51. Navigating the Entrepreneurial Landscape with Resilience, Faith, and Intentional Growth with Hazel Atkinson-Brown

Do you treat your self-care routine with the same respect as your business meetings? Join us as the remarkable Jordan Guyton, a luminary in conscious entrepreneurship, shares her revolutionary approach to self-care, likening it to a vital appointment that demands your full commitment. We dissect the hustle culture's obsession with the 9-to-5 grind and unlock strategies to maintain balance and ward off burnout. Jordan reveals her personal tactics for transcending fear and over-analysis—tools that promise to elevate your entrepreneurial journey and encourage you to invest in your authentic self.

Venturing into the personal corridors of entrepreneurship, we examine how faith and resilience become interwoven into the fabric of success. In a narrative that champions our teams, we underscore the significance of valuing their contributions, even when it means digging deeper into our own pockets. The conversation steers into the delicate art of detaching from work to preserve quality and the evolution of relationships as we scale personal and professional heights. Gain insight on how to embrace these shifts without losing sight of your goals, as we discuss the delicate balance of nurturing growth while managing the complexities of life and business ties.

As we confront the future, the discourse shifts to building a lasting legacy and amassing wealth with intention. I explore indispensable tools for entrepreneurs, emphasizing mental health and the power of community. We celebrate Jordan's foray into LinkedIn and her podcast 'Building Unapologetically,' which stand as testaments to the strength that comes from audacious, unapologetic growth. Discover how redefining sales as service and cultivating meaningful relationships can unlock doors to boundless opportunities, setting the stage for a legacy that resonates with success and genuine impact.

Chapters

• 0:00 Prioritizing Self-Care and Setting Boundaries
• 12:04 Journey of Faith in Entrepreneurship
• 20:06 Legacy and Wealth Building Strategies
• 29:43 Jordan Guyton

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Hey, hey, hey. You are now tuned in to the it's the Human Experience podcast. In today's episode it's going to be a little different, because I am starting a workplace therapy pre-live series for my Women's Empowerment event and a part of that pre-live series we're having transparent conversation with trailblazers, women who are doers, movers and making shifts and moves authentically, genuinely and really taking up space out here in the world, and I am all for it. So I did not want to exclude you from that experience. So I decided to bring these conversations over to the it's the Human Experience podcast as well, so that you don't miss out on any of the gems and you're able to get all the things.

Speaker 1: 0:43

In today's pre-live series we are talking to Jordan Guyton. I actually worked with Jordan before and Jordan is amazing. She's heart-centered, she's purpose-driven, she's genuine, authentic. She got receipts, she's making it happen and helping women level up. So I just wanted to go ahead and introduce that. Make sure that, if you're not already following the podcast, you scroll up to the top, hit that follow button. If you're listening from YouTube or whatever, make sure that you like, subscribe, leave a comment, let us know about the gems. Listen, I am all here for a level up. It's all about us betting on ourselves, going after our goals and making it happen. But let's go ahead and jump right into the episode. Let's go. Hi everyone. Today we are starting the Workplace Therapy Conference series. Listen, I have Jordan with us today. Jordan, let's just go ahead and jump right in and get started. If you could introduce yourself to the audience, I'm excited to have you and I know they're going to get the gems from you.

Speaker 2: 1:44

Yeah, hey, hazel, so thank you for having me. I'm so excited for this conference. I really hope that someone everyone takes some sort of nugget that they can implement in their life. My name is Jordan Guyton. I am a business owner. I'm the owner of Viragine Media. We are a coaching and consulting company helping business owners grow and sell their services using social media. We are a coaching and consulting company helping business owners grow and sell their services using social media. We're really passionate about not posting every single day and showing up authentically to build the business of your dreams. So I'm really, really excited to be here.

Speaker 1: 2:19

Yeah, I'm excited to have you and I definitely can attest and confirm that the experience that you provide with the things that you do is truly valuable and really helps you get out your own way, because I know for me, with social media, I am one to be in my way. I know that when I was in your program, I was in my head and in my way I'm like I don't want to be a part of pretending that things are perfect when I know they're not. And then when I started really working on workplace therapy, to be honest, everything that you had taught me, it came so much easier because, like, girl, this is bigger than you. Come, stop with these excuses, just be the content you're doing. It Like what are you doing right now? And so definitely want to thank you.

Speaker 2: 3:07

You were literally a dream to work with. I mean, when we have students like you, come through the program and implement and know that there's something deeper, that is bigger than you, bigger than social media, bigger than a post, bigger than someone liking your content, and you're pushing through those walls of fear, overthinking. There's just so much beauty on the other side of that and it's been so beautiful to witness your evolution for sure.

Speaker 1: 3:35

Thank you. The first thing I wanted to ask you because, as we talk about like getting out your way and betting on yourself and making it happen, like, how do you prioritize self-care in your routine?

Speaker 2: 3:48

That's a great question, I mean, I think prioritizing self-care is crucial and I think one of the best ways I do that is when I'm blocking out time on my calendar and chunking my calendar, I make sure that my me time is on there first, before any of my business stuff, before any of the meetings, before any of the interviews, before any of that.

Speaker 2: 4:11

It's like, what do I need to fill full? And making sure that it's on the calendar Because, like we were talking before, this was recording Hazel, you and I are all about structure, right, and if it's not on the calendar, it's not happening, and so I think you have to treat at least for me, I have to treat my self-care as an appointment with myself and making sure that I am on time and I'm honoring that and I'm not moving it for something else. I'm really honoring whether it's walks, whether it's prayer, whether it's solo lunch, whether it's date night with my husband. It's really, whether it's prayer, whether it's a solo lunch, whether it's date night with my husband, it's really, really important to me to fill my cup first, because I am so front facing in my career and my business.

Speaker 1: 4:57

Yeah. So I think that you're talking about, like the evolution of where you are now, but how did you pivot and make some of those changes? And the reason I asked that question is being a nine to fiver and a business owner. I had to realize that I was setting up my business in the same way of mindset that I set up in my nine to five, in the sense that you're moving from having a nine to five over to entrepreneurship, saying that you want more flexibility, but then you find yourself working till 10, 12 o'clock at night. And so then I had to create boundaries and realize, like honey you are setting it up. So like what have you evolved in your thought process to help you shift to?

Speaker 2: 5:37

be able to make those changes.

Speaker 2: 5:39

I mean, I think that's a great question. I feel like it's all of that practice is easier said than done and I think you have to hit your head a few times against the wall to then put in your boundaries. I can definitely say I was in the same boat of you know, working Monday through Friday, working off hours, taking my laptop everywhere, like just really being glued to my work, always being accessible, and I do think, part of starting a business. There is a bit of a grind, there are some reps that you have to put in in the beginning, but I think that as you start to pour gas on that fire, you have to kind of let up on the gas a little bit and allow the systems that you've put in place to actually do the work for you. I think that's why I'm so passionate about content and social media, because it is a tool and a vehicle that markets your business where you don't have to be part of it 24 seven. Right Like you can create valuable content that allows you to get discovery calls or clients through the door, people in your DMs, having those conversations, where you're not always having to show up 24 seven.

Speaker 2: 6:43

And I think it took me feeling burnt out, feeling over committed to say I don't want to do this and I don't have to do this. And so, you know, in our company now we have four day work weeks. You know, my Mondays I don't take calls and Fridays we have off, right, so it's. I had to put that in place and then maximize my Monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday. And seeing that shift and how much I'm still able to get done on a four day work week has just been really empowering. But I think that you have to commit to that. But again, I think it's easier said than done. Until you hit that wall of like okay, girl, I'm tired, like everyone's on my line, like I'm responding to every email, like this client after this client, this client Like I don't know. I think there's something where we just you have to touch the stove to see that it's hot and then you're like, okay, I'm done, I'm not doing it anymore.

Speaker 1: 7:46

Yeah, no, I appreciate you sharing that. I think that really helps us lead into the next question, in terms of what limiting beliefs you have to overcome to get you to where you are today.

Speaker 2: 7:53

Yeah, I mean that's a great question. I mean, in business in general, you know, I've started to lean into the fact that business doesn't have to be hard, right, it can be challenging and it can be, you know, something that you grind through, but I don't have to work 24-7 to have a six-figure business, I just don't. I had to let go of that belief that I had to be always busy in order to make money. Right, that belief that I had to be always busy in order to make money Right. I think, you know, in the very beginning of my business, just raising my prices, right, like charging more for the value that my clients were getting, that is a that is a thing that is.

Speaker 2: 8:39

You know, it's very easy to be on social media and hear everyone say raise your price, raise your price, charge, you know. But there's something energetically that you also have to be able to hold when you are raising your prices and it's that integrity piece. And if that integrity is not there and say don't raise your price, don't raise it, just to raise it. So I think that was a limiting belief to get through. I think those are the two biggest ones.

Speaker 2: 9:06

I think that as you run a business eventually, if growth and scaling is part of your agenda, delegation is something that I'm still working through and trying to get better at. I'm not the only person that can do everything in my business and slowly but surely, I've trusted people that are smarter than me in their zone of genius to handle things that I really shouldn't be handling or trying to figure out. But it's still a process of letting your baby go and saying, okay, they got it, close your eyes, don't micromanage, it's a whole thing. So I think that's kind of in the stage that I'm in right now when it comes to those beliefs.

Speaker 1: 9:49

I love that. I love that for you, that you've realized that, okay, it's okay to get help, it's okay to delegate. I think that we all go through it. So I'm glad you're able to share that, because sometimes you think, okay, I have the vision, I know exactly what I want, and you try to delegate and you say, okay, I'll trust you to do this.

Speaker 1: 10:08

And then they execute and you're like, no, that's not the vision. And so then you start to overthink and then you're like, okay, I'm just going to start doing it. But you have to get a point to a point in your business where you have, like, your systems in place and it's easy for someone to understand. And I know that for me what I had to learn was to find people that kind of understood my truth, so that it was easier for them to see the vision, where sometimes we kind of go to Fiverr I'm speaking for myself or places that it's a little bit less expensive, but then it's harder to project the vision because they don't understand. So I realize you have to invest more sometimes to be able to get what you want and in the end, as long as you believe in what it is that you're doing, you will reap the benefits of everything that you're doing.

Speaker 2: 10:53

Yeah, I agree. I mean, I was listening to a podcast probably at the end of last year and she was saying her name's Kelly Roach, she's a business owner and she was saying that you have to have goals so big for your business that your team's vision and goals fit in. That is like their goal should fit under that right, so that they're motivated to keep working and staying and feeling like they're a part of something right Of which is your company, but also that their goals are being met as well. So, whether it's financial goals, whether it's rank goals, whether it's fulfillment and learning and education through your company, whatever that is, but I think it's really important in that space of delegation and hiring. It's like am I dreaming big enough for my team's goals and dreams to be met as well?

Speaker 1: 11:41

Yeah, I think what you just said resonates so much, because I think the nugget there is making sure that the people that you're hiring really align to your overall vision and then, being like a servant leader and heart centered, you're making sure you pour back into the lives of the people that are working for you, because you realize it's bigger than you and it's not also not all about you, and so I definitely understand where you're coming from. I ended up finding myself pouring into my employees and people that are working for me and they're like Hazel, like you're telling me to raise my prices. It's going to hurt you, and I'm like I know, but I can't watch you do this to yourself.

Speaker 2: 12:16

Hey, just come on, just raise the price.

Speaker 1: 12:21

Exactly, but I think it really helps us pivot into how do you stay motivated and committed to your personal development journey, like through the challenges and through the setbacks, because there are some mindset shifts that you have to go through at every stage and every level. So how do you stay on course?

Speaker 2: 12:48

Without that, I would be trash. Entrepreneurship is probably the best self-development journey you can be on. It never ends and if you're not anchored in something, when you're not seeing the fruits of your labor, it will be very easy to give up. It will be very easy. I'm good. This sucks, nothing's happening. Nothing's on the other side of that, but I think that, knowing what I know God has promised for me in my life, my goal is to hold the faith and stay in it as I continue to see it come to pass and be grateful for the prayers that have already been answered, because there are so many things that I think about that I wrote in my journey when I started my business in 2020, of I want 10 students to join my program or I want one more one-on-one client and like I think that it's so important, especially as you grow, to acknowledge those miracles that God has already made come to pass in your life and hold that belief that, like he can literally do anything. So your 10K month, or your 50K month, or your 100K, that's like okay, that's it. What else Like? That's it? $50,000 a month, that's all Like.

Speaker 2: 14:07

So it's like, when I start to think about it, like that of a God that can do any and everything. I just know I got to play my role, I got to show up. I have to hold the belief and I have to do the work, and in the days that it gets hard and I'm like this is trash and it's the wilderness, I unplug right, like I don't push through the trash or the overwhelm or the tiredness, because that's how my work is going to come out, that's how my content is going to show up, right, um, I have to trust and believe that the work that I've done in the past is going to sustain me through those crunchy times, um, so I think that's that's my biggest like anchor, um, and I think, because I show up that way, I call in women into my business, into my program, and clients into my program that are also centered, faith-centered as well. So it's a beautiful thing to stand in.

Speaker 1: 15:03

Yeah, I can absolutely relate, resonate and clearly that's what attracted me to work with you. I think that your faith and your authenticity definitely exudes in everything that you're doing and it's really so important because I concur, like I couldn't do it without my faith, I couldn't do it without God, and I feel like many times, even in my journey with this conference, I had to continue to remind myself girl, you're not doing it for you, this is something you were called to do, so it doesn't matter if you want to show up, it doesn't matter if you feel like, oh my God, and to your point, then I have to go take a nap, because nothing that I'm doing is constructive and you are going to really ruin everything right now.

Speaker 2: 15:43

Yes, yes, like girl, just go, like. Like, go eat the ice cream, go for a walk, like do what you got to do, cause you're going to go back. You have to finish at the end of the day. You have to finish. So just take the load off and do what you got to do and come back to the work.

Speaker 1: 15:57

Yeah, just reset. I love that. So I know that sometimes when you're on your personal and professional development journey like you end up you know you started with a huge circle or a huge group of people that really got you from the level that you are at and, as you reflected and kind of grew through some of your traumas, triggers and just becoming a higher version of yourself, you end up going through changes in your relationship. So since you started your journey like what's been your approach to handling that?

Speaker 2: 16:29

Oh, that's a good question. Um, I think for me at this season that I'm in right now, um, you know, my husband and I will be three years married this month. Um, well, thank you, we have a crazy puppy, um, and I'm just in a season where I'm kind of in an inward season and I think I have friends. I know I have friends around me that understand that I think internally I had to grapple with the people pleaser side of me of you know they're texting me. I haven't gotten back. It's been a month, it's been a week, like I always like I feel like I would beat myself up over that of not being like the best friend I could be.

Speaker 2: 17:18

Um, but I also know that in 2024, we're in, we're in the most connected world that we've ever been in in our entire life. Like this is not normal to be able to talk to people on social media and then talk to people on the text and then the voice notes and then the FaceTime and like this is not like people just used to like walk to their next door neighbor's house, Like that's all they saw. They didn't see nobody else, right? So I think for me, I've had really great foundational relationships before building my business, and so they do get me. And then the women that I have met along the way, we've either grown together or we understand that this is what business is, and when we talk again or when we connect again, it's like, girl, let me, girl, let me tell you what happened, like it's that type of energy, because there's no bad blood, there's no ill will, there's no malice, right.

Speaker 2: 18:18

So I think it's really important to surround yourself with people that get it, but those that aren't in that space of entrepreneurship, I think it's really important to evaluate those relationships as well. Right, I think it's really great to do some sort of friend audit. Is it a supportive, is it a nurturing relationship, both ways? And if it's not, it's okay. Um, cause we grow and we outgrow each other. Um, we outgrow people. Um, I haven't had that, thank God, um, but I do know what happens, happens, and so, and if it did happen, I think it would again be a situation of I love you, I care about you. This is just a season of friendship that does have to come to an end.

Speaker 1: 19:04

Um, that was a long answer, but I hope that it made sense no, I love your um friend audit and just life audit in general in terms of figuring out what serves you and what doesn't in your new season.

Speaker 1: 19:16

And a lot of times it's not because you don't want people around you, because you think you've reached a higher level, it's just whether or not it's the support that you need, it's the positivity that you need, because we just talked a lot about the mindset shifts that has to happen to keep us going and working through our purpose and our calling, and so you can't have weight that's holding you down while at the same time you have to hold space that people go through different things and so maybe they're just kind of going through something, but that doesn't mean cut them off, it doesn't mean let them go, but really doing a true audit and making sure to your point that the foundation is strong. So you know that that person knows that you're genuine. They know that if you're not responding it's because you're busy or something's going on. So I love that you kind of started there in terms of making sure that the foundation was pure.

Speaker 2: 20:03

Yeah, I agree.

Speaker 1: 20:05

I agree Nice. So what are some resources or tools that you've used through your legacy and wealth building efforts that you feel like is very important to kind of share with the audience?

Speaker 2: 20:17

Yeah, I mean therapy. I think having a therapist is like necessary, just in life, but especially as an entrepreneur. One of my clients is a mental health company and the CEO had told us some crazy not crazy, but wild statistics that the number two cause of death in entrepreneurs is suicide and the number one cause of death in entrepreneurs is heart disease. So stress, overwhelm, the go, go, go. And so to hear that I think having a therapist to help manage and navigate your mental health as an entrepreneur is like number one, right, like God is number one, but number one on the earth, right Like that is so necessary. I think that that just helps regulate everything emotions, feelings, decisions. So I think that's a non-negotiable for sure. Another tool I think that has been really helpful is reading books. So I'm an avid book reader. One of my favorite books with wealth, or building wealth, is the Science of Getting Rich by Lola Stee-Wattles. I love reading memoirs of Black women who have trailblazed and have hit their millions or billions. I'm reading one right now by Sheila Johnson called Walk Through Fire. She's a co-founder of BET and the book is crazy, but success leaves clues. So I love reading women who have been already through it.

Speaker 2: 22:01

Another great tool for legacy and wealth building is community. I'm no stranger when it comes to paying to play. I will pay to be inside of communities where I feel challenged and stretched in, the small baby fish in the big pond of people that are crushing it. I've done that since I started my business Because, again, I want to pay for that proximity and see how you've gotten to where you've gotten, because those are cheat codes, right?

Speaker 2: 22:30

I don't need to figure this all out on my own. I don't need to reinvent the wheel. So how did you do it? And let me take what I need and leave what I don't. Take what I need and leave what I don't. And then I think my other tool probably are podcasts. I love listening to different people's podcasts. I have a podcast. I don't really talk a lot about wealth, but I do talk a lot about personal development, so I listen to a lot of podcasts around personal development. Manifestation affirmations Again, female millionaires and business building. So things like that affirmations again, female millionaires and business building. So things like that I think have been really helpful in my journey.

Speaker 1: 23:07

Yeah, I really love it and want to rewind to you talking about just really getting in the room, not only because I have this conference coming up, but also because I think, like within our community, we don't realize that oftentimes you do have to pay to play like that power of proximity and being able to to your point being the smallest fish and seeing what's available to you in terms of what you can accomplish. So many times in our communities we're saying things like oh my God, I don't know anyone that's done it, I don't know how to do it. Well, pay some money and find the people that do. People are willing to share. So that can't be our excuse to your point of what you said earlier.

Speaker 1: 23:46

In this day and age, when there's so many ways to get the resources that we need and to be able to level up, and then you have communities with people like me and you leading them in the sense that we're genuine, authentic, we're faith-driven, none of it is for putting on a show. It's all from our heart, like there's no excuse to not be where you want to be. So I definitely love that. You touched on that. That's so important and I think that a lot of people don't realize, like we can't coupon our way out of everything, we can't free 99 our way out of everything.

Speaker 2: 24:19

And relationships are huge, right, like you might meet somebody at a conference today that leads you to your next six-figure contract in two years or three years. Like, entrepreneurship is not a year, it's not five years, it's not 10. If you're in it, you're in it right. So it's like you establish the relationships now. Be intentional about them, see how you can support and fulfill on your side too, not just always asking, wanting, wanting time. How can a cow, can you help me? How can you help them? How can I support you in this season? And I can't tell you how much we've grown because of relationships and just talking to people. As scary as it is for me at times, it's worth it. It's definitely worth it.

Speaker 1: 25:05

I agree. I think that I can't help but to ask you this question, since you are social media content creator guru. I don't think you even talked about like your experience in production and all the things, but definitely come with receipts. What would you say is the biggest mistake that people typically make on social media when they're trying to grow their business or build their brand?

Speaker 2: 25:30

I think the biggest mistake that people make when trying to grow their business I think my answers evolved over time. I think the season that I'm in right now is not selling enough. I think just being over-conscious of selling. I think there's this like greasy film around selling or like icky feeling around it, but at the end of the day, we run a business and so if you truly believe in your brand or your business or the offers that you're putting out there, or your heart or your mission or your visionary, if you truly believe in those things, then selling should come from a space of service, and when you get into that space of service on social, your sales will happen. You will have new clients every month, every day, if you want them, every week.

Speaker 2: 26:27

I think that is the biggest mistake is the belief that you don't have in selling your services, because there are so many women or people that are changing lives and are giving so much value, which I love. I'm a value over viral type of girl, but at some point the value that you're giving needs to pay your bills. You need to be paid for your gifts, and so you can't value your way to six figures. You can't like your way or comment your way to six figures or seven figures. You have to sell, and sell in a way that feels good and authentic to you. I think that's the biggest mistake.

Speaker 1: 27:10

Yeah, I think that that makes sense, making sure that it's fully aligned. It comes from the heart. There's some purpose and passion behind it, and I think when you know you have your receipts right, you've done the work, then it's like why are you not making sure that you make more impact and change more people's lives? And I definitely was on the other side of that just a few years ago, right, but I had to outgrow that mindset and realizing, like I'm not selling you anything, I'm transforming your life Correct. And when you really is that, you're like oh okay, this is different.

Speaker 2: 27:43

Correct, and it's not. It's coming from a place of if you miss the boat, you miss the boat. I know what I offer. I've seen my clients get transformations and even if you don't have clients that have come through the door, you know your heart and how hard you're willing to work to get that person their transformation. So if you can stand in that space and play in that space, it's not coming from a place of lack, it's coming from a place of abundance and it's you. Either get some of this dust and change your life or you stay where you're at.

Speaker 2: 28:15

So I love that you said that.

Speaker 1: 28:17

Yeah, well, I love it. It was definitely such a great conversation. The last question that I want to ask you is what's one gem that you want to leave with the audience?

Speaker 2: 28:27

what's one gem that I have so many? Hmm, what's one gem I want to leave with the audience? I don't know why this is sticking with me, but and it might sound cliche, but just be kind you never know what somebody is going through. You never know what stage in life someone's at, you never know what kind of day someone's had, and it's so easy to take things at face value. But imagine if you could shift from your visceral reaction to just kindness and just see how much more joy comes to your life from being kind.

Speaker 1: 29:14

Yeah, I love that. My mom's saying was love is a master key, and I think that really plays into what you just shared, because it's so important that we remember like we're all just humans we sometimes give people higher titles than we need to and just realizing like we are all humans, we're all going through the human experience and, at the end of the day, the more that we can be a blessing to others, like that's what we were put here to do, so I love that gem.

Speaker 1: 29:40

Well, thank you so much, Jordan. Where can the listeners find you Listen? I'm sure people are hearing the gems and all the things and they're like I need Jordan in my life. I need to bet on myself, on socials and all the things I'm through Instagram is my playground.

Speaker 2: 29:56

So I'm at JordanGuyton, j-o-u-r-d-a-n, g-u-y-t-o-n. And so I'm at Jordan Guyton, j-o-u-r-d-a-n, g-u-y-t-o-n, and I'm starting to get into my LinkedIn bag for all of you corporate leaders or those in the corporate space. We're doing a lot of corporate work there, so definitely check me out on LinkedIn at Jordan Guyton, yeah.

Speaker 1: 30:13

Well, thank you, Jordan. Thank you. Now tell me that wasn't a good episode. Tell me that you did not catch some gems. Tell me that Jordan did not waver. She didn't come to play. She was trying to make sure that she dropped the gems and gave you the information that you need to level up and grow and glow. Listen Jordan has a podcast also. It's called building unapologetically, and if you're looking to build and get to the next level, go ahead and listen to the next level. Go ahead and listen to Jordan's podcast. As I shared in the conversation, she is genuine, she's authentic and she is helping women become trailblazers, because that is what she was called to do. And I want you to do what you were called to do. Get out your way, make it happen. I'm rooting for you. If you are new to the it's the Human Experience podcast, go ahead and like no-transcript.