And just like that, we are on part 2 of the 30 life, faith and business lessons I learned in my 20’s.

In case you missed part 1, you definitely want to go and listen to that episode FIRST and come back to this one. That is episode 76. But if you already have, WELCOME BACK.

You know the drill.

In this episode, we are diving DEEP into the transformative decade of my twenties since I am turning THIRTY in just a couple of weeks. This is so wild to me, time really does fly by the older you get.

My twenties hold such a SPECIAL place in my heart. This was the decade I truly fell in love with Jesus and KNOW the Holy Spirit. It’s also been a decade that I started my career in online entrepreneurship. I started my entrepreneurial journey when I was just 23 years old, so as you can probably imagine, I’ve learned A LOT about myself, business, God, and everything in between.

And I’ve also made A LOT of mistakes… In business, and in life.

And with this, I also think it’s important to share that I spent the majority of this decade SINGLE and healing from a lot of pain I experienced from dating and toxic relationships in my early 20s.

With that said, I hope you join me as I reflect on the incredible journey, and share with you the 30 invaluable lessons I learned along the way.

From the thrilling triumphs to the challenging setbacks, we’ll explore the lessons that shaped my faith, honed my business, and provided me with a compass for navigating the journey of life.

Trust me, there’s something here for everyone, whether you’re in your twenties, reliving those moments, or simply seeking timeless wisdom to apply to your own life’s adventure.

As I mentioned, during this episode, we’ll cover a wide range of topics—from relationships to resilience, career to character, and so much more. Each lesson has been carefully curated to inspire, motivate, and ignite a spark of faithful wisdom within you.

Whether you’re a dreamer, an entrepreneur, a seeker of purpose, or simply someone eager to learn from the experiences of others, this episode will deliver.

 What You Will Learn:

• 15 life, faith, and business lessons I learned in my 20’s
• Invaluable lessons you can implement as a Christian entrepreneur (to keep your eyes on Jesus AND thrive in business)
• Hard lessons thankfully taught me how to teach YOU to steward your role as a Faith-Fueled CEO
• Real stories that showcase how some clichés are entirely true (bc it wouldn’t be cliché if it wasn’t true)

I’m SO ready to spill the beans, share the stories, and reveal the hard-won truths that have guided me through the rollercoaster ride that was in my twenties.

Let’s dive in!

Lesson #1: The Risk Isn’t As Big As You Think

The risk could actually be you not taking the risk. This could go for a lot of things, not just investing. Actually take the riss to start something, to do something, and to put yourself out there and to tell someone that you love them. 

Life is so short, friends. You could literally leave this earth tomorrow. So, do the thing that is in your heart. Do the thing that is weighing heavily on your mind. You will regret not doing it one day when you’re laying on your deathbed. 

Lesson #2: You Truly Cannot Please Everyone Even When You’re Doing Your Very Best

I know that this one is really difficult to fully grasp, and I think this is something that

we can have head knowledge, but not actually fully live out our actions because we want to please people.

At the end of the day, I think women, especially, want to be loved and liked. We want to be chosen, have high compliments, and get five-star reviews. Even when you are the best at what you do, there’s still going to be someone that doesn’t think that you are – and that is okay. 

The cliché saying is that you can be the ripest peach in the world, but there’s still going to be someone that doesn’t like peaches. 

Please stop trying to dictate what you do based on someone’s response to you because that’s not the truth. I am not saying that we shouldn’t take other people’s perspectives into consideration and learn from them. 

I think there’s a line here where we begin obsessing over what people think of us.

And that is the fear of man, my friend. And the only entity we are really meant to fear

is God himself, not man. We’re not here to please man. We’re here to please the Lord.

Lesson #3: Timing Is Important, But It’s Also Not

God’s timing is absolutely perfect. Wait on Him, and wait for that green light from the Holy Spirit. But please do not allow fear to get in the way of what He’s calling you to do, and then you use, “timing is wrong,” as an excuse because you’re afraid of something.

To be totally honest, unless you are going through a major life change (and when I say a major life change, I mean getting married, a loss of a loved one, getting divorced, having a baby, or moving), the timing is not going to get any better. 

If that green light from the Holy Spirit is there, but you’re not taking action because

you’re using the timing as an excuse, check yourself. 

Ask yourself the question: Why is that actually coming up here?

Lesson #4: Surrendering to the Lord will Bring Peace, Joy, and Even Clarity

I think so often as humans, we want to try and fix situations. We want to seek solutions to things that can then lead to overthinking and trying to control situations. In reality, if we just submit all of that to the Lord, if we just surrender to the Lord, we are going to feel so much more at peace.

Friend, surrender to the Lord. That peace, that joy, that clarity, that provision, that safety, and that security that you are craving… The Lord will do that for you. 

Surrender to Him, and He will give that to you.

But also note that it may not be in the exact way that you’re thinking it’s going to be, but He will give you that because of Him, not because of any external circumstances.

Lesson #5: Do Not Ignore Your Feelings Because Your Feelings and Emotions Will Show You Your Thoughts

If we have learned anything from the Bible, it’s that your thoughts are extremely important. We are taught to renew our minds constantly. And this is something I teach

my students how to do inside the Called to CEO Collective. 

Renewing your mind is so important. It is crucial because your thoughts determine your feelings and your feelings determine your actions and your actions actually determine your reality. 

Make sure you’ve got your thoughts in order. Make sure that you renew your mind every moment of every single day. 

Lesson #6: Success is Not Linear

Growth is not linear. Where you are now is a stepping stone for where you’re going next. You might be feeling like you’ve had to take some steps back, but listen, I’ve had to take a lot of steps back sometimes. 

There were months where I was making $15k+ months and then I had to take some steps back, and I went down to $6k months because I had to make some changes in my business model and in myself. 

Just even thinking about my 20’s like this should show you that success is not linear, and growth is not linear. 

I actually graduated with a Bachelor’s in Biology from a private school. I thought I was going to be a doctor or a physician’s assistant, but when I graduated, I realized I didn’t want to do this. 

I ended up getting a job at MAC Cosmetics. I was a makeup artist there, and had also started freelancing. I started a YouTube channel as well and realized I actually don’t like doing makeup on people. It’s fun, but I actually like sales. 

I realized from that job that I loved sales, and then got a second job at Chick-fil-A as a Training Director and learned there that I actually enjoyed teaching people things and coming up with a process for that. 

Long story short, I ended up joining a makeup network marketing company, and that was my first entry into the world of online entrepreneurship, (at least where I was making money LOL), because even though I was online making YouTube videos, it wasn’t the same. 

I actually started making money with the network marketing company, and then from there, I joined a couple of other network marketing companies and then ended up meeting someone in another network marketing company who was also a marketing coach. 

That was really intriguing to me. So, I ended up taking a course with her and another gal to teach me how to do attraction marketing with network marketing.

At that moment, I knew that one day I wanted to be a coach. 

It was a couple of years later that I actually ended up joining a mastermind with one of those girls. I hit the top 1% of the network marketing company I was in, and then started a coaching business for network marketers. It changed my life because I ended up having a $13k launch.

I started with coaching network marketers and realized I wanted to help

people build coaching businesses. And then from there, that is when I had my really big breakthrough with the Holy Spirit. 

I started slowly incorporating faith into my brand, and my message, and then ultimately created my signature program Faith-Fueled Coach Academy (purchase for 30% off right now until 6/30/2023 by using the code 30OFF).

Recently He has been leading me to open up my messaging to more than coaches. So here we are now with the Collective (use code 50OFF to get your first month 50% off by 6/30/2023) and we’ve got a really big vision coming to life now, which is just so cool.

I’m sharing all this with you to show you that even though you may not have every single step planned out, you will look back one day and you will realize every step played a role in the next step. 

If I wouldn’t have taken that next step, I wouldn’t be here because they all led me here. The Lord is just so good and how He works, but we have to listen and take action on the promptings He puts on our spirit. 

Lesson #7: Singleness is a Gift, Just Like Marriage is a Gift

I have been single going on nine years now. And the thing is, when you are single, you hear people saying all the time that God’s timing is perfect and to focus on yourself and focus on God. 

And then He’s going to come around. 

But listen, this sounds like marriage is actually meant to be a reward while singleness is a punishment. And that’s not true.

Singleness is not a punishment. It’s a gift. I really had to learn and heal from this

thought that it is a punishment, because it’s not. It’s actually a really beautiful gift. It’s a blessing and a miracle all by itself. 

Lesson #8: Everyone’s Actions Are Based on Their Own Individual Perception of the World 

People’s perception of the world is determined by how they were raised, their experiences, their traumas, and their relationships. 

People’s perception of the world goes hand in hand with their attachment style. Now, if you have not listened to episode 70 of this podcast, I really want to direct you

to that episode after this one. It is titled Attachment Styles in Business and How it Relates to Your Security in Christ. 

We had an amazing guest come on. She is my friend, my mentor, my client. Her name is Rachelle McKinnon. And she just went so in-depth on these attachment styles and just how it relates to business and life and everything in between. 

I definitely suggest going to listen to that episode if you have not yet because it’s all about people’s worldviews, their perception of the world, attachment styles, your own attachment style, and how we approach business and life and different instances. 

Lesson #9: Most People Don’t Know What They’re Doing. Most People are Just Trying to Figure it Out Every Step of the Way. Just Like You.

It’s as simple as that. So, stop holding yourself back. 

Seriously… Most people do not know what they’re doing. They do not know what the next 10 steps are. 

They are just figuring it out every single step of the way. So, please stop using the excuse that you don’t know what you’re doing and go and figure it out. 

Lesson #10: Your Life Probably Won’t Look the Way You Think It Should

And if it does, you might find yourself unhappy unless you look to Jesus. 

A decade ago, I really thought I would be living the “American dream” right now. I thought I was going to be a doctor or a physician’s assistant. I thought I was going to be married. I thought I was going to have kids. I thought I was going to have the house and the white picket fence. 

I don’t have any of that. 

My life looks entirely different than I thought it was going to look a decade ago. I am single. I don’t have kids. I don’t have a house with a white picket fence. I’m not a doctor. I actually have my own online business, which is wild to me and was not even on my radar.

Your life is probably not going to look the way you think it should 10 years from now. And you know what? That is okay. It is okay because it is so much better than you think it’s supposed to be because this is the Lord’s plan for you. 

There is a reason you are here right now. And it’s to get you to that next step. So keep your eyes on Jesus every single step of the way, because He is going to show you what you need to learn, how you need to grow, and what you need to do.

Lesson #11: Being Content and Grateful with Where You Are Doesn’t Mean You Can’t Take Strides Toward Your Next Season

My friend, mentor, and client, Rachelle, the one who I mentioned earlier, who was a guest on episode 70 of the show, actually posted a picture a while back on her Instagram and made a post dedicated to this. 

That picture shows you both autumn and winter at the same time. This just shows that every season has a purpose, but just because you are in one season doesn’t mean you can’t be going to the next season. 

You can still be enjoying the season that you were in and still be preparing for the next one. 

Lesson #12: There is No Competition in the Kingdom

Seriously, stop comparing yourself. We are all here for a purpose. And even if our callings or business ideas look similar, they’re still going to be different

because each of us is different. 

Even if someone copies you, there is no way it’s going to be the same experience for their consumers or their audience, just because they are a different human being with an entirely different personality with an entirely different worldview. 

Things are going to be different, so stop comparing yourself to others. Stop competing.

It does not matter if the market is saturated. It does not matter if someone’s already doing what you were doing, because we are all a part of the body of Christ and every single part of the body has a specific purpose, even if it’s similar. 

Lesson #13: Making Money, Even Large Sums of Money, Is Not Sinful

First and foremost, 1 Timothy 6:10 says, “For the love of money is the root of all evil.”

The love of money. It’s not saying money. It’s saying the love of money is the root

of all evil, but I want to go a little bit deeper into this with you as well. 

What I’m about to share with you, I also heard from a Bible teacher named Derek Prince. He is phenomenal, but I want to share with you something I learned from him that was very pivotal for me. 

We’re actually going to go to Matthew 6:24 in the Bible. And the King James version says, “No man can serve two masters for either he will hate the one and love the other or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”

Now newer translations will say you cannot serve both God and money, but the King James version says you cannot serve both God and mammon. 

But what is mammon? 

The meaning of the word mammon is actually a lot more than money. And I’ve learned that mammon is an evil power that essentially grips us and can enslave people through money. 

It’s not actually money itself. It’s a spiritual power that works through people and their attitudes toward money. So, if we look at 1 Timothy 6:10 again, it says, “For the love of money is the root of all evil.”

Doesn’t that remind you of mammon because mammon wants to control you with money?

But then Matthew 6:24 says you cannot serve both God and mammon. You have to love one and hate the other. Well, here’s the thing. Yes, you have to love one and truly despise the other, but it’s not despising money. It’s despising the satanic force. It’s despising the evil spirit because there’s no neutrality.

You have to either serve God or Satan. So we’re not going to love this evil spirit that wants us to stray from God that would lead us to idolize money. 

That’s the difference. 

This was an incredibly powerful and eye-opening shift for me. 

There is a lot more to share in terms of money and abundance when it comes to the Bible and being a Christian entrepreneur. But I just wanted to give you that little nugget because it was huge for me.

Lesson #14: You Don’t Have to Have Everything Figured Out to Take the Next Step

A lot of the time we will actually have that next step, but we don’t take it because we’re overthinking it. We’re doubting it. 

Stop doing that. 

You actually have the next step. 

You take the next step and then action creates clarity. 

Lesson #15: Treat the Word Like it’s Medicine Because It Is

It is literally your medicine. 

I have actually heard of a few different Bible teachers treating the word like literal medicine, where they take it three times a day. They take it at breakfast, at lunch, and at dinner, meaning they are reading the word at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And then miracles happen. They actually start healing. They are delivered. 

It’s so beautiful that the Word holds so much power.

But something that is also really important to note as you are doing this is that you may not have a major breakthrough every single time you read the Bible. 

This was a really big lesson for me all by itself because I have always wanted to have this huge revelation every single time I opened my Bible, but that just wasn’t the case. 

This always felt really disappointing to me, but I had a revelation when I went to a conference and there was a speaker at this conference and she mentioned that reading the Bible is basically like you are planting a seed in a woman’s womb. 

Hear me out on this.

Essentially, when a baby is implanted in a woman’s womb, it takes nine months to actually grow and birth a baby. And reading the Bible and getting to know the Lord can be like this. 

Sometimes when you read, it’s just planting a seed and you’re learning and you’re growing. And then one day you’re going to have this huge revelation because you gave birth to a baby. So, just remember every single time when you go and read the Word, you are incubating a seed, but the longer you go without reading the Word and the longer you go without incubation, the more likely it is that seed is going to die.

So, you have to incubate and you have to take care of the seed so it can birth something so incredibly beautiful.

Next Steps

If you loved this blog post and you know you are being called to CEO by God, and you want to make sure you’re getting the support you need, you’re being held accountable to live out the call He’s placed on your heart, AND you want to do it fueled by your faith and not by your flesh…

Then I want to invite you to just join us inside of the Called to CEO Collective.

The Called to CEO Collective is a community-driven membership for faith-based business owners, creators, dreamers, and leaders who know it’s time to take bold and obedient action on their God-given callings and ultimately steward their roles as Faith-Fueled CEOs.

I have absolutely no doubt it is what you’ve been praying for!

Why?! Because I’ve been praying for something like this for an awfully long time. 

This membership has been totally designed by the Holy Spirit to help you cultivate a deeper relationship with the Lord. We will also go deeper on topics and faith, life, and business that you learn about because honestly, it’s time to say goodbye to overconsumption and say hello to implementation.

And it is also time to work from a place of overflow from the Holy Spirit versus overwhelm and stress. And it’s also time to finally overcome these spiritual battles against the enemy that has been keeping you stuck in your life. 

Basically, it is a faith-based, community-driven membership where we go deeper on topics in faith, life, and business.

And the thing is, I have known for a really long time that business owners, creators, and leaders really need a place to process and share what they’re going through in their life and business in a safe space to receive feedback, support, and accountability… 

All without the high ticket price point.

The Lord has just pressed this on my heart for a really long time and I know you’re probably wondering…

Is there any coaching involved? 

Absolutely, there is coaching involved. 

Not only will you be with other like-minded individuals, but you’ll have an experienced and Certified Life Coach and Faith-Fueled Business Mentor at your fingertips (that’s me, btw lol)… You will have a group of other talented individuals there to support you too!

And yes, we are going to go deeper on topics together, but I’m also here to help you grow your business or whatever God-given call you have right now. You can get coached by posting inside the community or on our live coaching calls happening twice a month. 

That said, if you want to learn all the nitty gritty details or go ahead and join us at the current rate, you can do so by heading to www.hannahbrindley.com/membership