We are celebrating with Ellen Mote with Ellen Mote Jewelry as she’s grown her business into larger markets in and outside of the Waco area! Ellen gives us her realness on the Good, Bad & Ugly of entrepreneurship!
What lessons have you learned about leadership?
Last year I attended a 5 day business leadership intensive and it changed everything! My biggest takeaway is “an unspoken expectation is just a thought.” That simple quote has transformed how I lead. Now, I try to make all expectations very clear. I have found that people want to do the right thing, and without the proper training and equipping they may be set up to fail. I try to prepare and teach in every area to set my team up for success. As the leader it is my job to lay out the expectations and keep the team accountable.
Is there anything that has kept you from achieving your goals?
ABSOLUTELY! There are so many things that can keep me from achieving goals. Some of the biggest for me are fear and time. I have found that when I am about to take a big leap in my business I start questioning everything and have to spend time in prayer to get re-centered and focused. I am the “lid” of the business and sometimes I hold it back from growing because I fear it will grow larger than me and be out of my control.
What’s your greatest weakness in managing your business?
My greatest weakness in managing my business is taking time to dream. It is so easy to get caught up in the day to day work of running a business and not leave room to work ON the business and dream. My attention gets pulled a million directions everyday I have to force myself to step back and make sure the work we are doing is aligned with our core values and the ultimate goals of the company.