Three months ago I had what could only be best described as a mental breakdown.

After seven solid years of focusing all my energies on the growth of my business, everything sort of caught up with me and I reached a point where I couldn’t even get out of bed.

I couldn’t see it at the time, but the reality is that I was making myself busy for the sake of being busy.

This may sound strange to some, but growing up – like many – I was raised with the idea that success could only come on the back of hard work and that money was for the lucky or well connected.

After a lot of work on my mindset, I finally cracked the money game but deep down inside, there was still an idea in my head that I needed to slave away in my business – regardless of the role – in order to be deserving of that success.

So I hustled away and it all went pear shaped.

I made a decision at that stage that, for the sake of my own well being, I needed to step down as CEO and take some time off. I walked away from a $20M business and it felt like the most insane idea ever.

I couldn’t see it at the time, but the reality is that I was making myself busy for the sake of being busy.

I was prepared to lose it all and I felt disheartened that all my hard work would be laid to waste because of a war that was essentially being waged in my head.

Except, it didn’t.

My team stepped up and took control of the reigns.

Revenues stayed exactly the same.

I was both shocked and relieved. Here I had been all along thinking that I was the secret sauce to my business and that I could never be replaced.

The truth is, I got into business so that I could not only have the financial freedom but also the freedom of time. I pushed through the face plants and failures so that one day I could have something that would run without needing me. That had always been the goal, I just struggled to accept that it was possible.

In a way, the meltdown was the push needed to force me into the level of expansion I had always sought. Faster than a kid declining an incoming call I found myself suddenly with the breathing space needed to heal.

Even better, I soon found that our client base and students were also thriving in the wake of my absence, hitting revenue figures that would make some choke on their morning cereal.

The point of all of this is: chasing the dollars is fun, it’s rewarding, but there is no joy in having a six figure income when you’re burnt out and on the verge of self sabotage.

Sustainable success happens when you build something that provides you not only with fluidity in your financial status, but also in your ability to choose your role, workload, and responsibilities. That is ultimate freedom.

The truth is, I got into business so that I could not only have the financial freedom but also the freedom of time.

And foundational to all of this is your own belief system around what you are deserving of and able to create for yourself and the right team and processes in place to allow you to move inside your business like the impulsive entrepreneur you likely are.

That’s it.

Easier said than done right?

The problem is most of us are masters at trying to reinvent the wheel. Masters at making excuses for our circumstances and masters at trying to change matter with matter (sweat equity).

I understand the world is going through a bit of a crises right now, I understand these are uncertain times for many and panic and fear may be making you feel like you should just be grateful for whatever scrapes you can get… but take a closer look and you will see entire industries that are thriving, entrepreneurs creating their own economies, agencies booming.

Perhaps, the recent global events have served to push you towards more clarity in the same way my mind drove me to the verges of sanity in order to find stability.

If so, then treat this as your big break. To create the version of success that you always dreamed of.

Success IS NOT a direct correlation to the amount of pain and sweat you invest. Time is relative and only really needed if hustling is your main ingredient.

With the right processes & systems and enough conscious awareness around the possibilities of what can be created, creating freedom (whatever that may mean for you) – even during uncertain times – is not only possible, it’s inevitable.

It doesn’t require massive overheads or a big team. It doesn’t require a trade off of your younger years. It doesn’t require an investment of pain and blood.

A very difficult concept for most of us to accept.

Working smarter, not harder.

This is what I have always preached, and finally, in the most unusual of ways, have been forced into embodying.

If you’ve made it this far then it’s likely that you have some of your own blockages happening in your business.

Maybe you’ve spent years paddling away furiously and yet feel like you’re hardly making any progress.

Maybe it feels like your business is sucking you financially and mentally – for every new client you take on, you lose two.

Maybe you’re stressed about expenses and feel like you’re fixing all the work of a team that was supposed to help you.

If so, then know that I understand all of these frustrations – I’ve been through each one (sometimes multiple times) through the years.

It’s easy to overcomplicate things and to feel defeated by it all when you’re in the throes of it.

But it’s not rocket science.

A marriage of conscious intention and the right system (truthfully, if you nail the first part, it really doesn’t matter what kind of system you have, which is why all and any kind of business model or agency structure can work or fail).

And so here I am popping my head out from hibernation to share with you and hopefully impart some hope – whatever move you choose to make next – that even hardships can be turned into blessings.

Through the years my team and I developed a training and support program for agency owners specifically designed to help those spinning their wheels reclaim control.

Exploring things such as:

– How to run a highly profitably business with a small team and keep your overheads low…

– How to attract high paying and high quality clients and how to make sure you’re agency stands out amongst the hundreds of thousands of other marketers and service providers flooding the space…

– How to prepare your business for a buyout, mental breakdown, or mini retirement (whatever tickles you)…

– How to reduce your software expenses each month and deliver exceptional service without a million tools you need to subscribe to…

And especially…

– How to get from point A to point B by tapping into a part of your mind that knows no boundaries

And while I won’t be holding your hand through this process (I am honoring this new space I have created in my life), my team have worked with over 700 agency owners since 2017 and are the best in the world to get you there.

To find out more and see if this is right for you, the next step is to speak to my team to discuss your bottlenecks and goals – from there we’ll able to assess if we’re a good fit and if you’re even ready to hear the kinds of things we’re all about.

This isn’t another plug and play get rich quick scheme full of smokescreens and pirouettes, this is about creating a business that serves you, not the other way around.

To find out more and register your interest, click here: https://agencyfunnels.eightloopsocial.com

Here’s to your success

Cat