself, it's connecting with you and your partner, and building small steps that feel good. It's not just the confidence in doing it, it's feeling good, which gives you the confidence. So confidence can absolutely be learned, it's not just something you're born with. Um, I have people say that they're amazed that I can sit and do a podcast. I cringe before I start, I cringe during it because my brain kicks in. If you'd listened to last week's episode about the dyslexia, my brain suddenly kicks in and goes, What the hell are you talking about? But I do it. I don't feel confident doing it, but I do it because I want to. It's my way of sharing, helping, because not everyone can pay me, but this is my way of helping and giving you these small daily habits and tips and things to go and do, and that's always been my kind of thread. I've just not found the succinct way of talking about it, of sharing it, of doing it, and that's what Move with Charlotte Now does. It connects it all together, it helps you bring the small daily habits, whether that's taking your collagen on the morning, having a meal replacement shake, because it helps you to make sure you've had something decent in a day. It's not necessarily about the weight loss for some people, it's just I don't have to think about food. And that's kind of why I take them sometimes for my lunch breaks at work. I haven't then got to think about what to do for work for lunch. Done a shake, done, I'm sorted. I know I've got my nutrients in. The weight loss is an added bonus. Um sharing my poll journey of actually, I'm trying something that's completely out of my comfort zone that I'm not an expert in, and sharing the mental challenge as well as the physical challenge and bringing you along the journey with me, which everyone seems to love. Um, and I'm having to go back to sports massage and get those more regularly because the old shoulder twinges are coming back. But I'm sharing that journey with you, and I'm putting me first, and I'm helping you to put you first. So, whether it's the self-care side, whether it's moving for the sake of moving, my movement sessions are coming in July. You'll have more details on those soon. I will be doing another free taster session, but they are coming, and it's deliberately movement and not dance. Because dance comes with an expectation that it's gonna be perfect, that you're gonna learn a routine, that you have to know your rights and left, that you've got to go the right way, it's good and all the things. And I don't want that. I want you to come and feel safe to respond to the music in a way that feels good for you. You'll notice I keep using the phrase feels good to you, because that's what it's about. It's not about what feels good to me and what I like and want to do. It's what feels good for you, and I'm just a facilitator. And it was really beautiful to see on my taster session the attendees just respond how they felt. It was just chef's kiss. It was absolutely magical, and that's what I'm bringing. I'm bringing more. So it's kinda it's guided movement sessions. There may be the odd little dance bit in there, but it's not a dance class. There will be dance classes, but this particular thing is not a dance class. It's helping you put you first, get healthier, growing confidence, and just be you. And that's what I've realized. It from the last 10 years, it's kind it's kind of been leading me here. All my twists and turns have been drawing me back. I've said it on multiple occasions in different conversations that my first year of uni I survived through somatics. I couldn't dance because at the time I didn't know what's happening with my hip. If you aren't aware, I paid 12 grand to reattach the ligament to my femur head at the end of my first year of uni because it pinged off my hip day one, and I spent a year paying 9 grand to watch. Somatics allowed me to move in a way that could protect my hip. And I've done a couple of certifications, so I think technically I'm a level 2.5. Um so I have done a few certifications, and I've often wanted to do more certifications, but also to bring it into my practice, bring it into my work, and I couldn't find a way out. And I found it because the last 10 years has been pulling me to do this. So Phil the Beats is no longer my business name. That's so scary to say out loud, but fill the beats is no longer the business name. The business name is just simply Charlotte Elizabeth. It's me. I am the business, it's me you're buying into because here and now I don't have a team. I don't have the money or the capacity for a team, so it's just me. And actually trying to future-proof a business before it even got anywhere has really held me back. Because I've hid. I've hid behind every name I've given myself because I didn't want to put my name in my business. Well now I am. Yes, the podcast is called Let's Move with Charlotte, and the website in the background is carrying a few tweets, but is going to be Move with Charlotte. And it feels a bit icky because I've never done it for 10 years. I've I've kind of hid. But it also feels so good to just be me. Not try and be this persona. Look at me on the podcast. You get the ums, the ahs, the brain farts. It's me. Sharing my thoughts, opinions, guidance, and bringing along with me. So that's a bit of a semi-rambling of uh a 10-year reflection that it's not been a wasted 10 years. It's all led me here. There are hundreds of lessons that on future podcasts I may delve into a lesson that I've learned. And you're gonna continue the journey with me. So, my tip for you today if things aren't going how they want to, or how you want them to be, you're not where you want to be in your career, or a relationship isn't working for you, you're whatever it may be, it is never too late to change. Without getting too philosophical, the only time it is too late for that change is on your final bed. So if you need to make the change, make the change. And I will see you on the next episode.