Action Amanda, or Amanda Frolich, is an award-winning children’s entertainer, early years educator, health and fitness expert, best-selling author and government advisor.
Amanda works with policy makers in parliament to ensure children are at the forefront of all decision-making - a real expert in her field - as she looks back at what she has learnt in her 30 years in the business.
Take every opportunity, even when you think it might be below your aspirations
Especially when you are first starting out in business, it is important to take every opportunity which presents itself to you. Exposure is key and even if you think that the opportunity is less than what you were expecting, it is still worth doing it and doing it well.Building up a known reputation will lead to bigger and greater things.
Go straight to the top
You are never too insignificant to speak to the people at the top and the people making the decisions.
It is easy to get bogged down in chains of command but if you really believe in what you are offering and think that person could benefit from it, then try your hardest to go straight to the top.
Trust your intuition
Trusting your gut and intuition is so important in any business venture. No one knows your business and your vision quite like you do, so Amanda’s advice is to take the chance even if you aren’t 100% convinced yourself.
Regretting not doing something because you were cautious is more likely than regretting taking a chance and it going wrong. You will feel proud of yourself that you made the leap and you will undoubtedly still learn something from the experience too, even if it does go horribly wrong.
Don’t think what you have got is all you can achieve
When first starting out in the industry, it is hard to visualise yourself as being ‘hugely successful’. We have it ingrained into us that it is arrogant to think we are going to go out and absolutely smash it.
But you should aim high - you should never sell yourself short.
There are some of us who write to-do lists and fill it with things we have already done just so we can get the satisfaction of scoring them off immediately. And while it is always a confidence boost to feel like you are achieving, it is also important to keep striving to achieve more so your motivation doesn’t wear thin.
Setbacks aren’t failures
Starting your own business is incredibly daunting - no matter what your background is. We all suffer setbacks and disappointing results in businesses, regardless of how big or successful the company is, but is it vital to not dwell on those setbacks for too long, especially in the company’s infancy.
It is easy to become disheartened if something doesn’t come easily or go according to plan. Setbacks don’t always reflect a wrong decision you have made or reflect the effort you have put in - sometimes they are just setbacks.
Especially throughout the pandemic, many businesses have learned that some things are just out of your control.
While reflection is incredibly beneficial, it isn’t healthy to dwell on setbacks and you should look at the positives which have come out of the setback and focus on that instead.
