For Brands
As I’m celebrating my two year milestone with Thuro, my biggest takeaway has been prioritizing my values in my business. My hope with this post is to encourage you in your journey of entrepreneurship, and to give you practical ideas + permission to live a life aimed toward your purpose.
Protecting What Matters Most
When I first started Thuro, I knew my values, but I didn’t set up boundaries to live a life that aligned with them. Anytime our values and our lifestyle aren’t aligned, that’s where stress and burnout come in. As someone who highly values my time with the Lord, my relationships outside of work, my health, and ministry, I felt like the things that were most important to me were fighting for my time.
I remember working 70 – 80 hour weeks, and saying yes to everything. I felt completely exhausted, overwhelmed, and overworked. I didn’t have real “working hours,” I just worked every time a new email showed up in my inbox. Sound familiar?
Since then, I’ve reoriented my business around what I value the most, not having my business own me. Here are some of the biggest changes I’ve made from then to now.
• My set office hours are from 9:30 – 5:30 Monday – Friday. (Not checking emails or IG outside of office hours and taking Wednesdays off to work on my business. Trying my best to stick to this 90% of the time.)
• I have specific income goals and time allotments for client work each month so I know when to say yes, no, and later to projects.
• Since I prioritize my business around my values, I’ve been able to work with other likeminded business owners to create meaningful, purposeful work.
Saying No to What Doesn’t Align
To all the people pleasers out there, this is for you! Saying no. This past year, there were several clients that I said no to because of values, aesthetic, or budget that didn’t align to the life I feel called to lead. With every client, I view our time working together as a partnership. My aim is to encourage, empower, and champion the impact of their business and to help them live in their definition of success.
With that kind of commitment, I want to make sure that I fully support the mission and vision of a potential client. Although saying no is hard, I’ve seen time and time again how the Lord provides a better opportunity to say yes to. Our choices matter, and our yes can either take away or add to the God-given purpose that we’ve been called to.
Making Time to Create for the Purpose of Joy
Newsflash. Your client work isn’t the most important aspect of your business. Don’t get me wrong, serve your clients with excellence, but also make time within your office hours to work on your own business.
If you’re never investing time sharing your work, updating your website, or doing passion projects, then getting new clients can be a lot harder, and you’re not able to develop your own unique style.
Creating focus days has helped me to balance time between client and business work, so that I’m nurturing my business as a whole, and creating time to remember my why.
M – Content Creation
T – Client Work
W – Creative Health Day
T- Client Work
F – Client Work
Staying In Your Lane
The temptation is to look at all of the amazing people in your industry that may be several years ahead of you, and then comparison seeps in. Instead of looking at everyone else, look to Jesus. Stick to your values, what makes you different, and create from a place of joy.
Remember to celebrate your wins, and remember how far you’ve come, not how long you have to go. Our entire life is about enjoying the process, not the finish line.
There’s no short cut to growth in the world of entrepreneurship. It’s about daily faithfulness, depending on God for strength, and focusing on what you can do today. There’s something so unique with your experience, skillset, and passions that God has written in you and the positive impact this world needs.
