Why Saying Yes Before You Feel Ready Matters

September 15, 2026

There are moments in business that make you stop and realise just how far you’ve come.

Recently, I had one of those moments.

Actually, I had a few of them all at once.

I found myself stepping well outside my comfort zone, speaking on a panel alongside some incredible business owners, being named a finalist in two awards — The Three Freedoms and Small Advisory Firm of the Year — and then, to top it all off, taking home the award for Small Advisory Firm of the Year.

It was a pretty special experience.

But strangely, when I look back on it, the award isn’t the only part I’m proud of.

Doing Something That Scared Me. Speaking on a panel isn’t something that comes naturally to me.

Put me in front of a business owner and ask me to talk numbers, strategy, challenges or opportunities, and I’m in my element.

Put me on a stage with a microphone? That pushes me a little further outside my comfort zone!

But I said yes.

I had the opportunity to sit alongside some brilliant business owners and have an open, honest conversation about business, the successes, the challenges, the lessons we’ve learned and the things that don’t always make it into the highlight reel.

And once I was up there, something changed. I stopped thinking about being nervous and started thinking about the value of sharing our experiences. Because sometimes someone else needs to hear the lesson you learned the hard way.

Sometimes they need to know they’re not the only person who has questioned themselves, made mistakes, changed direction or had moments where running a business felt really hard.

That’s the power of business owners sharing openly with other business owners.

Then Came the Awards. Being named a finalist in The Three Freedoms was an incredible honour.

Being named a finalist for Small Advisory Firm of the Year alongside it made the moment even more special.

And then we won.

Small Advisory Firm of the Year.

I’m not sure there are many words that completely capture that feeling.

There’s the excitement, of course. There’s pride. There’s gratitude.

But there’s also reflection. Because when someone announces your name and hands you an award, they see that moment.

What they don’t see are all the moments that came before it.

The risks.
The late nights.
The decisions that kept you awake.
The things that didn’t work.
The ideas you backed when you weren’t completely sure how they would turn out.
The times you questioned yourself.
The times you had to change direction.
And all the times you simply kept showing up.

Success Rarely Happens Inside Your Comfort Zone. That’s probably my biggest takeaway from the whole experience.

We spend so much time waiting to feel ready.

Ready to start the business.
Ready to grow.
Ready to hire.
Ready to change something.
Ready to put ourselves forward.
Ready to stand up and speak.

But I’m not convinced “ready” ever really arrives.

Sometimes you have to say yes first and figure out the confidence part afterwards. That panel reminded me of that.

And winning Small Advisory Firm of the Year reinforced it.

Growth has come from making decisions before I had every answer, backing myself when it would have been easier not to, and continuing to build a business based on what I believe business owners genuinely need.

More Than an Award. Of course, I’m incredibly proud and stoked to have won. But for me, the award represents something bigger.

It represents the journey.
It represents the people who have trusted us.
It represents every conversation we’ve had with a business owner who wanted more clarity, more confidence and more control over their numbers and their future.
And it represents a reminder to myself:

Keep saying yes to the things that make you uncomfortable.