money power vs. people power

knowing which one you’re building right now

every business runs on two kinds of power — money power and people power. you need both, but usually one takes the lead while the other follows.

money power feels like freedom. it’s when the revenue is steady, the bills are paid on time, and you’ve built something that can sustain itself without constant panic. it’s not always explosive growth — sometimes it’s a steady climb, sometimes a comfortable plateau — but either way, it’s working. it’s proof that what you’ve built has value in the world, and that’s not nothing.

people power, though, is different. it’s messier. it’s the early stage where everything depends on relationships — clients, partners, team members, mentors — and where every new connection matters more than the numbers on the spreadsheet. it’s about developing talent, learning to delegate, and realizing that your business has officially outgrown what you alone can manage.

and that realization? it’s thrilling and terrifying all at once.

because building people power means spending money you’re not used to spending. it means handing off responsibilities that have felt like extensions of yourself and trusting someone else to carry them — even while that little voice in your head insists they won’t do it right. and by “right,” of course, you mean the way you do it. not better or worse, just different. sometimes less efficient, sometimes more. but that’s part of the lesson — learning to release control without losing your standards.

but here’s what i’ve learned — they’re both just different seasons of the same business. the people-power phase comes first, when your relationships, your vision, and your reputation are the foundation. you’re planting the seeds. you’re testing, learning, adjusting. it’s chaotic, but it’s also where the real magic happens. then, if you keep at it, money power takes shape. the systems start working. the growth becomes consistent. you can breathe a little. but even then, it’s temporary. because the second you get comfortable, the next phase of people power shows up again — a new hire, a new market, a new evolution of what your business needs from you.

the trick is not to confuse one for the other.

if you’re in a people-power season, it’s not failure because your profit margins are thin. it’s investment. it’s the part where you’re building infrastructure that can handle success. and if you’re in a money-power season, it’s not selfish to protect your time, your profit, and your energy. that’s stewardship — making sure the foundation you’ve built can actually last. the smartest business owners i know understand how to move between the two without guilt. they know when it’s time to pour into people and when it’s time to stabilize the finances. they know that both are necessary, and both are temporary.

and this is why having a scalable business model makes so much sense to me. scalability lets you move more fluidly between these two phases — almost naturally. it gives your business room to breathe when you’re in a people-power season and the flexibility to expand when you’re ready to step back into money power. it’s not about “growth at all costs.” it’s about designing something that can stretch without breaking, something that can evolve with you instead of against you.

if you’re somewhere in that in-between — too far along to do it all yourself, but not quite sure how to build what’s next — that’s exactly where my coaching work comes in. i help women build businesses that work with them, not against them. you don’t have to scale alone. and you don’t have to choose between people power and money power — we’ll build both.