Some stories need to be told by the people who lived them.

This is one of those.

Xo, The Salesgirls

I was sitting on the couch snuggling our precious 1 month old daughter, Peyton, when my husband came home and said those 4 words no woman wants to hear: “We need to talk.”

That statement rarely ever implies anything good. 

But my newly postpartum brain immediately went to oh gosh he saw the third amazon box arrive today from my 2am feeding order (IYKYK).

Truly, I didn’t know what to expect out of his mouth next. But announcing that he was leaving in 45 days for a 7-month long overseas deployment definitely wasn’t one of them..

My life had already flipped upside down once in the last 45 days. Now we were preparing to do it all over again..

And now, after celebrating one year of being back home together under the same roof (and country), I’ve had some time to reflect on one of the most challenging periods of my life and realized my three biggest lessons from this experience are exactly what I need to hear now in my entrepreneurial journey.

3 Things I Learned During My Husband’s 7 Month Deployment That Every Female Entrepreneur Needs To Hear:

1. You can only control what you can control

Once I realized there was no way I could just call up the U.S. Army and tell them they couldn’t take my husband, I knew that I needed to start focusing on what I could control so that this experience wouldn’t suck (so bad).

I could control my thoughts, I could control my feelings, and I could control my actions. What I couldn’t control was the circumstance. After 45 days, Alec would be on a plane and landing in a completely different time zone.

All I wanted was a happy, thriving family who loved and supported one another even from 6,453 miles away, so that’s what I focused on. I did everything in my power to be the best wife, mom, and version of myself to support my husband and our family.

In entrepreneurship we spend so much time focusing on the result which is 100% out of our control. But if you want to reach your truly desired outcome, you should focus on what you CAN control.

You can’t control how many people buy, you can’t control how many people watch your stories, but what you can control is showing up as the BEST version of yourself in mind, body, and spirit, so that you can have the thriving business you’ve always dreamed of.

2. People need people

When people hear the story, they always ask “Hannah, how did you do it?!” “Delusion?!”

It might sound like I had it all together, but in all seriousness, I didn’t do this alone.

The reality was I had an amazing support system. People I could lean on for support when I was feeling defeated, people to cheer me on when I was doing well, and people who could relate to what I was going through.

There was no THING that I needed. I needed connection. Only people can give you that.

As you’re growing your business, it’s easy to get caught up in the world where we chase material things, status, and money, but remember that you need people more than anything.

People who you can lean on when your launch doesn’t go as planned, people who celebrate you when you sign a dream client, and people who just know what it’s like to be on the roller coaster ride that is entrepreneurship.

“Connection fuels growth,” as my good friend and fellow Salesgirl, Jacquelene Nigrelli, always says.

3. Your setbacks are the very thing that can propel you forward

7 months of long distance parenting and marriage was not ideal. But looking back, it was worth it. Why? Because we let our present circumstances propel our future vision.

At Salesgirl Summit this past June, Kat reminded us all that mountain tops are for views and inspiration, but fruit only grows in the valley.

This was definitely a valley season. There’s no doubt about it.

But this was the season of life where my roots got deeper. I became a stronger mom, a more supportive wife, and a more resilient human being. All of which are so essential now to the core of my being as a high-achieving entrepreneur with big goals.

If you’re in a valley season, I see you. Your fruit is coming. Let your roots grow deep and set your sights on that mountain. Everything will work out, I promise you.

Remember, it’s all part of the journey.

See you at the top,

Hannah Wardenburg, CEO & Founder of The Wealth Collective

Best news is there’s an opportunity to work with Hannah coming up! ⬇️