They say that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step; if you’re starting a small Business, that first step can be one of the hardest things you ever do. Uncertainty, moments of self-doubt, judgment from friends and family…small business ownership is certainly not for the faint hearted! But you take that first step anyway, because you believe in your ideas and, even more importantly, you believe in yourself.

One thing that helps people get the courage to take that first step is to hear the stories of others who are currently living the dream, especially those who started out with the odds stacked against them. Listening to the tales of an unexpected hero can make you feel like you can do it too. At ICON17, I was honored to speak with one such hero, Lisa Nichols, the founder of MotivatingTheMasses.com.

In 1994, Lisa admits that she was “broke and broken.” She headed to the bank to take out money to purchase pampers for her son and discovered that she had only $11.42 in her account. She used cloth as diapers for two days and remembers telling her son that she would never be so broke again that she couldn’t provide for him.

Today Lisa owns a multi-million dollar company called Motivating the Masses and has written seven best-selling books. In the interview below, she shares an array of thoughtful tips for people who want to start and grow their small business. I was particularly impressed with how empowering Lisa’s message is, so I will also leave you with five of her motivational quotes.

5 quotes from @2Motivate that will motivate you to take the first step toward #smallbiz ownership.
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5 Motivational Quotes for New Small Business Owners

1. “Success and abundance isn’t just for some people. It’s not just for those people over there, from that family, from that geographical orientation, from that culture, from that bank account balance. Abundance is all of our birth right.”
2. “You’ve got to be willing to say the thing you didn’t think you would say and do the thing you didn’t think you would do to get the results you’ve always said you deserve.”
3. “We try to build the dream life not disrupting anything. You’re going to need to disrupt everything you know to create everything you’re about to get.”
4. “Your family only knows you for who you’ve been. They haven’t met the man or woman you’re becoming.”
5. “If someone gives you coaching, be respectful enough to take action.”

There is so much more wisdom in the full interview, so don’t forget to hit Play above!

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