Happy Business Birthday to me! 

On August 1st I celebrated the third birthday of Laura Cruise Coaching. It's been three years since I was employed, three years since I was paid by somebody else, three years since I had a boss.

 What an amazing three years it has been! In many ways it feels like much longer since I worked for somebody else, but in other ways those years have gone by in a flash. I've loved every minute of it.

Let me be honest though and tell you that it hasn't always been plain sailing. Like everything in life, there will always be ups and downs. But here’s what I know....

I've learnt so much in those three years. I had never run a business before, I had never used social media for anything other than sharing holiday photos, I didn't know anything about mailing platforms or lead magnets. I've had to teach myself how to use all the tech because I couldn't afford to pay anyone to help me at the start. It's been a steep learning curve - perhaps the steepest of my life, aside from learning how to be a mum.

I've grown too. I've grown my confidence, my presence, my skills and more. I've gone from being scared to go live on Facebook to doing lives all the time, to creating a podcast and releasing my thoughts each week, to getting really visible when my book came out. I went to an event run by Lisa Johnson just before I left my corporate role, when I was low in confidence, unsure about myself and scared of speaking up. I went to another LJ event last month and the Laura who walked into that room was very different to the one from three years ago. I stood tall, I stood proud and I held my own in a room of very successful women.

I've tried, tried and tried again. I've tried different business approaches, different sales methods, different sales offerings. I've followed what people have suggested and realised that what works for them doesn't work for me. I've grown my business confidence so that I know I can follow my own instincts in business rather than trying to replicate the approach of others. I’ve found who Laura is as a business owner.

Because I've tried, I've also failed. I've failed a lot. I'm really open about that because it is important that you know that everyone fails. I’ve had failed launches, I’ve created programmes which didn’t sell, I’ve done webinars with only me showing up. It doesn't matter that you fail, what matters is that you learn from the failure and keep going. You'll do better next time!

I wrote and released a book which became an Amazon bestseller. That is probably my greatest achievement from the last three years, as it is something I have wanted to do since I was a little girl. My book is available the world over and inspires so many people to dream it and do it too.

 A friend said to me recently that I have 'created something from nothing', which was so apt. Three years ago the naïve and clueless Laura could not have foreseen where the business would take her but my goodness am I glad that she had the confidence and the determination to keep going. Together, that Laura and me have created the business that I have today, the one I am so proud of. Other people are proud of me too and that feels amazing. 

If you haven't started your business yet, ask yourself - where will I be in three years if I do get started? I guarantee the answer will be that you will be in a really amazing place. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about!