What If Your Business Needs You to Increase Your Capacity to Receive More?
I don’t know about you, but most retreats I’ve attended as a business owner are business-forward. This one wasn’t.
Last week, I attended Heather Hubbard's "Happy, Healthy, Wealthy" retreat, where the focus was on the person behind the enterprise more than the enterprise itself. I’ve been to some amazing retreats over the course of my career, but this was my first of this kind. And it definitely won’t be my last.
It was everything I needed, including what I didn't know I needed.
As “luck” would have it, I got sick five days before my cross-country flight. I even ended up at Urgent Care the day before. I arrived tired, depleted, and with a voice that was barely audible. In other words: not feeling (or looking) my best.
I’d describe myself as “woo-light,” meaning: I believe in serendipity. I believe not everything can be so easily and logically explained. I believe there's more to what we experience than what we can see.
Serendipity showed up on day one. A previously booked-out session called “Mother’s Blessing,” with Emelia, suddenly had an opening, and it didn’t conflict with any of our group activities. I said “yes” immediately.
In short: it was AMAZING! The questions she asked. The people she referenced (not by name, but by their role in my life). Let’s just say I’m less skeptical of experiences like this that I can’t easily explain, or, frankly, even describe.
Emelia said many things I haven’t stopped turning over, but there's one I’m willing to share publicly:
“Your business will become more successful once you feel worthy.”
Her statement took me by surprise, because I already think of myself as someone with a strong sense of self-worth. But I didn’t dismiss it. After the experience I had with her, I took it as an invitation to go deeper — to ask different questions, and perhaps more honest ones.
Since that session, I’ve been sitting with the word: worthy.
Not “capable.” Not “qualified.” Worthy.
And here’s one question I can’t shake: How much of our success — in business, with money, in life — is shaped by whether we believe we deserve it?
I’ve also been thinking about the difference between being deemed “worthy” and experiencing worthiness.
Being deemed worthy can feel like a verdict. Something we wait for another person, an institution, a paycheck, a title, or an achievement to hand us.
But worth is not something success can confer — or failure can take away.
What I’m interested in is felt worthiness: the internal sense of whether you and I give ourselves permission to receive.
To be well compensated.
To take up space.
To be visible.
To rest.
To make mistakes.
To have enough.
To want more.
To build a life that actually feels really, really good to live.
This month, I’ll be exploring the intersection of felt worthiness and success: first in business, then with money, and finally, in life.
But first, let’s get clear about this: In business, unworthiness does not always sound like, “I don’t deserve success.” If it did, it might be easier to recognize.
More often, it wears a more socially acceptable disguise. It sounds like:
“I just want to be fair.”
“I don’t want to be too salesy.”
“I need a little more experience first.”
“I’m not ready to raise my rates.”
“I need more time. Another degree. Another certification.”
“I should figure it out on my own.”
“I don’t want people to think I’ve changed.”
Now, none of those statements automatically signal a worthiness issue. Sometimes they are accurate assessments of timing, bandwidth, market conditions, or values.
But sometimes they are the language we use when being seen, being paid well, needing support, wanting more, or becoming more powerful feels unfamiliar — or unsafe.
And this is where discernment and nuance enter the picture — because they help you answer the question: Where in your business are you calling something a strategy problem when it may also be a permission problem? When it’s both, it can show up as:
Chronic underpricing, then overdelivering to compensate.
Waiting for certainty before pitching, launching, hiring, or raising your prices.
Giving away strategic labor in the name of being helpful.
Treating income as a byproduct rather than a business responsibility.
Avoiding follow-up because a “no” feels like a referendum on the self.
Building a business that doesn’t actually support the life you say you want.
Reaching a new level, then recreating urgency, chaos, or overwork because a calmer way of doing business feels unfamiliar.
In other words: not great outcomes! Because a business can look successful from the outside and still ask too much of the person behind it.
I didn’t start today’s missive with the goal of leaving you with clear-cut answers. Heck, it’s now a week later and I’m still trying to unpack Emelia’s words and what they mean for me and my business.
But I do feel confident in leaving you with this to ruminate on: success is not proof that we deserve to exist, belong, or be cared for.
And when our capacity to receive care, compensation, safety, and room to grow hasn’t caught up to our ambition, we may make choices that keep success — however we define it for ourselves and our businesses — at a distance.
That doesn’t mean every business challenge is a worthiness issue. It means that alongside “What does my business need?” there may be another question worth asking:
“What am I allowing myself to receive?”
P.S. If you read this and thought, “Okay, but where is it a permission problem in my business?”, that’s exactly the kind of question we dig into in Successful, Profitable…and Not Broke. Not just the strategy. That part underneath it. If you’re curious, send me a DM on Instagram and tell me where you think it might be showing up.
About Jacquette
I love to ask questions and spark aha moments. I love to talk about why success with money is about more than just the numbers, and how the cultural impact on the intersection of money, business, and life matters–A LOT! And, I really hope I help people feel seen, heard, and not judged—especially since money is emotional and personal.
