Episode 9

The biggest business regrets (these might surprise you)

Published on: 2nd October, 2023

Wanna know what the biggest business regrets are? You’d think it’s about making more money or having a super successful business. Nope! 

When business owners come to us feeling frazzled, stuck, and uninspired, they secretly reveal how they’re really feeling: frustration about working too hard and not being there for loved ones; not having more fun and enjoying the ride; holding back ideas out of fear of rejection, failure, etc.  


So imagine our surprise when we listened to Bronnie Ware, a former hospice nurse, share the top 5 regrets of the dying, and realize that they are basically the same things we hear from entrepreneurs all the time. 


This week, we use Bronnie Ware’s “Top 5 Regrets of the Dying” as a springboard into a necessary conversation for any entrepreneur feeling burnt out, tired, and stuck. 


Don’t worry: we don’t make this too morbid. We offer some very specific steps entrepreneurs can take to avoid these regrets entirely. 


For more information on Bronnie Ware and her bestselling memoir, head over to https://bronnieware.com/regrets-of-the-dying/

Head over to iwannacollaborate.com and let us know what you took away from this conversation.

Music credit: The Funkster by Sweet Spot

A Subito Media production

Transcript
Jessica T:

Hello and welcome back to the eavesdrop on us podcast.

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I'm Jessica.

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I'm

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Susan: Susan.

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Jessica T: And this week, I am bringing

a, I just sprung this topic on Susan

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maybe 10 minutes ago before we hit

recording because I saw a reel on

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Instagram yesterday featuring an author

named, and I'm hoping I get her name

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pronunciation correct, Bronnie Ware.

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And she is a woman who has, I guess, she's

written this book that has been translated

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into multiple languages, has sold over

a million copies, and it's basically

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unpacking the five most common regrets

that people have on their deathbed.

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So, a little bit of a

morbid topic, but I think...

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Susan: It's morbid at all.

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I love the planning aspect of

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Jessica T: it.

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Yeah, it got me thinking last night

and I'll tell you all what the, what

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the, I'll tell you what the five common

regrets are, but it got me thinking

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my, my mind went in two directions.

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One, I think I'm just into this topic

right now because we recently lost Sasha.

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So my mind is going into like,

uh, What am I spending my time?

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It's, it's getting me thinking about

like bigger life questions, which

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I think sometimes those tragedies,

that's, that's what happens.

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And two, I think it brings in a bigger

conversation of being an entrepreneur and

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how we spend our time as entrepreneurs.

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And so.

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I, I'm really excited to, to bring

this topic to the table, Susan,

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specifically to hear what you think.

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So for the benefit of our listeners

and you, can I just share what

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the five common regards are?

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And then I think we'll just

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Susan: jump over to them.

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I'm actually looking forward to it.

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Jessica T: Okay.

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So she says the most common things

that she has heard from people, and

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I guess she worked as a palliative,

nurse in, in hospice care.

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And Was, you know, worked with lots and

lots and lots of different families and

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helping their loved ones transition.

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And so these were the five

most common ones, not the only

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ones, but the most common ones.

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Number one is that people wish they

lived a life truer to themselves.

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Number two, they wish they

hadn't worked so hard.

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Number three, they wish that they

had expressed their feelings more.

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Number four is They wish that they had

stayed in touch with their friends.

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And number five was they wish

that they let themselves be

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happier and live a happier life.

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So those were the five

most common regrets.

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And interestingly, you know, in.

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Entrepreneurial space that we're, you

know, we're always about like goals and,

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and, you know, getting to the next level

and growing and all the sort of numbers

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and vanity metrics associated with it.

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No numbers are associated

with any of those regrets.

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So Susan, I'm wondering, like,

which one stands out to you and why?

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Susan: Almost every

entrepreneur, for God's sakes.

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If you started a business.

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You've been alone.

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So you can kind of feel and you

know, even though you're lonely

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and things aren't going great, you

may not be able to express that

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because it would be too vulnerable.

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you know, you work too much.

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Well, that's because it's an all or

nothing paradigm for some, right?

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This is my last chance.

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I got to make this happen.

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So there's that.

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Desperate nature to it.

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So it can be out of proportion for

what, you know, a healthy work life

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balance probably should, or I should

say, ideally look like, um, happier.

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I do think, regrettably, this is

an unspoken truth that, and I'm

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talking strictly for startups.

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There are a number of folks

that start a business.

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And they had a grand time and an

amazing time starting that business

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and they take it as a life sentence

that they cannot do anything else.

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So they're happy is maybe for five or ten

years and then like, Jesus, I just put

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a, you know, noose around my neck because

I, I want to do other things yet I can't.

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Jessica T: I almost think that that, that,

just listening to you, we could take each

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one of these lessons and go so deep on it.

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So yes, you can go very meta.

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Susan: You always can go meta,

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Jessica T: you can, and I think

there's, there's one that definitely

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stands out to me and one that I

hear so often from the clients and

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business owners that I interact with

frequently, and one that I think is just.

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I latched on because it speaks to

something I'm thinking about as well.

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So I wonder if, is there one that

is especially sticking out to you?

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Susan: Yes.

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And half.

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No.

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Um, I know.

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Is there such a thing?

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Well, it really goes to the thing

of, you know, the happier I wish I

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was, I gave myself permission to be.

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Happier.

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And for the past two years, I've been

stressing, bring the fun back, have

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fun, and you know, because it helps you

put in, at least it does for me, right?

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It does for me.

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I don't want to speak euphemistically

on everyone's behalf, but for me, that's

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also a placeholder for me to say, um,

good old Ralph Waldo Emerson, you know,

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finish each day and be done with it.

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Thanks.

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And that means leave it

all out in the field, man.

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Just, if you're going

to do it, do it hard.

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And it may be wrong, but

dang it, you made your mark.

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Right?

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I've never seen somebody fail miserably

and spectacularly and fail a little bit.

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Meaning, you know, if they gave

it a little more juice, they

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probably would have made it.

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Right?

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But I know if you've given it your

all, what are you going to do?

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You can't regret it.

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Yeah.

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Because you gave

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Jessica T: it your all, so some of

our most, you know, when I think

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about some of our most successful

entrepreneurial clients, there's just

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that like go getter can do attitude.

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And I love being around them and

talking with them because they're

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like, Oh, you know what, we're, we're

just going to create this product.

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And we're just going to go

for it and see what happens.

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Right.

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Or, Oh,

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Susan: that's a person

who can work with risk.

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Jessica T: Right.

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But, but there's this.

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I want to see what happens

and I want to have fun.

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It's this exploratory

investigative approach to things.

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And of course I know it's driven by

like, I think this can make us money.

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And I think this is going to make a

successful, but I think underneath

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that is more of the, no, it's the

exploratory, like, let's see what happens.

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And I want to, you know, I

want to just give this a shot.

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So it's like creating and

launching a new product.

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It could be.

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hiring a team member.

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It could be, you know, uh, we've had some

clients have multiple locations, right?

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So they're, they're expanding

and stretching and they're like,

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let's just see what happens.

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And there's that, there's that fun,

like, I want to try this attitude.

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So when I think of that lesson,

like let myself be help happier.

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As an entrepreneur, I think there's

that, there's that not wanting to live

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also with the regret of like, I was

too scared to try this or I wonder what

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would have happened if I tried this.

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So I kind of branched off, but

I, but I think to bring it back

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to the Emerson quote, finish

each day and be done with it.

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Susan: see for me, I'm going to

jump in here because I go ahead.

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Jessica T: You could tell this

is so fresh from last night.

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I'm absolutely working it out.

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Well, for

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Susan: me, it's like, it's no different.

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Why I love Mondays.

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Most people go running in the

opposite direction from Mondays.

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Dang.

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I love me some Mondays.

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It's a new week.

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It's a new day.

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And I always embrace the potential

of what can be, might be, could be.

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And I am an optimistic person.

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I'm not Pollyanna about it.

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I may be dating me, but it's true.

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I don't see, you know, rainbows

and unicorns all the time.

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I do see, you know, potential.

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And I do embrace the joy of it.

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The, the optimism of it.

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I am an American after all.

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That is quintessential American.

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And I do believe, you know, really.

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Let's, we have everything to gain for it.

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Why play one second less?

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Jessica T: you know, going back to

what you said earlier, it's this

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idea of this I think aligns with

what you're saying, which is People

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will often start a business and

it will look a certain way, right?

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And they're happy with it for like those

first couple of years or however long.

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And then all of a sudden it doesn't

become fun or enjoyable anymore.

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And I think one of the things that I know

we've started working on with some of

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our clients is like, well, wait a second.

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The boredom, the frustration, the

resentment, the feeling stuck.

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There's a, there's a, a lot of

flexibility and freedom for entrepreneurs.

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Maybe people, not so much for

people who have, you know, more of a

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corporate professional job, but for

entrepreneurs, like you can change it.

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You don't have to throw

the whole thing out.

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Like how many people have come to

you and been like, I hate this thing.

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And I just want to light

my business on fire.

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And you're like, wait a second.

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It doesn't have to be that extreme.

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We don't have to go all

the way to that degree.

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It's

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Susan: the classic I've

fallen out out of love.

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Mm-hmm.

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with it and it presents that way.

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But really, you know, the under the

understory is I created this business.

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I had a lot of opportunity and creativity

and risk and adrenaline rushes left and

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right, and it's become rote, it's become

monotonous, it's become predictable.

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And I actually shine fast when there's.

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Unpredictability.

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Hello.

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Entrepreneurs unite.

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I, you know, they love it.

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Non entrepreneurs look at it as risk.

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But we entrepreneurs who start businesses

from the ground up, that's not risk.

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That's creative opportunity.

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And we're okay with it.

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We really do see it as skewed a different

way than most average individuals.

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In fact, only 3% On the United States

citizens, well, according to the S B

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A, by the way, I didn't take this test.

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It was a survey done by the S B A

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Jessica T: that we don't know

who actually took this survey.

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So

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Susan: was in fact the S B A because

everybody, you know, we always hear

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this moniker, oh, you can be a business

owner and you could be a business

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owner, and you too, and you three.

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Well, the fact is there's a reason

why 50% businesses fail in five years.

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Because they weren't supposed to

be in business anyways because

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honestly, they're not wired.

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They're probably amazing.

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Number two people.

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So really, when we boiled down the

numbers in that study, they came up with

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actually 3 percent of the population at

that given time is about 5 years old.

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3 percent of the population is

actually wired and prepared for

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the rigors of owning a business.

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And what's that mean?

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Stress out over risk.

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I can balance it.

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I can work it through and a person that

isn't able to do that, well, my God,

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would you find anything more stressful

and unpleasant and unfulfilling?

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Jessica T: Well, this actually, this

is the question I was going to ask you.

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And I think you're, you're starting

to answer it now, which is what would

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you say to an entrepreneur that has

come to you and sort of revealed.

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I'm just unhappy in my business.

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Like what would you, what, what advice

or what would you recommend they do?

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Susan: Well, it's threefold.

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So one, what is it that doesn't

make you happy any longer?

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So in other words, what made

you happy at the beginning?

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Number one, we need to

determine what that is too.

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Are you sure you're not just bored?

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You know, sometimes we confuse

our emotions, you know,

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fear or anticipation, right?

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and often in this instance,

that does get confused.

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I'm just bored out of my wits, and then

the boredom becomes hate and frustration.

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Right.

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So I want to see if they're bored, you

know, the monotony of what they've done.

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And finally, I want to see how able are

they to imagine a different outcome.

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So, you know, would you like

to use this present business as

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an ATM to fund the new venture?

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Are you interested in

selling this outright?

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there are a number of options.

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So we're ideation and option creation

is in that particular effort.

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So there's three.

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it's never a straight answer because

individually we are different.

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And that uniqueness of that individual

is what created that business.

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So we have to capture

that with the leadership.

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and you've witnessed all of

this on various occasions.

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So none of this should be new to you, of

course, but you know, it's interesting

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when you finally button up and say,

well, what if we just hired somebody

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to run the business and you go do

the creative part of this business?

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I can't begin to tell you

how many jaws hit the floor.

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What?

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We can do that?

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And I was like, hell yeah, that's

the fun Let's go create more.

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Jessica T: what I love about this answer.

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And again, I think in the, in the

bigger scheme of so many people went

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into business to do something that

they love, but also for flexibility

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and freedom and the ability to do

a lot of things on their terms.

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Let's tap into that.

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It doesn't have, if you're unhappy and

you're frustrated, there are options.

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There is a light at the end of

the tunnel and it's too bad.

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I think when you, I know you hear

this a lot more just with the clients

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that you tend to work with, they

will come to you and they've been

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feeling that feeling for a while.

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It's, it's hard.

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Yeah.

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It's, it's been like, it's been marinating

that frustration, resentment unhappiness

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has been marinating for a while.

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And so I think that's always why

you're like, Oh man, like, could

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you have come to me like a year

ago, however long ago, right?

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You've been sitting in this.

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It's like, there was, there

are so many options for you.

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That's a heartbreak.

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Susan: I have to tell you one thing.

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One of the reasons why I did start this

business for my whole career, a good 20

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years, always in the senior leadership.

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I was very blessed in my career

while raising you girls, um,

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to work in senior leadership.

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But here's the thing.

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I never had my voice because

it wasn't my business.

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So I had to represent.

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Dad as a colonel or the officer in charge,

I had to represent the mother of, I had

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to represent the, employee or director

of, uh, when I, uh, forget it, when

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I worked in the United States Senate.

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Honey, I was holding a purse and write.

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I had my voice in on written word,

but I couldn't say an darn thing.

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I had no voice because anything I said,

Would have been used against the senator

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that I so appreciated and, you know,

I really rallied on her behalf, but it

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would have been made and used against

her and that wouldn't help anybody.

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So I want voice, and that was

one of the reasons why we named

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it, Terzakis and Associates.

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I wanted my name, my voice,

my thought, my, my say on it.

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If I had to go another day without

having to speak my personal truth.

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Oh, we're going to have a, we're

going to have a cleanup on aisle one.

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It was just, it was going to be pretty

but for people, you know, making that

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transition into a small business.

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And they don't know how to,

how do I actually do that?

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And that's the fun that we

get to have with them, right?

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You are huge in helping

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Jessica T: people find I was just

thinking, my mind went in a bunch

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of different directions with

all the conversations I've had.

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I know, I've talked with so many, it's

everything from just, when I think

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of content creation, it's been from a

place of like, I am a spiritual person.

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But I'm afraid to talk about that.

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Or I want to have conversations

about this hobby that I'm into, or I

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want to show my feelings about this.

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It's all those kinds of conversations.

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In fact, I recently had one the other,

the other day and It was one of our

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clients and they were just saying, you

know, we, I've been taught in the past

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or, previous jobs when they were in more

professional corporate positions, it

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was, be careful not to offend anyone.

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And I just said to them,

I said, you know, I won.

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Just in the line of work that you do, I

don't think you're going to say anything

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that is going to, like, have everybody

unfollow you, everybody, like, hate

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you, and then your business shut down.

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I was like, I don't think

the nature of what you do is

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going to lend itself to that.

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And I said, but more importantly, the

censoring of what you want to say,

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the holding back of what's really

inspiring you, is Holding you back.

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I think from having fun in the business,

telling stories, connecting with people.

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And so what you're kind of left

with is this very bland, vanilla

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content that you're wondering why

nobody really wants to engage with.

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And I said, I promise you, if you

start adding in and dipping your toe

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into sharing these, feelings that

you're having your thoughts on your

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industry, even the, the elements

of what you are, are like in your

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personal life and what your values are.

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I said, yeah.

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you're gonna find that you're

connecting with way more people.

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And then more importantly,

it's a lot more enjoyable too.

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Like the more you censor yourself,

the more of a drag it is.

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Susan: Yeah.

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The worst thing I wanna

hear is, Hey, you know what?

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I don't know how I feel about No, stop.

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You're talking about the wrong topics.

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If you don't know how you feel, help

yourself create an informed opinion.

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Mm-hmm.

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, everybody, everybody.

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We'll judge.

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It doesn't matter.

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You know,

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Jessica T: you know, this actually reminds

me of, you know, something that you and

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I philosophically agreed upon, I want to

say at least a year ago, I don't know.

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We were, we were helping a

lot of entrepreneurs with

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some content creation stuff.

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And you and I agreed that one of the

things that we were going to do when we.

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We're working with clients on this is

that we were not going to write the

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content for them, because what we wanted

to teach them was the ability to find

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their voice and say what they want to

say, because there's nothing more freeing

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than that to be able to articulate and

communicate and say what you want to say.

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And no one can take that away from you.

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And there's such power in

that it's so much bigger than.

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A business thing.

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It's like, this is you.

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This is you as a person.

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And I know like, I've been on zoom

calls with clients and when we've

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gotten to like, what do you want to say?

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What do you really want

to express to people?

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What do you want to say?

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Make it even bigger than that.

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It's like, you're holding like, no,

I want to hear what you have to say.

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And then they finally reveal it.

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And it's like, we just got goosebumps.

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Right.

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There's just something

so beautiful in that.

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Susan: that's the whole reason

for doing what we do, isn't it?

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Finding the under the under.

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You know, but that really goes back

to Ralph Waldo Emerson's famous

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quote of, Finish each day and just

be done with it for goodness sakes.

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Be done with it.

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Leave it on the field.

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Can you actually pass away with

regret living by that That credo

371

:

is just so empowering, isn't it?

372

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And you know I'm not

the big one on regret.

373

:

I don't believe in regret.

374

:

I think

375

:

Jessica T: so.

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I think that's why you're saying, you

know, in the, in the spirit of like

377

:

expressing yourself and saying what you

want to say, then it's like, you're,

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:

you know, you're not going to have

that regret of like, well, I wish I

379

:

expressed my opinion on this or said that.

380

:

And, and look, I was using the example

of social media as a very specific.

381

:

illustration, just because that's what

we often use as entrepreneurs, but

382

:

that's even in like conversations and,

and who you're connecting with and who

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you're building, you know, friendships

and, and networking relationships with,

384

:

I think it's just being able to say,

say those things and express yourself.

385

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Susan: I think it also has to do

with the fact that as really, you

386

:

do not have a problem with that.

387

:

I can tell you there are times though,

you know, having a mom like I did

388

:

growing up, we were encouraged to have

an informed opinion, but an opinion,

389

:

whether it's on social policy, current

events, so they required that we read

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:

newspapers at the time coming up.

391

:

And, you know, we even had it growing

up, you know, give me a high and low

392

:

of today, it required you to own.

393

:

The experiences, whether they were good or

not so good on that particular day, right?

394

:

It allowed conversation and

allowed connection and allowed

395

:

exploring, you know, why was it

not good or why was it amazing?

396

:

it's the art of.

397

:

Learning and being childlike in your

curiosity, when we shut that down, we

398

:

become less than and we're less happier.

399

:

We play a smaller game.

400

:

We don't want to be heard so much

because we're just not too sure.

401

:

And I can't think of a sadder existence.

402

:

And if there's a way that I could

empower and I tell you what, one

403

:

of the reasons why we do what we

do is because we do empower people.

404

:

Not because of our work, but

because they gain confidence

405

:

and how to do it for their own.

406

:

So

407

:

Jessica T: I think that's why

entrepreneurs are uniquely positioned

408

:

in this instance to really, if

we think of these five lessons, I

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:

think there's an opportunity to.

410

:

Live them or is that, I don't know if

that's the right word, but I think that

411

:

your business can be a vehicle to fulfill

these lessons or live these lessons.

412

:

You know, it's funny, the ones

that you latched onto, right?

413

:

And this is why I love content because

you never quite know when you create

414

:

something and you release it to the

world, what people are going to grab

415

:

onto, what they're going to latch onto.

416

:

And I should play that real for you.

417

:

before we got on to recording

this and like a half a minute,

418

:

well, I know they're short.

419

:

It's like a minute and 30 seconds, but we

listened to the same thing, same content.

420

:

You take it in one direction and I

take it in a, in another one just

421

:

based on our life experience and where

our heads at and what matters to us.

422

:

And I think the one that

stands out to me the most is I

423

:

wish I hadn't worked so hard.

424

:

Yes.

425

:

Yeah, I wish I had to work so hard.

426

:

Why?

427

:

I think because I In the busy body.

428

:

And I do like working and I think

maybe it's my age, but I am feeling

429

:

time going by so much quicker.

430

:

Susan: Yeah, it does.

431

:

As we get older, it does.

432

:

It's like

433

:

Jessica T: I blink and it's like,

my gosh, like, you know, some of

434

:

the things we were talking about,

I'm like, that was a year ago.

435

:

That was a year and a half ago.

436

:

Like, we were just expressing this, the

very cliched, like, oh my gosh, the time.

437

:

Flies by.

438

:

And I think when I was listening to

the, to the real, which was talking

439

:

about one of the regrets is people

wish they hadn't worked so hard.

440

:

I think as an entrepreneur, my mind

goes right into, it's very easy for

441

:

me when I'm working on something

to get very focused and make.

442

:

It's so important.

443

:

And it's the end all be all.

444

:

And I get very consumed

by it because it's fun.

445

:

And I like problem solving.

446

:

And I like, you know, the, the

satisfaction that comes with completing

447

:

something, you know, whether it's working

on something for a client or, or creating

448

:

something for us, like as simple as like

a lead magnet or a downloadable item.

449

:

I'm like, Oh, this is so fun.

450

:

And then part of my challenge is.

451

:

That before I know it, you know,

I'm on the phone all the time.

452

:

my mind is elsewhere.

453

:

My mind is so wrapped up in work.

454

:

And so, so thinking of other things

and, I think that's the caveat.

455

:

Susan: And you know, you're an

apple off the old tree here, right?

456

:

I love to work.

457

:

And for me, work is fine.

458

:

I, this is indeed fun.

459

:

So, but I also have to remember

as entrepreneurs, we have to be

460

:

sensitive and supportive and loving

to our support system, you know, our

461

:

friends, family, and, you know, as I

like to have fun with the in laws and

462

:

the outlaws, they need time with us.

463

:

And.

464

:

You know, we may be okay with less

time, not because we don't love them

465

:

or appreciate them or want to be there.

466

:

It almost has nothing to do with that.

467

:

It has to do with the singular focus

of, I'm really passionate about what

468

:

I'm committed to in this business.

469

:

But they need so and then here's

the fun thing when we go on vacation

470

:

when we do take breaks We we do it.

471

:

Oh, yeah, the family

really wants to go away.

472

:

I have all this stuff I have to

make up so I can get away and and

473

:

inevitably we come back refreshed

energized Ready to do new things.

474

:

So you would think We get it in our thick

heads that yeah, man, friends and family

475

:

are incredibly soul quenchingly important.

476

:

I

477

:

Jessica T: think intellectually people get

that and I know intellectually it's like,

478

:

well, yeah, I, I, I am aware of that.

479

:

I've been told that we have quotes and

abundance surrounding that idea, right?

480

:

Doing it is another different doing

it is another is another thing and I

481

:

think one of the lenses I've started

to use in seeing things through is.

482

:

You know, five years from now, it's

not going to matter how many people

483

:

liked this post that I put on social

media, you know, five, five years

484

:

from now, it's not going to matter.

485

:

And I don't say this dismissively about

the things that we're creating because

486

:

I think they matter, but in the grand,

I'm talking in the grand scheme of

487

:

things, the singular post or video that

I've recorded is not going to matter.

488

:

So stop obsessing and stop

fixating on it and stop wanting

489

:

it to be, you know, perfect.

490

:

Susan: Can I interrupt you there?

491

:

because I think what you said

there, can you really bring

492

:

in a lot to the listener here?

493

:

we only have so many

resources of the self, right?

494

:

Can we stop pretending that it's

infinite, that it is indeed finite?

495

:

I think that's what I'm hearing you

share, and I'm taking something from that.

496

:

and I think you are, you would

readily agree with this, We can't

497

:

give all, and then when we give

all, expect there to be more to be.

498

:

Act into well, and

499

:

Jessica T: yeah, I teach as an adjunct

at the university, just a freshman,

500

:

you know, intro to writing class, you

know, it's one of the gen eds that

501

:

you have to take to, to graduate.

502

:

And I, you know, had a

student and literally this

503

:

morning email me frantically.

504

:

That they were going to be late

and they were so apologetic and

505

:

they were like, I was at the

hospital last night with my father.

506

:

I'm not making this up.

507

:

Right.

508

:

And I was like, honestly, in the

grand scheme of things, that is

509

:

where your time should be spent.

510

:

we will make up the lesson of whatever

we covered today in freshman composition

511

:

class, you know, And I think it's just

seeing things through the lens of,

512

:

you know, five years from now and the

grander scheme of things, you know,

513

:

where do I want to be spending my time?

514

:

What do I want to spend my time doing?

515

:

And that doesn't mean that I.

516

:

will all of a sudden just be like,

well, I'm not going to do anything.

517

:

Like I'm not going to do an all or

nothing here, but I am suggesting,

518

:

and you can sense that I am working

this out and I don't have the answer

519

:

to this personally for myself, but it

does, in light of, of losing Sasha.

520

:

In light of listening to this, you

know, it gets, it just gets you

521

:

thinking like, what do I really

want to spend my time doing?

522

:

Is it, do I want to spend my time

worrying and stressing out about, you

523

:

know, this or that in the business?

524

:

Or do I want to be constantly attached

to, my social media thinking about, are

525

:

enough people engaging with my stuff or

people liking my stuff or this or that?

526

:

And like in the grand scheme of

things, it's just, it doesn't.

527

:

It won't matter.

528

:

Well,

529

:

Susan: I think to your point,

it does, but it doesn't.

530

:

Yeah.

531

:

And there's a onic nature of it.

532

:

It does in the moment, but in

the long term, it really doesn't.

533

:

It, it, and I, I usually come back to, you

know, the four points I wrote down, truth,

534

:

feelings, working and being happier.

535

:

And, you know, it, the obvious exercise

there could be, what's the opposite?

536

:

You know, I could've been happier.

537

:

Instead, I had allowed myself to

stay in a, a sad, unhappy state.

538

:

I could've.

539

:

Worked less and achieved probably

the same or slightly more, but yet,

540

:

nope, I worked harder feelings.

541

:

I felt less when, in all honesty, I had

every reason to do a happy victory dance,

542

:

but I didn't give myself permission.

543

:

And then, you know, the truth.

544

:

Well, you know, of course, that

resonated big time with me.

545

:

You know, usually it's having a say having

an informed opinion, having a perspective,

546

:

having, you know, agency and autonomy.

547

:

And I think those are all

incredibly important, regardless

548

:

who you are as a human being.

549

:

I think that I would really want

to emphasize is at the end of the

550

:

hour, when we're done talking about

branding, business, All of that.

551

:

How did you show up to this gig?

552

:

Because it's, you know, it goes

back to that old saying, it's not

553

:

going to say on my epitaph that

I held a really kick ass meeting.

554

:

No, no.

555

:

It's going to have a few

titles that I'm proud of.

556

:

Daughter, sister, mother, wife.

557

:

That's it folks.

558

:

noticed I didn't have entrepreneur there,

559

:

even though I've impacted

a number of lives.

560

:

That's perhaps under friend.

561

:

You know, it was a friendly moment,

but I think encouraging everybody

562

:

to really take stock of how do

you want to show up in this life?

563

:

You have one make account and,

you know, make peace with that.

564

:

And that's really why that fabulous

little quote from that man about 100

565

:

years ago in Lexington, Massachusetts.

566

:

You know, Ralph, you came up

with yet another winner, finish

567

:

each day and be done with it.

568

:

How phenomenal is that?

569

:

I find so much empowerment.

570

:

Jessica T: Well, I think that it does,

it does let us go in a very empowering,

571

:

you know, there is a sobering note

to some of this, but I think in the

572

:

sense that by calling attention to it

and having awareness of this, then.

573

:

We can do something about it.

574

:

And I think we've, that's what we've

unpacked today is that, you know,

575

:

these five lessons as entrepreneurs,

if you're listening to this and you're

576

:

thinking, Oh my gosh, the months have

just rolled by or I'm really not that

577

:

happy or I'm kind of frustrated in my

business or I haven't remembered the

578

:

last time I actually hung out with

my friends outside of my business.

579

:

You're in a very unique position

to do something about it.

580

:

And so to wrap up.

581

:

That's what we would suggest.

582

:

To someone listening to this is these

five regrets don't necessarily have to be

583

:

true for not for you as a business owner.

584

:

So Susan, this has been, this has

been a fun topic to bring to the table

585

:

because it wasn't a business topic.

586

:

It was just this interesting reel that

I stumbled upon that I was like, this

587

:

is going to be such a good conversation.

588

:

So thank you.

589

:

Oh,

590

:

Susan: it's my joy.

591

:

In all honesty, it was one of those

instances where I found that empowering.

592

:

It was really encouraging, empowering.

593

:

I hope those listening get it too.

594

:

So I love that you brought it up

as usual, always insightful and fun

595

:

to flesh it out a little bit more.

596

:

So yay.

597

:

Well

598

:

Jessica T: done.

599

:

All right.

600

:

Well, that's it for today.

601

:

Susan, I will see you next time.

602

:

See you soon.

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About the Podcast

Eavesdrop on Us
Less how-to's. More real business conversations!
The honest business podcast YOU NEED IN YOUR LIFE!
We talk about what it's really like to be in business: the good, the frustrating, the "am I the only one going through this?!" kind of topics.

You're in the right place if you're looking for less "how to's" and more real conversations about what you're going through as an entrepreneur.

Come eavesdrop on our conversations-it'll be like joining us at the kitchen table after working a full day in your business.

About your hosts

Susan Terzakis

Profile picture for Susan Terzakis

5 Things to Know About Susan:


1. I traveled the continental U.S. playing hornline with the famed 27th Lancers drum and bugle corps.

2. As a family we’ve lived coast to coast, moving over 12 times!

3. Born and raised in historic Salem, Massachusetts, while working in our family restaurant, I was able to meet people visiting from all over the world and learned about their cultures and perspectives.

4. While working in the United States Senate as a staffer, I went to every city, village, town, and incorporation in New Hampshire. Every single one! I listened and learned about micro small businesses in our state.

5. I've taken four $100k businesses to over $2 million in annual sales, and I've helped lifestyle brands create revenue that gives them the freedom to spend quality time doing what matters most to them.

Jessica Terzakis

Profile picture for Jessica Terzakis
1. I won the Alfred Ernest Richards award for promising potential in literature and teaching, which started my 15-year career in teaching, curriculum design, and storytelling.
2. My favorite drink is tequila on the rocks. It's a definite conversation starter.
3. I love adrenaline. Whether it's roller coasters, speaking in front of an auditorium full of people, or getting on camera, that rush of energy makes me unstoppable at work.
4. I know how to captivate a room and sell from the stage, and I can help you see yourself doing something bigger than you ever thought you could.
5. At a recent event, one of my clients sold over a million dollars based on the curriculum we built together, and I can help you do the same!