Oh man, this poor little blog! I’ve been so all over Insatgram and Insta stories lately, that I feel like I share so much there, and the blog would be redundant?! But I MISS it. I miss sharing thoughts and having a more meaningful conversations, so here we are, starting with how to boost your confidence.

Quick little life update: things are ticking away over here! I was recently in Toronto for a media tour for Sweet Bake Shop’s book launch. It was a whirlwind 5 days (maybe you caught the segment on The Social?!?) and I was also fortunate enough to hold a Sparkle Studio Photography 101 Workshop during the trip (at Make Lemonade… suuuch an amazing space). It was a room full of budding entrepreneurs – I find that it’s women with a side hustle, or a start up who take my classes and I just love empowering that journey with not just some photography knowledge (which in my opinion, is the most instrumental part of launching or growing a business – your photos must reflect your brand!), but I always leave 30 minutes at the end to chat business – growing it, pricing, client acquisition. It can be such a mystery, and I’m always happy to share my advice.

One of the attendees asked me how to get over their fear of putting themselves out there as a brand when angling their business. I would say that this is the BIGGEST thing that I coach my entrepreneur clients about, and the piece they often struggle with the most.  My advice in a nutshell? Take the focus off of it being about YOU and make it about your audience. What value do you bring to THEM; how does what you’re “selling”, whether that’s a product, a service or an idea, benefit them, and how are you communicating that? This all stems from having the confidence to believe that what you offer is valuable, meaning that YOUR ideas are valuable. Make sense? So, now let’s talk about how to boost your confidence to launch your business, or take the next step you’ve been fearful to take with these three ideas:

Just start somewhere

You’re already thinking that this is over simplified, right?! Instead of waiting for the perfect time to start, or being in the perfect situation, know that the timing will never feel perfect. Starting something new always feels scary and overwhelming, and you always feel in over your head… but my best advice is to hone your idea, and take it day by day, because looking at the journey as a whole from a starting point can seem daunting. Bottom line: action inspires motivation, and there are no shortcuts for this. In my business, I work day by day, week by week, and work on the most necessary and high-priority items first, and them move through my calendar accordingly. If I was to look at a month of what I have coming up, I would be so overwhelmed, and it would be hard for me to stay motivated and creative. Whether it’s a big leap or a small one, you’ll only move forward if you start. Don’t give on what you want because of how long it will take to accomplish, because the time will pass anyway.

Feel your best

This one seems a bit shallow, but it’s very, very true that when you feel good, you perform better. Self-love is a very important part of believing in yourself and how to boost your confidence. For me, if my nails are a mess, I feel self conscious. If I forget to take care of my facial hair, I have a hard time making eye contact because I’m so self conscious about where someone’s eyes are looking (ummm, can they see the sprouting hairs on my upper lip?!). This beats down your confidence and can damage your ability to give your ideas the energy they deserve. I’ll be honest, I feel confident and successful when I have one of my fave bags on. It’s a mental thing for me, and I do believe it gives me a drive. A word of caution, it’s easy to get carried away here and in no way am I saying that buying things is a band-aid for self-confidence, but when you look good, you feel good.

Get some wins under your belt

This one is the biggest one and the advice I give to anyone starting a business. The biggest way to boost your confidence is to have small successes along the way. Hearing yes, getting positive feedback, securing that sale or client, these start to compound to keep your cup full. While yes, there will be setbacks along the way, focusing on, and reflecting on the positives and being grateful for those will set you up for success. Focusing on something and getting it done feels great and is the fuel in the tank. Nothing builds confidence like small successes and accomplishing something, and the only way to accomplish something is to start DOING something.

I would love to hear from you in the comments about how you’ve boosted your confidence to move forward with your business or idea, and I’m always all ears over on Instagram as well! Happy kick assing 😉