What a year it’s been! In this episode of The Hayley Osborne Show, I’m sharing the 24 biggest lessons I’ve learned in 2024. Personally, professionally, and everything in between. From navigating the joys and challenges of becoming a new parent, while running a thriving business, to uncovering fresh strategies for growth, balance, and mindset, this episode is packed with insights you won’t want to miss.
If you’re looking for inspiration, motivation, or just a little nudge to reflect on your own journey this year, I’M YOUR GALLLL and this episode is for you.
It’ll leave you feeling empowered to take on whatever’s next.
Tune in to hear what worked, what didn’t, and how I’m turning these lessons into a roadmap for an even better 2025.
Let’s celebrate the wins and learn from the challenges together!
👉 Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with a fellow entrepreneur who’s ready to level up in the year ahead.
SUMMARY
0:00:01 Introduction and purpose of the show
0:02:30 Personal Lessons from 2024
0:08:00 Business Lessons
0:14:30 Marketing and Strategy Lessons
0:20:00 Parenting and Business Overlap
0:23:30 Reflective Lessons
0:26:00 Closing Remarks and Call to Action
Hayley Osborne
Hello and welcome to another episode of The Hayley Osborne show. I’m really excited that you are here and listening to me today. It’s a pretty cool episode, 24 lessons from 2024 and you probably know, I had a little bit of difficulty getting this to air, so you usually see me with a little microphone below the camera. Today, I have my little lapel mic on, just because something is going on with my little sound box, and I wanted to still come to you with really good quality audio.
So you know that this is the one that I use when I’m traveling. And let me show you, if you are watching YouTube, it’s very cute. It comes in a little box like this. It’s the Holy Land microphone for anyone that’s thinking of starting a podcast. You can do it with just a simple little microphone. It comes in a little case. I’m just showing the little case to the camera now, and it self-charges as well if the case is charged. So it’s really easy to travel with.
And I bought this for the simple fact that I did travel a little bit, um, last year, leading into, well, not leading into you, but while I was pregnant and I didn’t have my small children with me. And so I thought of the perfect opportunity to batch records and podcasts when it’s quiet. And so that’s what I did. And this microphone came in handy, and it’s great audio, so just clips onto your shirt, and then you can kind of go wherever.
And you know, it is proof that you don’t need fancy, fancy equipment to record a podcast. So yes, this was an investment, but I’ve seen, like, movie stars recording to their phone with just a simple microphone like this. That’s really portable, and I’m all about like no clutter on my desk. And so this works really well anyway. We digress.
But I wanted to talk to you about my 20 my 24 lessons from 2024 and I thought that was a cool name and opportune time to talk about some personal lessons, some business lessons, some marketing and strategy lessons, and how as well, like my parenting journey has overlapped with my business journey, and then just some reflective lessons along the way. And so this is episode 140 and we’re nearing the end of the year, so we’ll close out.
This is the second to last episode for this year, which is cool, and then we’ll have a little break and we’ll be back next year. So without further ado, let’s get into it. So I wanted to start with personal lessons, and so the first one is and I’ll zoom through these, because I know we’ve got 24 to get through, but the power of flexibility, so I think that that’s important, especially as I embraced my time with an adding a new human into the mix in my household. And so I think that being flexible is really important, but understanding it’s okay to focus on the thing that you need to at the time and then move on to the next thing, whether that’s baby things or business things or, you know, whatever’s urgent, just embracing that unpredictability, I think, is important.
Number two is definitely being able to prioritise self-care. So that, for me, was as simple as sleeping at the very beginning, but to stay really healthy too. So then it ended up not ending. And then I started to incorporate movement, which is, you know, exercise. And I think that’s important to stay healthy, to be able to run a business and be a present parent, because your health is the most important thing, and if you don’t have that, then everything else crumbles around you. So staying really healthy is important.
The third lesson in my personal lessons is Time is precious, and so I like if you follow me on Instagram, I tried to record this podcast Friday, and I just had lots of technical little issues. And so. When I have the time allocated, I sprint, and I couldn’t do that, which was annoying. So I just, you know, learned to, like, hold them and fold them when you need to, and I folded, and I was like, I’ve got to deal with this another day. Not a good idea, and that’s okay. So focusing on what truly matters, I just removed myself from the office and went and spent time with my family.
The fourth one is supporting systems of gold. Okay, so leaning into help where you need it. And that could be it, around the house, around support with children, you know, professional network. So I’ve got my little group of business, awesome humans. You know who you are, that we catch up. I catch up with regular support. I also am part of a book club, and that’s a once a month catch up thing as well, which is cool.
So really, like put yourself in those opportunities where you can build your networks and your cup in that regard, in terms of support systems, doesn’t have to be filled by one group. So I have a few different groups in my world. So, you know, obviously my family is really, really important in supporting my small humans.
And then I have my business group, which is awesome. I have my book club group, which is so cool. And a lot of the time, it’s not always about books, but it’s such a nice way to, like, build on business and reading and, you know, upskilling and knowledge and things like that.
And then I’ve got my friendship group, you know, it’s really nice to have a different support network. So keep them close, because they are gold.
Number five is celebrating small wins. So something that I do inside my membership superhero marketing is every Wednesday, we talk about our wins. So every single week, I want to know the last seven days, what you have achieved, and big or small, right? Because it’s a small win. It’s those 1% wins every single day that are going to get you to 365% more than what you had before that. Okay, so the small wins are super, super important.
And then I think the number six to wrap the personal lessons is motherhood teaches me resilience and also very quick reflexes with small humans. And I think that adapting to challenges builds emotional and mental strength, which I think you need in business as well. So I think it’s really helped me to build my resilience in all sorts of things, to be able to handle things differently, and you know, in your day-to-day life, just think differently and think more outside of the box. I think that’s important. Moving on to business lessons.
Okay, so this number seven is consistent. Okay, so a massive lesson from 2024 is being super consistent, that is key. So I was really proud of the way that I carried my business through having a baby. I knew what I needed to plan and what I could put a pause on, and so I did that, and I had nine months to prepare.
Because, you know, you don’t just have a baby like in a split second, you’ve got a long time to prepare for it. So I think that is key, and that’s what helped me to be consistent, which included this podcast, which was really cool. So I had a few months of podcasts in my back pocket that I got drip fed over that time, which I loved.
Number eight is to simplify your processes. Okay, so streamlining your systems for a smoother operation is paramount. Okay, so you know you don’t always want to be dipping into your emails, dipping into some people’s reminders, like, I’ve got a lot of things set up. I’ve got a lot of rules in and around my emails to put things in folders automatically, which saves me so much time. And then I’ve got, you know, automatic, automated, automated. That is even a word. I think I made that up.
I’ve got automation in and around my business. So if you want to get smarter with smoother operations, send me a message. I can definitely help you with this, because I think that I’m a master at it, considering what I am able to achieve in the time that I have with the things that I have going on in my home life with very small children. So I think that streamlining your systems for a smoother day to day is paramount. And it takes time.
It’s like building a house, you know, you’ve got to build it from the ground up. So I think when you can do that well, and there is tech that you can use, and some of it is free, do. You have to be in your business so you are not like the minutiae of it all, all the time. I think that’s a massive time waster.
Number nine is the value of delegation, okay, that is, and has been massive for me to be able to trust somebody and people to, you know, be able to maintain momentum, and so I have had that with team this year to help me and support me through and that is one of the hardest things that I’ve had to learn, but also one of the best things that I’ve ever done, so trusting other people with your business.
So I have help, and that has been amazing, and it has not come without me putting together procedures on how to do things and what needs to be done, and setting up platforms that help with the management of the day to day. I think that’s also been really important, and it’s also got out of my head what’s been in my head for a long time, and so it’s just about having that wheel moving like a well-oiled machine, and I think that I have definitely nailed it. And so that’s something that I can teach.
And you should know, because if you are operating in that I can do it all space, it’s not healthy, and it’s not going to help you grow, and it’s not going to help you scale your business to what you want to do, because you cannot do it all. There are people that can do what you do, okay. You just have to have that trust and that that’s a skill that is learnt.
I think number 10 business lessons is that your audience loves authenticity, and I think sharing my journey has definitely resonated with my audience, and resonated in a way like I get messages about how clever I have been in terms of what I share. Obviously, I have three children, and they don’t appear in my socials at all. Everyone knows that I have small children, but they’re not my porn. I don’t use them in my marketing. And because you know those that know me know me, and I’m not like I share them.
They’re the loves of my life, but they’re those that don’t know me, and that’s you know, social media is a cold audience. Guys, don’t forget that. And so your email list is your warm audience, that your clients are your warm audience, and it’s fine to share them with, you know, those people, but in terms of like, bringing in likes and comments and shit, they would be my biggest asset, but I just don’t use them. It’s not like something that I choose to do.
I don’t feel comfortable with strangers seeing my kids on the internet, and if you do that, that’s completely fine, because everybody has a choice, but that has been one of my strengths in growing my audience, because people really like that, and they want to know how they can do that inside of their own business.
Number 11 is smart work over hard work. So what I do to achieve more is focus on impact driven tasks, and I try to outsource those that are impact driven. You know, I used to do everything myself, and that’s fine, but when you get to a certain point, it’s time to outsource that, because those hours that you save you can be spent creating more revenue, which leads to profit in your business.
So if you can get rid of some of the hours that you don’t need to be spending to be able to pour your time into those needle moving hours, then I think, do it, because you will never look back, and you’ll work even harder. And momentum creates momentum. And it’s funny, like I have this little saying with a friend of mine in business, and she said it not me, but I’m using it is, you know, money goes where energy flows, all right, you know who you are. So I think that smart work is important over hard work.
Number 12 is community matters. So inside my membership, my members continue to thrive, showing up as themselves in their business and showing the value of group effort and community. I think community really matters. And that was one of the things that I loved about building my membership, was that it did bring in a community to me, and Your vibe attracts your tribe. Okay, so I have some of the coolest members inside of my membership, and I think that has just come down to the way I show up in my marketing, where I show up consistently.
You know, your vibe attracts your tribe, and people want to learn from someone that they know, like and trust, okay. So that has definitely been a golden nugget of mine, is that I show I am who I say that I am, and you can see that through the way that I show up and build that value and that I know like and. Trust with my audience. So moving on.
Now we’re up to number 13, but we’re going into marketing and strategy lessons, and so the 13th thing is organic marketing is still shining. Okay? So you don’t have to spend big money on paid advertising, Google ads, Facebook ads, if you can organically market your business cleverly, it still works okay. So being able to remain relevant and build trust naturally through organic marketing is important, and if you do it well, it works exceptionally well.
And you’ll probably see the things that perform the best are probably not the things that you want to perform the best. So any classic sales post, buy my stuff. You know, I’ve seen so much now, Christmas is here. Last minute Christmas gift like, have you thought about it? This? That’s not how you make sales. You make sales through the other 10 months of showing up, and then when it comes to people wanting to purchase a gift in that 11th and 12th month, that is when all those past 10 months work pays off.
Okay? So think about how you’re going to go into 2025, and if you’re going to be consistent, because then at the end of the year, all of your hard work would have paid off. And that’s the beauty of being consistent and showing up and building that trust, that knowing that like factor, so that when it comes to that opportune time, whether it be Black Friday at the end of the year or Christmas time, you’re not coming in going, do you need a last a Christmas gift? Here’s my stuff, and you haven’t been speaking to your audience the whole year. It doesn’t work.
The 14th one is AI. So it had to be said in terms of strategy. I think that we need to see it as a tool, not a threat in business. Okay? So use it as the best tool and your sidekick to be able to help you. It’s never going to sound like you like exactly how you build it to sound like you, however. Okay, you need to add your own thought leadership, but it does add a huge chunk of research time, like taken away from your business. So use it, lean into it, leverage it to be more efficient.
Number 15 is to be, stay adaptable. Okay, so the marketing world evolves very, very quickly, and you need to be consistently leaning in and you know your strategy should be adaptable to so if you’re thinking, how do I do that, maybe joining something like superhero marketing is the thing that will keep you in the mix.
Okay, it is a low-cost investment to be able to keep your finger in the pie, to know what is happening, to help you to stay adaptable in the mix. Okay, that is part of your strategy, part of your arsenal, in how you are going to activate and show up. Because if you’ve always done what you’ve always done, then you’ll always have what you’ve always had. Okay, so you need to do something different. Lean in, keep learning. Because you know when you stop right, and you take yourself off the you’ve taken your foot off the pedal, it becomes very hard. Less is more on social media.
Okay, number 16, so I think that quality content outperforms quantity every single time. So yes, I think you should post every single day. I do, however, if you can’t do quality over quantity and make it you know, three times a week. Okay, be on your stories every single day, but show up a couple of times with real quality over doing it like 20 stories over quantity 100 times over. So less is more on social media. Make it quality, look at what your audience are engaging with, and make more of that. If you don’t know how to do that, that’s where I come in to give you a hand. So a social media strategy might be the thing that you need to set yourself up for success in 2025 okay, and that’s what happens now.
I have a lot of businesses in my world wanting a social media strategy. So, yes, I’ve got a few catch ups this week with clients to start a social media strategy for them, so that they have a really good springboard into 2025 so they’re not just throwing spaghetti at the wall, but they have a plan on that North Star goal, which is important and smart, smart businesses make smart choices.
Okay? So you know, investing a little bit of money to help you make a lot of money is very important, okay? And that’s how you see people having the biggest growth, because they don’t sit on their hands. They take action.
Number 17. Empathy connects. Okay? So listening to people, listening to what your clients are saying, listening to what comments you’re getting on your socials, listening to what you’re getting in your messages, and if you’re saying Hayley, no one comments on my stuff, no one sends me messages. But it’s time to start being more consistent. Okay?
Start showing up on your stories, sharing your day-to-day lives, and connecting with humans. So if you’re not doing that, I would start if you don’t know how to do that, then engage me to help you to learn how to do that. We’ll figure out what your content pillars are and what that looks like, and how those shapes into your business. You know, if you’re like me, without sharing your whole life and bearing your soul and your kids and everything in between.
You don’t need to do that to build connections, but you do need to have a strategy. I speak a lot with my hands, so if you’re listening, if you’re watching on YouTube, I’m like, baa, baa with my hands anyway. So empathy connects, so figure out what that looks like for you.
Okay, off to number 18. So parenting in business overlaps, alright, guys, and if you’re not a parent, that’s all good. But number 18 is Patience pays off. Okay? So whether you have a fussy human, small human, or a long-term marketing campaign, Patience pays off. Okay, marketing is definitely the long game, and if you’re not prepared to play the long game, then you’ll be here for the short term. And that’s just the way it is, and the long game is my game. If you want quick wins, I’m not you go, unfortunately. Okay, so long term marketing will always win and patience will always pay off. Okay, in your home life and in your business life.
Number 19 multitasking is a myth. Now I wrote that down with the most love in my heart, because I do a lot at the same time, but I think that I have gotten good at focusing on where my attention needs to be at that time and putting it there. Okay, I don’t tend to like to put my attention everywhere, because nothing actually works. So I put my attention where it needs to go, and then I focus on what needs to happen at that time.
Number 20, having strong boundaries in place protects my energy. Okay? So I need to listen and say no to things. And I think I’ve been really good at it this year. I think the thing that has made me better at it is having a baby, because I’ve said no to especially early on, August, September, October, no to functions, social functions, because I need to rest, because I’m getting up through that was getting up through the night, not anymore, but I needed to rest, and I needed to respect my boundaries, not have my baby out because, you know, it’s important that they’re home for a little while. So I definitely protected my energy through those boundaries.
And having a baby definitely helped, but it also helped me stay aligned. And so I think that I would like to carry that on to 2025 and not say yes to everything. I can’t do everything, and so saying no is okay, and just lean into what matters the most. And now that was just three quick parenting business overlaps. Lesson number the last part was reflective.
Lesson, okay, so number 21 is gratitude fuels growth. All right, so appreciating what you have is an important thing to master. It’s very hard because as business owners, you know that we are up and down and up and down and over and across, and in the morning, we could be on a super big high, and then something might happen in the afternoon, and then we’re like, lowest of low. And you’re questioning, why am I doing this? Is it even worth it? Blah, blah, blah. And then the next hour, something happens.
You get an email that asks you to do something, and then it’s like, oh yes, it is. It’s worth it. So just try and remember that being grateful, being grateful and having gratitude will help you to grow, grow your business. Momentum creates momentum, and your positive attitude and your energy attracts the right people. And that happens to me a lot, and things come out of left field, and you’re like, where did that come from? And it might be an indirect thing that happens.
So every time I launch, for example, a crazy thing that happens is that you get noticed. And you get noticed by people that have probably been on the fence working with you. They are very quiet in the background, they’re in the bleachers, and then they come out, and it’s like, wow. That just created so much opportunity. So be grateful for what you have, because it creates growth.
Number 22 mistakes are teachers, so learning from mistakes is how you grow, and it might feel frustrating and frustrating at the time when you. Digging around trying to set things up. You know, you know that you do one thing, and it opens a can of worms to get this login, and you don’t have that email anymore and that data, it happens to everybody. So mistakes are actually lessons and teachers. So just try and be reflective on that and be kind to yourself.
Number 23 celebrates the journey. Okay, so celebrate. Look. Now is a really beautiful time to have a little look and look at what your goals were when you started 2024 and see if you’ve achieved them. I cannot wait to open up my notes, so I use a remarkable and it’s all saved in there. It’s also saved on my file.
But I love using that to then make more notes and goals for 2025 so I will be celebrating, because I know there were some big things in there that I did that, yeah, just as I have been thinking about it, I’m like, wow, I did that. I did that. I did that. Year is a long time, so set really big goals and celebrate the journey as you hit those goals. Okay? Because it’s in the moment we’re living in now. You are your best version of yourself right now.
Number 24 to leave you with is you’re stronger than you think. Okay, you are much stronger than you think. So just do it. I think for me, balancing parenthood and being an entrepreneur has been the wildest ride I’ve ever had, and it’s proven actually how resilient that I am and how nimble and how much of a go-getter that I am, and I’m pretty proud of that. So just know you’re for you. You are definitely stronger than you think you are.
So just go do it if you’ve been sitting on the fence to invest and educate yourself in something new when it comes to your marketing. I’m your girl, and that wraps up 24 lessons for 2024. I hope you’ve enjoyed this episode. I will see you next week for our last episode of the year. Have the best day today, wherever you are listening to me, and I will catch you next week for another episode of The Hayley Osborne show. I
I hope you’ve enjoyed listening to this episode. If you have hit subscribe, so you don’t miss any new episodes released every Tuesday, and while you’re there, leave me a review. I would absolutely love to read it. Also, don’t forget to tag me at @hayleykosborne over on Instagram and share this post with your audience so they can get learning too. Sharing is caring. If you want more, head over to https://hayleyosborne.com/category/podcast/ for today’s show notes and links, catch you next week for another episode of The Hayley Osborne show.
