In this week’s episode of the Seven Figure Consultant Podcast, I interview business coach and seven-figure business expert, Vanessa Shaw. 

We dive headfirst into the myriad of obstacles that we, as women, often encounter on our entrepreneurial journeys. We unpacked the nitty-gritty of financial hurdles, the weight of societal expectations, and the power of staying true to yourself.

Vanessa shares about her transition from stay-at-home mum to a thriving business coach, confronting gender biases and societal judgements along the way.

We also explored the need for women to be direct and set boundaries, the impact of peer judgement on success, and the importance of emotional intelligence in our professional lives. 

In this episode: 

• [00:01:20] Vanessa discusses her mission to empower women and shares her personal journey in business coaching.
• [00:04:30] The power of vulnerability and sharing personal stories to create connection with your audience and clients.
• [00:05:41] Understanding your relationship with money and its impact on business success.
• [00:07:32] Societal expectations and challenges faced by women in business, including the fear of being perceived negatively when achieving financial success.
• [00:13:34] Collaboration and connecting with supportive individuals in the business coaching industry.
• [00:14:44] Showing up authentically and empowering others without conforming to stereotypes or societal pressures.
• [00:17:40] Setting financial goals, the fear of success, and the responsibility of wealth generation.
• [00:20:29] Challenges faced by women when others notice their financial success, judgement, and comparison in professional circles.
• [00:23:19] Emotional and psychological challenges related to financial success and shame around wealth.
• [00:26:10] The importance of expanding identity, emotional intelligence, and self-awareness to avoid self-sabotage and achieve growth.
• [00:27:30] The challenges of celebrating success in a culture that glorifies struggle, and the need to shift paradigms around wealth and accomplishment.
• [00:30:50] A guide to addressing money blind spots and achieving financial success.

Key Takeaways: 

• It’s important to recognise and break free from generational patterns, encouraging women to pursue entrepreneurial paths, challenge traditional roles, and serve as positive role models for future generations.
• Our discussion highlights the challenges women face when they achieve success, including judgement, comparisons and the double bind of societal expectations. We talk about the importance of cultivating emotional intelligence, setting boundaries and staying true to yourself while navigating the complexities of success.
• Jessica shared her experience of being advised to appear older to gain professional credibility, a testament to the gender biases that still pervade the business landscape. Authenticity, we agreed, is a cornerstone of success, albeit one that is frequently tested by the expectations and judgements placed upon us.

Quotes:

"There's this fear often that women have. I've totally noticed this. Like money will turn me into a horrible person. People won't like me anymore. I'll become this caricature of myself. I will become a bitch if I make a lot of money.” - Jessica Fearnley

“We need more examples and better examples of women that are financially empowered, doing great work in the world, paying it forward. And they're also fantastic role models as human beings.” - Vanessa Shaw

“One of the things with my group program, the Seven Figures Club, we just did a retreat to Barbados, we had a really wonderful time, but one of the things that people said in the room was ‘I can be my full self in here. I can say the things that I've done that are amazing’, because in so many situations outside of the room, in our normal lives, you can't really go to the school gate and be like, ‘oh, I did 75,000 in sales this month’ because people are like, ‘what on earth does that mean?’” - Jessica Fearnley

“The whole ‘get rich without being a bitch’ philosophy is so much about, yes, we can be rich in relationships, spiritually, in the work that we're doing, wealth and money is a big part of that, and be the best version of ourselves, because the reality is, energetically, when we're depleted, we're resentful, we're frustrated, overwhelmed, overworked, underpaid, all of those things, we don't bring our best self to the table.” - Vanessa Shaw

Useful Links

Vanessa: 

Remove Your Money Blindspots - vanessashaw.com

Vanessa’s Website - BusinessGrowthAcademy.com

Get Rich Without Being A Bitch Podcast

Connect with Vanessa on LinkedIn

Facebook - The Business Growth Academy

Jessica:

The Seven Figures Club

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Jessica’s LinkedIn

Guest Bio:

Vanessa Shaw is on a mission to help more women end the emotional and financial roller coaster that so many face. Whether it's adding your next $100k in revenue, crossing the 7 figure mark or enjoying more time freedom in your business, she can help you turn your entrepreneurial dreams into reality with proven strategies and systems that have helped hundreds of women. 

During COVID Vanessa and her team worked with over 83 businesses and helped them generate over $13 million in new business collectively in 100 days. Vanessa believes financial empowerment is the next level of freedom for women and is currently working on her new book Get Rich Without Being a Bitch.