002- Entrepreneur Mindset vs. Employee Mindset: Unlocking Success in eCommerce

002- Entrepreneur Mindset vs. Employee Mindset: Unlocking Success in eCommerce

(00:00):
Welcome e-commerce empresses to this episode of Woman Powering e-commerce. Join me every Tuesday and Thursday, as I take you behind the scenes of my journey as a female e-commerce entrepreneur. Together we'll explore the highs, the lows, inspiring you to take action and achieve your own business goals. So let's get started.

(00:19):
So for today's topic, I want to talk about the employee mindset versus the entrepreneur mindset. Not long ago, I realized how far I've come in terms of mindset. If I go back 10 years ago, approximately, just before I started my business, it's actually pretty scary all and everything that I've done, and the change I've seen in myself. I went from being really negative, I was fearful, I can almost say always stressed it. I was not in a good place mentally, and I had to work on myself, and I did that. And one of the things that really helped me is going from an employee to an entrepreneur.

(01:10):
I did not know that in taking that step it would bring me so many changes in other areas of my life that I did not see coming. But I'm really, really grateful for it. So if you don't know, my background is in dental hygiene. I was, yes, a dental hygienist. And even prior to that, I was a dental assistant. I started working when I was 15, 16 in that field. I've always worked there in that field. And that was prior to starting my own business in 2013. So yes, that's 10 years ago now. So I've come such a long way, and little did I know, I'd have to make a 180 degree turn in my mindset, and that's what I did. I didn't know back then. But like I said, having my own business would also be the catalyst to changing how I thought by a lot, just because I didn't have a choice. I had to do it if I wanted to succeed.

(02:16):
And I want to share with you how I transitioned from an employee mindset to an entrepreneur mindset. And this mindset shift was much needed to be able, like I said, to run my e-commerce business that I started 10 years or so ago, and to feel ready to take on not only the challenges, but also the accomplishments and just accept the fact that you're actually growing and doing things right, and just being able to take on that any little success is big or small. That came my way.

(02:49):
So I want to start this first episode with this, because having the right mindset is the foundation to any entrepreneurial success. I kind of jotted down a or thought about what makes the employee different in the way they think, compared to an entrepreneur. Like I said, I came from very far. I used to be a very big believer in being an employee, and the reason for that is simply for the security, the stability. I thought that being an entrepreneur was the most unstable thing you could do. I was wrong. Yes, now I know. And that was just my belief at that time. I also was not a risk taker. I couldn't do it. I ran away from risk, literally. If it in included any risks, I would not do it. The reason why is because I'd ask myself, "What if I fail? What's going to happen next?" I just thought it was too crazy to think about. So mainly driven by fear, all those ways of thinking.

(03:57):
And I wasn't used to thinking on my own either. I was always the good girl. I learned in school to be good in school, impress my bosses at work, follow instructions, and rely on others for a direction and wait for them to tell me what to do next. So I like being a good employee. I was satisfied in that areas, and I was, again, not driven by the right things. Those were my insecurities speaking. Those were my fears speaking. And I'm not saying that all employees will think this way, but a lot of the time, the reason we choose to be an employee is just we don't want to take the risk to start our own business, or think differently and things like that. So I think it was maybe the easy way, and that's the only thing I was taught. And also, if I failed, even when I started my business, I thought that. The shift doesn't happen overnight, right? Well, if I fell, it broke me down. I took it personally. I thought I wasn't good enough. I would be super stressed, anxious, only to name a few. So as you can easily see, these traits can easily impact personal growth and entrepreneurial aspirations.

(05:12):
So when I decided I wanted to quit my nine to five job to start my own business in e-commerce, I knew. I knew I'd have to work on my personal development. And that's what I did. I took on that challenge, and oh am I so grateful today to have done it, because where would I be if I had not taken those actions, honestly, I don't even want to know. I have no regrets as to what I did up till now. So what shifted? I say that today I still have lots to learn and a long way to go. But here are still some of the things I've developed which have helped me up until today.

(05:54):
So one of the things is my willingness to take calculated risks versus no risk at all. So I'm not saying that I'm risk ... I didn't go the other way completely. So you just have to accept that you have to take risks, but you can still take some calculated risks. So that's a difference. You're not being stupid. You just make sure you calculate things before doing something that yes, may be risky, but then you have different levels. So that's one thing. You also have to accept to create your own path. That's what I did. There isn't always a playbook or procedure somewhere for everything. Sometimes you have to go with trial and error. So sometimes I win, sometimes I lose, even up to today, and I learn to live with it. I learn to live with it, and we learn as we go, and we have to be okay with that. So also now the way I see failure has changed before I went from breaking down, when I failed, taking it super personal and all of that, and I changed that to seeing instead of seeing a failure, like something that was devastating, I now see it as an opportunity to learn and grow.

(07:12):
And before making a decision I also, I always ask me, ask myself, what's the worst that can happen? And can I live with the worst if it does happen? So a lot of the times in business, the worst that can maybe happen is you'll just lose your business if you maybe take a certain risk or fail after taking a certain decision. And a lot of the times, the answer in my head was, "Yeah, it's fine. The worst case, I lose the business. So what?" I learned so much since I started, I've developed so many skills, all those things that would allow me to just start from scrath, but not start from scratch. I'd be able to build something back up super quickly. It would never take me the time it took me to get to where I am today, because I've gained so much knowledge along the way.

(08:07):
So when you ask yourself those questions, it just kind of brings down the pressure, and you realize it's not that bad, and why not just go for it? And I don't quit. I learned not to quit. I used to be a quitter. I am not anymore. At least I try not to be. I think I've proven that, even if I want to, sometimes I'll be honest. Sometimes when you face really hard challenges, some are very hard, and sometimes it goes through my mind. Some days I'll just tell myself, "I can't do this. Can I just light it on fire? I don't want to do this anymore." But I don't allow that thought to stay there for very long. And I kind of symbolically splash my face with water and just wake myself up and say, Susie, if it gets hard, embrace it and see it as an opportunity to learn and grow and move on. And that's now what I do. And it's a skill too. You can kind of learn that. And the more you develop it and do it, the more it's easy. It becomes easier.

(09:21):
And these are only some of the qualities that contribute to success in the business world. And these have helped me develop my e-commerce business over the years. And my goal is I want to empower you, the entrepreneur, on your journey. So here are some practical tips, strategies for cultivating an entrepreneur mindset in the context of e-commerce that I thought about, if that's where you are in your journey.

(09:45):
So to gain that mindset, one thing that really helped me is read, read, read. And I've heard this quote before. What you read today is what you'll become in five years. So true, so true. So any nonfictional books, definitely. That's the number one thing. It's the cheapest thing to do and to help yourself. So please grab a book, read at least a few pages a day, and you'll see the transformation it'll have on you. Another thing that really helped me is join e-commerce groups, forums, things like that. There are a lot of things out there, Facebook groups, masterminds, forums. You want to surround yourself with like-minded people in the e-commerce industry, especially if you're new to that space or if you just started your business. If you're looking to grow at the next level in your business, that's definitely something you want to do. Listen to some podcasts on e-commerce too, during your walk, during your car. That helped me a lot too. Usually when I go out on a walk, I just choose a podcast to listen to, and I just kind of absorb all of that information.

(11:00):
So a few key insights. It's important to recognize the difference between an employee mindset and an entrepreneur mindset, and how they influence success in your business. I've come a long way, but I still analyze myself and see improvements I want to make. So this is just like a never ending journey. You just want to continuously work on yourself. That's very important. Embrace calculated risk taking. That's definitely something you have to learn to do. You want to create your own path, be okay with that, making some decisions that you don't have answers to, or no one told you to do that, or you're not sure what the right thing to do is. That's fine. And live with your wins, live with your failures. That's fine. That's how we keep moving. And those are just some of the key components of an empowered entrepreneur mindset to me. Seek continuous learning and cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset this way.

(12:05):
So I encourage you to reflect on your mindset. Consider how you can embrace this type of a mindset. It's going to serve you so much, not just in business, just in life in general, to just reach your goals.

(12:20):
And before we wrap it up, I would like to express how much it would mean to me if you could take a moment to rate and share this podcast or episode. Your support is crucial in helping us reach and inspire more women entrepreneurs in the e-commerce business. Thank you for being part of this journey with me. I hope you gain some valuable insights and inspiration today to keep learning, growing, and taking action to towards your goals. See you in the next episode.