When was the last time you allowed yourself to make a shitty first pancake in your business?
If you’re wondering how to start something new in your business but feeling stuck by perfectionism, you’re not alone.
Overcoming perfectionism when starting something new
I used to be very scrappy in my early years as a business owner.
Like those awkward selfies I first posted on Instagram in 2013 with the bad filters – not letting the fact that I didn’t have professionally branded photos hold me back.
Or the website I cobbled together from a template (with the terrible spacing, bad copy, and questionable alignment), falling down YouTube tutorial rabbit holes at 2am trying to figure out how to make it work.
Oh my gosh, what about my first handful of discovery calls? I cringe even thinking about them. Being autistic, I didn’t know how to make small talk, so I’d try to follow a rigid script, which usually ended up with me nervously chatting about everything except my service and my prices.
But lately, I’ve noticed myself holding back, wanting everything to be perfect before I share it with the world…
I’ve been holding myself to such a high standard that it’s stopping me from being a beginner, from being ok with making those necessary shitty first attempts.
Listening to your intuition when starting something new in your business
Learning how to start something new in your business often requires vision. I have had this desire for over a year to create cosy pockets of space on the internet.
You know that feeling when you visit your favourite creators on YouTube or Substack, you make a cup of tea and intentionally enjoy a little glimpse into their behind-the-scenes?
That’s what I wanted to create – both through my Substack and through YouTube.
I love the creativity of making videos and finding ways to romanticise my current life (and business) – instead of the wistful feeling of staring at a Pinterest vision board.
But I’ve been scared to start.
Worried that I don’t look the part of a YouTube creator, that my home isn’t aesthetically pleasing enough, that my life isn’t ‘wow’ enough (I don’t live in a cottage or a tiny house; I haven’t given it all up to live in a van).
How to start something new in your business, without feeling like you need to be an expert
But the other day, I realised something important: I’m not trying to be a content creator.
I’m trying to create a cosy extension of what it feels like to work with me one-on-one, showing little glimpses behind the scenes of my business.
My business isn’t about optimising views, going viral, or getting sponsorships. The purpose is to find ways to connect with my dream clients online — something that seems to be getting harder and harder to do these days.
Instagram isn’t where I want to connect with clients. That’s where we go to numb out and compare ourselves, and I don’t want to use hooks or pain points to get attention.
I feel a deep exhale when intentionally sitting down to read a Substack post or watch a YouTube video from a creator I connect with.
I love making myself a cup of tea and intentionally escaping just for a little while, feeling like I’m sitting chatting with someone.
That is why, when I looked at my marketing plans for 2025, I knew I wanted to create my own version of that for the people who find and connect with my work.
I realised that I didn’t want to build a “sales funnel” but rather a map, with different ways our paths could weave and cross, and you could feel like you could stay and linger a little while instead of just consuming.
When you start to avoid the things you used to enjoy, it could be a sign to start something new in your business
I’ve been avoiding my marketing because everything feels noisy and too chaotic, which means I have been retreating, hiding, and just consuming.
But this year, I am determined to find a way to market my business in a way that brings me joy (and hopefully, people consuming my content will feel a little bit of that energy, too).
I have all the foundational elements set up to help people connect with my work:
- A resources page filled with rituals, blog posts, tools, and inspirations for people to browse
- My Substack slowly building into a cosy library of work.
- An energy tracker to help people slow down and notice where their precious energy is going
- A newsletter where my most cherished readers can have gentle reminders delivered straight to their inbox
- My Clarity Elixir sessions offer a taste of my support.
- And finally, Root to Rise, my signature offering that I’ve carefully crafted over two years of working behind-the-scenes with clients
But all this hard work and energy poured into creating these systems is meaningless if nobody sees it.
For the past two years, I have been staying in my cosy comfort zone of creating and building strong foundations and systems in my business.
While deep down I know these foundations are important and I would do it all over again, the part I have been avoiding is discoverability in my business.
This is partly due to my wanting to figure things out in my business (not wanting to repeat the mistakes of the past, where I designed my business on the go, doing things reactively instead of intentionally designing it to support me).
Another part is that discoverability is also hard in 2025. There is just a lot more content out there, more people offering similar things, more noise, and more everything.
Lean into experimentation rather than perfection when starting something new
There has also been this part of me that is just scared to make the shitty first pancake (which, for me, was my first YouTube video).
I’m not sure if it’s related to perfection (maybe a little—I tend to watch these beautiful cinematic-style videos on YouTube), but more than anything, I think it’s been the fear of seeming unsure of myself and not being seen as an “expert.”
But nobody becomes an expert by being too afraid to start.
And to be honest, I don’t want to consume “expert content”; I want the real version. The stuck in the trenches, watch me figure shit out in real-time.
So, after watching the 100th video on starting a YouTube channel, I dove in head first last week and created my first YouTube video.
It was cringeworthy, and I felt so embarrassed I picked it apart for hours!
But then, I made another one, which didn’t turn out half bad.
The editing could be better. I’m still trying to figure out the sound, and I still have to improve my storytelling skills.
But I’m one step closer to getting better than last week, when I was stuck in research mode, trying to watch my way to being a pro-YouTuber.
But we never really learn through consuming knowledge. Eventually, we must be willing to try and be bad at something to get better.
I also realised that there was something even more important than feeling capable of grabbing a camera and filming myself, and that was to focus on the intention and energy behind what I was creating.
When starting something new in your business – always go back to your WHY!
I have to remember why I am doing this YouTube channel in the first place.
It’s to be discovered by the people who would benefit and love working with me. It’s not because they want to see a perfectly curated home, watch aesthetic morning routines, or learn the latest productivity hacks.
They’re not here for perfectly planned content or polished ‘day in the life’ videos.
It’s because they’re probably feeling a lot like me.
Overwhelmed by everything we think we should be doing in our business, they want a space where they can come back to centre and reconnect with their business and the why behind what they are doing.
This is what is giving me the fuel to keep going.
I know that I only need a handful of people to discover me and my work. I don’t need viral videos; I need people who resonate with what I have to say and decide to stay a while and learn more.
I don’t need an aggressive sales funnel that converts; I need them to wander down all the little pathways I have created to learn more about my work.
Because somewhere out there, someone is looking for exactly what you have to offer!
Maybe it’s time we all gave ourselves permission to make that first pancake, to create marketing spaces that feel like home, even if they’re not quite perfect yet.
How to start something new despite fear of judgement or failure
But even more importantly, the courage to keep going even without the validation of likes, comments, and views.
I’d love to invite you into my cosy corner of YouTube, where you can join me for a cup of tea and see how this first pancake turned out.
It might not be perfect, but it’s me, and sometimes that’s the most magical thing we can offer.
If you resonate with any part of this post and feel called to reflect, here are some gentle journal prompts to explore—or please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.
🍄 How are you creating the content you would like to consume?
🍄 Where are you holding yourself back from being a beginner?
🍄 What gentle spaces could you create for your dream clients to discover?
🍄 How might your business feel different if you gave yourself permission to make a few shitty first pancakes?
So here’s to the shitty first attempts, the messy beginnings, and the courage to share before it feels perfect.
Here’s to creating marketing that feels cosy – where your people can find you, settle in with a cup of tea, and stay a while.
Because maybe the real magic isn’t in crafting the perfect funnel or going viral.
Maybe it’s in creating those quiet spaces where connection can happen naturally, where your exactly-as-you-are self can shine through, and where your dream clients can find their way to you. ✨
Let’s transform how it feels to start something new in your business behind-the-scenes
P.S. If we don’t know each other, I’m Stacey. An (anti) productivity guide & business manager, helping deeply feeling photographers & solopreneurs reshape their businesses so you can go from feeling stuck and drained to knowing how to manage your business and energy in a way that supports you! If you want to learn more about my 1:1 work, click here.
P.P.S. Thanks so much for reading – If you enjoyed this post, feel free to share it with a friend who will love it too!
P.P.P.S If you enjoyed this post and would like more thoughts delivered straight to your inbox, you can sign up for my email newsletter, Rituals and Remedies. I love to share my personal practice and rituals for running my business in alignment with the wheel of the year and the natural rhythms of life.
