Why 2023 was a bad year for my business, and why I’m ok with it!

Your Dream Business

Today’s episode of the podcast is a personal account of the honest and sometimes uncomfortable struggles that I faced last year, that resulted in 2023 being a complete flop for my business.

KEY TAKEAWAYS COVERED IN THE PODCAST

1. What happened to me in 2023 and the transformation that followed
2. The one goal I am so proud to have achieved last year
3. Why I am starting a new podcast, that launches today

I would like to thank you in advance for listening to this podcast, and for your continued kindness.

LINKS TO RESOURCES MENTIONED IN TODAY’S EPISODE

Listen to my new podcast, 'Losing Part Of Me', right now Connect with Teresa on Instagram, LinkedIn or Facebook

Transcript

Hello and welcome to this week's episode of the Your Dream Business Podcast. Okay. I feel very nervous today about what I'm going to talk about. I feel like I've ridiculously teased it and built it up, maybe for you guys, but a lot in my own head. But I, and I've written no script. I've written, not that I script my podcast, because you know, I can't read things in public. But I normally have a few notes about what I'm going to talk about, whereas today I have nothing. So I really hope to goodness, this is not the first episode you're finding from me because otherwise it's going to be quite an unusual one. I have started a new podcast and the reason I've started a new podcast is because last year my business and my life did not go how I expected. In fact, it was probably financially one of the worst years in my business, but I'm not at all concerned or bothered by that because I did something so ginormous that nothing else could have been dealt with in my world apart from me dealing with this one thing. So basically, Last year in 2023, I spent the year getting sober and I have decided that I want to start a podcast, which is only going to be one season at this point. I don't know whether it will be more ever or not, but it's one season of a podcast and the podcast is called losing part of me. Because getting sober wasn't just a nice thing for me to do and it wasn't just a I would feel so much better if I didn't drink scenario. I had an addiction to alcohol. I choose not to use the term alcoholic. I don't like it and I don't find it helpful for me. I'm sure there's people out there who find it helpful for them, but not for me. But the truth is I had an addiction to alcohol. And I have decided to share this with the world, which now I'm regretting slightly, but I have decided to share this with the world for a couple of reasons. The first reason is From a business point of view and from a you listening to this podcast point of view, I pride myself on being authentic, on being vulnerable, being honest. And that is one area of my life that I've not been, not even to myself. And it's really hard for me to go through something so massive in my world and not share it with you lot and not share it with the people who are in my world, which is you listening to this podcast. I know that obviously. I do share lots. I do share lots about me. And I said before many times that my aim is to share the scar and not the wound. So when I was in it last year, literally fighting to get through every single day, I wasn't in a place where I could share it with you. But now I am. So that was one of the reasons I wanted to tell people and wanted to share it on this podcast and create a new podcast. But the other reason I've done it, there are a few different reasons, but another reason I've done it is because in the years running up to me finally stopping alcohol and the year of me getting sober. And obviously I'm still getting sober. I'm still sober. But in the last sort of four ish years, I have consumed no end of books and podcasts and information and even workshops and masterclasses and webinars about alcohol. And one of the things that made the biggest difference for me was understanding that I wasn't on my own. And I wasn't broke, that there were many reasons why I had this addiction and many reasons why I should be kind to myself and not fill myself with shame every time I had another drink. I am so, so flipping proud to say that I am now one year and 24 days sober at the point of recording this episode. By the time you hear, I'll be more sober than that. Because This wasn't a decision of it would just be better for me. This was almost verging on the, I would have ended up killing myself. And I don't mean committing suicide. I mean, I would have drank myself into an early grave. I'm sure of it. And I know. If you guys have been following me for a while and listening for a while, hopefully you won't have known and you won't have realized and you won't have thought, Oh, I think she's got a problem or she's struggling with this. And I showed up most days and I ran my business and I made money and I had a successful business. I have a successful business, but deep down, everything was a mess because I was a mess because I couldn't get through a day or two without drinking and it was getting worse and worse and worse. So, like I said, I wanted to be honest on this podcast. I wanted to, I wanted to share it as well for the reason of, you know, how we always set goals or I'm a big goal setting fan and, and last year I set a load of goals for 2023. And I did none of them. And I'm laughing because There is not an ounce of me that is sorry about that because the one thing I did to get sober has changed my life. So I'm not sorry that my business didn't make as much money as it normally makes. I'm not sorry that I didn't launch the new things that I said I was going to launch. I'm not sorry that I literally spent half the year sat on the sofa watching Grey's Anatomy. And by half the year, I mean, I spent all year doing it, but it probably equated to about half of my working year. I literally did that. For most of last year, and I'm not sorry one little bit. I'm not at all concerned that that's what I did because I did something ginormous. I changed something in my world that I never thought for one second I could change. If you'd asked me 18 months ago, do you think you'll ever stop drinking? I would have a hundred percent said, There's no way I could. I never thought for one second, I didn't want to, I didn't want to stop drinking. I didn't want to not have alcohol in my life. I didn't not want to be able to drink the copious drinks of gin and wine. And it was part of me. It's part of my brand. If you are listening to this and if you follow me. You know, I used to do G and T with T. I'd go live on a Thursday with a gin and tonic. I have so many photos in my photo shoots that is me holding glasses and there's not fake drinks in those glasses that I'm holding. Like they're genuine drinks and I am genuinely drinking them. is so part of who I am, is so part of my persona and my brand and my business, that that was another reason why I felt like I had no choice but to share that I have gone through this. The other reason I decided to share it, and I had a friend who spoke to me and he He's actually, his company has edited my podcast, the Losing Part of Me podcast, the new one. And he said to me, you know, you don't have to do a podcast. You know, you don't have to share it with the world. You could just say I don't drink anymore. But there was a part of me that was scared and not, I'm not as scared now, but there was a part of me that was scared that if I didn't share with people how hard it's been for me to stop, how, how much I've had to fight to break this addiction, if someone offered me a drink, or if I was in a position where no one knew that I didn't drink, back in the day, I wouldn't have been able to trust myself. Now I trust myself completely, but it's just easier if people know that I don't want to drink and I don't drink because I can't, because if I have one, I won't stop. And believe me, I know that for a fact, because I have tried everything prior to stopping. I wanted to be one of those people who would just have one and then could have no more. And that is not me. And that is not how it works for me. And if you are one of those people, then I am in awe of you, because that's not how my brain works. And I wish it did, because that means I could still drink, but. Even saying that means that's the reason why I shouldn't be drinking. So, what I have decided to do is I've just put this one episode together for this main podcast for my podcast because I know I've got lovely listeners like you that listen all the time and I couldn't not share that I'd been through this. What I didn't want to do is get caught up in all the details over here on this podcast, because this podcast is about me supporting you grow your business and creating the life and business that you dream of, which luckily, I have been able to do while drinking, but now I feel like I'm on fire. I feel like nothing can stop me. There is nothing in the world I can't achieve. I honestly feel like I can take on the world right now and I am excited to see what I achieve for other people and what I can help other people with. And I am ready to do it. So I'm very lucky that I've managed to keep my business going and my life going and nothing too disastrous ever happened, but it wouldn't have been long before something started to really slip in my life if I hadn't stopped. So, like I said, I wanted to do this one and only episode over here to let you know that this has happened in my world. It feels a little bit like getting naked in front of you, if I'm honest, but not half as naked as if you go and listen to the other podcast, because on the other podcast, I am sharing everything. And as much as that makes me want to vomit on a regular basis, again, I know there are some people out there who are going to need to hear some of the stuff that I'm going to say, they're going to appreciate that I was able to show up in the way I was run my business, be the, and I want to use the word success in inverted commas here. Like, because I wasn't a success. Yes. I achieved amazing things while drinking, but I didn't feel a success. I feel a success now having had the worst year in my business that I've just had. However, Having achieved what I've achieved, I feel like a huge success. So, so I want people to, to be able to go and dive deeper into this story, but not on this podcast, because I didn't want to spend, I don't know, 10, 15 episodes talking you through all of the things, because that's not what you're here for. However, if you do listen to this podcast, and you think either it. You might get some benefit out of listening to the other podcast, or you just want to go and listen to what a hell of a few years I've been through and how I'm out the other side and how my life has changed. And also, I'm interviewing some cool people over there. I have some really cool conversations, but it is a, it is not a easygoing, fun, laffy podcast because it's a really hard thing to talk about. And I talk about things that are probably not for little ears. I swear over there as well. Which if you listen to this podcast, you might think I don't swear, but I do. And I do over there because it's a very emotive subject. So yeah. So I wanted to come and say that. This has happened to me and last year did not go as planned, but I am absolutely fine with that because the work I did on myself has changed me and my business and my life for ever. And I am so flipping proud of that. And even though I feel very nervous sharing with you that this is something I've been through and there's a lot of stigma attached to it. I think that's another reason why I'm not keen on the word alcoholic, because I think when you think of that, you get an image in your head, which hopefully is nothing like I look, but, but that's the truth. It is exactly what I look like. And it's exactly like other people look, but. We don't talk about it that way. So anyway, so like I said, the other podcast is called Losing Part of Me. It's available now. There are a number of episodes out at this point and it's going to be for a season. So there'll be a chunk of episodes coming out and then it'll be stopped. If for whatever reason, something makes me continue and do some more seasons, then I might do that. But at this point, I am just putting it out there and seeing what's happened or what happens with it. I would appreciate greatly. If you would be so kind as to go over to that podcast and if you would give it a listen and give it a review, I would be so very grateful. Because the more people and the more action that podcast gets, the more people it's going to be put in front of and there are some people like me out there who need to hear the stuff I've got to say because I needed to hear it. I needed to hear those stories to hear those conversations. help me start my recovery. And like I said, I am so grateful to be where I am right now. And the shame has pretty much all but gone, which is why I feel comfortable to share this stuff with you guys. So yeah. So like I said, this is a very odd episode. It feels a very, vulnerable episode. But if you head over to losing part of me, that's what it's called. If you are in our show notes for this podcast, teresaheathwareing.com/ the number of this podcast, which I should know off the top of my head. I had to check it's three, three, four. So number three, three, four. If you head over there, you'll find the show notes and that will give you a link to the new podcast. But like I said, wherever you're listening to this, if you just go to the search bar and put in losing part of me. then hopefully you should find the new podcast. Like I said, I do go into a lot of detail over there. It's a very vulnerable podcast and it might not be for little ears because obviously we're talking about some very grown up stuff over there. So anyway, I would like to thank you for listening to this podcast. I'd like to thank you in advance if you're going to head over and have a listen to that podcast. Obviously I talk about. you know, what I drank, how much I drank, what happened, all the stories, which again, feels like I'm standing naked, in front of you all, but. I am doing it for hopefully the greater good and that it will help someone else out there that needs to hear it. So thank you for your kindness in advance in this. I am praying to goodness that no one says anything mean about all this. It makes me very worried being so vulnerable, but it's so very important that we talk about these things because there is no shame. I was not well and I managed to recover. So I feel really proud of that. Okay. I'm going to leave you to it. Have a really cool rest of your week. I will be back next week with a normal interview, a normal episode until then have a fab week.