650 - The CEO Shift: How to Stop Operating Like a Freelancer & Start Leading Like a Boss

Welcome to the Next Level Life podcast with Christine Corcoran. This podcast is made for the powerhouse business women who are ready to ignite their fullest potential. This is where we will dive deep into mindset breakthroughs and sprinkle in some pick up the butt motivation so you can scale your business with confidence and clarity. Whether you're craving more income, impact or inspiration, this podcast will be your ultimate resource for all things next level. Listen in as we have authentic conversations with game changing female entrepreneurs as we reveal the secrets of what it takes to rise and thrive. So go ahead, ignite your inner fire and let's get you taking massive aligned action. Are you ready to elevate? Let's go. Welcome back to the podcast. Today I want to talk to you about the next level shift. So if you have identified that you've been operating in your business as the operator. So whether you're a freelancer, whether you are the coach, whether you're the consultant, you are the person that delivers the services and you are the person that generates the income, right? If you identify as that person, the business owner and you are ready to start stepping away from doing so much of the doing and you want to start creating more impact, freedom and income and you're ready, you're ready to step up and be that, go to person in your industry, you're ready to lead like a boss and start treating your business like a proper business, then this episode is definitely for you. This next level CEO shift starts with your mindset, right? This freelancer mindset, this hustle mindset, this side hustle mentality, stepping into actually treating your business as a legitimate, successful business. We've got to recognize that if you want to create next level results, what got you here is not going to get you there. Okay, so you have created an amazing success in your business so far, which is awesome. And you've created certain results based on the mindset that you've had and the behaviors that you've put into place and the practices that you do in your business. And for you to be able to scale it to multi six figures to seven figures, something has to shift and change. And one of the biggest mindset shifts or that I mindset blocks that I see a lot of business owners have is this element around time. They're still either either selling time for money or they're in this head space of well, this is what I've created, this is the results that I've gotten, this is the success that I've got and I've got that based on what I've been able to do and it feels like it's been really hard work up until now. And I feel like if I go to that next level, I'm going to have to work much harder. And so the CEO mindset needs to come into play where we're stepping away from time, we're stepping away from the hard work, and we've got to learn to work smarter. So this is where a CEO thinks differently. And one of the best things that I have, that I have happened with my clients is they start to actually really see themselves as leaders, as go to person in the industry and they start to step up and then they get next level results because their energy is different, their magnetism is different, and their mindset is different and they're behaving in a different way. And you know, the biggest thing is that you are most confident in the things that you've been able to do up until now because you've developed skill sets and you're good at what you do. So you've developed a level of confidence that's gotten you exactly where you are right now, which is amazing and it's absolutely worth acknowledging and it feels comfortable in those areas where you're confident. So as you start to step into this next level expansion, the fears and the doubts all rise to the surface. I get it. I've been there and I go through this. So you want to recognize like, yes, I'm confident in these spaces, but I'm most confident in the operator shoes. So when you're doing the things you've always done, you're going to continue to get the same results you've always got. So if we want to change something, you've got to change first. So we've got to ditch the mindset that you have to continue to do all yourself. You've got to ditch the mindset that you have to work harder in order to get better results. We've got to ditch the mindset that this is a hobby or a side business, or this is a business that's just, you know, okay. Like one of my clients recently in the Next Level Mastermind said to me, I look at my business so differently now because I am the provider for my family and I get to choose to level this business up in a way that serves me. And I'm seeing my business as a company now. I'm seeing it as this incredible entity that will make such a positive impact in this world because I chose to start seeing and thinking bigger. Before working with me, she was Literally a freelancer. She was creating a business that was just a freelancer business that she was super comfortable in and she was okay, but it was kind of inconsistent income and she really wasn't stepping up out of her comfort zone and she really wasn't seeing herself as an incredible leader that she is. So when I saw that within her and I draw, I drew that out of her. Now she sees the sky is the limit like it is. It's so amazing to hear her talk about her business that she is now applying for incredible awards. She is now putting herself forward for opportunities that she never thought was possible before, that she didn't think she was qualified enough for. She didn't feel it, feel like she was good enough for. And now she's putting herself forward for them because she absolutely is. A majority of women that I do work with are, they're incredible at what they do, but they might have then stepped away from work and become a mum, or they might have had shit bosses in the past, or they might have upskilled, but not really seen the value in what it is that they're doing. And so we have certain experiences that shape our mindset about ourselves. And so for you to step into this next level expansion, your identity needs to level up. And that's what I mean by mindset. It's working on your identity beliefs of who you believe you are, because you will act in accordance with those beliefs. So if you believe that you've just got this little business, if you believe that you know what you've created is as good as it's going to get, if you believe that you can't have more or you can't go after more, you will continue to act in accordance with what you've got. So if you want bigger, if you want better, if you want to have more consistent income, if you want to make a bigger impact, if you want to take things to that next level and go that next and become that next level version of yourself and be the go to person for your incredible dream clients that you really want to work with. Then it starts with what's happening between your ears. It starts with your mindset and your identity. Your identity is shaped by everything you've ever experienced in your lifetime. Your education, your upbring, your religion, your culture, all the memories, all the things that people have spoken about you to you, right? All these belief systems, all your memories, all your values, your goals, your hopes and dreams, you know, your failures. Like it all shapes who you believe you are now. Just because you have been shaped by your experiences in your life does not mean you cannot change and become the next level version of yourself that you want to become. So if you want to create a business that has that next level of impact and you want to become that, go to person. It starts with your identity. We've got to unpack what's no longer serving you. We've got to release those belief systems that aren't serving you. Those old stories that you used to tell yourself will you still possibly tell yourself. And we've got to replace them with more impactful belief systems. Because if you don't believe it's possible, then it won't happen. If you don't believe you're capable, then you won't make it happen. If you don't believe that going after and creating that next level expansion business, then it won't happen. So that's what we mean by what got you here won't get you there. This is the identity shift that has to happen. And this is what I work on with my beautiful clients inside Next level Mastermind. Because that's what it's all about. Next level identity, next level visibility, next level leadership, next level income, next level expansion. It's all about this next level next level strategy that we put in place. Because again with where you're at in business, what got you here won't get you there. So we've got to release the expectation or the selling time for money. We've got to step in and start creating new things. We've got to expect more from ourselves and step things up. So it's this whole new level of expectation and boundaries that you put in place for yourself and that's next level decisions. Right? Right. Shifting from like feast and famine or shifting from just getting by, shifting from being okay with mediocre, to long term strategic thinking, to making decisions for the expansion of the business. By challenging yourself to be the person that you really want to be and acting in accordance with the vision that you're creating your business. A CEO acts very differently to an employee. So if you're carrying an employee mindset of thinking, well, I spent all this time, I should be being paid more or I'm spending all this time and why am I not getting the results? The time is irrelevant. How much value have you created? What are you producing in the time that you are spending? It's what you produce, that's how you get paid in your business. And so when you think about how much value you're giving out to the world and how you're adding more value to this, to the space of your clients and how you help them, that's got a shift. And that means your mindset has to shift. Your identity has to shift with it, right? And so if you're getting caught up in imposter syndrome, you're getting caught up in in procrastination, imperfectionism, and overthinking. They're all parts of your past identity that are no longer serving you that it's time to release and let go of. And that happens with deep mindset work. So recently at the Next Level Mastermind retreat, we did a beautiful releasing process where we worked through uncovering all these past stories that my clients were experiencing and identified that that was their past versions that they that was causing self sabotage in their current business. And we started to identify their next level version of themselves, their future selves. We work through a releasing process to rewire the subconscious mind to release old stories, old pains, old fears, old doubts. So then we can rewire it with the new belief systems of courage, tenacity, determination, backing themselves, believing in themselves, going after big next level opportunities. And then this week, they're all going after opportunities like awards and PR articles and podcast interviews and going after these next level next level things and putting out new offerings and creating new lead magnets and taking the action that it requires to create next level results. Because they're believing in themselves more. They're backing themselves now, right? So this is what it takes. There's also the leadership piece, right? Not just leading yourself, which is the most important, which is why we talk about leadership so much with regards to identity, because you're shifting your identity of who you believe you are, that you're a leader, not a follower, right? And so this is where we start to challenge and start to create authority content. Start backing yourself with no, I am really great at this and you should want to work with me, right? The more that you start to believe in your own authority, the more everybody else will see you as the go to person. It has to start with you. And we all do this through the lens of feminine CEO energy. So we're not doing this from push and hustle. We're doing this from a place of power, of ease, right? When you have that belief in yourself and you're in alignment with where you want to go, there's this magnetic energy that comes with you. I'm currently enrolling for the next round of the Next Level Mastermind. So if you're ready for this work, even if you feel uncomfortable, if you feel scared. Even if you know that the fear is showing up, that's okay. We take action in the face of fear, right? We invest in ourselves, we back ourselves and we go all in on our businesses and then we trust that the rest will come into fruition when it needs to. So if this feels, if this is a calling for you, if you're like ready for this next level and you're ready to be surrounded by other incredible women also going after next level goals, if you know that you've been playing small or you know that you've been, you know, kind of just doing the mediocre thing and just being kind of happy with it, but you know deep down you're not really happy with it and you know you're meant for more. This is what the next level mastermind is all about. It's a six month journey to expand you from the inside out or expand your business with next level strategy. And we start first with your identity. We start with with first with the mindset and your values and we start exploring next level expansion and money and we start then explain expanding into impact and visibility. So if you're ready to expand your business and take it to that whole next level and you're ready to do the work with me, then come and join me. The link is in the show notes. All right, lovely. Have an incredible rest of your day. Thank you for listening. And if you found any value out of this episode, make sure you hit the follow button so you get access to the episodes as soon as they alive. And make sure you come hang out with me on Instagram. You can find me at Christine Corcoran Underscore coach. Have an incredible week. Jesus.