the Realities of being a Female Entrepreneur.

Co-hosted by Kelly Molson of Ava Lily Properties.‍

A few weeks ago we were lucky enough to host our very first Hive Members Meet in Nottingham, where I was joined by the brilliant Kelly from Ava Lily Properties to discuss the realities of what it's really like to be a female entrepreneur and to build a business.

Everyone took a lot of inspiration from the day, and even I was surprised at the similarities myself and Kelly shared in terms of our experiences and what we've done to combat issues and growing pains.

We've shared the key takeaways from the day inside The Hive Members Club for our members already, but we wanted to share a little from the day with you all as well – so that you can start to think about the ways you might be able to improve your business.

Whether you're at the beginning, middle, or end of your business journey, every single point we covered in our session is essential to support growth in an enjoyable way. Here's a super-fast round-up of the tips we shared:

1. Prepare to wear lots of hats in business.

Particularly in the early stages of building a business, you need to be all things to everybody. You have to think about things from finances to marketing operations, and you have to be prepared from the offset to wear all of those hats for a while.

However that doesn't necessarily mean that you need to be an expert at everything. Which leads me nicely onto the second point...

2. Put systems in place

To support you in having to wear all of those hats is a wonderful thing called systems.

A lot of people are understandably hesitant when it comes to systemising their business, and myself and Kelly can personally vouch for this! But systems are going to make your life a lot easier, especially in the early days – alleviating pressure and allowing you to spend time focusing on more important things.

Within the BEESPACE business in particular, our team uses a variety of tools and systems on a day-to-day basis in order to quickly and efficiently communicate, brain-storm, plan, book-keep, document, task-manage, and so on. We're able to do everything we need to do within our business within four main systems.

You cannot be running your business over Whatsapp, or by scrolling through threads and threads of email chains to find an answer or a document. You need to work smarter, not harder!

It doesn't have to be a difficult and complicated thing either. Start simple and build from there, experimenting with what works for you and your team. And if you don't have a team yet, set it up anyway! Lay those foundations for growth from the beginning, so that when the time comes to expand you'll already be well-versed in managing your systems. Be proactive rather than reactive.

3. Build a team

Our members had a lot of questions about this topic during our session:
- How to build a team?
- When to build a team?
- Why should I work with a VA?
- When do I know I need my first hire?
- When should I start working with aVA?
- What does my cashflow need to look like before I hire?

There were so many questions, and the advice from myself and Kelly was fundamentally the same.

If you truly believe in what you're building and you're passionate about it, you are going to need to build a team of some degree. It could be one VA, or it could be three VA's. It could be a full-time Operations Manager, Marketer, Designer, whoever that may be. You've going to need to build a team if you want to build a business.
And if you truly believe in what you're doing, you should probably make that hire sooner rather than later.

Now there are smart ways to manage costs of hiring and outsourcing (which we share more on inside The Hive Members Club), but in summary, if you believe in what you're doing, you do your due diligence, you know your data, you know what your goals are etc. don't be afraid to build the infrastructure and support around you that you need to facilitate your growth and gain back that vital time to do the things that you are the expert in.

4. Time scheduling

So you've got a business, you've got a team, you've got a family, you've got a partner, you've got hobbies and chores – you've got all these things going on! So it is really essential that you make sure your time scheduling is absolutely spot-on, so that you've got enough time allocated to the different parts of your business and your personal life - to make sure you're showing up for your team, and to the things you are accountable for.

We have created a Masterclass video and download that goes into more detail about how to create that working schedule, and how to implement it on a day-to-day, week-to-week, month-to-month basis - taken from the lessons from the Spring Members Meet.

5. Understand your end goal.

What are you trying to build and why? This is so important to think carefully about, because if you don't understand what you're building and why, then you don't have a solid strategy. And if you don't have a strategy, how can you make the correct decisions at the right time?

Having a good grasp of what your business is, where you see it going, what results you want to get from it, is absolutely critical. Map it all out to see where you currently are on that journey and what you need to do to go further - it'll help keep you on track,

6. Look after yourself‍

You're spinning all of these plates. You're giving all this direction. You're keeping your eyes on the cashflow. You're doing all these things, but what are you doing for you?

Prioritising self-care needs to be at the top of the list of priorities. Because if we do not look after ourselves as the CEO, and as the main operator of the business, you won't sustain what you're able to achieve.

See as important as getting the books in order, keeping your social media on point, keeping your team motivated. And get it scheduled in so you maintain that healthy balance.

Because at the end of the day, it's about your happiness. Do you feel content? Is this business improving your life?

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It's not easy to build a business and a property portfolio, but there are people that get it and who can you support you through it! We've done, and you can too! ✌🏻⚡️