If you follow along on Instagram, you know that a year ago yesterday was the day I got engaged! Yay! Wow, how the year has flown by and it’s even harder to believe our wedding is just a few months away. 

I know it will be here before we know it.

(BTW, any former brides out there have tips on these last few months? I want to make the most of it, so please let me know!)

On Instagram, you may also have caught a short video I did last week. In that, I shared some behind-the-scenes peeks into what my income as a self-employed entrepreneur has looked like so far this year.

I shared that in this year alone (6.5 months), I have already made more in my business while self-employed than I made in an entire year at my last office job.

In fact, I am on track to approximately quadruple my 9-5 salary through my business this year.

 

Why I Decided to be Self-Employed

I know it’s a bit weird to share so much personal financial information and honestly, it’s not the most comfortable thing for me to do.

AND, I want to be clear that I’m not sharing my self-employed income to boast about my business growth.

I’m sharing this because it may reach you at a time when it can pull you out of your fear.

You see, this time last year I was a few months away from leaving my 9-5 job and becoming self-employed.

And you guessed it…

I WAS NERVOUS.

Yes, my business had seen a high income and quite a bit of momentum. But no one is immune to fear, and fear is always present in a big life change like that!

Deciding to leave behind a clear income, health insurance, a great job, employee benefits, retirement… it was a lot.

Not to mention, I was starting to plan our wedding! (Have you heard they’re expensive?!)

I always knew that there was an element of risk to starting a business. Growing up with entrepreneurial parents, they taught us a lot about risks.

This included the importance of taking risks. 

I had done my best to get this to a “calculated” risk. I had but my business up. I had an audience. I had a degree to fall back on. Yet still, I couldn’t deny the word that haunted me during those months… irresponsible.

Maybe you can relate?

 

Conclusion

Maybe you have a risk you want to take, a business you want to start, a job you want to leave, a trip you want to take… you name it. And you can tell yourself all day that life is short and you have to go for things.

But perhaps what’s holding you back from making the move is that same word… irresponsible.

If so, I hope that my story is an example of how irresponsible it can be NOT to bet on ourselves.

Honestly, if I wouldn’t have done the “irresponsible” move of leaving my salary, my retirement contribution, my health care, and so on… I never would’ve quadrupled my income.

So, here’s to betting on and investing in yourself! It’s the most RESPONSIBLE (and FUN) thing you can do.

I believe in you!

 

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Lessons Learned from my Clients

Here’s what I learned then, and what has only been further proven over the past year is that there are no real differences between my successful clients and those that don’t move forward.