Entrepreneurial Magic | Ep #102

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. Hi. Welcome to this podcast. This is going to be a fun one and a different one and I don't know, I've been doing all this work over the past several weeks to get everyone ready and register for the how to CEO program, which we started yesterday. And it was amazing and still is. It's not changing just because it was yesterday. An incredible group of women who I'm like you. That's your business. You make money. That's your business. Like, I love what people do to make money and like, survive in the world and serve and create something new. It's just always a little bit of magic, which is what the title of this podcast is, Entrepreneurial Magic. I have a lot I want to say to you all. I'm in this really powerful, I think, really fascinating and powerful time in my growth, personally. For those of you who've been listening to the podcast, that may be interesting or not to you, but I want to share with you because I believe as we grow and mature and we have our own life experiences, it influences how we lead. I think a lot of us understand that logically. But one of the books that really resonated for me with that is a book by Bill George called True north and talks about how leaders who have crucibles. When you look at these leaders, you can look at what their crucible moments, the really challenging moments are in their lives. You know, those critical catalyst experiences and how they influence their leadership and the decisions that they make. And it's a really good book. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend it. So as I am growing and my business is growing and my opportunity to work with so many women in so many ways and with so many different businesses, I'm so touched by how many people, how many women in the world are working so hard every day to make a difference, and not just for themselves and their families, but for the women and the other people that they support. And so anyway, this is just a shout out to you and that your voices, your perspectives, your wisdom is influencing me and it's helping me think more and more about what I want to help you with. Honestly, in the world. So one of the things that I really am touched by, and I'm trying so hard to invite you to be touched by too, is the magic of being an entrepreneur. I do see so many of my clients so saddled with burden and exhaustion and maybe even sometimes like a powerlessness or a hopelessness or helplessness. And, you know, when we sit in that space, we don't feel empowered or excited or we don't connect with the freedom that comes with entrepreneurialism. We connect to the slog of having a job. And I know that's not why you created a business, was to feel like ass.

But, you know, you maybe felt great in your business when it was you and one other person. And then as you grow and you add these people in, it starts to get harder and harder, harder. I really do respect that. I go through the same thing myself. I'm a right here. But I think one advantage I might have is that I never lose the magic part in my brain. I might forget it for a hot minute, but I really don't lose it. It's still ridiculous to me that this is what I get to do in the world and make a living and, you know, pay my mortgage. That's magic. That I can have this skill, whatever we're going to call it, and tap it in a way that creates an opportunity to make an exchange in the world that then supports me and my family and my clients. What? That's crazy. So whatever it is that you do, I mean, I have clients who are accountants, interior designers, house flippers, they sell products online, everything. I mean, I'm just never. Well, I shouldn't say that. I'm always astounded. Like, oh my gosh, you can make money at that. That's amaz. You get to make money at that is amazing. That's magic. And the people part is the human part, and it will always be there. And so to the extent that working with other people is hard for you, because I believe that's true for a lot of us. And then that because it feels hard, it alters you, doesn't change them, it alters you. Right. You're the one who ends up gyrating and changing your behavior and not getting what you want. And so then you're not being who you are in the world, and then you lose the magic. And I want that to stop for you. But first it's about believing if that's true. Believing that just the fact that you had an idea.

So maybe that idea was to start. I just talked to someone yesterday, right?

She's a baker, and she wants to create this gorgeous business because she loves baking and she wants to help other people be bakers. Maybe you got this idea that someone should have a cup holder in their car that does this one thing. Maybe you had this idea that everything that people buy right now they could pay 5% less if they did this thing. Maybe you had an idea to make a beautiful, yummy sweater for people to wear. Elizabeth Gilbert talks about in Big Magic that those ideas are magic and that they are alive. They are energetic sources. And I'm not sure if I'm using her language correctly, but this is how I remember her talking about it. And that those ideas will come to us and that there's no timing. So some ideas, you might. You might have had an idea when you were 10 and you still have it and it still doesn't exist in the world. Other ideas will come to you and they'll be gone overnight. Someone else will pick up the idea. Like the idea doesn't stay with you. There's no rhyme or reason to it is the way she just finds it. But that that idea has come to you is magic.

And so if you had this idea come to you and then you landed it and built it in the world and created it, that's magical.

And the part where we have to find the people to help you expand that, that's the human part. That's the relying on other people part. That's the learning how to lead and manage part. Right? And the last thing in the world you should do is give up on this magic, because it's hard to tell someone they didn't meet your expectations. To me, that's an unacceptable reason to give up on your passion, on your magic, because we were put on this planet with other humans to learn this, to learn how to express who we are, to learn how to hold our boundaries, learn how to say, that's not what I wanted. That's daily. That's driving your car. That's being in the grocery store with competing shopping cart lanes. That's like, right? It's the armrest tussle and an airplane. That's just being human. And we can either choose to evolve through that or say, I can't. And therefore I will drop the magic. I will give up on what is or could be because I don't know how to tell Sheila or Marge or John or Bill that they're not doing their job well. And that, oh, and by the way, I'm never going to find somebody who's going to do their job well. So I might as well just give up. And here's what I know. A lot of women don't give up the business so they'll keep the business, but they give up on the magic of what can happen when they lean into growing.

Extending into the team. So what they do instead is they just cloister in and exhaust themselves, burden themselves.

Deplete themselves, and they lose the magic. And then they come and I meet them, and you, I hear from you, and you're exhausted.

And you're hopeless. So this isn't as much a commercial for how to CEO as it is, really. I want you to hear me say.

You do not have to resign to what is today. If you are feeling burdened, depleted, I want you first to go back to that magic.

Maybe you decided to buy your dad's business.

Maybe you decided to buy a partner's business. Doesn't even have to be an idea that came out of your body.

It's just.

You were touched to do this for a reason.

And that reason is yours.

And.

The fact that you get to translate that now into a livelihood.

Is magic.

It didn't exist before you did it.

And it keeps existing because you're doing it. And that's so fabulous. It's miraculous, really. So I prefer magic, wonder, delight versus the other heavy feelings. That doesn't mean that I don't have challenges. I did last night. Even hiring people, getting work done through others, it's maddening when it doesn't go well.

But it's temporary.

And it's also like each individual interaction is temporary. It's also part of the deal. Like, if you want to build a business that's going to help other people, you have to be willing that the magic has two sides, right? It has the side of.

Pure joy, bliss.

Awe. And it has the side of. Are you freaking kidding me.

Right? So you are a magician, My love entrepreneur. That you are. The skill, the tenacity, the vision, everything that you have that put this thing in the world. Come on.

You're amazing.

And just because there are moments that feel delightful doesn't mean that we are entitled to those all the time. But magic doesn't go away just because you feel a little helpless. Today, magic is still there. We just have to remember what we get to do every day. Like, this is your playground. You get to. You created your own playground.

So, you know, if Johnny or Sheila today on the playground is kind of snarky, that's all right. You still don't Lose your passion for the playground. Right. If you were six, you'd just go do something else for a while. Or you'd stand up to Johnny and say, get off the swings, it's my turn.

We have to learn how to negotiate these things. So, yeah, dealing with other people can be tough. Yeah. People disappoint us. Yeah. People do shit we never thought we'd see somebody do. Of course they do.

But you.

Are surrounded by a magical thing.

And I want you to remember that. Will you do it for me? In fact, I always just love to know, like, what is magic about for you? Like, look at your business.

Look at it. Whether you're working in your office. Like, here I am in my gorgeous office, hanging out, talking to you.

My business is running. I have these beautiful women I work with every day. My team is amazing. Do we have problems? Yeah. Do we make mistakes? Amen.

A lot.

But it's still amazing. Ask yourself what's magical about what I'm doing all the time.

Even through the hard parts. Stick with it. You've got this. You're brilliant, you're capable.

I know you are.

I want to let you know too. We are building something. I'm going to host a virtual retreat. I've never done an open one before. I'm crazy excited about it. We did one in January for my current clients who signed up for how to CEO. And that was amazing. So this one is going to be a virtual treat for empathic CEOs. It's going to be powerful.

Meaningful.

Challenging, and intense. I don't know if I'd say challenging, not like in a hard way, but I want who comes to the empathic CEO retreat to be willing to evaluate and be honest with where they are and where they want to go. And what it is about your superpower, your empathic superpower that's preventing that for you. Okay, so this is going to be at the end of February. It'll be probably about a three hour live event and we're currently looking at doing it on a Saturday to help more people be able to attend. And if you want to get on the invitation list, because you do need to be invited, once we get it going, you just need to go to theempathiceo.com and you'll just add your name. Right now, it's just a. It's sort of an invite interest list. And more details will be coming, so keep your eyes peeled on that. I'm super, super, super excited to dive into this work with you and with other women like you. So have a wonderful, wonderful afternoon or morning or night, wherever you are. 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 CEO live.com to learn more about our very exciting, very exclusive program just for female entrepreneurs. We'll see you there.