Jalen Brunson for the Win: What Women Entrepreneurs Over 40 Can Learn About Consistency and Confidence
I Have a Confession
Until recently, I had never heard of Jalen Brunson.
Then one basketball game sent me down a YouTube rabbit hole that completely changed how I think about entrepreneurship.
The more I learned about him, the more I realized his story isn’t just about basketball. It’s about discipline. It’s about consistency. It’s about believing in yourself when other people underestimate you.
And that’s exactly what so many women entrepreneurs over 40 experience every single day.
People question our ideas.
Sometimes they question our abilities.
And if we’re honest, sometimes we question ourselves.
So the question becomes:
How Do You Keep Moving Toward Your Goal When People Doubt You or When You Start Doubting Yourself?
The answer is simple.
You stay focused on the goal, trust the work, and let consistency speak louder than opinions.
The noise around you will always exist, but your future depends on what you do every day, not on what someone else says you cannot do.
Why This Matters
As women business owners over 40, many of us have heard the comments.
“Maybe it’s too late.”
“The market is too crowded.”
“You should just play it safe.”
But sometimes the loudest criticism doesn’t come from other people.
It comes from the voice inside our own heads.
That voice whispers:
What if I fail?
What if no one buys?
What if I’m not qualified enough?
What if everyone else is better than me?
Here’s the truth.
Every minute you spend entertaining doubt is a minute you could have spent building your dream.
Your competition is not the business across town.
Your competition is inconsistency.
Research on habit formation found that building automatic behaviors takes an average of about 66 days, although the timeline varies from person to person. The lesson is simple. Success is built through repeated action over time, not overnight breakthroughs.
Win Your Game
Block Out the Noise
Everyone has an opinion about your business.
One person says your prices are too high.
Another says your idea is too risky.
Someone else says the market is already saturated.
If you listen to every opinion, you’ll spend your energy changing directions instead of moving forward.
Focus requires boundaries.
Not every voice deserves a seat at your decision-making table.
The people sitting in the stands don’t determine the outcome of the game.
The players on the court do.
Stay on the court.
Practice When No One Is Watching
Many people believe successful entrepreneurs wake up motivated every day.
They don’t.
Successful people show up anyway.
They write the post.
They make the phone call.
They improve the product.
They serve the customer.
They keep learning.
I’ve learned that some of the biggest opportunities in business didn’t come because I felt confident.
They came because I kept showing up long after the excitement faded.
Confidence often comes after action, not before it.
Waiting until you feel fearless is like waiting for perfect weather before planting a garden.
You’ll miss the season.
Study Your Playbook
Social media has created the illusion that success happens overnight.
We see the celebration but rarely the sacrifice.
We see the highlight reel but not the years of practice.
We see the victory but not the setbacks.
Stop comparing your Chapter 3 to someone else’s Chapter 20.
Your journey belongs to you.
Your timeline belongs to you.
Your responsibility is not to outrun everyone else.
Your responsibility is to keep moving forward.
Trust the Scoreboard
Imagine two women starting similar businesses.
The first spends months worrying about what everyone thinks. She changes her strategy every week because she’s trying to please everyone.
The second woman chooses one goal and works toward it every day. She learns from mistakes, makes adjustments, and refuses to quit.
After one year, who is more likely to succeed?
It probably isn’t the woman with the better idea.
It’s the woman with the better consistency.
Businesses are not built in giant leaps.
They’re built one decision at a time.
One customer at a time.
One lesson at a time.
One day at a time.
The Final Buzzer
People will always have something to say.
Some will doubt your ability.
Some will question your vision.
Some will never understand your purpose.
None of those opinions pay your bills.
None of those opinions build your legacy.
Jalen Brunson didn’t wait for everyone to validate his gifts.
He put in the work.
He stayed focused.
He let his performance do the talking.
There’s a lesson in that for every woman entrepreneur over 40.
Keep your eyes on your goal.
Stay consistent when motivation fades.
Block out the noise.
Then let your results speak for themselves.
Because the greatest response to doubt is not an argument.
It’s success.
Your Challenge
Today, write down one business goal that matters most to you.
Then identify one action you can complete before the day ends that moves you closer to it.
Ignore the opinions.
Skip the excuses.
Do it again tomorrow.
And the next day.
Small, consistent actions create the results that eventually silence every doubt.
Don’t Forget the Basics in Business: The Day I Couldn’t Lift the Water Bottle
What Happens When Technology Fails and We Forget the Fundamentals?
Direct Answer
When we rely too heavily on technology, systems, or convenience, we can slowly lose touch with the basic skills that helped us solve problems in the first place. In business, forgetting the fundamentals can leave us stuck when our usual tools are unavailable.
This past weekend, I learned exactly why we should never forget the basics in business, and I learned it the hard way.
My Morning Coffee Crisis
For more than 20 years, I have used the same hot-and-cold water dispenser to make my morning tea and coffee. It has become such a normal part of my routine that I never think about it.
But this weekend was different.
Because of a back injury, I couldn’t lift the replacement water bottle onto the dispenser. No bottle meant no hot water.
I spent most of the day frustrated.
I was irritated because I couldn’t have my morning instant coffee.
Then, sometime later, a simple thought hit me.
“Why don’t I just boil water in a pot?”
Then another thought.
“I still have my old tea kettle.”
And another.
“I also have an electric kettle sitting on the counter that I haven’t used in over a year.”
The solution had been there all along.
I had simply forgotten the basics because technology had made me dependent on a newer, more convenient way of doing things.
That realization led me to a bigger question.
What Have We Forgotten Because Technology Made It Easier?
Technology is amazing.
It saves time, increases efficiency, and helps us scale our businesses faster than ever before.
But every innovation creates a tradeoff.
Sometimes convenience causes us to stop practicing foundational skills.
Here are a few things many of us have forgotten because technology took over:
Navigation Without GPS
Many people no longer know how to read and navigate with a paper map, plan a route, use a legend, or calculate distance because GPS provides turn-by-turn directions.
Memorizing Important Phone Numbers
Most of us can instantly contact hundreds of people, but struggle to recall even a few important phone numbers because our contacts and cloud storage remember them for us.
Mental Math
Calculating discounts, tips, taxes, and estimates used to be a normal skill. Today, calculators and checkout systems often do the thinking for us.
Writing in Cursive
Many adults rarely write by hand anymore. Text messages, keyboards, and digital forms have replaced everyday handwriting.
Research Without Google
Before search engines, research involved libraries, indexes, encyclopedias, and sometimes hours of digging through information.
Being Comfortable With Waiting
There was a time when standing in line meant observing, reflecting, or simply thinking. Now, most of the waiting time is spent scrolling.
Basic Troubleshooting and Repairs
Instead of fixing small problems ourselves, we often replace devices or immediately search for outside help.
Remembering Important Dates
Calendar apps and reminders have become our external memory system.
Writing a Letter
Addressing envelopes, buying stamps, and mailing letters were once common life skills.
Operating Older Technology
Many people would struggle to set up a VCR, tune an antenna, or navigate older electronics because modern devices automate those processes.
What Does This Have to Do With Business?
Everything.
The same thing happens inside our businesses.
As entrepreneurs, we invest in software, automation, AI tools, marketing platforms, and systems designed to save time.
Those tools are valuable.
But sometimes we become so focused on the latest innovation that we neglect the fundamentals that actually drive success.
Example #1: Marketing
Many business owners spend hours learning the newest social media strategy while forgetting the basics:
Understanding their customer
Building relationships
Solving real problems
Following up consistently
No algorithm can replace those fundamentals.
Example #2: Sales
Some entrepreneurs buy expensive CRM systems but stop having meaningful conversations with prospects.
The software can organize the process.
It cannot build trust.
Example #3: Leadership
Business owners often search for complex productivity systems while overlooking simple habits like communication, accountability, and consistency.
Those basics still matter.
They always will.
Why This Matters More Than Ever
Recent studies show Americans check their phones hundreds of times per day. In fact, the latest data from Reviews.org reveals that while the average has shifted to 186 daily checks, self-reported phone addiction is actually rising. Our dependence on technology continues to grow, making it easier than ever to outsource thinking, memory, and problem-solving to our devices.
The challenge is not technology itself.
The challenge is becoming so dependent on technology that we forget how to function without it.
The strongest businesses are not built on tools.
They are built on principles.
Tools change.
Principles endure.
The Business Question Every Entrepreneur Should Ask
If your favorite software disappeared tomorrow…
If social media vanished next week…
If AI tools became unavailable for a month…
Would you still know how to attract customers, build relationships, solve problems, and create value?
If the answer is yes, you’re building your business on a strong foundation.
If the answer is no, it may be time to revisit the basics.
Key Takeaway
Innovation should enhance our skills, not replace them.
My coffee crisis reminded me that the solution was sitting in my kitchen the entire time.
I had simply stopped seeing it because I had become accustomed to a more convenient option.
The same thing can happen in business.
Sometimes the answer to our biggest challenge is not a new tool, platform, or strategy. Sometimes it’s a forgotten fundamental that has been there all along. The basics may not be flashy. But they still work.
This week, choose one area of your business and ask yourself: “Have I become dependent on a tool, platform, or system to do something I once knew how to do myself?” Then spend 30 minutes rebuilding that foundational skill. The strongest businesses are not built on convenience. They are built on capabilities that still work when the technology doesn’t.
