Mindset Secrets of a Successful Business Woman

When approaching business as a newbie, that feeling of overwhelm and confusion is so very valid. The struggle is REAL, sisters. It’s so easy to get caught up in the backend logistics of a fully functioning business. So much so in fact that we overlook one of the most important backend components – mindset.

A healthy business mindset is the common factor shared by thousands of successful business owners. A successful business woman is someone who hasn’t just mastered the backend of her business – she’s nailed her mindset too.

Why your mindset matters in business

A growth and success-focused mindset sets the stage for your business and how you show up for it. It’s no secret that starting a business is hard work, involved delayed gratification and requires a great degree of intrinsic motivation. All this work comes way before any of the structural components of your business.

I want you to read the following words and internalise it in your mind forever:

A successful business is not all about systems, structures and plans.

Systems, structures and plans are GREAT. They are essential components of a business that is built to thrive and succeed and I am certainly not here to convince you they’re not. But hear me loud and clear: if you do not have the correct mindset, your business will not each it’s true potential.

No number of efficient systems can compensate for a poor business mindset.

Yes, your mindset is THAT powerful. The right mindset can catapult you and your business to success, whereas a negative, scarce mindset can bring your business down without you even realising.

Successful Business Mindset #1: Abundance vs scarcity mindset

Abundance mindset is something you’ll hear frequently in books, podcasts and articles about business and growth- and rightfully so! It’s a core successful business mindset belief built on the premise that everyone has the ability to achieve their goals and that there’s enough room for everyone to succeed, too. It’s a belief in the abundance of both yourself and the world.

An abundance mindset tells you: I can succeed, I am good enough to succeed, I CAN make this business work and I AM able to do what needs to be done.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, you have a scarcity mindset. This is the belief that there aren’t enough resources out there for you to succeed, and even if there were, you’re not worthy of them.

Scarcity mindset tells you: I can’t succeed, I can’t reach my goals because I’m not good enough, I’m an imposter and I don’t deserve success.

There’s no prizes for guessing which of the two lead to a successful business mindset.

When you cultivate an abundance mindset, you’re not afraid of failure. You allow yourself the space to grow, learn and step into that role of a successful business woman. And when you do this, your actions naturally align with growth, success and wealth.

When you harbour a scarcity mindset, you’ve already convinced yourself you can’t succeed. You put up a proverbial glass ceiling above your success and limit your own growth. You step into the role of someone who never grows into a successful business women, because you’ve told yourself that’s not you.

Successful Business Mindset #2: Progress is always better than perfection

A successful business woman embraces action, even if it is messy, slow or imperfect. She understands the power of moving things in the right direction and knows stagnation is never good for business. As the cliché but very apt saying goes, ‘perfection is the enemy of progress’.

It’s okay to have high standards. It’s not okay to let the fear of imperfection hold you back from even trying.

A progress-oriented mindset tells you: it doesn’t have to be perfect to make you money.

A perfectionist mindset tells you: if it’s not going to be perfect, I shouldn’t bother.

I need to add a disclaimer here that I absolutely 100% do NOT advocate for sloppy work. A successful business owner should pride themselves on their high quality work and professionalism. Acknowledging progress is better than perfection does not mean dropping your standards and thinking you deserve success for half-assed work.

Successful Business Mindset #3: You’re an entrepreneur, NOT an employee!

This is one of the most important differentiations you’ll make in your business. You’re NOT an employee, so you need to stop thinking like one! You’re the CEO, the owner and the decision-maker.

An employee works ‘in’ the business. A CEO works ‘on’ the business. As a business owner, you want to prioritise tasks that have to working ‘on’, as opposed to ‘in’ the business.

At some point, you’ll need to make the executive decision to start outsourcing certain tasks, such as admin work. This will save you time and hassle, which you can direct towards more CEO decisions. These are decisions such as new products, new streams of income, networking and making connections. And those CEO decisions are what will propel your business even further.

Successful Business Mindset #4: Never be afraid of setting big, ambitious goals

This mindset relates a lot to the abundance mindset we spoke about earlier. Setting big goals – the kind scare you! – is pivotal for growth, both personal and business. If we box ourselves in to small goals, we’ll never make those big moves that lead to big growth. Big goals = big moves = big growth.

Setting small goals is a prime example of a scarcity mindset in action. When you ‘play it safe’ and stick to meek goals, you are inadvertently telling yourself the growth of your business is limited. It’s that proverbial glass ceiling again. A successful business owner is comfortable with setting big, scary goals and shattering those glass ceilings!

Successful Business Mindset #5: Learning is an on-going journey

Business today is fast-paced and always evolving. ESPECIALLY in today’s modern age where much of business has become digitalised. Things are always changing, and the only way to keep ahead of the curve is to embrace education and learning. A successful business mindset involves constantly learning, readiness to accept the evolving nature of business and being willing to apply new principles into practice.

Learning doesn’t have to be just through books though. You can learn by reading blogs and articles by respected figures in your niche, by listening to podcasts or taking online courses and masterclasses. Networking is an excellent, dynamic way to learn more about your industry whilst also making beneficial links with other likeminded people.

Successful Business Mindset #6: Discipline, not motivation, grows a successful business

Let me say this loud and clear: Motivation is not a successful business strategy.

A lot of people mistakenly think the most successful businesswomen are those who are very motivated. This is not the full truth- higher levels of motivation do not lead to more success unless it’s combined with discipline.

If you rely on motivation to grow your business, your success is at the whim of a fleeting emotion that fluctuates depend on your mood.

However, if you rely on discipline to grow your business, you work through those days you’re second guessing whether your business is even worth it. You work past your emotions and mood, working hard regardless of how you feel. This kind of relentless discipline is going to build your business!

Successful Business Mindset #7: Saying no is sometimes the better business decision

A successful business woman knows how to prioritise, what to prioritise and when something is or isn’t a priority. And this is because we all have finite resources and time and we physically cannot do everything – it would be foolish to think otherwise. This is especially so for women who are juggling the responsibilities of motherhood, marriage and home ALONGSIDE their business.

Yup, I said it. You cannot do EVERYTHING – and thinking you can is a recipe for burn out, anxiety and possibly even failure. Instead you have to get really good at knowing how much you can take on your plate, and when things get full, knowing what comes off that fully loaded plate first.

For some women, this might mean slowing down your work routine so you can prioritise a poorly child. It may also mean asking your partner or a friend to take on some of your house duties for a few weeks during the launch of a new product in your business. Sometimes it may actually also mean saying no to certain business opportunities because they just don’t align with the vision you have. And truthfully, sometimes it’ll mean putting your own mental health before anything else – because what use is a profitable business if you’re miserable, depressed and unable to get out of bed to face reality?

How you prioritise your workload will look different for everyone, but the bottom line is a successful business woman will need to get comfortable with not being able to do everything all the time, drawing boundaries with her time and saying ‘I can’t do this at the moment’.

Tips to help cultivate a successful business woman mindset

For many of us, this healthy business mindset does not come naturally. This may particularly be the case if you’ve had any previous bad experiences with money or business, if you suffer from anxiety or low self esteem or if you carry the burden of toxic cultural expectations.

And y’know what? If you don’t come to the table with that successful business woman mindset, that’s okay – most people do NOT come into the world of business with it either. But they grow it over time.

With patience and time, you can also grow it too. Here are some tips that can help you foster a success and growth-oriented business mindset:

• Positive affirmations.
  They’re not just a trendy buzzword. Repeating positive, uplifting declarations of success, productivity and wealth is an extension of the abundance mindset theory discussed earlier. When you believe something good and repeat it frequently, you’re action begin to align with the belief that you are indeed these very things, and you embody the very ideas you want to become.
  
• Embrace small but daily progress.
  Do something every day that brings you closer to your goals. Even if it seems small – it could be something like writing a short post, jotting down a few new ideas, reaching out to just one peer in your industry.
  
• Network with likeminded women.
  Surround yourself with ambitious women also building their own businesses. There’s a huge amount of power in networking with other women who think like you, set goals like you and want to grow like you. If you’re a mother, you may not have the luxury of being able to go out to networking events, but social media is an excellent place to find other women who share your ambition and aspiration.
  
• Don’t be afraid to invest in yourself. Truthfully, there isn’t an abundance of spaces for ambitious, goal-driven women who want to succeed in business – particularly for WoC. But having spaces like that is a true game changer, giving you the right support, coaching and guidance you need to help your business flourish.