EP 1: The Being Yourself in Business Podcast

Episode 1: Why Being Yourself in Business is Your Greatest Asset

Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple

In this episode of the podcast, I share a brief introduction of the podcast and the idea that authenticity is your superpower.

• A personal story about feeling like an outsider in the business world and how embracing my own authenticity shifted everything for me.

• I introduce the idea that YOU are your business's greatest asset and that this podcast will help you embrace that truth.

• A sneak peak at the episodes that lay ahead.

• A reflective journaling prompt so that you can start to create transformation in your own life as an entrepreneur.

• Transcript

  Hey friends!

  Welcome to the Being Yourself in Business Podcast -  the podcast for heart-centered entrepreneurs who want to make an impact, but sometimes feel held back by self-doubt or imposter syndrome. 

  I'm Sydney Fletcher, a coach and fellow entrepreneur here to help you tap into your creativity so you can build self-trust and redefine what success looks like for you. Together, we'll explore how embracing your authentic self can lead to a business and a life you truly love.

  Let's get to it.

  Hi friends. Welcome to our very first episode of Being Yourself in Business. I'm so glad you're here. If you're tuning in, I'm guessing you're someone who feels called to create something meaningful in the world.

  And I'm also guessing that you're wanting to do it in a way that feels true to your heart. You are my kind of people.

  I decided to create this podcast because I believe that living authentically is our true spiritual mission as humans. It's about staying true to our hearts and making choices that feel right and true to each one of us. Not because it's what others expect or what society tells you. But because it's what feels right. Living from the heart means living holistically. It means doing what is and feels good to your nervous system. It's about listening and trusting in yourself.

  I also believe that the world needs to hear from more heart-centered people in leadership roles. Particularly in business. We have far too many examples of leaders prioritizing profit over people, making decisions that harm rather than heal. But when heart-centered people – people like you create businesses – they're creating something that supports holistic growth and wellbeing, both for themselves as well as others. They're creating positive change. And I believe entrepreneurship can be a deeply healing journey when we use it as a means to get to know and embrace ourselves.

  The core message of this podcast is simple. Living authentically is your superpower. It's what will make your business thrive. And if you've ever struggled with confidence, self-doubt, or feeling like you don't quite fit the business mold, this podcast is for you.

  To kick us off I thought I'd tell you a personal story. Both so you can learn a little bit more about me, and so you can know that I'm coming from a place of understanding. I've been in your shoes. Sometimes I still find myself there.

  About two years into my coaching business, which is now about eight years old, I started feeling this immense pressure. My business started purely from, for the love of it. I worked with a coach for many years and then I taught yoga alongside a coach. And after doing so I just knew that was a direction I was meant to go. 

  And from the moment I made that decision to apply for coaching school and educate myself and follow this path. I have never doubted that it's what I'm supposed to do. Which is different than how I felt in the past. 

  I consider myself a bit of a Jane of all trades, meaning I can be pretty good at many things, but not exceptional at anything in particular. Which made it really hard for me to determine what direction I wanted to take in my life.

  Once I found coaching though, that kind of changed. Because it was something that felt so much like part of my soul, I could not deny it.

  And when I started my business it very much came from that place. I allowed it to grow at its own pace. I allowed myself to have fun with it. I really, in those first two years was in the joy of what I was creating. And it was wonderful.

  Two years in, however, some things in my life shifted. Financially things became more insecure with the other jobs that I was working to support myself. And I started to want to lean into coaching more and more.

  I started putting a lot more pressure on my business. And I had this idea that I should be further along. So I began looking outside of myself for answers. I started telling myself that I didn't know enough about business. And I started following new mentors, buying into the idea that they had the magic formula I needed to grow fast.

  I really began to push myself hard, trying to force growth. Because I thought that what I was already doing wasn't good enough. And I was nervous.  I didn't want to do all these other things that I was doing to make ends meet. I started to feel kind of entitled that, you know, I should be at a place. Where, um, clients are coming and I can expect income. I just started to get a really entitled attitude around things. And little by little, I stopped trusting myself. I stopped listening to my inner wisdom. And I started making decisions because other people were telling me that those decisions were the right thing to do.

  My business started to feel less and less like mine and I was no longer living in the joy and the curiosity that had originally inspired me. 

  It was a really tough time. And I'll tell you my confidence plummeted immensely. I felt like I was constantly spinning my wheels. Not getting anywhere. And the turning point that came was when I finally decided to trust myself again.

  That self-trust, and it really was a decision. I didn't necessarily have evidence to believe that I could trust myself. I just decided, you know, what. I'm going to trust myself. Because what I'm doing is not working.

  It changed everything.

  And it started, it helped me start to really bring that confidence back. Because I realized that if I just slow down. And take the time to listen. Take the time to connect to my heart. I have the answers that I need. I will know the next best step. My job was simply to listen and to trust in what my body had to tell me.

  The moment I started doing that. Like I said, everything changed and this pressure that I had been feeling, this invisible pressure lifted. And my creative flow returned. I was no longer forcing things to happen. Or pushing myself so far out of my comfort zone, but instead was allowing things to unfold bit by bit. Allowing myself to nudge out of my comfort zone. Which is different than throwing myself out of my comfort zone.

  And in doing so, my business began to thrive in a way that felt so much more aligned with who I truly am.

  I felt so much more authentic because I felt safe again in my business.

  So, safety is important. And we can’t have safety without having wellbeing. Cause the two pretty much go hand in hand. 

  This is important because it really speaks to a philosophy that I have within my business, a philosophy that I teach to my clients, which is that you are your business's greatest asset.

  And so we have to, as business owners, as heart-centered business owners who want to build businesses that are authentic and true expressions of ourselves. We want to believe that we are our business's greatest asset. We need to take care of ourselves. We need to support our nervous systems.

  Building a business is challenging and it can be hard and it can be scary. If we learn to support ourselves well, we move through the hard, uncomfortable, scary bits with so much more ease. And when we are more easeful, we just show up more authentically. Your authenticity, your heart, your intuition, your creativity is what will make your business thrive. When you show up as your true self, you create a space where others can feel seen and understood. You build trust naturally. And that's something no marketing strategy can replicate. 

  I think we've all had that experience where you just feel like something is off between you and another person. Like connecting to them is difficult. I know I have felt that. And more often than not what I notice is that part of that lack of connection is because either, I don't feel safe being with them, or they don't feel safe being with me for whatever reason. And so we start posturing or masking. And when we start posturing and masking and. And expressing ourselves in ways that feel untrue to how we truly feel inside, it breaks the connection.For us to grow businesses that are impactful to others, it's all about creating connection. In many different ways.

  I believe that our businesses come from our hearts. And I believe that our hearts are a connection to spirit. So our businesses ultimately are these spiritual expressions. They're meant to come into the world because they offer something unique and necessary that nature wants.

  And so I'm hoping, and I consider my job through this podcast and through the other ways that I work with folks, is to remind you all that you already have everything you need. You already know your next best step. And you are enough just as you are right now. Your business doesn't need you to be anyone other than who you are in this moment.

  I know it can be hard to believe this. Especially if you've spent years people pleasing, doubting yourself or comparing your journey to others. But trust me when I say this, the world needs you exactly as you are.

  To give you a sense of what you can expect in the journey ahead. In the months ahead,

  I plan on dropping a new episode one time per month. Which gives you plenty of time to listen to each one. It algo gives me plenty of time to create them, which I like. I'm trying to do business in a way that supports my nervous system, which means allowing it to be spacious. And allowing my content to be created at a pace that is right for me. So, as I said, you'll receive a new episode each month. And in the upcoming episodes, we're going to dive into some of the key themes that I have seen heart-centered entrepreneurs struggle with. These are areas in which we can all grow. 

  So we're going to talk about your relationship with money. So looking at how our beliefs around money affect our business and how we can create healthier, more mutually supportive relationships with money.

  Our relationship with time. So why feeling like we never have enough time can hold us back and how shifting our relationship with time can create more flow and ease.

  And last, but definitely not least. In fact it might be the most crucial: our relationship with ourselves. So this is a big one. We'll explore how you can build self-trust. Embrace your unique strengths, and show up authentically, even when it feels scary.

  And in our next episode in particular, we're going to dive into a big topic that I'm sure all of you will be interested in: the topic of imposter syndrome. We're going to talk about why it shows up, how it holds us back and what we can do to move through it. Because when we're dealing with imposter syndrome, it's a clear sign that we don't feel good enough as we are. So that's where I think we should begin the work of embracing our authenticity.

  And before we wrap up today, I want to leave you with a reflective journaling prompt. This podcast isn't just about listening. It's about creating space for you to connect with yourself and your own wisdom. So here's your prompt:

  Where do you feel most like yourself in your business?

  And where do you feel disconnected or like you're putting on a mask?

  These two questions will help bring so much awareness to the specific places where you have confidence already. Where you're already showing up authentically like yourself. Allowing yourself to be seen. And they're also going to shine a light on the places where maybe you're having a harder time. So take some time this week to journal on this. Or to simply reflect on it during a quiet moment. You may be surprised by what comes up. 

  And remember there's no right or wrong answers with these. These questions are all about creating awareness. And they're all about giving you permission to show up more fully as you are.

  Thank you so much for tuning into this first inaugural episode. If you enjoyed this, please consider subscribing and also consider sharing it with a friend who might need a little reminder that they're enough just as they are. We all need those reminders sometimes.

  I'm so excited to be on this journey with you. Until next time, take care. Be kind to yourself.

  And keep showing up as you.