She Means Profit

From Comfort Zone to Success: Mindset Strategies for Entrepreneurs

• Melissa Houston • Season 2 • Episode 165

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"The way you think determines your success." 

— Melissa Houston 

Have you ever wondered why some entrepreneurs thrive while others falter? It’s not just about skills or strategy—it's mindset. In today's episode, we're diving into the first step of my Profit Method Framework: mindset. Why start here? Because your mindset can make or break your business. It’s the foundation on which every decision is made, whether you're just starting or ready to scale to the next level. 

Whether you’re stuck in fear or just playing it safe, mindset can help you navigate through those barriers. I get it—being an entrepreneur is filled with ups and downs. You want to make an impact, but you also want financial success, and maybe you feel those two are at odds. They aren’t! You can absolutely make a lot of money while making a meaningful impact, and that’s where mindset comes into play. 

Mindset isn’t about toxic positivity or pretending everything is perfect. It’s about resilience—about understanding that fear will always be there but pushing forward anyway. I’ve often heard people say, “What if I fail?” but I encourage you to ask, “What if I succeed?” It’s a scarier question in many ways because success opens doors you might not have imagined. And yes, stepping out of your comfort zone is uncomfortable, but it’s where growth happens. 

In today’s episode, we dive deep into these mindset strategies, and I share my personal journey—from battling self-doubt to creating a seven-figure business. And believe me, it didn’t happen overnight. 

So, are you ready to transform your mindset and take your business to the next level? In this episode, I’ll show you how to reframe fear, visualize success, and stay present in your entrepreneurial journey. 

Listen to learn:‌ 

  • Your mindset is the foundation of your entrepreneurial success, influencing every decision whether you are just starting or scaling. 
  • Reframe fear as a signal for progress rather than a stop sign, recognizing that it shows you're doing something important. 
  • Failure is not final; instead, treat every setback as a valuable learning opportunity. 

Links:‌ ‌  

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Work with me:

Follow me on:

IG: @melissahoustoncpa
LinkedIn: @melissahoustoncpa

Note: We use AI transcription so there may be some inaccuracies

Melissa Houston: Hey there and welcome back to She Means Profit and this is episode 165. Today we're diving deep into the very first step of the profit method framework. If you tuned in last week, you would have heard that we introduced this new framework, which I'm super excited about because I really feel that it's going to help you at whatever stage you are in the process, you'll be able to pick up And, improve your entrepreneurship and your business throughout this framework.

Now today, mindset is the topic and why would that be the first step? And simply put, it's because your mindset truly can make or break your business. It's that crucial. So whether you're just starting out or you're looking to take your business to the next level, the way you think will determine your success.

So we're going to explore how you can transform a negative mindset into a positive one and how to overcome the fears that might be holding you back from starting your business or being fully present in your business. as you strive to make an impact, a lot of women struggle with The fact that want to make money, but we've been told for years that as women making money is greedy or that we have no place to make money, or you should just make as much money as you need to make, almost like it's taboo for us to chase wealth.

And I completely disagree with that. But before we get into my rant, let's reflect a little bit on why. We start a business. When I ask this question, the common response I get is to make an impact. And yes, We absolutely want to make an impact in our business. We start businesses that we care about, that we're passionate about, and we grow our businesses like little babies, right?

So our business, we hold near and dear to our hearts, but I want to make an impact. But I want to also make a lot of money while I make an impact, and that requires me to do things I never thought I'd do. So, for example, I never thought I'd be a podcast host. I never thought I'd be an author, a published author, traditional published author at that.

 I never thought I'd have my own column in Forbes. com. I never thought I'd start a YouTube channel, especially at my age. But I'm constantly stretching myself outside of my comfort zone because what I truly know is that when we are in our comfort zone, not a lot is happening. And I really noticed this when I started recovering from my perimenopause setback.

So in July, as I started feeling, a lot better, I realized that I had gotten too comfortable. It had been a long time since I had been out of my comfort zone. And arguably, yes, it was because I was unwell. However, I did miss it. I missed growing as a person and because I had done work on my mindset and understand now that as I grow as a person outside my comfort zone, it is easier to take risks.

They still scare me, but I don't avoid it. I know that whatever the outcome is, I'll learn something from it. So let's get into it today. I want you to keep that story in mind as we dive into this week's episode. And we're talking a lot about mindset and why it's so important as an entrepreneur. your mindset is the lens through which you view the world and it influences every decision that you make.

When you have a growth oriented mindset, you see challenges as opportunities, failures as lessons, and obstacles as mere bumps in the road. And it's true. Like once you start going, and you transition or transform your mindset into a positive one and you are living outside your comfort zone, You start seeing the world a little differently.

In business, especially as an entrepreneur, there are always going to be ups and downs. There will be moments when you feel like you're on top of the world and others where you might have questioned why you started your business in the first place. But the difference between entrepreneurs who thrive and those who falter often come down to mindset.

A negative mindset is going to leave you second guessing yourself, seeing only risks and giving up at the first line of trouble. And as I'm talking about this, I have story that comes to mind where I have a friend who I see she struggles with her mindset. She has the same opportunities as me.

I'm not going to get into it too much because, I don't want to give who she is away and I want to respect her privacy. However, we both have the same opportunities and I noticed the way we look at them is very different. And, I look at things as challenges. I've come to realize that rejection is never personal and that if I have failed at something, failure, actually, I don't like that word because failure is permanent, right?

Failure to me means that you've been knocked down and you've decided to stay where you are. You're not getting up. You're not dusting yourself off. You've quit. You're done. That's it. Whereas me, when I put myself out there and I get rejected and it happens a lot, I also see that there's always lessons in the rejection.

So I look at the situation and I'm like, why was I rejected? What can I change for the next time to make sure the outcome will be more favorable? So whether I'm looking to make more money, whether I'm looking to, get I don't know, an opportunity that, a coveted opportunity, whatever the case may be.

If I fail, I don't look at it as failure. I look at it as a way to take a lesson from it and try again. Whereas my friend looks at it as failure packs up and that's it. She's done. And the difference is that as I learn my lessons and I continue to grow and evolve, I'm getting closer to where I want to be, whereas she has not moved at all.

She's like, no, I've tried everything I'm done. So you want to think about that, especially as an entrepreneur, right? Because if you want to build your business, There's going to be a lot of setbacks, but if you pack up and you're like, no, I'm done. obviously the world doesn't want me to succeed. You're defeated.

But if you look at it as like, okay, I want to learn from this experience and help myself get to my goals. Then you've got a growth mindset and it's going to help you. So it's not just about staying positive. I believe like especially toxic positivity. Don't even get me started on that a mindset is not about being positive.

It's about being resilient and Resilience is the ability to keep going to adapt and to push through challenges even when things get tough because they will get tough And this is why the mindset is the very first step in the profit method framework. If you start your journey with the right mindset, you're setting yourself up success.

Without it, you're building on shaky ground. So now what if you're not naturally inclined to have a positive mindset? That's a really good question because I can tell you I was not when I first started. what if fear, doubt, or negativity is holding you back? So the good news here is that mindset is not fixed.

It's something that you can change with practice and intention. first step I took is I recognized my negative thoughts and patterns and that they were holding me back. Maybe you're telling yourself that you're not good enough, that you don't have the skills, or that it's too risky to start a business.

These are limiting beliefs and they can be incredibly powerful if you let them take root. I did this for years and years and years. So those of you who are familiar with my story, in 2008, I decided I'd try my hand at business. I always wanted to be an entrepreneur, but it was never something that was encouraged in my family.

Right? So in 2008, I was like, I can't take it anymore. I want to be. On my own, doing my own thing, but I didn't know what to do. And back in 2008, there wasn't like a lot of support or anything. And I decided to be a consultant stupid move. I mean, really, it was just like being employed, except I just didn't have the regular paycheck.

I did not enjoy it. So I went back to work and then in 2013, I was like, okay, I'm going to start again. So I built a website and, I got some business cards, got my headshots done and thought, okay, my website's up. They're going to come. I had no clue about SEO or any of that stuff. I did not know about digital marketing.

I had no idea how to get clients and that's all I did. And then I was like, okay, obviously this is a failure. So continued on, but in 2020, that's when things changed. That's when I realized, Hey, you have got the power here. You've got the tools, the resources that you need. You're not too old. I had all the fears.

I really did. I was 46, was overweight. I was felt really washed up. And I was like, who is going to want to work with me? But. The world opened up so many possibilities for me that I didn't even imagine at that time could happen. So the point of the story is if I had believed these limiting beliefs, I never would be where I am today.

And believe me, I am so much happier where I am today. So one of the ways that you can counter your beliefs I know it sounds cliche. You know, it's like, oh, like an affirmation is going to help me. But there really is a real power in changing the narrative in your head. Instead of thinking, I can't do this.

Tell yourself I am capable and I can learn whatever I need to succeed. And instead of saying, what if I fail? Ask yourself, what if I succeed? Honestly, what if I succeed is probably just, well, it's actually scarier, in my opinion, right? It's like, well, failure, you know, you're comfortable, you know what's going to happen if you fail, you're going to feel bad, and that's the end of it.

But what if you succeed? Well, oh, my Lord, that opens up like a whole new world of possibility. And right there, that can be scary. So consciously shift your thoughts and start to create a new mental environment where positivity and resilience grow. I worked with a friend of mine. I absolutely love her. We became friends when we worked together and she was truly one of the most positive people that I ever met.

She wasn't toxic positive. She was just rooted in gratitude. Everything about her, she was grateful for. And it shined through her working with her. And I think I worked with her for like, I don't know, five or six years side by side. I was like, this is what I want to be. I want to be a positive person.

I want to, emanate positivity and joy and just see the joy in my life. Right. So mindset is. Really how you talk to yourself,

but let's go to fear. Okay. Because specifically fear of starting your business or fully committing to it is scary. And when I say fully committing to it, I mean, make money and make a lot of money. Okay. And I know some of you are going to come at me where you're like, Oh, it's not about making money. It's about making an impact.

Well, okay. Yeah. But in order to make that impact and in order to reach more people, And impact their lives, you need to fuel that reach. And what fuels that reach is money. Okay, money pretty much is the driver of most things. So remember that when you're telling yourself that you have to limit your income.

It's like, no, the more money you make, the more reach you can make, the more impact you can make, and the more freedom you'll have. It's really that easy. Money fuels freedom.

Okay, so the fear is something that holds a lot of people back. And it's that voice inside your head that's saying, what if this doesn't work out? What if I'm not good enough? What if I fail? And the thing is about mindset is that mindset is a muscle that needs to be continuously worked to be performing its prime, right?

So I'm like, I don't know, four years into this business and I still get these thoughts. They don't come as frequently. But when they do, I catch them. Fear is natural. Everybody experiences it, especially when you're stepping into something that you are not familiar with. But the fear doesn't have to control you.

One way to overcome the fear is by reframing it. So instead of seeing fear as a stop sign, see it as a green light because it shows up when you're about to do something that really matters. Something that could be transformative, right? it doesn't scare you, You're not stretching yourself enough. So a powerful technique for overcoming fear is visualization.

Imagine yourself succeeding. Really take the time to picture that. What does it look like and how does it feel? The more vividly you can imagine your success, the less power your fears will have over you. And another key is to make small, manageable steps. You don't have to leap right into the deep end.

You know, it's like getting in a pool, right? some of us, we just dip our toe in it, and then we go a little further, a little further. And some of us just jump right in. however you want to approach fear, do it with what you're comfortable with. So if you're comfortable breaking down your goals into smaller actionable steps, go for it.

Every time you accomplish a goal, you'll build confidence and reduce your fear, but the fear will never go away. Promise you the fear will never go away. I just recently, in July actually had applied for a TEDx talk and I was scared to death. my big question was after I applied, what have I done?

What if I get this? Right? So it was scary. I mean, the reality is I found out that I didn't get it, which is, you know, unfortunate, but it hasn't killed my mindset. My mindset is saying, you know what? They may not have wanted you like that's a no from them, but I bet there's other organizations out there who would die to hear your talk.

So keep going. And that's what I'm going to do. I'm just going to keep going, but I feel the fear and I do it anyways, right? So courage isn't the absence of fear. It's moving forward despite the fear. And the more you can face your fears, the more resilient you will become.

So being fully present in your business means showing up every day with intention and commitment. It means being aware of your thoughts and your actions and the impact that they make. When you're present, you're not just going through the motions, you're actively engaged in building your business and making a difference.

So start with mindfulness. Just be aware of what's happening around you right now. Without judgment focus on the present moment, whether you're working on a new project, meeting with a new client or thinking about your next big move. When you're mindful, you're more focused, you're more creative and you're more effective.

So mindset is the foundation of everything you will do in your business. It's the first step in the profit method framework for a reason, because without the right mindset, nothing else will work. But with a positive, resilient mindset, you can transform your fears, overcome your challenges, and build the business and life that you've always dreamed of.

So take the time to work on your mindset. Challenge those negative thoughts. Face your fears and be fully present in your journey. Remember that you have the power to shape your success one thought at a time. So thank you for joining me today. If you found this episode helpful, please share it with someone who could benefit from it.

And don't forget to subscribe. And if you're feeling generous, please leave us a review. Until next time, keep striving, keep believing, and remember that the power to succeed starts in your mind.