“It’s not the desire to amass a great fortune that drives me, because I have more than I ever wanted. But I think it would be foolish of me to leave this business having five children to provide for. I must go all the way for them” (St. Zélie Martin).

Turning Hard Lessons Into Compassionate Business Growth

Have you ever found yourself investing in courses and programs that didn’t quite pan out the way you hoped? Maybe you even started questioning yourself—wondering if it was somehow your fault?

Let’s take a step back and look at this experience together. When things weren’t working, how were you treated? When you felt overwhelmed, discouraged, or like you didn’t quite fit the mold of the program, what kind of support did you receive?

Did the environment foster compassion, or did it leave you feeling isolated or ashamed? Were all emotions allowed, or was there an unspoken expectation to “just stop feeling that way”? Were you encouraged to show up authentically, or did you feel pressure to put on a brave face and pretend you had it all together?

These are important questions, because the way you’re treated when you’re struggling, or things aren’t working, says a lot about the spaces you’re in. Unfortunately, many business growth programs focus solely on action steps, ignoring the real human experience.

The “Just Push Through” Mantra 

You’ve probably heard advice like:

• Just put yourself out there, and you’ll eventually get over your fear of selling.

• Rejection will feel easier once you build thicker skin.

• Stop this scarcity mindset. You need to adopt an abundance mindset.

• Take massive action, and the results will come.

But what happens when those strategies don’t work for you? What happens when certain tactics feel deeply uncomfortable, like they’re misaligned with your values or boundaries? What happens when you’ve tried everything, and the results still don’t come?

Entrepreneurship is hard. And if you’ve been treated with indifference or made to feel like the failure was yours to bear, that’s not OK.

It’s not the way Jesus would approach this situation with you, and it’s not an effective way to help someone build a thriving, sustainable business.

It’s Time for a More Compassionate Approach

Here’s a bold statement: Anyone who claims to help you grow your business or build wealth ought to be equipped to help you navigate the emotional and psychological challenges that come with it. It’s not enough to hand you a step-by-step plan and expect you to suppress your feelings or ignore the deeper issues you’re facing.

You deserve a holistic approach that honors you as a whole person. That means helping you to address the layers of belief and emotion around topics like money, worth, and selling—not blaming you for their existence.

Let’s Talk About Money Stress and the Hidden Stories Around Money

Money stress is a common thread in many of our lives, yet it often comes wrapped in layers of shame and silence. The result? An invisible weight we carry, making an already challenging issue feel even heavier.

But what if we could unshame our “stuff” around money? What if we could approach our financial worries and money blocks with the same compassion that Jesus offers us in all of our struggles? Or with the heartfelt understanding we might offer a dear friend?

Even if you’ve done a lot of work on money already, there are likely still layers to unpack. The process isn’t about just swapping negative thoughts for positive ones. It’s about honoring your journey and addressing those deeper layers with compassion and care, as they come.

Here are just a few common money beliefs that might sound familiar:

• Money is the root of all evil.

• Carrying debt is wrong or shameful.

• I’m not good at managing money.

• Selling feels like taking from others.

• Making money takes me away from my family.

• Everyone else seems to have it figured out.

• There’s never enough.

These beliefs aren’t your fault, and they’re not yours to “fix.” They have been handed down through family, religion, and cultural narratives. And let’s be honest, this “money stuff” isn’t just surface-level—it’s tied to emotions, self-worth, and survival.

Rather than being expected to resolve these beliefs on your own, you deserve guidance, support, and an approach that integrates emotional healing with practical strategies.

Practical Tips and Examples:

1. Instead of pushing through resistance or pressuring others to …

… you can encourage them to pause and listen with curiosity and compassion. The resistance is not there to be a nuisance but to be heard. Listen and learn.

2. Instead of jumping immediately to fixing, solving, or telling someone what they’re doing wrong and how to change it ASAP …

… you can witness and “un-shame” the experience, affirming their goodness and intentions.

3. Instead of immediately judging the beliefs and narratives you or your client hold about money …

… you can wonder where they came from and how they might have served or protected you or your client in the past.

4. Instead of pushing down the “negative,” uncomfortable feelings …

… you can lean in and identify how and where you notice the sensation in your body, consider the feelings as information, and wonder what your body is communicating to you.

5. Instead of showing discomfort when someone cries …

… you can offer connection and comfort, or simply offer to be present with them, without having to fix or solve anything:

• “I see you in these emotions. They are valid. You are not alone. I am with you.” 

• “I am here for you, and I can listen if it would feel good to talk about it.”

• “Can I support you by sitting with you or by giving you space?”

• “Would it be helpful to name any of these emotions?”

6. Instead of shoving down or holding back your tears …

… you can release and let them flow. Trust your body to know what it needs, and nurture safety in being present with the hard. Through the tears comes the healing.

7. Instead of immediately labeling thoughts as a scarcity mindset and swapping them with ultra-positive, abundant ones …

… you can consider bridging toward that other end of the spectrum by trying ladder phrases such as, “I am open to, I’m working on, I’m practicing becoming, I’m learning how to, I want to believe that”:

• I am open to observing this.

• I am open to questioning this.

• I am open to gently retraining my nervous system.

• I am open to shifts in my habitual thinking.

• I am open to a new way of thinking and feeling about my money and having money.

• I am open to making more intentional choices and co-creating with God.

• I am open to a new way of approaching this.

• I am open to changing this.

8. Instead of asking yourself or others to just get over fear …

… you can validate this self-protective survival instinct and hold space for yourself/them to explore what the worst case scenario might look like and how you/they could respond, to objectively ask and answer the question, and let the power of fear and judgment dissolve.

9. Instead of responding right away when you feel triggered by or pressured, or urgency around, something …

… you can give yourself permission to pause, feel the feelings first, and invite the Lord to be with you in the messiness to open space for more peaceful discernment and response.

10. Instead of pushing through overwhelm by just “doing the thing” with massive action or brute force …

… you can ask what the next tiny step might be, what support you might need in taking it, and checking in with loving accountability—then allowing it to build momentum to make the intimidating things feel less scary over time.

Honoring Your Journey

You’ve come a long way. You’ve navigated challenges, invested in yourself and your business, and continued to show up even when things felt hard. We honor you for stepping into it and leaning into the discomfort and messiness. It’s worth celebrating! Now, as you move forward, remember that success isn’t about pushing through discomfort at all costs. It’s about creating a path that allows you to thrive as your whole self.

You deserve to be in spaces where you’re treated with Christ-like compassion and understanding—where you’re seen as a human being, not just another number in the crowd. Let’s rewrite the narrative together and create a world where business growth is sustainable and honors the full human experience.

Anna Saucier is a Holistic Leadership and Sustainable Business Consultant, and Emotional Health and Mindset Coach trained through Metanoia Catholic, and a Certified Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT/tapping) Practitioner. She's trained in trauma-informed coaching practices and nervous system regulation, and works with passionate change-agents who want to use their gifts for good and be a force for holistic health and healing by leading themselves first -- through compassionate inner growth and ethical and trauma-aware business and leadership. She is an adventurer and minimalist and lives semi-nomadically with her husband and two fiercely independent children.

Megan Gephart is an Operational Strategist, Mindset Coach trained through Metanoia Catholic, certified Pre- and Postnatal fitness coach, and a recently transitioned Army veteran passionate about holistic women’s wellness and leading institutional and cultural change. She is a soon-to-be certified Director of Operations by the Ops Authority and loves supporting clients to gain clarity and direction through comprehensive strategic planning, elevating their operations and marketing efforts. Megan is a wife and mother of 3 energetic boys, and is the host of a top 2% globally-ranked Podcast called Armed to the Heart.

Anna and Megan recently co-founded Apostolic Fruit, which provides Christ-centered, integrative Coaching and Consulting for leaders, teams, and organizations who desire to grow and scale their impact through regenerative, sustainable operational strategy and people-first approaches. Connect with them: Instagram • Facebook •YouTube