Episode 248- Small Steps to Reach Big Dreams + Going from an Observer to Main Player In Your Life

Intro 0:02

T-minus 10 seconds. Welcome to the Journey To Launch Podcast with your host, Jamila Souffrant. As a money expert who walks her talk, she helps brave Journeyers like you get out of debt, save, invest and build real wealth. Join her on the Journey To Launch to financial freedom in five, four, three, two, one.

Jamila Souffrant

Hey hey hey journeyers. Welcome to the journey to launch podcast. And by the way, if you are listening to this is real time when I am planning for this episode to come out, that means you are literally spending the holidays with me. This should be airing around Christmas/New Years.So I just want to say, thanks for spending time with me. I know you could be doing a million other things.

But I hope that this is going to be well worth your while, because you're spending this time to listen, learn and educate yourself and hopefully be entertained.

Jamila Souffrant

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Jamila Souffrant

This episode is going to be a little difference, because I'm going to be playing the recording from my FinCon 2021 speech. If you're following me on social media, on Instagram, you may have seen this on my Journey To Launch and my Jamila Souffrant IG pages. I talked about traveling for my first in- person talk. Actually, believe it or not, this is the second talk that I've ever done on a, like, real stage, in front of real people. I know I talk every week to you guys, but, being on a stage in this capacity, like giving a speech, whew, this is my second time doing it.

And so, I talk about FinCon in the past on this podcast as being really a pivotal point something that helped me a lot in my personal finance career, in my entrepreneurship journey. And so I got the chance to speak at FinCon. This conference for influencers, bloggers, content creators in the personal finance space.

The very best of the best come here where we almost mastermind, in a group setting, a big group setting. Where we're going to difference presentations. We're heading leaders in this space speak about growing their business, making money, how we can help our audiences get better with money and grow, right? So not only help our audience, but then also help us as business owners. To sustain ourselves, and to become the brands and/or maybe not big brands, but small brands, that we want to have that will make an impact.

So anyway, this is me, on stage, giving this speech. And, just as a heads up, I'm actually recording a bunch of solo episodes. You know, I've been talking about this for the longest. That I want to record more solo episodes. You know, Ideally, I would actually turn Journey To Launch into a more solo style episode podcast.

Where maybe, I'm doing 2-3 solo episodes a week and then maybe have one interview. But, I've been saying that for the longest. And I have not been able to get that done yet. Because quite frankly, recording solo episodes are really hard for me.

And I'll talk about that in another episode, why, I know I've said it before, but its a lot of pressure when its just you talking on the microphone. But, here's the thing. I've committed to recording a bunch of episodes. Topics that you guys have been asking for over and over. Giving you more of the behind the scenes of my journey, my financial journey, giving you just more financial tips and education, my point of view. I'm going to be sharing all of that.

Like, listen, I have a list of like 14 topics. That I need to or want to record over the next few weeks. Actually, after this stops recording, I'm going to record a really important one that will come out after this. And its hopefully going to make you tens or thousands of dollars. Like that is my goal. You'll hear that in the next episode.

Alright, so, with this FinCon speech, again, I am talking to personal finance creators in this speech, but honestly, I'm talking to you, so you don't have to be in the personal finance space. You don't have to be an entrepreneur. Because I share, really, what I think, are just some important things that anyone wanting to be successful should know.

And one of the things that I say is that I believe in dreaming big and thinking big and going after big, audacious goals. Thats how I got to where I am today. Quite frankly, thats how I have this podcast. Thats how I was able to quit my job. Save all the money I saved. And in this speech I'm talking about while It's great to dream big, its more important to think small. Maybe not more important, but is equally important, to think small. And why we should not just begin with the end in mind, like we've been told, and think about just the big vision, but actually, just for beginning sake, just so you can start, begin with the beginning in mind. Think smaller. And so I talk about that in this speech. And a whole bunch of other things that I hope that you will find insightful and helpful.

Again please remember this is a recording, so there may be an echo. My editor Emily's gonna do her best to make it sound good. But again, I'm on a big stage in front of hundred of people. So you may hear an echo or it may not be the best quality, but it should still be fine for you to really get what I'm saying.

Jamila Souffrant

Alright. Oh one more thing before we get started, I am opening up doors to my signature course, map your path to financial independence really really soon. And if you want to get on the waitlist, you should go to journeytolaucnh.com/ficourse. Thats journeytolaucnh.com/ficourse and if you're on the waitlist, you'll get some special bonuses that no one else gets. And you'll get to know about the course opening before anyone else. So you wanna go ahead and sign up. And this course is my signature course. It's my 10 steps to mapping out your path to freedom. Its literally the steps I took to go from a crazy, soul sucking commute that I did everyday, to this life of freedom that I have now. And I can't wait for, if you're interested, to join me on this path. So once again, go to journeytolaucnh.com/ficourse. Depending on when you're listening to this, doors may be open, but if you can get in, right now, on the waitlist, go ahead and sign up, you'll one the first to be notified when I open doors. Which will be really, really soon. journeytolaucnh.com/ficourse

Jamila Souffrant

If you want the episode show notes for this episode, go to journeytolaunch.com, or click the description of wherever you're listening to this episode. In the show notes, you'll get the transcribed version of the conversation, the links that we mentioned, and so much more. Also, whether you are An OG Journeyer or are brand new to the podcast, I've created a FREE Jumpstart Guide to help you on your financial freedom journey. It includes the top episodes to listen to, stages to go through to reach financial freedom, resources, and so much more. You can go to journeytolaunch.com/jumpstart to get your guide right now. Okay, let's hop into the episode.

Jamila Souffrant

Hey, wow! First of all, it's a pleasure to be here. It's an honor to be on this stage talking to you. And you know, I really have to be honest, it took me a long time to figure out what I wanted to speak about. After all, this is a Big Idea Talk. And here I am, like what can I say that's a big idea? Something that you've never heard, that could be impactful. And, like, literally, like, this is no lie. So, Rich And Regular, who had their big talk, Kiersten and Julien yesterday, which was amazing, they put out on Twitter a couple of weeks ago, like, they were practicing their speech. And it was going great. And I literally, when I saw that, I was like, "Oh, it's time for me to actually, like, pick a topic and write my speech." And, like, literally, I responded and, like ,I think they thought I was playing.

Jamila Souffrant

Like, I did not have my speech, I did not have a topic, because, like, I really didn't know what I wanted to say. And it's not because I didn't have any ideas. I had the complete opposite problem. I had ideas. And see, that's the thing. I had this idea that what I wanted from this speech was you to think that this was the most impactful thing you've heard at this conference. I wanted a standing ovation. I wanted you to request autographs. Okay, maybe not autographs, but you know, I really wanted you to hear a big idea. So, the thing about it was I was thinking too big. Me thinking too big left me stuck. My big, audacious goals only led me to feel like I couldn't move forward. Focusing on the end in mind just kept me in one place. And that's kind of what I want to talk about.

Jamila Souffrant

I want to talk about our desire to have more, to want more, to make a big impact, our big vision. Sometimes not understanding how to get there, keeps us not moving. And so, instead of being on the field, playing to our best ability, we stay stuck as spectators. And instead of thinking big, I want to talk about why it's important to think small. Why it's important to instead begin with the end in mind, we should begin just with the beginning in mind. Just begin. I'm also going to talk about how thinking small led me to big results in my life and business and how you can evolve from spectator to industry leader.

Jamila Souffrant

Now listen, I'm like so proud of this next slide with Michael Jordan. My husband is going to be so proud of me, because I found a way to put an NBA basketball player in a finance speech, but I'm putting this here because a lot of us are spectators or we start a spectators and we want to move on to that first round draft pick. The person that gets asked to do things like this. And so we're going to talk about how that can be possible.

Jamila Souffrant

Now again, my name is Jamila Souffrant. You already know that. I have a podcast called Journey To Launch. You already know that. And I call the people on this journey with me, Journeyers. So do we have anybody in here that's a Journeyer that listens to the podcast?

Jamila Souffrant

Yeah!

Jamila Souffrant

And listen, hopefully, if you're not a Journeyer yet, I can convince you to become one after this talk, but really, you know, my journey into entrepreneurship, and I'm going to talk about that, started from really humble beginnings. And now the podcast has over 2.7 million downloads, it won Podcast of the Year at the Plutus Awards last year. And you know, my little company, which is really a company of one, is on target, in 2021, to have gross revenue of just under half a million dollars, which is kind of crazy, because...

Jamila Souffrant

and we still have a couple months left in the year, so maybe we can hit the half million dollar mark, or more, you know, who's counting? And I'm not saying this to brag, it's not a bad thing to brag, by the way, and toot your own horn, but it's really just to give you perspective of how far I've actually come in this space. And so, just because I'm thinking, I'm talking about thinking small, does not mean you can't dream big, and I wanted to just give you some examples of me dreaming big and it coming actually true.

Jamila Souffrant

So, in 2017, I went to my first Podcast Movement. I had just started the podcast. And I wasn't a speaker. I like basically, after a session was over, I kind of snuck on stage and had someone take a picture of me. And I tweeted this and I said, you know, "One day I want to speak at Podcast Movement." Next year, they asked me to speak. This, obviously is more recently, but in 2020, I put out a tweet and said, "You know what my dream project is to work with a brand or company on, like, some some podcast or video production." And literally, it's like happening next week, The Modern Life Podcast launches to the world. I'm so excited and thrilled to be on that project. And even this, 2018, I came to my second FinCon. And I remember leaving and being so inspired by the speakers, and I put in the FinCon Group. "Who do you look for to be a Big Idea Speaker or a Keynote?" Literally, you can read it there and let it go. I put that in the air. And here I am, almost three years later, being asked to speak on this stage.

Jamila Souffrant

All right, so, what am I a clairvoyant? I'm not a psychic, like, I promise you. For me, these things are happening, because yes, I dream big, but I think small. And I take small, deliberate actions every day, to get to my goals. So I want to give you a timeline of what it has been like getting to my goals. And hopefully you can find yourself in this journey. And I call these, like, the stages of getting through the industry and becoming a serious industry leader. So from 2014 to 2016, I was what you call a industry spectator, or just observer. I was on the sidelines, I like many of your audience, had a come to Jesus moment, pregnant with my first son in a long commute from hell. Took me three to four hours to get home that day. And I had a breakdown in the car. I said, "This is not going to be my life. I'm gonna figure something out." And so, when I got to a computer, started to Google, "How do I quit my job?" Anyone had put this in Google Search before? "How do I quit my job?" "How do I retire early?" And I found the world of the FIRE Movement, which was life changing.

Jamila Souffrant

And so I literally, for those first couple years, I had no intention to have my own blog or podcast. I just was applying what I was learning, to my finances. And in doing that, it did start to inspire me to have my own platform. 2016 was when I first put out my first blog post, and it literally was just a blog, and I had an Instagram account. And I started to share how I was applying what I was learning from the podcasts and blogs that I was listening to, to my life. In hopes that it can help other people. And literally, it was like five people reading my blog back in 2016. In 2017, I launched the podcast, and I switched to the podcast, because I thought it was an easier format for me to get content out. Writing blogs, it just wasn't my thing. And so the podcast just seemed a better way to try. Now it was there that I started to morph and transform into a more, what I call, serious industry participants. See, in 2016, I was still a more casual industry participant. I wasn't taking it as seriously, I wasn't really looking to make a living from it. I had my safe, corporate job, but when I started to make more moves and meet more people in the space and attend my first FinCon in 2017, I realized that this could actually maybe be something. And so the serious industry participants stage happened when I doubled down or when I thought about what my medium could be, which was podcasting, and I took that more seriously. From 2018 and on, I would, if I can so humbly call myself, I've become an industry leader. And so in 2018, I actually quit my job after having my third child and no, you didn't lose count, I didn't mention that I had another child in that timeline, but there are three altogether now. And so with quitting my job, I was able to focus on Journey To Launch full time.

Jamila Souffrant

So let's just recap, and I want to know if you can see yourself in one of these stages, right? And, you know, for a lot of us, it's a natural progression. For some of us, we don't want to move through the stages, we're fine where we are. But here's how I define that: Jamila Souffrant

Industry Spectator/Observer: That's someone who's just using content as a resource, maybe some form of entertainment. It's what a lot of your audience is doing right now. And if you notice, I have this happen sometimes, where I have an audience member who has been around for a while, and because they're inspired, or they start getting into it, they want to also now try something of their own.

Jamila Souffrant

So then the next level is Casual Industry Participant: This is where you're doing something as a side hustle, for fun, you know? You're trying it here and there, you're not taking it maybe as seriously. May make money from it, but it's not your main focus.

Jamila Souffrant

The next level is Serious Industry Participant. At this stage, you're now seeing some progress, maybe you're putting in more effort, more hours, you're maybe making a living, or that is your goal.

Jamila Souffrant

And then we move on to Industry Leader: This is where you're not just making a living, you're standing out in the space. You are basically a Thought Leader. Now, I want to be clear here, that Industry Leader does not mean followers, a lot of followers, or a lot of money. To me, what defines an industry leader is when you're actually, your community or your peers, are viewing you that way. The media attention, you know, the list being asked to be on stage like that. This comes later, when as a byproduct, you are putting out good work. So I want to know, or just see how many of you can identify or see yourself in one of these stages right?

Jamila Souffrant

Okay. And so here's the thing: It's really important to be honest about the stage you're in, and where you think you want to go, because what often happens is you come to something like this, and you want to hit the ground running as a leader. You want to be a standout. And listen, you should think that way if that's what you want. But oftentimes, it only will keep us stuck, because it's hard to go from someone who's just a spectator, or to someone who's casually doing this, to an industry leader. There is no way that you know exactly how to get from those points, right? And so again, I'm not saying don't strive for it, but if you're striving from it from a point of a lack of resources, time or energy, it only burns you out, it keeps you stuck.

Jamila Souffrant

Maybe in a season of your life, where all you can be right now is a casual participant, right? And there's nothing wrong with that. But you got to be honest with yourself. You got to be honest with where you currently are, where you possibly want to be and if you don't know yet, that's fine, too. But it's really the smaller things that you do on a day to day basis. That's what gets you ahead. This is not a college curriculum, where it's going to take you a certain amount of courses and or hours to get through each level. Like, I literally could not have foreseen that it would have taken me a few years to do what I've done. Everyone's journey is different. That's a fact. But the only way to move forward is to take the next step in front of you. Because again, from A to Z, how do you go from A to Z? I don't know. But I can know how to go from A to B if I follow the logical steps. So while starting the podcast, this is what I did. You know, of course, I wanted more listeners and I had a vision or goal of getting to a million downloads. But on a day to day basis, I was not thinking like that. I was thinking how do I get my first download? How do I get to 10 downloads? 100, then 1,000.

Jamila Souffrant

I posted this. So this was from my Instagram account, my first iTunes review, and you couldn't tell me that I didn't win a when the championship. When I got my first iTunes review, it was called iTunes back in the day, in 2017. This is what I looked forward to when I started. It wasn't looking at podcasts that had millions of downloads already. I was literally just looking at the next thing for me. This is when I celebrated 5,000 downloads, by the way, check out my cover art. I designed it myself if you can't tell, back in the day, and you know, things like that when I got that first 5,000 downloads, you couldn't tell me anything. That was what excited me. And so when people come up to me now and say, "Well, how do I get to a million?" I'm like, "You're thinking too big. It's not about getting to a million. It's about getting to 10 and then 100, and then 1,000." But I got to be honest, I also thought too big. And I want to be honest with you here, because it almost slowed me down to a point where I wouldn't have been on this stage. And I'll explain how.

Jamila Souffrant

When I first started Journey To Launch, and I still have this vision, I want it to be more than a podcast. And so at first, when people would say, "What's your title? What do you do? podcaster?" I'm like, "No, it's more than a podcast. I want it to be a media empire. I want videos. I want articles. I want merchandise." And so, thinking that way from the beginning, actually slowed me down, because what I started to do, was look outward, at what everyone else was doing. I started comparing myself to the people who were already media empires, who had a lot of followers. They were doing all the things. I thought I had to do all the things and sell all the things. Like, literally, I tried all the things. I've tried low-ticket memberships, high ticket coaching programs. I've tried ebooks, basically me thinking that I had to reach my end goal and thinking with the end in mind, from my position point, as a beginner, made me split my attention. And it also made me, almost, sacrifice the podcast. I was burning myself out trying to do everything. Again, thinking too big at that time.

Jamila Souffrant

And so for me, one day, I realized, if I kept this up, I won't have the energy to do the podcast anymore. The reason why people even like the podcast and my brand, I won't have that energy to bring to them. And so when I realized my schedule was full of meetings I did not want to go to, I was doing webinars and things I didn't want to sell, meeting people I didn't want to meet, realizing that what did I do to my business? Like, I left my corporate job to get away from that. And here I am creating almost like a prison of my own making. And so, I had to get honest with myself. I had to say, "Listen, I have to do things differently." That's what I started to do. When I doubled down and accepted my role as just the podcaster. That's when things started to pick up. So what did that look like? Literally, it looked like me saying no, a lot often than I used to do. I know in the beginning, it feels like you have to do all the things, you know, you got to hustle, you got to meet all the people. And I have to admit, that's what I did in the beginning. But after a while, I realized that that was not sustainable.

Jamila Souffrant

So instead of the year of yes, that we hear, that people do, it was the year of no. And I'm still doing that now. Turning down opportunities that, yes, would be good for me, but it will take me away from what I should be focusing on. I also had to put blinders on. It's funny, before I went up on stage, I put my phone on airplane mode, and you know, airplane mode. So it stopped messages from coming through, right? And that's what I've had to do more recently. And again, I've seen more progress doing that, because you get so much messaging from other people about what's working, what you should be doing. And so when I started to say, "Okay, I love my-- I love you guys..." I have a lot of friends in here that I follow, but almost, like, either not checking the app, or putting people on mute if I got triggered by something. That's what I had to do to stay focused. To think small.

Jamila Souffrant

And then the last thing, I went back to the basics. When I was looking forward to those first iTune reviews. When I was looking forward to those first 1,000 downloads, it was because I was focusing on the content. It wasn't so murky with all this other noise out there. So when I got back to the content and creating just good work, I was able to focus better. So I want you to ask yourself, as you're thinking, "Okay, yeah, Jamila, I do want to move forward in my business. I want to move from maybe casual participant to serious to maybe industry leader." But you have to be honest with yourself. What do you actually want to do? Not what other people want you to do, but what do you want to do? What's the thing that you enjoy doing, but your audience also responds positively to? And that's key. And I'm not talking about a big audience. I'm talking about even one or two people tell you, "Wow, that was really good," or give you great feedback, then you're onto something. But if you don't know yet, it's really important to try. Again me trying all the things that didn't work or didn't feel good, helped me realize really early on, what not to do going forward?

Jamila Souffrant

Also, how do you feel creating it, and selling it? That's important. So if you do have a product or service, does it feel good to create and sell? And I'm not talking about being uncomfortable, because it's something new, you know? I still feel uncomfortable doing, obviously, certain things, but it's the difference between that and the uncomfortability, because it's just not the right fit. And that is something, if you can figure out early on, you'll move ahead faster.

Jamila Souffrant

And this is really, really important. Are you comparing what you're able to do now, depending on your level, as a casual industry participant, to an industry leader and feeling bad about what you're doing? Because oftentimes, that will take a toll on your mental health and emotional health. Because they have different resources, even myself, if I compare myself to someone who's getting 20 million downloads a month, that's not gonna do good for me, right? And so you have to be really honest with where you are and who you're comparing yourself to.

Jamila Souffrant

Last thing, we are pretty much logical, analytical people for, you know, a money nerd conference, but I also think that this holds us back. It holds us back, because, while it's great to know the algorithm and what works, I found that when I follow, literally, what felt good, that's when things started working better for me. So sometimes you have to let go of the numbers and go back to the basics and go within.

Jamila Souffrant

We're focusing too much, again, on the algorithms, on the stats. Focus on what you're delivering to your audience. On the feedback you're getting. That's what matters. And so if I could just leave you with a few more small ideas, here it is: Jamila Souffrant

I want you to put your intentions out there. Again, I'm not talking about not dreaming big. I dream big. I got some big dreams ahead of me that I still want to come true. But you have to do the small work that it takes to get there. Like, when you leave this conference and you go back home and your kitchen table, everyone's sleeping. Or if you're recording that podcast in your closet like me, hiding from your kids, like that is the real work on a day to day basis that you have to do.

Jamila Souffrant

Next, I want you to be honest with yourself, where are you on the timeline? Where are you on the timeline? And how much energy, resources and money are you willing to invest to get you to the next level? And if you're not willing to do that, it's okay, but you be honest with yourself if you are not.

Jamila Souffrant

Next thing, double down on what's working for you. Double down on it. Don't look at what other people are doing and what's working for them. What's working for you? Do more of that. Not what's on trend or what looks good for social media. What is good for you?

Jamila Souffrant

Lastly, this is the most important thing, you got to be consistent. You know, I've been putting on a podcast episode, every Wednesday for the past four years. I haven't missed an episode yet, but I might take a break soon. And consistency is key. The content is key. Without content, there is nothing, right? And so, here I am. Those are my small ideas and I hoped something, something, that was said here today, will help fuel you closer to your journey. Thank you.

Jamila Souffrant

I hope you enjoyed that recording of my speech. Again, if you are listening to this during the holiday season. Even after the holiday, I know sometimes you don't catch up on episodes until, like, they're out for weeks and weeks, but that doesn't mean that I don't want to hear your opinion. I don't want to see your feedback. I love really seeing if something resonates with you or something stands out. So, as I always say, You can tag me, take a screenshot, @journeytolaunch on Instagram. My personal IG, my brand IG is Jamila Souffrant. And that's @JamilaSouffrant. I'm also gonna post, so my new website is actually out, jamilasouffrant.com. And the visuals of the speech, if you want to see me giving this speech, you can actually go to my personal website, jamilasouffrant.com, click on 'My Work,' and scroll. You'll see where it says, 'Watch This Speech.' I'll also include it in the episode show notes. Just in case you also want to see me on stage doing this. And I hope you enjoyed it. And tag me. Let me know what you think. Let me know if something stands out. Share this with someone who needs to hear it. Who will be inspired. And I hope you have a wonderful holiday season.

Jamila Souffrant

Okay, and don't forget, I am opening up doors to my signature course, The FI Course. And if you want to get on the waitlist before everyone else, so you get to be notified when the doors open, you get special bonuses, and you want to start out your new year on point mapping out your path to freedom, to living the life of your dreams, you need to get on this waitlist. You need to join me. Go to journeytolaunch.com/ficourse

Jamila Souffrant

Don't forget, you can get the episode show notes for this episode by going to journeytolaunch.com, or click the description of wherever you're listening to this and you can still grab your Jumpstart Guide for free to help you on your journey to financial freedom by going to journeytolaunch.com/jumpstart. If you want to support me and the podcast and love the free content and information that you get here, here are four ways that you can support me in the show: One, make sure you're subscribed to the podcast wherever you listen, whether that's Apple Podcasts, that purple app on your phone, your Android device, YouTube, Spotify, wherever it is that you happen to listen, just subscribe so you are not missing an episode. And if you're happening to listen to this and Apple Podcasts, rate, review and subscribe there. I appreciate and read every single review. Number two, follow me on my social media accounts. I'm @journeytolaunch on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. And I love, love, love, interacting with Journeyers there. Three, support and check out the sponsors of this show. If you hear something that interests you. Sponsors are the main ways we keep the podcast lights on here. So, show them some love for supporting your girl. Four, and last but not least, share this episode this podcast with a friend or family member or co worker, so that we can spread the message of Journey to Launch. Alright, that's it until next week. Keep on journeying Journeyers.