Aspire for More with Erin
Aspire for More with Erin
Reflecting on 2024 and Setting Intentions for 2025
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Reflecting on 2024 and Setting Intentions for 2025
In this solo episode, Erin reflects on the accomplishments and challenges of 2024, discussing important questions to evaluate personal growth and set intentions for the upcoming year. She emphasizes the significance of intentionality, overcoming imposter syndrome, and being clear about one's message and audience. Erin shares her journey as an entrepreneur, the importance of resilience, and the value of consistency. She encourages listeners to embrace change, learn from past experiences, and set clear goals for 2025, while valuing the process over outcomes.
00:00 Introduction and New Year Reflections
01:15 The Importance of Reflection and Intentionality
03:10 Embracing the Entrepreneurial Journey
05:20 Overcoming Imposter Syndrome
09:29 Defining Your Audience and Message
11:59 Learning from Rejection and Acceptance
15:54 Consistency and Long-Term Goals
22:40 Time Blocking and Productivity Tips
25:41 Resiliency and Personal Growth
30:37 Conclusion and Future Plans
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Howdy folks. Happy New Year. Erin here. thank you for joining me for another year of aspiring for more for you and for me and for our residents inside of our community and the people we serve. As promised, this episode is going to be about answering specific questions for looking back at the year that 2024 was and looking towards the year that 2025, what you want it to be, which is really important. Although Look, a turn of the year, it's just another day, right? We went from Tuesday to Wednesday, and the only thing that changed was the year, right? A month, a year. But there is something really symbolic about being able to turn the page of a big event in our life, which is one year. I think it's okay to celebrate it. And I also think it's okay to say it's just another day. But in the interest of Year over year growth, being intentional about what we want and celebrating small wins and acknowledging our losses and lessons learned. I think it's a great opportunity for us to look back and think ahead about what we can create for ourselves this year. In my weekly email, that I send out every Saturday morning, there were about nine to ten questions. That I said that we would answer on today's episode and I want to be the example of what This could be for you because I like being the example. I think it's important as a mentor to people that I use my experience to give you permission to succeed or fail, to give you permission to think the way that you think, to give you permission to say, I don't want to think this way anymore, or I'm going to continue to think this way because it's helping me. And to give you permission to change, because I believe it's very important to not allow who you used to be to get in the way of who you want to become. So you have to become very intentional about what is getting in your way. And I think reflection, taking the minute to answer some questions and really have some hard truths with yourself. whether that's a good thing, okay. Or a bad thing, right? Whether you're succeeding in all the right ways, or you could be doing better, right? We have to do this exercise for ourselves, because we want to control the narrative in our life. We want to control the story that we tell ourselves, and we have to look at the facts to figure out if the story is true. I will tell you a funny story of how real that, Last statement of understanding what's true and what's not is very important. I am an entrepreneur. I obviously do no longer work in a community anymore, and I own a business. I own Aspire for More with Erin. It's a leadership, development, training, mentoring, strategic advisor for senior living leaders and also operators, small operators, regional operators that want to create mentoring programs for their companies, for their leaders. And I sometimes I get in a frame of thinking, like most people do, that, I'm not doing all that I can do, or that it's never going to be the success that I know that it can be, or that maybe this is a hobby and not a real business well, in your 1st, year of business, especially mine, as I am an executive director by trade and not necessarily an entrepreneur or a quote unquote business woman. An understanding of all the business principles, I would get into these really deep ruts of thinking. And so finally, I sat down and I actually looked at the finances. I looked at what I had brought in, what revenue I had generated, what expenses that I had spent. And I realized, hey, This is not a hobby. I actually am generating some revenue, right? For those who don't know, having a startup company sometimes takes a long time to get off the ground. And if you want my honest opinion, I have just been uncomfortable about being an entrepreneur. Just the word itself, I've just had to come to terms with what that meant. And a mindset that. what that means in my life around. So in my first year, I was really hard on myself until I saw the numbers. And so this year I had the same kind of deep, dark rut throughout 2024, certain times, and I did the numbers again and it turns out. I made more the 2nd year than I did the 1st year, and there's a question that we have to answer. What do you need to stop doing in 2025 and my most authentic and vulnerable answer. Of what I need to stop doing in 2025 is to stop being scared of being a business owner to stop not wanting to say I'm an entrepreneur. I have a new identity and that is being a business owner and an entrepreneur. And I think for so long, I have had imposter syndrome about it. I don't know how to explain it. But for 2025, that is the identity I am assuming. I am a business owner. I offer services to help people, to consult people, to help train people, and to mentor people. That is a business. I am a businesswoman. So that is the first question that I will start with today. What do you need to stop doing in 2025 so you can reach the potential and the goals that you want? What is the mindset shift that you have to take? Are you afraid of being successful? do you have imposter syndrome about something and so therefore you are literally not even trying? I think one of the reasons why I am scared of the word entrepreneur and saying I'm a businesswoman is because I don't have 20 years of experience in business as I do inside of the community. My comfort zone is inside of the community. And so if I don't succeed as a business owner, that's scary to me. And I don't want to fail. And so therefore by being in the middle, being a lukewarm person, I'm stuck because I haven't committed. And so I'm going to stop not committing. And I'm going to tell people I am a business owner and this is what I do. And in fact, I, finished recording a course for new executive directors or actually started and finished part of it, yesterday. And I'm feeling very confident about what 2025 will bring. I have to own where I'm going if I want anybody else to believe that I can solve problems for them. So what are you doing thinking? Avoiding because you have imposter syndrome around it, stop doing that, whatever that is, stop doing that and start owning who you are, the successes that you have and put yourself out there regardless, right? Once you can own it and then clarify and be very intentional about the goals and not assign worth and value to the outcome. which is probably inherently what I have been doing, it becomes freeing. Because what does it matter if I don't succeed to the way that a million dollar, five million dollar business man or woman? My value is not determined by the amount of money that I make per year, Or whether or not I am successful or not as a businesswoman. My goal is the impact that I can give to people with the experience that I have. I have to become more clear about what that looks like for 2025. So I'm going to stop being Non committal and start clarifying my message and creating a mindset that allows me to fail forward. or, and be successful. So in that vein, what do I want to start doing in 2025? I want to start clarifying my message a little bit more. I want to get very specific about what I want, but that also ties into what I need to stop doing. and this will actually tie into a reflection, but 1 thing that I learned as a senior living leader inside of a community is that we think that we are for everybody and so therefore our marketing message inside of a community. Or for senior living, we want to take anybody and everybody who needs a place for senior living or who needs a place to live that offers activities of daily living. So I learned inside of the community that the stories that we tell, the roadblocks that we may have. If our community has small apartments, or if it's in memory care, or if it's, a community that has two stories, or three stories, or ten stories, and the people don't like elevators, you learn very quickly that you're not for everybody. Because if a resident comes in tours and is scared to death of elevators, and you have one, and they have to ride it to get to their apartment, the odds are that resident is not for you. And so we have to craft a message inside of a community to try to attract the people that we know our community can serve. And if you have an elevator, you're not going to serve people who are scared of elevators. it's the same way for a business woman. It's the same way for you inside of your community. Who are you for? One of the things that I'm going to stop doing in 2025 is to believe that I am for everybody. And have a very open message about who benefits from my services. And I'm going to start being very clear about who my services are for. Because then I can speak to the people that I can impact the most. They can actually hear me. They can see me. And they can benefit from my mentorship. And the same goes for you. Who is your community for? Who are you for? This kind of ties back to the reflections part of the questions. The question is, of all the people who have entered and exited your life, what perspective did you gain from them? I believe this question is a, reminds me of rejection. And I have learned be thankful for people who leave your life. Because when people leave your life, you are left with the people who will add value to your life. And I think that's important for us to understand. Rejection is a redirection. Rejection is a clarifying moment in your life where you are no longer around people, or working with people, or Working for people that don't value you, that don't need the services that you offer. I believe on the other side of every rejection is acceptance. Once you take the accountability for your part, or if you say, I don't have to keep trying to make somebody see me, to make somebody value me, to make somebody love me love me. Anymore, I'm free because the truth is you're never going to be enough for the wrong people and you will be more than enough for the right people. when people leave your life, let them, listen to them, be okay with it and look for the silver lining because there is one. Don't hold on to people who do not want to be held on to. And don't think of yourself as less than because they've left. Take with you what you gain, and learn from it, and move forward. And always have grace if and when people get to enter back into your life. Cause, Because this world is too small and life is too long to think that we're never going to see people again or run into people or grow into different roles and see those people again. So it's really important to not view loss as something that devalues you. In fact, loss can actually create more value for you. When you find yourself with people who bring out the best in you instead of you constantly having to work to feel valuable in their presence. it's taken a long time to be able to let people leave and not feel like I need to try to win them back, earn their love back, earn their respect. the difference has been for me that I have valued my time, my energy, and my goals more than I ever have. understanding. What I want, who I am, who I want influencing my life, and who I, as a business, am for gives me clarity, it gives me freedom, and it gives me confidence. So, I'm stopping thinking that I am for everybody, and I am starting to be very clear. And intentional with my time and energy and appreciating people for the time they are in my life and valuing and learning from the experience as a whole, moving forward in the future. The next question is, what did I learn about me in 2024 that I'm going to take forward into 2025? think one of the things that I've always known about myself is that my consistency is one of my strengths. And I have also learned, this is kind of funny, I'm probably the best volunteer there is out there. I love what I do so much that I give away my time a lot for free because I want to learn, because I want to be better at my craft, because I love helping people. It's just something that brings me energy and joy and it's very fulfilling and I have learned through my own mentors that the goal of being a business owner is a long term game and I would say it's the same way as a senior living leader, especially if you're in a community that is is struggling and needs to be turned around. It's a long game. It's not necessarily a short game. And what you're going to need is to be consistent and to be consistent even when it looks like nothing is happening that your long term goals, your values, and the reason why you're doing what you're doing is really important. And that you can only get better by doing more reps. I'm consistent. Even when nothing is happening, because when the time comes, I'm going to be ready. I learned that from being inside of a community. And it's something that we need to do as humans to realize the goal. in order for me to be ready to be at that goal, I have got to start the process, baby steps, not give up. I gotta put more reps in because as more reps I put in, the better I'm gonna be. to not put a lot of value in the process, In people's opinions, or their lack of understanding of what you're doing, for example, I have spoken at a lot of different associations in 2024 and I have, quite a few booked for 2025 if you don't know, most of these association breakout sessions, you do not get paid for. I think I got paid for one presentation last year. I am getting paid for a few more this year, but most of these breakout sessions that you go to at state associations, they don't get paid. And typically I've had to pay to fly to get there, the hotel, the whole thing. as supportive as the people in my life are, like my parents and different friends, the first thing they ask me when I tell them I was selected to speak at a so and so's association is are you getting paid? Well, the answer to that question is no, and instantly you go from being super excited to being completely, brought down to earth and say, this is for the experience. This is to put the reps in this is, to get the work to do a presentation and learn how to deliver it in a very powerful and impactful way. And they don't understand. And a lot of people don't, and honestly, you can't keep doing this forever for free, but if your goal is a long term goal, you have to sacrifice to become good at a craft that you want to be good at. It's just like being a beginner in a senior living leadership role. Your first six months. are awful. You are doing everything you can to keep your head above water because you're walking in as a new leader and everybody's expecting you to know exactly what to do on day three. And you don't. And you don't know the patterns in the community and you're trying to figure it out and you're trying to learn people's names and all the things. There is a time where it seems It's hard and it's never going to get better. But when you are consistent and you know what your long term goals are and you're putting value in the growth through the process. One day, it's going to just click and you will be ready for the opportunities that come your way. But if you're not consistent, you're probably never going to get those opportunities and you certainly won't be ready. it's really important to understand and that's what I learned most about me this year, is being consistent and being able to think bigger picture and connect the dots together of where I want to be. And what I want to do and what I have to do in order to be ready for opportunities that come my way. write down what you feel like you learned about yourself. Resiliency, being able to do it even though it may not feel great, right? Being able to get yourself back up off the floor after you gave it everything you had and it was hard. It didn't quite hit the mark. These are important things you've got to give yourself credit for to figure out what you learned. And so now, next time something like this comes up, you already have the skills. You already have the mindset to get you to keep going and doing better. What experiences brought you the most joy? I will tell you some of the biggest, most joyful experiences I had were meeting people who listened to the podcast, meeting podcast guests, meaningful relationships that are built, and meeting them in real life. That honestly is so fulfilling to me because I am a people person. I ran a community that was 124 residents, 110 associates, lots of family members, and most days I'm alone in a house talking to myself on a Zoom video or, other people on Zoom videos and I really miss the interaction. And so being at conferences around my people and meeting people that I just respect. is something that is very fulfilling for me. it gives me energy, it gives me life, and I love every minute of it. My coaching clients, meeting them and helping them find their own voice. voice their own way, helping them identify the stories they tell themselves and how it's not true and helping them gain the success that they want. That brings me joy. And speaking, the webinars that we do, the opportunities to go and create presentations that Bring value to people in a very specific way is something that creates a lot of energy and fulfillment for me. I love that. Some of the habits and practices that I want to continue, I think this is something that each of us could actually work on. I'm thinking of like the former version of myself inside of a community. I did okay with this, and then I did really awful with this on my own, and I'm starting to get better at it. It's time blocking. If you literally give yourself an hour every day where you shut your door in your office and you say I'm going to work on these three projects without interruption. There are some of us inside of the community that leave the door open and go solve everybody's problems and we still have a list a mile long that we have to do. That's not good. We cannot solve other people's problems if we're not solving our own first. And that was something that I came to realize as a leader in the community that I need to get done what I need to get done first, what can only be done by me, and then I can start helping other people solve their problems. Now, obviously there are days and emergencies where, nothing goes as planned, and we have to just You know, submit to the day and go to sleep and come back and try it again the next day. But I would say that I have learned this year, specifically, waking up early and getting stuff done is one of the most peaceful and exciting times for me. And that is not something that I could ever tell you before. So if you woke up And exercised or wrote the emails or looked at the spreadsheets or drank your cup of coffee and read a book that, changes your life. Those things are really important and make you feel a little bit more balanced and in control of your day. that gives me a lot of Joy. Structure. Head start. Almost. And it's something that I want to continue to do. In the community, I felt like an hour before stand up was something, it was a quiet time that I felt like I had a little bit to myself. And also the hour between 5 and 6 felt as if, I could get a lot of things done to set myself up for the next day. So time blocking is really important for me. Time blocking is making sure I have the time to write my emails, do my social media content, just different ideas, presentations to where I set a timer and I'm like, okay, I'm going to work on this for the next hour. without interruption. That's what time blocking would be. So if you have a financial review or if you have to get ready for a care plan meeting, to say, I need this 30 minute window to really focus and be prepared for these meetings is something is what you have to do to be prepared and ensure that you are leading in an appropriate and impactful way. let's look at a reflection from 2024. With all the challenges you faced this year, how did you keep your head above the water? What did you learn about your resiliency and what have you noticed are your strength areas? I kept my head above water because I kept connecting to people who would keep me going, who would tell me to keep going, who sees potential, who can make me aware of what I'm doing wrong and what I'm doing right. and help me adjust the balance. And I, again, did not assign worth to dollar amounts or outcomes. It is about growth. And I think what I now know more than anything of what kept me feeling so stuck for so long was growth is my responsibility, and it's uncomfortable, and it's required. You can't be stuck if you're learning how to create opportunities to become unstuck. And that growth is our responsibility. It's not our company's responsibility. It's our responsibility. I don't want to be the same forever. I want to change and yet I want to remain who I am. Which sounds like an oxymoron, but it's not. It's I want to be authentically me. I want to be true to what my core values are and I want to continually improve and change and become different versions of what those values are outside into the professional world and also in my personal world. I want to level up to the next level of What an Aspire for More leader is. What I want to be as a coach, what I want to be as a speaker, who I want to be as a podcast host. That's really important. And I've noticed my strength is what's mine will be mine when it's expected. What's mine will be mine when it's the perfect time for me. I know that and I want to be ready and that's what resiliency means for me. I'm going to continue to add more growth and value to myself. I'm going to continue to be consistent with all the things that I promised. I'm going to continue to give in order to receive and not to expect anything. I'm going to continue to add value and in webinars and in value to myself. And I'm going to, and I'm going to do what it takes to remain as consistent as possible. With the number one consistent thing that I can do is to not assign my worth to an outcome or a dollar amount, but to the process of growing. I understand today more than ever that my purpose
Microphone (Yeti Stereo Microphone)-1:the guiding lights in my life, are kindness, creativity, and inner harmony. the fact that I know that and I get to use those three guiding lights in my life in a way that helps other people is really important. Gosh, I don't like to talk about myself for, 30 plus minutes, but I do think it's important for you to see what the exercise is like, asking yourself these questions and feeling vulnerable and strong at the same time. Clarity is priceless. Intentionality is growth life is worth living when you're becoming who you were made to be. Get your mind right. Set your boundaries, protect what's important to you, and allow what isn't needed to fall off without picking it up. And give to be kind and not to receive. And watch how it's given back to you in such amazing ways. And don't assign your worth to others. To an outcome, be happy, and grow through the process, even when it's tough, because storms are not of rain, who you are, who you want to be on the other side of the tough times is worth fighting for. Let the people go that need to go, and welcome the people in, who can impact your world In such a positive impactful way. Thank you for listening today. I am scheduling. amazing guests for you for the rest of the year. I am going to do more solo episodes like this, a lot of mentoring stuff coming up. If there is a topic you want to hear, then please message me, email me, find me on LinkedIn. If you want my mentoring emails every Saturday morning around 8am, in the show notes, there will be a link for you to join. Until then, and take care. If you want to be a part of my new executive director, aspiring leaders, go ahead and send me an email because we're going to be doing a lot of growing together and I'm excited about that. Thank you so much for being here. I hope that you aspire for more for you. I hope that you ask these questions to get real with yourself and I hope you get intentional about making yourself more valuable this year so you can add value to others. Have a great first week of the year.