Happy Thursday friends!

Today, I had a random Thursday thoughts post planned and well, my thoughts are all over the place today and I decided because of that, it wouldn’t make for a very good blog post! For whatever reason, I thought it would be a good idea to schedule a 7:30 am dentist appointment for Savannah the morning after a night market so I am a little all over the place. Lol.

Anyways, as I was trying to sort my thoughts to write today, I thought instead of making it random, why not pinpoint something that is heavy on my mind and talk business. Yep, business! Last night I had a pop up and it was slow so I spent most of the night talking to my neighbors and having some really great conversation about what it means to be a small business owner (especially with how crazy the world is right now), a women in business and in particular last night how it was participating in pop ups as a small business owner.

When I got home late last night my wheels were still turning after the conversations and my mind could not turn off. I kept thinking about all we talked about and in doing that was really thinking about all that I have learned in the last year running Shop Rooted and Free. So, today, I thought I would share with you 3 things I have learned in business, particularly in running an online and pop up space.

Here we go, 3 things I have learned in business…

1. You need community! Find other female founders in your area and connect with them. Network. Build a support system. If there isn’t something in your area start it, it could be as simple as dinner every month. You need others around you who know what you are going through as a small business owner.

2. Mindset is everything! There are going to be good and bad days. Hard days and days worth celebrating. It is literally a rollercoaster ride of emotions and thoughts and feelings so make sure you are working on your mind every single day. Do things that feed your soul and lift you up. Leadership development is key to having the mindset that will help you ride the waves.

3. You don’t have to be on 24/7. I know as small business owners we wear most if not all of the hats. We need to be “on” a lot but that that doesn’t mean 24/7. Make sure you have boundaries and set some time for yourself and family. My hard and fast rule is no work on Sunday’s. No matter what (I mean unless a true emergency) I will not be working on a Sunday. I need 1 day to not actively be thinking about work, my mind and body need a rest.

I have obviously learned so much more than just these 3 things but these were the ones today that were sticking out to me as I continued to ponder the conversations from last night. If you own a business (or have in the past), what would you add here? I would love to know in the comments below.