Meredith is talking about the top 7 lessons she and the LGW team have learned along the way about what it takes to achieve dreams. ✨ She shares about the business she started that had nothing to do with grant writing. Yep, this is the story about the dream she had that she originally left her corporate job to do - the one where she vowed to never touch another grant again. 😆 Needless to say, she learned a lot from that experience along with so many other impactful lessons through the process of starting and growing Learn Grant Writing.
Making dreams a reality is no small feat! Luckily, we learned our lessons the hard way so you can skip ahead to the good part.
Lesson #1: Fail Fast
Preparing to launch the Alaska Movement was a year-long process. Two and a half months in, she realized there wasn’t a succinct problem that needed to be solved. She called it quits which was hard to do because: ego. 😮 The only thing that would have been a failure was an unwillingness to make something hurt in the short term in exchange for a longer term gain.
Lesson #2: Every Yes is a No to Something Else
Just because you can do it doesn’t mean you should. The transition can be a challenge. However, if you’re in the very beginning of your career, often you need to say yes to a lot of things and the right path for you will become clear. 📈
Lesson #3: Invest in Yourself
It can be a huge investment for courses and events, but investing in yourself is the best ROI. 👤 Then, make sure that you’re actually drawing out the learnings over time.
Lesson #4: Know Your Values and Let Them Guide Your Decisions
When we’re in a sticky situation, we fall back to values to make a clear cut decision. You can take the value and spin it into a question to help filter decisions. ❓
Lesson #5: Break and Reinvent Yourself Every Six Months
Every six months, take the time to think about where you are holding yourself back, where you are in your own way, and how you can get yourself out of the way.
Lesson #6: None of it Matters if You Don’t Have a Viable Business Model
Have you seen a one page business canvas? If you can’t explain what your business does in one page, you’re probably not doing it in 30 pages either. Keep it simple. When you have a viable business model, things will work. If you don’t, things won’t work or be sustainable. 🌱
Lesson #7: Protect and Elevate Your Vibrations
Jen Sincero’s book “You Are a Badass” helped to make this lesson crystal clear. For Meredith, she learned about what it looks like to have healthier boundaries and protect her energy. 💫 Now, she’s super intentional about what all her inputs are from food to watching the news, and more.
What’s a lesson that you’ve learned that you want to share with the world about what it takes to achieve your dreams?
Resources and links:
🔸 “You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life” by Jen Sincero
🔸 Global Grant Writers Collective
Want to learn more about the Grant Writing Unicorn Collective? DM us on Instagram! https://www.instagram.com/learngrantwriting/
🧡 The Team at Learn Grant Writing
00:00 Intro
01:04 The business story
02:33 Lesson #1: Fail Fast
04:04 Lesson #2: Every Yes is a No to Something Else
06:50 Lesson #3: Invest in Yourself
09:22 Lesson #4: Know Your Values and Let Them Guide Your Decisions
11:22 Lesson #5: Break and Reinvent Yourself Every Six Months
13:33 Lesson #6: None of it Matters if You Don’t Have a Viable Business Model
15:38 Lesson #7: Protect and Elevate Your Vibrations
17:34 Recap