Fostering Your Birth Work Community with Caren Nugent
Let's Talk About It....
Friend, we are not meant to do this life... or this work... ALONE! We are meant to be in community, and even better... like minded community! In this heart to heart chat, Caren and I talk all about WHY and HOW to foster your community as a birth worker!
Why is it important to foster your birth work community?
There are so many reasons, but let's start with the fact that owning any business is REALLY HARD and it can be very lonely sometimes! When you add the difficulties of doing birth work specifically, it get's even harder to find anyone you can talk to who will understand what you are going through or be able to help give you advice or feedback in the difficult seasons.
Resources is a huge bonus to a well established community... and I'm talking resources for you and your clients!!
It takes a village to raise a baby... and to run a successful business! Having connections and networking with others who are on a similar journey can really further your business!
Also, hello BACKUPS... you can't do birth work well without a few solid, trustworthy and dependable backups who can fill in for you when you need it! (Trust me friend... it's just a matter of time... you will need backup support!) The only thing that can make you feel even a little bit better about having to send a backup is sending one that you truly feel comfortable with and know well.
Why Focusing on Your "Competition" Will Crush You...
Overall... this majorly comes down to your mental capacity... we only have so much energy... am I right?? Between running a business, serving our clients well, and then oh I don't know raising our own babies... how could there be anymore room for focusing on what someone else is doing in their business? There isn't!
When your mindset is focused on competing with someone else, or trying to keep up with what they are doing, it completely eliminates your ability to be creative in your own business and stepping into your truth and how you are as birth worker.
When you are walking in your truth and confident in yourself as a birth worker, you are able to give your clients everything that they deserve in hiring you. When your mindset is off or you are putting your focus into the wrong things, it can create an unhealthy cycle of doubt and insecurity. That insecurity in yourself and what you have to offer, seeps into everything else.
3 Ways To Shift YOUR Mindset From Competition to Building Your Own Birth Work Community!
- Remember that you are unique and divinely called to do this work.
When you are feeling caught up in that mindset of competing with others, take time to notice who that person may be. Sit down and reflect. Write down a few things that you are good at, things that you are doing really well in your business, or ways that you serve your clients well. If you know who it may be that you are comparing yourself to, maybe also write down a few things that they are doing well or things that they are uniquely good at. This can help you to highlight all of the differences between the two you in the most positive way.
- Remember that there is always room at the table
Find a local group of birth workers near you that are gathering in person to spend time together talking about birth and business. If you can't find one, start one. If there aren't many other birth workers that are local to you, then go virtual! There are so many options available to you for finding community!
Pro tip: Use Geographic Hashtags to find other Birth Workers near you!
#DFWBIRTHWORKERS #CHICAGOBIRTHWORKER
- Have the hard conversations & then let it go
This one can be particularly challenging... both confronting uncomfortable situations as well as protecting your boundaries can be hard things to do sometimes. After you have had a difficult conversation with someone, its really important that you allow the situation to end there. Fostering your birth work community is only possible with healthy communication and behavior. It is absolutely vital that you not hold grudges or gossip about other birth workers in your industry. This not only makes them look bad, but it also makes you look bad. Nobody likes or trusts a gossiper. Birth work is built on trust!
Let's Get Connected!
You can find Caren here!
Birth In Focus Community Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/909240249740116/
Birth in Focus Website - www.samanthatollison.com/birthinfocus
Birth in Focus Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/birthinfocuspodcast/ Samantha Tollison Birth Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/samanthatollisonbirth/
