From Messenger to Membership

I’m not even sure how it happened, but I think Christie reached out to me via Facebook Messenger after seeing one of my posts or comments in the Kajabi support group.

Whatever I said must have resonated with her because she was ready to buy my program at hello!

This gal takes action!

Meet Christie Love

As a Business Startup Coach, Christie helps new and rising entrepreneurs learn to setup and grow their online businesses, offering services ranging from online course & website setup in the Kajabi platform to website audits, as well as 1:1 business coaching.

Her goal is to motivate, provide structure, and help get your business off to a great start!

Why Starting a New Business is Like a Zumba Class

By Christie Love

For those of you who don’t know me, I used to be a Zumba instructor, a very zealous one at that! Oh I know what you might be thinking, what in the world does Zumba have to do with starting a business? But now that I’ve peaked your interest, let me first give you a little background story.

A few years ago I stopped teaching as a fitness instructor, so I could help my husband out more with our growing contracting business. Besides, it was hard to find time to practice and memorize routines, while still having enough left in the tank after the day to go in and motivate my class.

Fast forward to today. After a stressful year of selling our contracting business, moving from the east to the west coast, I now find myself out of shape. So what do I do? I go back to Zumba class of course!
This time though, I’m not the instructor, just a student. But now I have so much more perspective, which is great!

As I went back to class this week, I had an epiphany. Starting a new business can be scary, kind of like walking into that first Zumba class, so I thought I’d explain and break it down for you, why going to Zumba is a lot like starting a new business!

The Introductions

As I walked to class on a Monday night, I saw an unfamiliar instructor, and a lot of ladies waiting in line to get in, smiling and raring to go. I nervously smiled too, even though I didn’t know anybody.

“Hi, I’m Christie”, (uncomfortable laugh).

“Have you been here before?”

“Nice to meet you!” (I hate small talk)

You ever notice when you’re starting a business how hard it is to meet people when you first start networking? It almost takes you back to high school for a moment (minus the hairspray), as you gauge people and their personalities and try to find your safe place to come back to when things get uncomfortable.

The Warm Up

At this point, it’s just the beginning of class, the instructor is pumped, the music is turned up, and we are ready to take on the world for the next hour!

YEAH, Let’s DO this!

Business is the same in almost every endeavor, the excitement in the beginning is pulsating, and you are ready to take on the world! You know you have something great to offer! Let’s DO this!

This is Feeling Great!

Now you’re past the warm-up stage, your heart is pumping, and you’re starting to feel like an athlete. You look at yourself in the mirror as you shake your pom poms and start to feel pretty good about yourself for being here today. Dang I look good! This is so much fun, I should do this every day!

In business you reach a point where you’re getting all your ducks in a row, creating systems, starting to get clients, even referrals, and starting to figure things out. There are still so many great ideas coming out of you. This is your moment, your time to shine, and you WILL succeed!

The Halfway Point

This is the point where you have been dancing around for 30 minutes, you’re drenched and out of breath, starting to get delirious, and by now you’re just making up the steps as you go along.

As you look around, you see some die hards really going at it, some confused faces that obviously have NO idea what’s happening and just flailing their arms around, and granny in the back just watching as she smiles and nods her head to the beat.

In business it’s easy to compare ourselves to what everybody else is doing, but in the end, that’s not the best course of action. You might end up following someone who really has NO idea what they’re doing, so it’s best to do what works best for YOU and your business!

And whatever you do, don’t be a “granny”, sitting around idly by waiting for things to happen, because you have to keep working at it and staying consistent even through the tough times. So pay attention, stay the course, and keep going!

You Mean We’re Not Done Yet?!

I don’t know about you, but there comes a point in class where I start looking up at the clock in disbelief that there are still 20 minutes left in class.

You mean we’re not done yet?!

Suddenly the instructor yells, “Get ready cause I’m really going to hit you on the next two songs!”

What?! I start to plot my escape, but it’s too late as the beat drops and it’s time to salsa back to my spot!

Once we get deeper into our business, we get to a point where we have more responsibilities, like hiring help, managing a team, accounting, taxes, legal issues, customer complaints, insurance, contracts, and other nitty gritty issues we never even thought about.

I thought business was supposed to be fun!

Well, business is a marathon, not a sprint, and that’s why so many fail, because it’s all too easy to give up when the going gets tough. But you’ve got to get your head out of the sand, and realize, this IS Business after all!

The Reward - Cool Down

This is the part of the class that everyone looks forward to, when we finally start to slow down, catch our breath and let our heartrate slowly come back to normal. As I do my two step I proudly look back at myself in the mirror, as if to say, you did this!

And as I stretch and feel the tightness in my hamstrings melt away, I realize that all that hard work I just did was worth it, and I’m going to take in this moment of accomplishment!

Breathe in, Breathe out.

Starting a business is exciting, stressful, and chaotic all at the same time. But you wouldn’t have it any other way right!

Why?

Because of the satisfaction it brings you in the end of something you created, that feeling of accomplishment, and the things you overcame to make it to where you are today.

Was it hard? Yes! But would you do it again?

Find a Good Instructor

Your business is only going to grow if you show up each week and if you’re consistently putting in the work. Then you’ll continue to evaluate, adapt, and make needed adjustments as the business grows.

Having a fun and motivating instructor certainly makes a big difference in a Zumba class, and when starting out in business, that “instructor” can take the form of a business coach, or other experienced mentor. Just don’t be too proud to ask for advice or help, because that’s how we learn and grow.

Free Gift from Christie

If you’d like some help getting started, download Christie’s FREE guide, The Ultimate Girl B.O.S.S. Checklist, a handy guide filled with resources to help you set up your online business the RIGHT way!