Beliefs that quietly sabotage growth (and how to shift them)

Business is constantly evolving. What worked 20, 30, or even 10 years ago may have been exactly what leaders needed at the time.

Long nights, doing it all yourself, saying yes to everything; that hustle-first mentality shaped many success stories.

But the way businesses run today and the way they’ll need to run tomorrow calls for something different. 👀

CEOs, therapists in private practice, and founders alike might start to realize that growth without support doesn’t feel sustainable.

That’s why I call some beliefs outdated. Not because they were wrong, but because they belonged to a different season.

If you’re still holding on to them while trying to scale in 2025 and beyond, you may be making things more complicated than they need to be.

Let’s unpack four of the most common ones and the possible shifts that can help you build a business that actually supports you.

Belief #1: Doing it all makes success more meaningful

For years, many of us believed that the harder we worked, the more valuable our success would feel.

That if we didn’t personally touch every detail, it somehow “didn’t count.” 👀

Therapists in private practice know this feeling when they’re handling not just sessions, but scheduling, billing, and intake calls - all on top of client care.

Coaches feel it when they’re answering late-night DMs, tweaking every slide, and checking every email.

But sadly, exhaustion doesn’t equal worthiness.

💡 Reframe:

Support doesn’t water down your success; it actually multiplies it.

Success feels richer when you arrive with energy intact, not burned out at the finish line.

True leadership isn’t about proving you can carry it all, it’s about knowing what only you should carry.

What changed for me (and what could for you, too):

When I finally allowed myself to lean on real support, I realized the irony: my success felt more meaningful, not less, because I had the energy to actually enjoy it.

I wasn’t just surviving my wins, I was present for them.

Belief #2: Hiring someone fixes everything

Hiring is often celebrated as the turning point: “I finally have help!”

But without structure, it can feel like trading one set of problems for another.

Think of the keynote speaker who finally brings in a VA but ends up redoing slides at midnight because the expectations weren’t clear.

Or the CEO who hires two new team members only to spend hours re-explaining the same process because no SOPs exist.

It’s not that the hire is “wrong,” it’s that the foundation wasn’t ready.

 💡 Reframe:

Hiring is just the beginning.

Without systems and clarity, you’re not delegating, you’re offloading.

What changed for me (and what could for you, too):

When I slowed down to document processes, clarify roles, and create SOPs, everything shifted.

Instead of feeling like I had “another job” managing people, I finally had partners who could think with me.

That’s when I stopped hiring for help and started building a team.

Belief #3: Always say yes to growth

I used to think every new client, every project, every opportunity was a blessing I couldn’t say no to. And yes, some of them were.

But others pulled me so far from my vision that I barely recognized my own business anymore.

I said yes to things that looked shiny but left me drained, like handling entire launches on my own, or taking on projects outside my zone of genius just because I didn’t want to “miss out.”

Growth is often framed as the ultimate good: more clients, more revenue, more opportunities.

But I realized, not all growth is aligned growth.

• A coach who says yes to every collaboration might suddenly find themselves managing someone else’s launch instead of building their own.

  
  

• A therapist may stretch beyond their niche to accommodate demand, leaving them drained and unfulfilled.

Saying yes without discernment can subtract energy, clarity, and the joy that drew you to this work in the first place.

 💡 Reframe:

Growth is only sustainable when it’s aligned.

That means saying yes to what brings you closer to your vision and values and learning to let go of the rest.

What changed for me (and what could for you, too):

Once I started measuring opportunities against my long-term vision, my yeses felt cleaner and my noes felt stronger.

It was about choosing the kind of growth that actually fit the business (and life) I wanted to build.

Belief #4: Once you hit your goals, overwhelm disappears

I thought overwhelm was just a “right now” problem.

I told myself: Once I hit this income milestone, once I land these clients, then it’ll finally feel easier.

But when I crossed those lines? Nothing changed.

The work just multiplied.

The inbox got fuller.

The decisions got heavier.

The feeling that I was always behind… it stayed.

I realized that overwhelm doesn’t come from the size of your goals, it comes from your capacity to hold them.

 💡 Reframe:

Sustainability isn’t a reward you unlock after the milestone.

It’s something you design into your growth, step by step, so your capacity expands alongside your business.

What changed for me (and what could for you, too):

When I built systems and team capacity to grow alongside my goals, I stopped waiting for “after.”

I realized I could create ease now.

And that’s when the work started to feel lighter not because it was less, but because I wasn’t carrying it alone.

👉 Ready to Lead Differently?

If you’re still carrying these outdated beliefs, you don’t have to anymore.

You can lead differently. You can build clarity into your growth. You can have support that multiplies your success instead of weighing you down. Not sure where to begin?

You can book a one-time strategy session to map out your next moves, or dive into ongoing OBM support if you’re looking for a reliable partner by your side.

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💌 And if this made you think of another CEO or founder who could use this kind of support, feel free to pass it along—I always like to thank referrals with a special touch of appreciation.