This was the toughest year of my life, and it seemed everything was going wrong. I had physical issues that challenged my lifelong identity as an athlete, business challenges that undermined my vision of success, all of which took a tremendous toll on my emotional state, turning my eternal confidence and optimism into fear and a sense of failure. No matter how hard I tried, no matter how fiercely I fought, I couldn’t turn things around; it was like the phone just stopped ringing. I kept thinking, “What is wrong with me?” But after 10 grueling months, it all changed overnight, and I realized it was all part of the plan.

December of 2014, I was ending my best year ever. My business was booming, with revenues growing by high double digits. I had a new plan and focus for my business that was destined to continue my accelerated growth. I had a great team of virtual assistants I could depend on, making my job easier and more effective. On top of that, I had just landed a big contract with a national insurance firm. You could say we were on fire, and 2015 was destined to be a stellar year. I was living the dream, and then everything came to a screeching halt.

With 2015 on the horizon, we began preparing for the New Year by building a new website that would attract more business and expand our brand. We invested in videos that would enhance our marketing; this all required a sizeable investment, but we were confident it would add to our revenue growth. Then to make room for this new corporate contract, we began clearing the decks by reducing the number of our coaching clients, assuming that this new corporate program would be the next core revenue generator. But things didn’t turn out as we expected.

Due to a cervical spine injury, I started in 2015 disabled for the first 4 months. The corporate program would take 9 months before we could launch. The immediate loss of revenues and new physical challenges took a major toll on my psyche. I felt like a failure, and this spilled over into all aspects of my life. 

As the year wore on, business slowed, even more, I became more negative and feeling desperate for business. While I had a very high success rate at converting prospects into loyal clients, it seemed I had lost the magic touch.  I couldn’t understand what was happening, and it didn’t matter how hard I tried. Nothing was kicking in until one event pushed me over the top.

I was presented with a huge opportunity that could be a life-altering game-changer, OK, so it wasn’t exactly what I wanted but considering the year I had experienced, I truly felt it was a sign from God. I convinced myself that this was my lifeline until I learned the company had decided to go in another direction. This hit me hard.

I became very despondent, not even sharing with my husband. I would have panic attracts at night and lost my fire and desire. I felt like a total failure. Due to loss of revenues, I had stopped my own coaching vowing to re-engage my coaches when things turned around, not my best decision. I didn’t know what to do and felt embarrassed and depressed. Until one day, my coaches reached out to me, I shared what had been happening, and they realized my issues were deep, requiring even more help than they could provide. I took their advice and today feel like a new woman.

As I look back now, while I can still feel the hardship and angst, I felt throughout the year. I realize now it truly was the best year of my life.  The pain and struggles I experienced were necessary, forcing me to address some deeply embedded issues that had plagued me all my life.  

Listening to old, outdated scripts, bowing to the traditional measurement of success, and constantly feeling that if I felt short of being a champion, achieving at everything I do, I wouldn’t be loved. This is what was holding me back.

Accepting my own frailties, being willing to ask for help from professionals, and with the support of a loving and gentle husband, I slowly came out of my personal slump, and then magically, everything changed.

Being able to accept me without a requirement to be exceptional in everything I do, transformed my attitude and outlook on life, and that is the moment business came pouring in.  It was like a light was flipped on. Within 2 weeks of feeling better about myself and my life, business came strolling in.

While at first, it seemed crazy, I realize there was a purpose to this craziness. As I struggled throughout the year, it was my negative energy that was repelling business. I tried to force God’s hand and allowed my internal warrior to take over, not my proudest moment.

The minute I accepted my new vision of what success means to me, I began to emanate positive energy attracting more business at an amazing rate.

It’s a bit hard sharing my challenging year (it’s easier now that it’s over). Sharing my challenges conflicts with my old scripts of always being successful or having no weakness, but now I have learned that success isn’t always what we think.  Really uncovering what success means to you and accepting every aspect of who you are is critical to your personal and business growth. That’s when the magic happens, and you truly start living the dream.

My wish is for all female advisors to experience life and business filled with love, laughter, and a true sense of purpose.

If this scenario hits close to home for you, please feel free to contact me directly, as I am here to listen and help during this time of growth.