But It's Tax Season | Ep #118

Hey, I'm Chris Placke, host of the Lead you'd team podcast. Running a million dollar business is not easy. And whether you're just getting started with building your team or you've been at this for a while, I'm going to bring you honest, specific and clear practices you can use right now, today to improve how well you lead your team. Let's go ahead and get.

Well. Hello and welcome. I'm so glad that you're here. I'm so glad that I'm here. I have to tell you, the last few months right after such a crazy pandemic, and not that it's over, I know it's not over, but I'm fully vaxxed, so I'm so excited. And I've been to Hawaii and then last week I went to New York and did a had our team a team retreat in Montauk, which I've never been to Montauk before. So if you've never been to Montauk, the Hamptons, Holy moly was amazing and gorgeous and I didn't know we were there. Perfect timing because it wasn't. It was off season, so it was really quiet. Not all the restaurants were open, but it still was so lovely. And great shops. Anyway, Montauk and I did a one day retreat with current clients, which was amazing. Always so fun to get together with my clients in person, spend the day together on a cozy couch. And we just talked about all the things, just things that women like us like to talk about. And I think you know what I'm talking about. Just sort of really thinking about it. I find that so many of the women, I shouldn't even say so many, all of the women I work with are so thoughtful and reflective and wise and willing to explore, you know, their brains and their beliefs and where they're stuck and challenge themselves to that next level. And so we end up having really powerful dialogues and meaningful conversations that really move people. I'm always moved, which is the added benefit of the work I do with other people. I get all this benefit too, but so we had an amazing day and then I went into New York City and spent some time with my aunt. And being in New York, what a crazy city. Holy smokes. We ate outside on the street.

In a tent. Anyway, what a crazy life we're living. So I'm just glad that you're here. I'm glad I'm here and I don't know, maybe I'll meet you someday. Wouldn't that be fun? Anyway, I have a New client and had a CEO. I met her yesterday. She lives in Australia. Shout out to you. I know you know who you are. And she said she's been listening to the podcast for years. And for many of you, you have. Because I had a podcast before this one that was a little bit different. And she was so cute. She's like, I just listen and I get all the ideas, but the. Then I get so busy and I don't do the things. And so I just knew I had to finally sign up and show up. And then it's so fun to meet you and, like, talk to you and help you, you know, there's so much I pack into this podcast, and I know for myself I can't just listen to something and then go do it. I need a little guidance and some feedback and am I doing it right or that didn't work. You know, that kind of support. So if that's you, please join us in the how to CEO program. We can now help you register. We're not doing launches anymore, so you don't have to wait till August to start. We just want you to meet. Meet with our Director of Client engagement, Amy, and make sure that we get your questions answered. So all you have to do is go to Chrisplackie.com appointment and book some time and just meet her and get your questions answered. Find out, do you want to do this or not? We do cute little fun things for people who make decisions quickly. You might want to find out what that is. So, anyway, so today I'm going to talk to you about something that I am not calling out my accountants on purpose. I'm just using a phrase that I hear you say regularly.

Which is it's tax season. And I think we all have a phrase that is it's tax season. So stay with me. So I do retreats, as you know. Usually in the fall is my. Is my Hawaii retreat. Although I'm anyway, usually in the fall, and inevitably I have an accountant who will say to me, oh, I wish I could go, but it's tax season.

And then if it's something in the spring, oh, God, I wish I could go, but you know, it's tax season. So I thought that tax season was like, theoretically, October 15th and April 15th, right? Like, those are the big. Or maybe it's September 15th. Like, those are the big cutoffs. So then when I was doing this thing in Montauk, and you know who you are, I know you're listening to this podcast. I hear it was. It was going to be May 5th or something, and she's like five hours away. Finally could meet her in person and she's like, oh, it's tax season.

Listen, I'm not trying to minimize the level of work that people have. I really do understand. I'm. All of us have a lot to do and we have deadlines and we have all the things, but we all have a tax season. Now, here's mine. It's soccer season. So mine's less about work, more about what's going on with my kids. Right? Oh, my daughter, she's got so many. Soccer. It's soccer season. Like, there's so much going on, I can't possibly. Right. Oh, it's. It's holiday season. Some of you. It's like, oh, no, no, it's, it's, it's whatever season. It's fourth quarter, it's third quarter. It's. It's, it's second quarter. It's. No, it's winter. No, this is peak season. No, it's summer. Summer, peak season. Like, what is it? What is it for you that makes you say, oh, no, I can't live my life. I can't make commitments outside of my business. I can't do something that I really want to do because it's blank, blank, blank season. And do you love that? Do you like it? Are you okay? Some of you are like, no, it's fine. Because of the rest of the year, it's not a problem. But I don't actually think that's true for most people. It's either, like pre season or in season. Then there's the post post season. Now, the reason this is a problem, my loves, whatever your quote unquote season is, is because you don't have the team. You don't have a team that supports you. You don't have a team that can do the work without you. Or you have some mind drama that says that you can't leave because it won't be done without you. You have to be there. You're the only one. Why do you set yourself up like that? Especially if you've been in business a long time? No, to me, it's an unreasonable excuse. That all I hear when people say, oh, I can't get away, it's XYZ season, is I haven't built a team that can lead and manage itself without me, or I'm a control freak and I can't leave because what if something goes wrong without me, right? So one of my other clients is a florist. She came To Montauk this week. Past week. She's a florist. She came to Montauk on the Thursday before Mother's Day. One of probably the outside of Valentine's Day. I'm guessing Mother's Day is the biggest other flower holiday of the year. I'm guessing. And she was freaking out. Oh my God, it's Mother's Day. I don't like cac. Right? And of course, me being her coach, I'm like, oh, no, this is perfect. You need to leave immediately, take three days off.

Let's do this. So she came and she was so cute because she didn't have her phone next to her. She kept her phone off. She didn't look at it until the end of the day when we finished, like 5:30. And she was really proud of herself that she did it because this is part of her stepping into who she wants to be as a woman and a CEO that she doesn't want to say, oh, it's Mother's Day. Oh, I have a wedding. Oh, it's Valentine's Day. Oh, it's Christmas, so I can't live my life.

She texted me when she got home, which I was slightly perturbed with her because she drove home after this retreat and it was a long drive, but she did get home safely. But she texted me the next day and said, yeah, everything was fine without me. And the good news is, even if everything wasn't fine, even if Joyce and Jane and Louise didn't get the right flower arrangement or, you know, the vases all broke in the back room, or who knows, right? Who knows what could happen? We all know, right? We can't predict that even if all of that was true, it would have been okay. There are so few of us, you guys, who have jobs where, like, people are gonna die if it doesn't go well. We gotta stop taking ourselves so seriously. And you have to be able to if you're going to build this beautiful business. And you want a seven figure business and you want to be able to make money and you want to be able to take. The whole reason you wanted to be an entrepreneur was to create a lifestyle for yourself, to have freedom, to have flexibility. And then you chain yourself to your business and then you miss out. Or you use it as an excuse, which to me is worse. Don't blame your business because you don't want to go away. Don't blame your business because you don't want to invest in yourself. Don't use your business as an excuse. Just say no. That's. I'm not interested in that. I'm not ready for that. It's not something I want to do. Rather than, oh, I'm too busy, I can't. Right, like, let's just stand in what we want and own it. Let's be big girls. Let's be women or trust your team. Let them make mistakes. Last week, our guest expert was Julie Simpson, the founder and CEO of Resource it. She's. She is so dynamic and amazing. She's from England and just captivating. And I loved what she gave this whole presentation about the seven words that every, that every leader really needs to know. And, and she was talking about good and bad CEOs. And one of the things she talked about that she's witnessed that she knows with someone who's, quote, unquote, not CEOing well, is someone who can't tolerate failure. Failure is a part of the jam, y', all. And they're gonna fail whether you're sitting at your desk or whether you're in Tahiti. So.

I don't know, let's go to Tahiti, right? Like, why you gotta take this so seriously? And if you don't have the team, if you really are so overwhelmed, right? I had somebody say to me the other day, how do you get me more time? Huh? You hire more people. If you, you either have more money, then you have time, or more time than you have money. As soon as you start getting busy, you're going to start having more money. And there is a sweet spot where you're going to have to hire people before money is all there. But if you, if you're just telling me and I can't come because that's tax season or whatever that is, and it's legit because you've only got two people working for you, guess what time it is, love. It's time to hire. And if you don't know how, get over here and work with me. What are you doing? Every single client that has ever paid me money in this how to CEO program tells us they made the money back in a heartbeat. Like, don't worry, this is an investment. This is not. This is not a cost. Your secret that you want, the thing that you want more than anything so that you're not working as hard and you're not feeling so overwhelmed and you're not so emotionally triggered and you're not. So you're not abandoning the parts of your life that you love and you're not working at 2 in the morning and you're not staying up till 11 o' clock at night and you're not getting up at 4 to get to the office. And you're not all those things, all those things you wish you weren't doing that you wish would change. All of it is at the other end of a team. It's not more revenue, it's not a better marketing plan. It's not finding better leads. It's at the other end of a team. Because there's always going to be tax season. And if you're lucky, that's true. If you're in a business that is thriving and you're making money and you've got a ton of customers, you're always going to have a busyness to you, good news. But if you use that as the reason that you don't live your life, then you're not living it. You won't. You'll always have fourth quarter, tax season, Mother's Day, whatever. Stop it. The magic you seek, the freedom you want, it is available and it is on the other side of doing the work of learning how to hire and manage and lead and fire and coach people. Little preachy, little preachy. This week.

I just want to shake you all. I get so frustrated because I see you suffer. You don't have to suffer.

Okay, come on, let's go. Let's fix it all. It's amazing. So much fun to be had, this beautiful life. All right, so if you're now totally convinced that you need to meet me immediately in the how to CEO program, you actually can. You could be working with me by next week. If you come to Chrisplackie.com appointment, meet with Amy, ask all the things, find out all the things, and rock it. Let's do this. Okay, everyone, have a wonderful afternoon, morning, night, wherever you are. Okay, talk to you soon. One more thing before you go. In a world of digital courses and online content, I like to work with my clients live. Because I know that when you have someone you can work with, ask questions of and meet with, you're so much more likely to get the success that you want. So head on over to how to ceolive.com to learn more about our very exciting, very exclusive program just for female entrepreneurs. We'll see you there.