If we sat down together to work on your overall health or your dreams of starting a business, one of the first things I would ask you is, “What are your core values?”
Core values drive everything we do and every decision we make. And so knowing what your core values are and working with them is crucial to your success in life.
I’m super pumped about this episode because it is my first deep dive on the podcast into more of a business focus. And my guest couldn’t be more perfect for the topic.
Terra Bohlmann is the creator of the Fast Track Entrepreneur Podcast and The Business Map Method™ and seeks to help female entrepreneurs accomplish in one year what would normally take five-years.
If your inner voice is telling you to start something, if that inner flame is growing brighter and brighter every day, it’s time to look more closely at what your core values are pulling you toward.
My Flailing Start in Business
When I started my coaching business, it wasn’t so much because I wanted to start a business; it’s just that I was great at coaching women and they kept coming to me wanting help. I had no business plan and really no knowledge of where or how to begin.
So, I flailed along, trying to figure out what I needed to do. I was comfortable with the coaching part; it was the CEO part I wasn’t so good at.
If I had known someone like Terra then, I could be light years ahead of where I am now and it would have been far less painful to get there. 
The Business Map Method™
The Business Map Method™ that Terra created fills in the gap in 6 specific areas of your business. This framework gives women a strong foundation for business based on their core values, and the confidence to be the CEO of what they’re creating.
The plan begins with the foundation and then moves to your signature offer, which is what you’re selling. After that, you move on to defining your sales process and strategy.
Once you know your core values, what you’re selling, and how you’re selling it, your next step is to figure out how you’re going to get leads. This step is your marketing/visibility strategy.
Once you have the leads, how are you going to deliver the goods? This is the WOW factor; you always want to WOW your customers.
And the last step is creating your dream team. You can’t do it all. It may seem counterintuitive to you to create your team last but if you don’t have all the other steps in place, the people you bring onto your team won’t know how to help you.
Discovering Your Core Values
Some of you may not know that I have begun helping women get started in the entrepreneurial world through my newest program called The Inner Circle.
This is a 10-month program where I help budding female entrepreneurs figure out what their inner voice is telling them and we work together to get their businesses off the ground.
Terra recently did a session for the women in the Inner Circle on discovering their core values and how those will affect the way they navigate the waters of business.
The first step in Terra’s business method is to establish that strong foundation by getting really clear on your core values. If you’re leaving the corporate world to become an entrepreneur, expect that this process may take some time.
Once you have your core values established and you feel comfortable with them, you will then be able to build that solid foundation for business. Your future decisions will be easier because every decision will be based on your core values.
“When you identify your 5-7 core values, you can assess anything that comes your way as a “yes” or “no.”
Why Core Values Are Important for Every Woman
Even though this is a business-specific conversation, the conversation around core values and establishing them in your life is not specific to business.
We all have core values that are important to us but if we never take the time to figure out what they are and name them, we will live our lives out of alignment.
We will feel stressed and overwhelmed, we won’t take care of our physical and emotional health, and we will wonder why we always feel so exhausted and unhappy.
And for those women who go into a corporate workplace every day, the misalignment can be excruciating. If your workplace doesn’t hold the same values as you do on a personal level, it is going to be exhausting trying to fit in with that environment for 40+ hours every week.
You are basically having to live out multiple personalities and that is not good for anybody.
Your core values affect the way you parent, your marriage, your friendships, and the way you show up at work. They are that important.
My Core Values
I wouldn’t feel right sharing this episode without sharing with you, my listeners, my own core values.
Since you listen to this podcast, you share in part of my world and my core values affect not only the work I do with clients but also everything else I do.
Here are my top 6 core values, for business and life:
- Share from a place of vulnerability and authenticity.
- Always lead from a place of service.
- Own your unique superpower and gifts.
- Taking care of you will help you serve the world in a bigger way.
- Family is the #1 reason we show up.
- If it lights up your heart, you follow it.
Core Values Help You Establish Boundaries
COVID-19 might be the current pandemic but every single day, I see a pandemic of women with no boundaries.
When you figure out what your core values are, you can then begin to establish healthy boundaries. These boundaries are what give you a measure of control over what you allow and don’t allow into your life.
We need boundaries to protect our mental and emotional health.
In business, you absolutely have to set boundaries so that you don’t end up overwhelmed or wanting to quit. Terra has set business hours that she maintains and she lets her clients and customers know those hours at the outset.
How to Get Started on Core Values
Maybe you’ve been listening to this episode and you’re saying, “Golly, Amanda, I realize now that I am not living by my core values. I’m not even sure what they are!”
If that’s you, don’t worry. You can get clear on what your core values are and you can begin to live your life according to them.
The first thing you need is time.
As women, we are always willing to overgive and overserve others but we rarely do the same for ourselves. So, give yourself the gift of time to figure out what your core values are.
Turn off all the distractions. Google “example core values,” and you should see tons of example words to pull from. Choose the words you resonate with on a deep level and write them down.
Now that you have your list, which is likely 25+ words, comb through them and get the list down to just 5-7 that really speak to you.
If you want to go a step further, put those words into phrases or sentences, like I did. Once you have your words or phrases, sit with them. Give it some time to see if you want to change anything or if they feel right.
And then, type those bad boys up, put them in a frame, and hang them on your wall where you will see them every freaking day!
Put them on your website. Share them on your social media. Talk to your family and friends about them.
Stop Ignoring the Signs
The last step is to look at the people you engage with on a regular basis and ask yourself who lines up with those core values and who is in direct conflict with them.
And make decisions on who you want to interact with based on your core values.
I see it in women all the time; we ignore the red flags that automatically pop up when we’re dealing with people who don’t agree with our core values and who don’t support us.
You will never be free of the stress and anxiety and experience true freedom until you move all of that negative energy out of your life.
If you are interested in more of what Terra offers, head on over to her website where she has a free download called Destination: Success that will help you define your 5-year business plan and what you can do to accomplish it. And be sure to follow her on Instagram.
There may be many layers of this onion that you have to peel back before you get to all the root causes. If you don’t know where to start, I am here to help.
SCHEDULE A FREE DEEP DIVE CALL WITH ME HERE.
XO,
Amanda
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