5 Paradigm Shifts to go from Trainer to Entrepreneur

Hi beautiful chica’s, I hope you are having a most amazing day.

Many of you have shared you are contemplating owning your own business. Or opening your own studio. Or becoming a professional speaker.

And, as a fellow entrepreneur and business owner, I get so freakin excited more women are owning their own businesses.

But I will say, transitioning from trainer/manager to business owner required a paradigm shift. And for me, this transition took a bit of time.

Below are the 5 shifts I had to make to find success as a female business owner.  

1. You’re responsible for all decisions - good and bad. Entrepreneurs have an incredible opportunity to create their very own success. But this means making big decisions about what must be done, when and how. You can no longer wait for your client to walk in the door, or for manager to tell you what to do, you must make it happen. You must take responsibility for all decisions even the bad…like I always say - own your stuff.

2. Feeling uncomfortable is your new ‘comfort zone.’ As a trainer, you’re used to thinking ‘inside the box’ literally rather than outside it. As an entrepreneur, there is no box. You see what others don’t, you are an early adopter, and you take risks. This requires courage, a thick skin and the ability to keep going despite how many times you get turned down and how crazy your friends and family think you are.

3. Learning is a continuous journey. As a trainer, you have a job description, which requires a specific skill set. Being an entrepreneur involves learning many new skills. That could be learning to pitch to a new target market, using new technology, rocking your content on social media, getting clients in a non-sales way, building a team and the list goes on and on. Being an entrepreneur is a school all of its own.

4. Enjoy breaking rules. As a trainer, breaking the rules could mean dismissal. Take it from me I totally know. Yep, I’ve been dismissed.  Dismissed sounds so much better than fired. Entrepreneurs on the other hand aren’t interested in the status quo – they’re always looking for ways to do things differently. Which is why breaking the rules is so important.  

5. Start now. Most people under-estimate the time it takes to make the transition to entrepreneur, so it’s sensible to start shifting your mindset while you’re still a trainer, perhaps even setting up a side hustle to run alongside your current position. This could give you the opportunity to develop skills and build experience while still enjoying the safety-net of a pay check.

So, those are the five paradigm shifts to go from trainer to entrepreneur. I hope they help you as you embark on the amazing journey of entrepreneur and/or business owner. I will tell you this, it is the hardest thing I have ever done and, by far the most rewarding.  Hoo Aah!