What If The Next Pivot For Growing Your Business Exists Within You? 

The term “pivot” is often used in the startup world, which is brilliant because it’s an egoless approach to growing your business.

It puts the customer at the helm of your business model and then it’s a matter of responding to their needs. It’s a simple, transformative idea and it works. (Thank you Eric Reiss)

When I launched Brands for the Heart four years ago, it took off in a matter of days. I had 33 customers who all paid in full and 1,900 warm leads on my email list without spending a cent on advertising. I had done it again. I had set another goal and surpassed it. I was on a high for a few weeks, but then I crashed.

Even though I had surpassed my launch goals, I found myself a few weeks later still not feeling satisfied within my soul. Despite the fact that everything on the outside appeared to be my so-called “ideal” life, something was missing.

While I knew there were things I needed to do to pivot my own business to have an even bigger impact, it was my own personal happiness or lack thereof that needed pivoting.

I was tired of squeezing every ounce of productivity out of my day and it all started to feel heavy.

At the time, I didn’t know what to do about this “something” that was missing, but I begrudgingly knew that the answer was not in the direction I was swimming towards.

I was being called to find a new way of living and for me, that meant going against the grain and not listening to the practical voice of reason anymore.

It meant letting go of my external attachments and addictions to goal setting and measuring metrics so that I could “allow” the business and life I was meant for to unfold.

As a high performing entrepreneur, this lack of control and letting go was deeply uncomfortable.

 Allow the life you’re meant to live unfold

It lead me to big questions like “Who am I?”, “What’s my purpose?”, and “Why am I here?”.  Honestly, for a while there, it felt like I was in a darkroom with only my faith to guide me.

Eventually the answers started to come through and what I discovered about my yearnings were counterintuitive and softly subtle.

I had breakthroughs in areas where I never thought to go looking.

Perhaps one of the biggest things I realized is that what I was looking for was not out there. It was in here, within me.

Now I live from the inside out, whereas before I was living from the outside in.

 Happiness is not out there, it’s in here

So next time you’re considering a pivot in your business, I invite you to consider that perhaps the pivot exists within you.

In the comments below, I’d love to hear from you, what inner pivots have you made since becoming an entrepreneur?

Bright gratitude,

Andrea