See beyond the numbers
Ways to recognize growth that aren't about money.
Growth isn’t always easy to see, especially when you’re in the middle of it. Kind of like going to the gym for weeks, only to feel like you still look like a baked potato. But just because the gains aren’t obvious doesn’t mean they aren’t happening. Sometimes growth is subtle: lifting five more pounds without realizing it, not getting winded on the stairs, or choosing a banana over a donut once (progress!). Business and personal growth are the same. The big, flashy wins are rare—but the small, quiet changes? They stack up. One day, you look back and realize you’ve leveled up without even knowing it.
There’s definitely an instinct that says if your business is growing, that automatically translates into dollars. While that certainly is often the case long term, it’s important to keep your eyes on the signs that you are evolving and meeting new milestones.
From a client perspective:
Your clients / customers are giving you positive feedback, either verbally, in online reviews, or by recommending you to others. Additionally, you will notice that many of your customers are repeat customers, showing their confidence in you by coming back again and again,
From a social media / marketing perspective:
When you pull the numbers on your social media, you’ll see the numbers going up, engagement through likes, comments and shares. Your email subscribers list is growing and traffic on your website will pick up.
From a staff / team perspective:
Not only are your employees sticking around long term, their performance reflects a healthy environment! Their skills are getting sharper, they are making fewer mistakes and generally serving customers in a faster and more efficient way.
From the business owner’s perspective:
Being an entrepreneur is always going to come with a certain level of stress, but as your business grows and progresses, you’ll find that your stress level is much more manageable. You’ll also recognize yourself growing as a leader, feeling much more confident in your ability to make decisions without second guessing yourself so much. Here’s the really good one: you will find you have a much better balance between your personal life and professional life.
Growth will come. It doesn’t always show up in big numbers or flashy wins, and that’s okay. Sometimes the most important progress happens behind the scenes: in your mindset, your habits, or how you handle challenges that used to throw you off. It’s easy to obsess, but real growth is often slow, steady, and a little sneaky. Keep showing up, keep learning, and trust that the results will follow. The numbers matter, but they’re not the whole story.