5 Ways to Find Community in Entrepreneurship
I boarded a flight to take a quick 1 hour 47 minute flight back to Maryland from a work trip in Atlanta.
As I waited patiently to walk down the aisle to my 32A seat (window lovers unite) I saw a fellow traveler in row 25 with a hat with some writing on it and I was intrigued. It said “Make Money Not Friends.”
I pondered before walking back to my seat, stored my backpack in the seat in front of me and settled into my seat.
I’ve concluded that I don’t agree with that hat.
After almost 6 years in business I can confidently say if my business made no more money it would STILL be a success because of not only the life lessons I have learned but the friends who I have made along the way.
I can vividly remember the first time I interacted with Hannah. I was holed up in my 9 month old son’s nursery about to host a First Friday Webinar on Zoom (before Zoom was cool). Hannah along with a handful of others attended as I shared some tips and tricks for organizing a pretty hefty project.
She soon after became a favorite follow on Instagram and a frequent chat buddy in the DM’s. Until one day she sent me a DM that basically was like “I really like your vibe, let’s work together.” And the rest is history, truly.
I think about amazingly strong, confident and compassionate Sara Stapleton who coached me for years to be a better coach myself.
I think about bold, beautiful, inspiring Bri Guillory who helps people see their true beauty through color analysis who helped teach and grow G&G in the education space.
I think about smart, strategic, empathetic Jennifer Sise who helps entrepreneurs leverage their time and who is walking alongside G&G in this season.
There are countless other entrepreneurs, educators, coaches, friends who I would have never met without having this business.
Now, I admit financial gain is a part of business. I just taught about the pull between income producing activities and tasks you love or resist at the To-Do List Tackler workshop.
I also have bills to pay, teammates to compensate and goals to meet.
I also love that being in business has expanded my network beyond my local community, cultures or industries. And truly these connections have made me better. A better leader, a better friend, a better parent, a better person.
You might be thinking, welllll I just spend time scrolling and haven’t been able to find those people yet. You might even feel alone in your entrepreneurship journey. If so, I want to share a few ways that you can actively work to makeI connections in the online business space.
These are all things that I’ve personally done and can honestly say they’ve all been effective in some capacity!
FIVE ways to find connection in ENTREPRENEURSHIP
1️⃣ Join a community
Contrary to what the online business world might make you think, you don’t have to be alone. You can join others who are in the same boat as you through a community!
If you read the “3 Things Mentors Can Help You With” Blog you know I am doubling down in my writing game this year. And to help me gain skills while meeting new people who are trying to accomplish the same I joined the Writer’s Room membership. I get live calls, feedback, training and slack with my writing besties 👯 lead by the amazing Natty Davis.
I know the rockstar health coaches are loving the Olive Grove Community with two of my favorite biz owners Olivia and Alexa.
And your very own Hannah Wedger is a part of the Restart Collective with Amber and Jennifer.
The point is finding what community is right for you and diving in to make your entrepreneurship journey a little more connected!
2️⃣Engage with posts/creators you vibe with
Need an easier way to dip your toe into meeting other entrepreneurs? Start engaging with other business owners on your social media network of choice. This could be as easy as commenting on a post or blog or DMing them when you see a post you vibe with. After all, social media is meant to be SOCIAL!
Who are some of my favorite follows? Happy you asked. I am absolutely LOVING the content from Nicole Burdick and hit her up in the DMs basically daily.
Ann Vote has all your impact worthy content not only on her Instagram, but also on her What if It Works podcast.
3️⃣Go to an in-person event
Our Client Director Hannah has been pounding the pavement in her local community by attending all the business events, from the Chamber of Commerce, a Local Women’s Lunch and the Good Samaritan’s Society.
By attending events like this, she is making connections with business owners and community members alike not necessarily to sell them something, but simply to find common ground and get out of the house from time to time to interact with real human beings (IYKYK).
4️⃣Outsource (hire someone that you admire and has skills you don’t)
I am the first to admit when I am not good at something. Just today I was messaging a co-worker with the words “I don’t know what I am doing.”
In entrepreneurship (especially solopreneurship) it might seem like you HAVE to know everything and do everything to make your business run smoothly. That’s just not true.
In my early years of G&G, I quickly realized I couldn’t host a nationwide virtual conference for hundreds of attendees with handfuls of speakers by myself. And that’s when I quickly hired Hannah as a (then) speaker coach and later a creative director in the unmatched, Laura Crosby, and a systems director, Cassidy McAllister, to keep the backend moving.
Why? Because I know my strengths and my time is precious (see two kids, a military husband and FT job). I think of outsourcing as a HUGE benefit for my business but also INVESTING in high quality, absolutely amazing talent that blows anything I do OUT OF THE WATER!
You can do that too! Now, if you are thinking “there is no way I can afford to outsource at this time” I get it! My question back to you is “do you know your business priorities?”
Knowing this will help you determine what you “could” offload, should offload and what to focus on.
5️⃣Collaborate (podcast, guest post/takeover)
STOP COLLABORATE and LISTEN! Ok 90’s references are done for now.
There are business owners out there that I BET would absolutely love to collaborate with you. Maybe that means being a guest on their podcast, contributing to a guest blog post or social media post or even doing a social media takeover.
Think about business owners who are in a parallel niche. Meaning they don’t do “exactly” what you do, but your ideal clients might find value in that business as well.
For example, recently Hannah and I recorded a podcast with one of our clients Jordan Perry’s Clicks & Giggles Podcast. She is a Facebook Ads Manager and also teaches business owners how to leverage paid advertisement in their business with her Clicks that Convert Course.
Now, we do not help with paid ads, but we do help entrepreneurs make high quality decisions and develop meaningful content to increase their visibility and nurture their audience and leads so they can experience growth in their business and multiply their impact and income. I BET some of the listeners of the Clicks and Giggles Podcast might need some help with those things too!
Win Win I would say!
When you decide to step outside of your comfort zone and into an area where you can connect with others your business can start looking different.
You can find ways to share the load.
You can find people who understand what you are going through.
You can feel a sense of togetherness you haven’t experienced yet.
Finances are important, but I’ll challenge you to think if that is your only driver it might come off wrong to your ideal clients – that you are in it for the big bucks and you are ready to cut people out, leave people behind just to level up.
As someone who loves being able to invest, collaborate, and engage with other businesses, one that is solely focused on the benjamins, the beach house or the curated couture closet isn’t a business I am wanting to purchase from or even associate with.
If you agree, stay tuned because we have BIG plans for you this year to build a community of business owners who are ready to find connection in entrepreneurship. Best way to stay in the know is to join the Earning Edge Newsletter.
