With the start of the new year, I have witnessed several other entrepreneurs get really honest about their successes and lessons in business over the past 365 days. It inspired me to open up in a similar way, and take you behind the scenes into the year of 2013.
Honestly, there were days in 2013 where I felt burnt out and bored. There were also days that I loved my business, and felt on fire.
Here’s what really happened in 2013:
The Switch ~ Nutrition to Entrepreneurs
Early in 2013 was the official announcement that I would no longer be taking nutrition clients, and would instead be supporting entrepreneurs. Surprise!
This shift was actually a long time coming. In 2012, I had worked with ONE private nutrition client, and the rest (over 80!) were entrepreneurs, or they had come to me for a combination of nutrition and business skills. My nutrition company had kind of been a facade in 2012, because behind the scenes, I was already working with entrepreneurs. These entrepreneurs were finding their own new clients, getting interviewed on television, and were traveling overseas with their businesses! It was amazing to watch them. I was also falling in love with being a business mentor, and in 2013, it was time to announce that to the world, instead of just do it secretly.
With the announcement came a lot of inquiries from entrepreneurs who wanted to work with me. I said yes to many of them, and it’s been a wonderful journey (you can see some of their success stories at http://www.AvaWaits.com/successstories.)
At the same time, I also kindly turned down several potential private clients, and with that, turned away thousands of dollars in income. I see it as my duty to only support the people who I feel are the correct energetic match, and this won’t always be the case with everyone who asks to work with me. Sometimes the timing just isn’t right, and that’s why I may politely turn a person away, or refer them to colleagues. By no means did turning them down feel comfortable (for them or for me), but I’m really committed to only working with people who I feel are a vibrational match.
It also felt really good to be in a place where I wasn’t desperate for the income, and because of that, I didn’t feel obligated to take on a non-ideal client just because they would pay me money.
Choosing Bliss or The Dark Side
I’ve gotten really clear that I’m not here to do the deeply dark, scrub-the-gunk work with clients. I thrive on bliss, happiness, and giggles. Seriously. All of the new clients I just started working with in 2014 know that I may at any point ask them to find a therapist or counselor for additional support if they need it. (Even my mentor suggested I work with a therapist this year.) This doesn’t mean that I’m not available to support a client as they turn around fears or limiting beliefs, because I am. What it means is that I’m taking a stand for doing our work from a place of joy, and will let a therapist handle the stuff that I’m not trained for. After all, when a client and I work together, we create their business from bliss and happiness.
Working with Women
I’m also mostly just working with women entrepreneurs now, though in the past, I did have male clients. This doesn’t mean that I’ll only support ladies forever, or that I won’t accept a male client who is a really great match. It’s just that I feel most connected to women business owners, and with some of the topics we’ve been covering in my groups (like “making love to money”), an intimate group of women feels best.
Money
The topic of money is one that I have loved exploring with clients, and in the coming year, you’ll see even more of that, and more resources to support you in living a richer life. The women who joined me in private coaching, and groups like Build A Richer Business and 30 Days to Release Your Financial Constriction, were manifesting money all over the place! $5,000, $2500, $1100, and so many more good surprises! (I have each of those programs available for purchase in their digital forms, so you can just email us at [email protected] to request a copy. We’ll be back on our business email on Monday to send yours.)
Ava Waits International, LLC also more than doubled in income this year, and along the way, it brought up some of my deepest limiting beliefs around money. I often caught myself wondering how people I cared about would act toward me as the company grew. Honestly, since the growth, I have experienced both good and not-so-awesome reactions from others in regard to money.
On a positive note, it’s become really easy to guide people through their own money concerns. This has actually become my favorite part of a strategy call with a potential client. Talking about money used to make me really nervous, but if you want to work with me now, and you need some support in getting over your fears about investing in yourself and your business, I will gladly help you through that. You are wealthier than you think, and you can find the money for anything you desire! Check out this video I filmed with my colleague about finding money to fund your business training.
Emma lives in the beautiful Swiss city of Berne
Customer Service
My Client Experience Specialist, Emma, took over a lot of email from me in 2013. I made this switch because it’s really not fair to my awesome clients if I’m in a funk or distressed after reading any unkind emails that come through to us.
I totally adore Emma for being the buffer from anything weird that is mailed to my company. She is also pretty great at gently repelling guys who say they are interested in working with me, but really just want to flirt. (Yes ladies, this happens, and it’s probably time to write out your business policy for cases like this.)
My schedule
I still don’t start work until 10am, because I’m not much of a morning person. I also really value a slow breakfast, music to dance to, and time to read wealth consciousness books before working. In 2014, I’d like to sleep in more often.
As of now, most of my client appointments happen on 2 days out of every week. I’m still taking Friday off from appointments and business email, and spend the day being creative. Fridays often turn into a writing day, or a day to travel. Check out my fun journey to Seattle at the end of 2013.
The Book
Yes, I’m writing a book! About 8 months ago, I started receiving some very obvious hints that it was time. Interestingly, for many years, I never saw a book as part of my business. I didn’t think I had the patience to write one. This year, the manuscript will be completed, polished, edited, and published. Then, I’m going on a book tour!
Travel and Business Conferences
It was so much fun to conference hop in Los Angeles and Dallas during the Spring, right after visiting my brother monks on Kaua’i. In September, I headed to Maui on vacation, and then finished that month with a conference hosted by my mentor in Salt Lake City, Utah. It was my first time staying in an upgraded hotel suite, and I went gaga over the hot tub on the balcony (we hot tubbed in the snow!), and the jumbo-sized bathtub. This conference in Utah was my second time on stage with a success panel of amazing entrepreneurs.
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On stage with several brilliant businesswomen, including my mentor, Amanda Moxley |
At another one of the entrepreneurial conferences I attended this year, I felt really out of place. This had never happened to me before, but it just did not feel like my crowd. I’m sure it was my own mood that was attracting this, but several of the other people in the room had really odd interactions with me. Interestingly, on the last day of this conference, I found a very important stepping stone toward the book I’m writing. I think that was the reason I was there. (And I also loved the tasty oatmeal I had for breakfast each morning.)
As I zoom into 2014, I’ve set a few intentions (feel free to borrow some of these if they will support your life and business too).
1. Get out of the house! I have a home office, and on days where I meet with multiple clients, I’m sometimes sitting at my cute little 
bistro table “desk” all day. While I love my bistro table, 2014 is going to be about getting out, seeing people, and having more experiences outside of cyber world. It started up last week, with my first half VIP Day with a client in my 60-day Tapping the Bank of the Universe Program. She flew up to Seattle from California, and we spent the morning eating, laughing, and planning her business.
Since I plan to get out and about more, please let me know if you are hosting a fun dinner party, business open house, or awesome networking event (especially if it’s in Washington State). Or if you notice that I’m traveling to your city sometime in the coming year, please let me know what fun events are happening when I’m there. Thanks!
2. I intend to have even more boundaries for myself about not answering business emails on the weekends (which includes Friday for me), and evenings. This one has been hard for me to stick to, because I really do care about you, and I really do care about having excellent service. It’s just that I want more time for evening baths, dinners with my sweet man, and space to be creative. If you don’t hear back from me right away, it’s because I haven’t seen your email yet, but I will get to it (or Emma will) on Mondays through Thursdays.
3. I will finish writing the book this year, and head out on a speaking tour. I’m already starting to book speaking opportunities, so please let me know if you are looking for a guest speaker at an entrepreneurial event, holistically minded financial company, women’s association, or spiritual group.
4. Dylan and I will hop on a plane to head out on another journey together. It’s to a location we can’t tell you about quite yet, because there’s an element of surprise in it for us too.
5. I have an intention to continue building my newsletter list, and to reach many more people through my work. With that said, I am definitely open to more online interviews and telesummits.
6. I am also building a wickedly awesome new business structure right now. Every time I go through it in my mind, I’m just blown away by it’s simplicity, systems, and brilliance. It’s taken over 4 years to get clear on exactly what I’d like the business to look and feel like for me, and I feel really close. If you’re also looking for a nourishing business structure that will fit you, or you want some of the secret steps that are being built into mine, we can work privately together and take care of that for you. Just email us at [email protected].
