I used to chase fast results—until I learned the real key to sustainable success. Here’s what changed everything.
There are things I wish I had known before I started shifting my business into a model that actually works for my life.
But the truth is, I probably wouldn’t have believed them.
Because back then, I measured success purely by numbers. Revenue, clients, growth metrics—it was all about hitting the next goal as quickly as possible.
If I’d known just how long it would take to move from that place into something more sustainable, I probably would have resisted it even harder.
But that’s the thing. Anything worth building takes time.
And the biggest lesson I had to learn? Taking away the time pressure was the only way to actually build something sustainable.
Because if it requires you to run off fumes to create it, how sustainable can it really be to maintain?
In order to take that time pressure off, I had to get to a place where I was so clear on what I wanted that it became a non-negotiable. If I was really moving in that direction, then obsessing over how long it was taking was irrelevant—because I was going to keep going regardless.
When my energy was fully backed behind where I was going, what I was doing, and why, how long it took was no longer a factor.
And this is where a lot of my clients struggle. They say they want something, but the moment it becomes hard or doesn’t happen fast enough, they start entertaining doing something else. They get distracted by new ideas, looking for the shortcut that will make it all feel easier.
But there’s a moment when you have to burn the boats—where you stop entertaining the escape routes and fully back your energy and actions behind what you say you want. And when you keep the vision the same, all that’s left is for you to get better and upskill in a way to facilitate that.
That was another hard lesson for me. It wasn’t that I believed something was wrong if I didn’t see results immediately—it’s that my perfectionism didn’t want to acknowledge that I had room to grow.
I needed to know I was going to succeed straight away before I allowed myself to make changes. Because it felt so exposing to face the reality that my best effort right now might not be enough yet.
My self-worth needed proof. It needed instant validation. I wanted to bypass the messy middle and go straight to the A+ result.
But running a life-first business forced me to approach things differently. It forced me to upskill. Because once I was clear on what I wanted, the reason I didn’t have it yet was simple: I didn’t know how to do it.
That meant I had to be willing to admit that my current skills weren’t enough yet—and not let that stop me. Instead of seeing it as a reflection of my worth, I had to lean into the reps, embrace the learning curve, and trust that with time, I would get better.
That shift—from needing instant results to committing to growth over time—changed everything.
The Real Shift: Learning to Enjoy the Process, Not Just Get the Result
I’ve always had the self-concept of someone who has the ability to figure things out. But the real shift happened when I realized that wasn’t enough.
I had to become someone who actually enjoyed and embraced the process of figuring it out.
For so long, my perfectionism made me want to get to the solution as quickly as possible. I didn’t want to sit in uncertainty. I wanted to know, with absolute certainty, that what I was doing was going to work before I committed to it.
But business doesn’t work that way.
If you’ve been in my world for any length of time, you’ve probably heard me say: We get insights or we get outcomes. That perspective changed everything for me. Because once I stopped seeing “figuring it out” as something to tolerate on the way to success and instead saw it as a core skill in itself, my growth accelerated.
And I see this with my clients all the time.
Some have never built the self-concept that they are capable of figuring out challenging things in their business—so they stay stuck, playing way below their potential.
Others do believe in their ability to figure things out—but the moment something feels hard, they start questioning if they should be doing it at all, or assume that challenge means misalignment, and instead of staying the course, they chase something easier—which often just leads them to distraction and shiny object syndrome.
But here’s one of the biggest realizations I’ve had:
So long as something is aligned, just because it’s hard doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do it.
Hard and misaligned are two different things.
In fact, if it’s hard but aligned? That’s your next growth opportunity.
As ambitious people, we are always going to be in the messy middle—working toward goals that require us to stretch and grow. If we associate that process with pain, we’ll naturally avoid it.But learning how to operate in the messy middle—without making it mean something is wrong—is what allows you to actually stay in the game long enough to see the results you want.
If It Feels Too Edgy, It’s Your Next Level
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned—over a decade into this—is that change is the only constant.
And yet, so many people wonder why their business isn’t growing while they continue sitting in what feels easy and comfortable.
If something is aligned but uncomfortable, that’s your growth opportunity.
I see this with my students all the time. They’ll come to me and say, “Naomi, what do you think I need to do to step into my next level?” And my response is always:
“Let’s talk about all the things you’re currently avoiding and ways you’re hiding.”
Because that’s where the real work is.
I see it in the student who has never taught a live masterclass because the idea makes them nervous.
I see it in the person who wants to launch a group program but never does because they’re afraid no one will join—or worse, just one person will.
I see it in the coach who keeps telling themselves they’ll raise their rates “next time,” but never actually does.
The things you avoid—the things that stretch you, expose you, or challenge you—are your edges.
And leaning into them is how you grow.
For me, this showed up in the discomfort of having to let go of what I knew and step into a different business model.
In some ways, it’s easier to get started because you have less to lose. At my stage, making a shift meant turning down hundreds of thousands worth of guaranteed revenue. The gains are big at this stage, sure, but the opportunities you’re turning down in order to pivot, are equally big.
It forced me to humble myself and be a beginner again in some areas. And honestly? That was hard.
But here’s what I remind myself: Even after 10 years in this industry, that discomfort never fully goes away.
Befriending your edges—learning how to operate within them—is the key to long-term growth. Because the only constant in business is change. And the more you resist it, the harder you make things for yourself.
The Depth of Your Reps
For a long time, I thought growth meant more.
More ideas. More new projects. More pivots. More launching.
But the biggest lesson I’ve learned?
The best businesses—the ones with true freedom, sustainability, and spaciousness—are built by people who have mastered repetition.
They’ve done so many reps of the same thing that their business runs on muscle memory.
And yet, so many entrepreneurs are allergic to boring.
The moment something feels repetitive, they start chasing new ideas, overhauling their business, and looking for the next “exciting” thing to focus on.
But freedom doesn’t come from constantly reinventing the wheel. It comes from doing the same things over and over again—until they work effortlessly.
For me, this shift has been everything. Instead of changing everything all the time, I’ve focused on enhancements. I’ve refined and repeated. And the result? Bigger and bigger outcomes with less and less input on my part.
That’s true freedom.
Because my business no longer runs my mind.
It’s no longer dictated by random ideas or constant reinvention.
No more vibes and energy.
It’s clear. It’s refined. It’s built for longevity.
And when you truly commit to doing the deep reps instead of chasing the next thing? That’s when you start to see the real magic unfold.
I’ve always documented my own growth because it feels like a time capsule—something I can look back on to see my own patterns, integrate lessons, and remind myself how far I’ve come.
But over the years, I realized something: I wish more people did this publicly.
Not just the polished takeaways once they’ve figured things out, but the actual process—the failures, the setbacks, the decisions, and what informed those decisions. Because seeing the real behind-the-scenes would have saved me so much time and energy.
That’s why I created Uncut.
There’s only so much I can share inside this newsletter, and I knew I needed a place where I could really talk to you—like we were sitting down for coffee—about the things that don’t make it into coaching calls, social media, or polished case studies.
The real, raw, unfiltered moments of navigating business growth.
Because I want you to have a space where you can see what this actually looks like. Where you can take these insights, reflect on them, and integrate them into your business so much faster than it took me.
Part two of this series is coming tomorrow, where I’ll be sharing more of what I wish I had known about constraints, focus, and why my three-day workweek was actually one of the hardest things I’ve done—and the best decision I ever made.
Keep an eye out for it.
And if this resonated with you, just know—this is exactly the kind of thing I go deep on inside Uncut.
More on that soon.
