109. The Power of Iron Sharpens Iron: How Mutual Growth Leads to Success

In this episode of the 'Milk and Honey with Lemon' podcast, host Lemon Price explores the themes of personal and leadership development, financial freedom, and finding a supportive community. Drawing from biblical references and personal experiences, Lemon discusses the importance of stepping into God's overflow, the journey to becoming a Proverbs 31 woman, and overcoming loneliness and stagnation through building online and physical communities.

The podcast emphasizes the importance of personal growth, accountability, and mutual support in achieving goals and fulfilling God's calling, inviting listeners to join a community of like-minded individuals committed to growth and leadership.

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Chapters

• 0:18 Building Community for Mutual Growth
• 6:51 Power of Personal Growth Community
• 17:04 Encouraging Others Through Reflection

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:18

Hey, I'm Lemon. I am just like you, sister friend. Talk about stepping into that overflow that God has for us by becoming those ultimate Proverbs 31 women. Hey, I'm Lemon. I am just like you, sister friend. I knew God had something more in store for me, but I couldn't see a way out of the laundry piles and, frankly, I resented that. Proverbs 31 woman. How was I going to live up to the hype? That is until I found out how to really step into becoming this Proverbs 31 woman through leadership development. In this podcast you're going to find financial freedom, leadership, growth and motivation so you'll be able to do all the things God has called you to do with ease and really step into that land of milk and honey.

Speaker 1: 0:59

Welcome back to the Milk and Honey podcast. I'm your host, lemon Price, and I'm excited today because we're going to dive a little bit deeper into Proverbs 27, 17. It says, as iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another, and I wanted to kind of talk about this concept of iron sharpens iron and mutual growth and success and personal development, leadership development, all the kind of fun things, and I thought this was kind of important. My husband and I were talking about this earlier. We were talking about moving and all those things and how I don't have a very good community where we live right now. Honestly, it's because I knew we were never gonna stay here long-term. The schools when you get into middle school and high school really are not that great. Elementary school is fine, but I knew this was never going to be a long-term place for us ever, and so I didn't actually put a lot of energy and effort into making friends, building a lot of community. It just didn't seem as important to me.

Speaker 1: 1:55

And for the first couple of years that I was an entrepreneur that was really lonely. To be perfectly honest, it was super lonely. When I first moved to Georgia, over six years ago now, I stayed in my apartment for weeks at a time when I moved here. I did not know a single solitary person. The only people I interacted with were people at church, and that is a whole other episode. We could talk about church trauma. If you guys ever want to send me a message on Instagram if you ever want to hear that story, and I'll happily tell that story, but I'll save that for another day.

Speaker 1: 2:31

And so I had no real friends. I went to the gym by myself in my apartment complex. I went to the pool in my apartment complex and I just stayed by myself, right, because most people had normal nine to five jobs and I didn't. And so everybody at my pool or you know, who basically carried the same schedule as me were people who are retired, and no offense. But I was 27 when I first moved here and so that really was not the vibe. The vibe was just it was off, and so I worked usually from like eight to 12, nine to 12, something in that range, and then make lunch and sit at the pool every single day.

Speaker 1: 3:11

And it was really it was pretty wonderful. I'm not going to lie to you, I won't pretend that it wasn't wonderful, but it was definitely lonely. Like I was going to bed 10 o'clock at night, you know by myself. I wasn't going out, I wasn't really dating, I wasn't doing anything. I really spent several months alone.

Speaker 1: 3:29

And then when, like, end of summer came, I saw that my local area was looking for a cheerleading coach and stuff, and I was like, well, of course I'm going to jump into that. Shocker, I was a cheerleader for a very long time, coached for a very long time, and so I was like, of course I'm going to jump in and do this. And so I coached and that was like the only thing that I did outside of the house. And then, when I did that, I started getting you know, a little bit more involved in my community. That's when I found the church that I met my husband at that we still attend and I got it a little bit more involved, started building community, started making like a little more friends. I started making some more friends, but again, entrepreneurship was lonely because a lot of my friends don't understand what it's like to be an entrepreneur. When I'm talking to them about answering client calls, you know, on a Saturday, which is probably on me for a lack of boundaries or working on a new freebie and a new funnel and fixing a plugin that went down on my website, like, none of those things were things that they understood and I'm not faulting them for it in any way, shape or form, but they're like that is definitely not for me. It is definitely I'm content going to my nine to five and not doing any of those things.

Speaker 1: 4:47

And so, again, like I had friends, but it was still kind of lonely because people didn't understand what I was going through and so my only option was to be in online spaces, to build relationships with people online, and so that's what I did. I started with people online, and so that's what I did. I started, you know, in Facebook groups. That's how I found my business partner that I had a couple of years ago, and I started just building relationships with people, so much so that, like the boys, will refer to some of the friends that I've made online. As you know, aunt or they talk to Molly and Michelle on a regular basis and what I love about the community I'm in now, which I'm going to invite you to for sure. Come and join us. We have a prayer call every Monday at 1130 Eastern times, open to anybody. So come to that prayer call. The link to it is in the show notes so you can always come and connect with us. But and my so like the boys, have formed relationships. My husband's formed relationships with this community, but it was, it's been really important for me to be in a community of like-minded women who are like in it, to do life with you.

Speaker 1: 5:58

This is how I know I found real community, you know, when you meet somebody online, if you've ever met anybody online which how funny. Isn't that what our parents told us not to do in the nineties and the two thousands don't meet strangers on the internet. Now we do it all the time. But when you meet somebody and I've spoken at conferences before, I've flown out to events before it's always like a little awkward. At first You're like do I hug you? Like what sort of a relationship do we have? Are you what I was expecting? Not on Zoom? And then you meet them, you know so you meet them in person and it's just a little awkward. I've never had that experience with a single solitary woman I've met in this community. It is instant, like we're hugging, we love each other, we're crying together. It is an incredible experience, for sure. I'm going to say that. And so why? How does this all go back to this whole concept of iron sharpens iron, because I think this is just an important conversation.

Speaker 1: 6:51

I personally believe personal growth is the foundation in which all other success is built. It is a continuous thing, like we don't have the option to. If we want to grow, if we would like to be better, if we would like our life to look different, then we have no choice but to grow. If you're, if you could look at your life right now and be like I would be so content if absolutely nothing in my life changed next year, if, over the next 12 months, my weight was exactly the same, I developed no skillset. Everything I have right now is exactly what I want and I'm good with that and I have no desire to go anywhere, then that's fine. This episode is probably not for you, but if you're looking at your life and you're like man, there's so many things I would love to do. I would love to serve a mission. I would love to scale my business. I would love to speak on stages. I would love to do any of those things. If that's where you're at, if that's where you're thinking, then you have to be growing personally. You have to be in community with people who are also committed to their own growth.

Speaker 1: 8:00

Michelle Schaefer, and go back and listen to episode 90, I think was a bonus episode I did with Michelle. I know it feels so long ago, but it wasn't that long ago, but we talked. She was talking one time about how, when you're in community with people like if you're sitting next to somebody who's committed to their own growth, committed to you know, excellence, basically then you're more likely actually to meet that energy and go further than you anticipated. But then it's also the same if you're with people who are not committed to growth and are comfortable being stagnant. And I actually just had this conversation with a couple of other leaders. We had noticed, like ourselves becoming stagnant, and so then we had a conversation about who we were spending time with and we're like, yeah, because they're stagnant, and so we've now become stagnant, and so there's a group of us all getting together weekly to encourage each other and push each other into growth.

Speaker 1: 8:54

Because even in a community where there is a level of commitment to personal and professional development, there's still some of us who are like, very hungry for it. Right, it's not a passive thing for us and so we're very hungry for it, and so we're holding ourselves to a different standard. We want different outcomes, and so we are holding ourselves to a different standard. And so we are in an intentional community with each other. Inside of a community, we've formed our own little community to hold ourselves accountable to the growth that we want and to push each other for the growth that we want and to push each other for the things that we want.

Speaker 1: 9:30

And I love the exposure to different ideas, to other thought processes. You know we're able to work through how we're thinking, how we're feeling, what it is that we are desiring. We're troubleshooting with each other. What class are you taking, like, how can I support you? That's what we're doing right now, and so it's really amazing to see how just being in this tight-knit community can change everything. To be honest, and that really is the benefit I think it allows you to tap into life experiences that you don't have, into wisdom that you don't have, and to further grow and to bring about this growth mindset.

Speaker 1: 10:15

And I think being in community like this, too, it's made me way more open to feedback. I am way more willing to take risks because I know that I have people who are here cheering me on, they're championing me like they're here in it with me, and I'm way more comfortable stepping outside my comfort zone and facing failure. I face more failure than I do successes. It looks really cool online to see you know what we're doing and how we're growing, and people see the Forbes article and it's all very exciting. But what people don't realize is that I've been doing this since 2011.

Speaker 1: 10:48

And then I had a podcast back in 2018. That was trash. Nobody Google it. I won't even tell you 2018. That was trash. Nobody Google it. I won't even tell you the name of it Nobody Google it. But it was the worst thing ever.

Speaker 1: 10:59

But I learned so much from that experience. That's why this podcast exists the way in which it does now. I've learned so much from running businesses and memberships and doing all these things. That's why I do business the way I do now. That's why I show up the way I do now, because I failed more than I have succeeded, and being in community with people who understand that, who are committed to that same type of growth activity, is really helpful for me, and I know it would be helpful for you. I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that it would be helpful for you to be surrounded by people like that, and so if you're looking for some mutual growth, if you're looking to be in community, here's what I want you to do Find like-minded individuals, right. So for me, I want Christian female entrepreneurs. My husband's involved too now, which is really cool. He's building his own community of other men, and it's amazing to see how that relationship works.

Speaker 1: 11:53

But find people who get it. Find people who want what you have and are committed to the same type of growth in the same areas of growth that you're looking for. And then I want you to collaborate. You see it, michelle Tufford was on the podcast a few weeks ago. I've had Molly, I've had Michelle, I've had a lot of people actually who are not a part of Girl Power Alliance inside of this membership or inside of the podcast talking about what it is that they're good at and we're collaborating, we're talking and I'm learning and I'm growing. Wait till you hear the episode with Kelly Roach and Chelsea Jubilee. I learned so much from listening to those two women. It is mind blowing to me Again what is possible when we collaborate and we are all in a growth mindset and we are all actively working towards something.

Speaker 1: 12:38

And then what I also love is there is accountability. I don't think that when you are committing to personal growth, when you're committing to stepping outside of your comfort zone, if I told you that you not falling through on action was okay, I would be doing you a great disservice, and so having that accountability is key. It is so important that you have the accountability, that you have the relationship where you can say okay, you know I didn't get done this thing I was going to do, and it's like, okay, what are you going to do to change it? How are you going to fix it? How is not achieving that goal? You know like what's the block around it. And so having a group or you know of people who are also going to hold you accountable is so important for constructive feedback, right? I don't mean like constructive criticism, that's a whole other thing which we talk about in Radiant Leadership Academy, which, if you're not in Radiant Leadership Academy, send me a DM right now.

Speaker 1: 13:35

16-week biblical leadership class. There are like 30 classes starting right now from all different coaches. I'm thinking about starting one. If I get enough DMs between like today, april 8th, and I'm going to say, april the 15th, I'm going to give you like a full week. If I get at least 10 people who send me a message and say they would want me to teach a class in May, then I will teach a class in May. So if you're thinking about it and you're like, okay, I want to do this, then shoot me a message on Instagram, on Facebook, however, you want to connect with me. Send me a carrier pigeon If you're like, I would love to take a 16-week biblical leadership class, then shoot me a message. If enough of you reach out, then I will do it and I will teach it. I contemplated not teaching one because my husband and I are moving this spring, early summer, but I felt like a slight nudge to teach a class and I'm like is it just because I've been teaching one consistently for the last 12 months, or is it God? So I'll know if it's God, if at least 10 of you reach out to me, that's what I'll say.

Speaker 1: 14:38

So the other thing that you have in a group like this is you get to overcome your challenges and your obstacles together. Again, I've talked about this before, but there is, there's a core group of us and we do we consistently are working through challenges together. We are working through problems together, working through mindset issues together. We get to brainstorm solutions. We get to be emotional support for one another. Not that we're each other's therapists, but like I am struggling today, can you work through this with me and they're there to do that, and so I would encourage you.

Speaker 1: 15:11

If you are not in a community like this, I would love to invite you to ours. I'm not. I will selfishly say that it is, hands down, one of the most incredible communities I've ever been a part of. I am a lifer here. There is no way I would ever leave this community because I'm kind of obsessed with the work we do here, and so I want to invite you, if you want to check out the community, go to lemonpriceco slash sneak peek.

Speaker 1: 15:37

You can get full access as if you were a member, and I will see it. I will shoot you a text if you get in and you will get my personal cell phone number and everything if you get in. Okay, I will shoot you a message. We can connect and see if this would be a good fit for you. I'll answer any of your questions. We can get on a call, we can do anything, and so your homework for this episode is if you want to take a 16 week biblical leadership class that's ICF accredited shoot me a message on DM or like on Instagram or Facebook and then come join the community, come check it out, come to the prayer call. The link is in the show notes.

Speaker 1: 16:13

I would love to see you there. I would love to say hi to me when you get there. I'm excited for what we're doing and for what's possible here. When you're surrounded by people who truly understand you and truly want to see you succeed, it is incredible what you can accomplish, and so I'm excited to connect with you on a deeper level, to have deeper and better community with you, and I will see you either on the prayer call or in the DMs. My friend, I will talk to you on Wednesday with Chelsea Jubilee. Wait until you hear some of the story I'm going to share on Wednesday and just what is possible, again, when you're surrounded by people who are committed to growth and action and wanna see some real change in your life. It is going to be mind blowing. So buckle up and stay tuned for that episode on Wednesday and I'll talk to you later. Bye, friend.

Speaker 1: 17:04

Hey friend, what a joy it has been to share today's journey with you. If you found a spark of inspiration or a nugget of wisdom that resonated, would you bless someone else by sharing this episode with them? It could be the encouragement they need to step into their purpose and calling. Also, if you could spare a moment to leave a review, it would mean the world to me. I really appreciate your feedback and it really helps our community grow. Remember the road to discovering. God's call for you isn't one you have to walk alone. So join me again next Monday for another episode where we'll continue to explore the depths of leadership and the heights of our heavenly calling. Until then, keep seeking, keep growing and keep trusting in His plan. God bless you and I'll catch you on the flip side. Bye, friend.