by admin | Jan 8, 2021 | Blog, Uncategorized
In any year it’s easy to lose focus on our finance goals, but when there’s a global pandemic going on it’s even harder! However, I wanted to give you some encouragement and motivation to show you how to stay inspired and on track.
We often find it tricky to keep our eyes on the prize. We get distracted by the endless possibilities of what everyone else is doing and what all our friends have. It’s all too easy to get side-swiped by what you don’t have, or haven’t managed to do, and the reasons behind that – usually financial!
What I want to help you with is staying focused on your goals!
Money mindset and financial taboo
When it comes to money, there’s a lot of weird stuff that comes up for most of us. A lot of it stems from our childhoods and the way we were brought up. For me that was in the church. And boy oh boy do church and finance have some bizarre clashes in personality going on!
So many of us brought up to believe that it’s impolite or embarrassing to talk about money. Money also holds an emotional connection for many of us. It can bring on an anxious reaction or trigger other behaviors. In my Facebook group, one of the things the Ninjas shy away from is talking about finance.
So what exactly is going on here?
I’ve talked about the importance of having a positive money mindset before, but I haven’t really gone into my own personal journey. So I’m going to share my story with you because I believe you may have experienced similar growing up.
At one point in my life I believed that making money was evil. That’s what I’d grown up hearing in church. That “money was the root of all evil” and that people who made money were greedy and evil and nothing good ever came from money. That the love of money was a sin and it was the Devil’s work.
But as I got older I began to do my own research, really looking at the scriptures and the context of quotes like the one above – which is the infamous 1 Timothy 6:10: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.” Drummed into many of us as kids, when we look at it as adults, we can’t forget to add the love of in front of money here.
I’ve had to relearn a lot of my mindset around money. Money builds churches, hospitals, and homeless shelters – communities! We should be pro making money, and what we should stand up to is using money in a way that harms people and the planet.
It’s time for us women in business to overcome the money taboo!
Money is a tool!
Money isn’t evil. It’s an object that we can use for good or evil. And it really can be a fantastic tool to help us make a difference. We can utilize it to make the world a better place. It can help people.
Money can help us reach our goals and without money it can be quite tricky to take care of the people we love. We owe it to ourselves as women to achieve financial success. We owe it to our children to see us earning money and not being ashamed of it.
Stay focused on YOUR finance goals
You might think your goals are yours…but what if you’ve been influenced by other people and they don’t align with your values? The way you can get laser-focused and ensure that your goals truly are YOURS is to look at your soul goals and see if they marry up with the money targets. Are they challenging enough or are you playing small to please others? Or have you set something that is only going to end in heart ache?
Take some time to journal on this one. Honor your truth. Listen to your gut. It never fails to tune into your intuition.
What will inspire you to stay focused on your finance goals?
We’re all different and have our own things that help us. For me, my faith is one of them, I utilize it every day of my life! Now that I’ve made peace with the age old conflict between church and money, I know I can use my faith to keep me on track.
Perhaps it’ll be your family that inspires you to stay in your lane and reach your goals. Is it to extend your home or find somewhere a little less snug? Or maybe it is an adventure that you want to go on, and you’re able to visualize yourself going on that trip – each time you lose a little momentum, practice picturing yourself doing that thing!
“Money is only a tool. It will take you wherever you wish, but it will not replace you as the driver.”
Ayn Rand
Not only do we need to have conversations around the green stuff, we need to be open about how finance looks and feels for us! We have got to persist in setting ourselves financial goals, and start asking for what we want and need. Because let’s not forget what money can do for us!
I hope you’re going to use this as an opportunity to start talking about money more, encouraging conversations about finances with your business friends, employees and your family. If you found this blog post helpful, send the link to a friend – sharing is caring! Or come and continue the money talk over on Facebook in our Ninja community!
If you enjoyed reading this and would like to get more involved, we’re an army of childcare professionals who are sharing ninja-sharp skills to transform our businesses into childcare empires! This is Childcare Ownership all Grownup! Interested in becoming more involved in the community and to grow your business? Join us for more tips on how to make your childcare business the success it deserves to be! Or if you prefer Instagram, come and say hi there!
by admin | Oct 9, 2020 | Blog, Uncategorized
This week in Childcare Ninjas, we’re shining a light on finance again. It’s a subject that we’re not going to shy away from, because it’s vital that we feel confident discussing finances! And I want to support you as a Childcare Ninja in this area as much as any other. If you’re new to the industry, you’ll want to read this blog post!
When it comes to initially setting up your childcare business, you might not be ready to go all in just yet. You might need to spend some time raising funds so you can open up the daycare center of your dreams.
What I want to emphasize here is that you shouldn’t be letting finances get in your way. It might take you a little longer to reach your goals, but you CAN get there. I have seen financials hold so many women back from starting a business and I don’t want that to happen to you.
So, in this blog I’m going to share a few ideas to get your creative juices flowing. I’m going to get you flexing your resourcefulness muscles!
What are your needs?
First things first, you’ve got to take a look at how much you need to actually get set up. This might seem minimal to begin with, but once you take into account the rent, the health and safety aspects, the registration, the licences, the insurance…it all adds up. So be honest with yourself here. Keep it real: are you currently in a position to set up immediately?
Maybe you’re beginning in your home, which will reduce the cost in the short term. Even so, there’s the equipment you’ll need, the additional costs of utilities (amazing how those little kids use up all that extra electricity and water!)…
But I’m not saying this to get you to stop! Far from it! I’m asking you to take a good long look at your needs in a financial sense, because I want you to succeed! I want you to know exactly what you’ve got to have in place before you can launch into your childcare business. And if you’ve got any questions or don’t know where to start, please drop me an email! After 14 years in the business, I’m happy to help!
So how can you raise the money to get started?
We’ve established that you’re likely to need more cash coming in before you can really dive deep into your childcare ownership dreams, so how are you going to do this exactly?
Honestly? This comes down to how much money you have and how much time. Finances play a part here too because there are some income streams that require a little investment before you can get going and others that you can just jump straight into with out much thought!
Become a representative
Not in the House (one day, maybe…!), I’m talking about buying into a scheme where you’re the representative of a brand. These roles offer a range of opportunities, from flexible working and franchises, to direct selling and party planning.
There are a number of these that can be lucrative for people who have time and a small amount for buying the products for demonstrations. Beauty companies like Avon, Mary Kay or Arbonne have a fairly low investment requirement to become a representative.
So those are options for you if you have a little cash to reap rewards with. However, I’ve got a few more ideas if you don’t!
Everyone has something that everyone else needs!
This is what I tell the women I coach. They’ll often say, “But Nyckie, I haven’t got anything to offer. How on earth can I have a side hustle going on?” And I am quick to remind them that they certainly do have things to offer. Whether that’s a resource that their community is lacking (like reliable transport) or a skill they can see a need for (gardening!) each and every one of us has something that their neighborhood needs.
Take an audit of your resources
Take a look around your home and figure out if you have resources at your fingertips that could earn you some of the funds you need for your business.
Perhaps you’ve got a car and are happy to be driving to make some side hustle money. You could do some Uber driving in the evenings when your partner gets in from work. Or perhaps if you know there’s people in your community who’d rather pay you than Uber to drive them to and from appointments, then get driving! Drum up interest and bring in those dollars!
Have you got furniture that could go to a new home, or a ton of dresses sat unworn in your wardrobe? Kids finished playing their consoles or moved on to the next craze? Why not have a yard sale?
Start something from scratch
If you’ve got skills that you could utilize, then why not put them up on Fiverr or Upwork? If you’ve got admin capabilities or can write, or maybe you’re handy with a camera, then put up a page and watch the requests come rolling in. When you’ve got skills other people need, you’re valuable and it will help your finances!
Perhaps you can offer tutoring for local families, or teach piano? Know how to grow vegetables? Maybe you’re a whizz with a chainsaw? Think about the dormant skills you could put to good use!
Make the most of what you’ve got!
I’ve mentioned skills above, but it really is about making the most of what you’ve got and flying with it! Take a look around your local community and look at what’s missing. What are people moaning about? Have you got friends with elderly parents who need healthy meals but can’t cook anymore? Could you cook them nutritious food and charge for it? You could start a small take away service. (Don’t go crazy here! It’s a childcare business we’re aiming for, right?! Not a restaurant!)
Choosing a way of bringing in some extra money means you can rest easy knowing that you’ll raise the dollars you need. Thinking about your finances and making some cash in a side hustle is a sensible move to avoiding stress.
I’d love to help you more with ideas that’ll solve the gaps in your finances, and I’m so excited to see you achieve success, so why not head here and you can download my FREE Side Hustle Checklist!
If you’d like to see more like this and chat with other childcare business owners, I wonder whether you’d like to head over here: Childcare Ninja Facebook group! Join us for more tips – not just on finances! – on how to make your childcare business the success it deserves to be!
While you’re here, are you in the Childcare Ninja membership yet? We’re an army of childcare professionals who are sharing ninja-sharp skills to transform our businesses into childcare empires! This is Childcare Ownership all Grownup! It’s full of exclusive resources and support to help you grow your Childcare Business.
