Episode 69 : Better Boundaries, Stronger Business

In this Episode Libby Knight, Business Mentor and mBIT Mindset coach, dives into one of the most important and overlooked foundations of sustainable success: boundaries.

After working with ambitious business owners, driven entrepreneurs, and passionate leaders for over a decade, one pattern continues to show up again and again. When your boundaries slip, everything else feels harder. Your plans get derailed. Your nervous system burns out. You feel resentful, overwhelmed, or stuck. And your business, no matter how much you love it, begins to feel like something you’re chasing rather than something you’re leading.

This episode explores why boundaries are essential, not restrictive. Libby reframes them as the structure that protects your vision, energy, emotional wellbeing and future. Without effective boundaries, something or someone else will set the rules for your time and attention.

You’ll hear the real reasons so many women in business struggle with boundaries, the emotional consequences of avoiding them, and the identity shift required to hold them with confidence. You’ll explore how boundaries shape your behaviour, your results, and your sense of leadership, and why reviewing them regularly is a form of self-respect.

Through practical examples and mindset shifts, Libby breaks down what boundaries make possible: better decisions, reduced overwhelm, more consistent progress, a regulated nervous system, and a business that grows in alignment with you rather than at the expense of you.

If you’re ready to step into a calmer, more confident, more intentional version of yourself as a business owner — this conversation will show you what’s likely been getting in your way, and how to finally change it.

About Your Host Libby Knight:

Hi, it's lovely to meet you.
I'm Libby, business strategy mentor and mindset coach.
I help ambitious and creative entrepreneurs to grow their service based businesses with confidence, in an environment where they can be seen and heard and feel safe.  My goal is to empower you to create a business on your terms so that you have the tools, skills and knowledge you need to build and grow your business in a way that makes you truly happy.
I teach both effective mindset techniques and business strategy that together empower you to overcome the hurdles and limiting beliefs that are holding you back.

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Transcript

Welcome back to the Productivity for Profit podcast.
Today, we’re diving into a topic that has come up again and again this year — with my one-to-one clients, in my membership, and very strongly at my retreat. And that recurring theme is Boundaries.

 My clients are all ambitious and passionate, doing incredible work, but when they lack effective boundaries it stops them from, dare I say it – fulfilling their potential. It’s held them back from stepping into the next version of themselves and developing their business to where they really want it to be. So, a conversation about boundaries is one that has to be had and I’m going to share a list of reasons why today.

At the time of recording we’re at the end of the year, which is the perfect time to review your boundaries, but if you haven’t done a boundary review lately, then any time is the perfect time.

Because boundaries aren’t fixed. They evolve as you evolve.  So we should be reviewing boundaries regularly to make sure that we not only have helpful boundaries in place but that they’re still working and that we’re sticking to them!

Today we’re going to talk about:

• Why boundaries are so essential
• What they protect
• How poor boundaries show up
• The identity upgrade required to hold strong boundaries
• Practical ways to set and maintain them
• And understanding why boundaries are your responsibility — not something you can outsource to anyone else

So let’s get into it by asking Why do Boundaries Matter So Much?

Most business owners learn  the answer to this question the hard way:
 When you don’t set boundaries, someone else will set them for you.

Your inbox will set your boundaries.
 Your clients will set your boundaries.
 Your family will set your boundaries.
 Urgency will set your boundaries.
 And the consequence of allowing this to happen is that you will spend your day being reactive instead of staying proactive.  And the emotional toll! We’ll get into that don’t worry.

At this point I just want to address a limiting belief that I know some people have, whether you’re in a corporate role or have your own business, and it’s this, boundaries are not restrictions.

 They’re not walls you put up or rigid rules that make your life smaller.

Boundaries are the structure that protect your time, protect your energy, protect your vision, protect your nervous system, and protect your future. When you realise that, boundaries become non-negotiable.

So what do boundaries allow you to do?  The list is vast, but here are 12.  And if you can’t find enough reasons in this list to set better boundaries, then you’re going to suffer.  Boundaries are not selfish. As you’ll see, they are vital. Here goes.

1.        Boundaries prevent your schedule from being dictated by external influences

2.        They reduce stress, reduce feelings of being overwhelmed by life and reduce the fatigue you can feel from making never ending decisions

3.        Boundaries support you in sticking to your plan

4.        With boundaries in place you can maintain flexibility without losing direction (yes boundaries and flexibilities do work in harmony) 

5.        Boundaries mean saying yes to what serves your goals

6.        And empower you to say no to what derails your goals

7.        Boundaries help you to avoid unnecessary complexity in your business, and as they say, complexity kills conversion.

8.        Boundaries can be used to ringfence your time for what actually moves the needle or what matters most to you

9.        Boundaries prevent you from feeling like you need to over-deliver or pander to needy clients or demanding colleagues or people-please to your detriment. In fact boundaries result in attracting a higher calibre of client because you repel those that don’t take responsibility for their own success.

10.   Boundaries will stop you from slipping into perfectionism and other old patterns of self-sabotage

11.   And very importantly, boundaries serve you greatly in making sure you don’t reach burnout

12.   Boundaries protect your nervous system and help you to maintain a better set point, they’ll help maintain balance or support you to recover from a state of stress

And the result of setting boundaries is ultimately that you’re going to feel calm and in control of your business and your life.

So you can see that when people come to me with feelings of frustration and resentment, being exhausted, or are fed up with the lack of progress in their business, more often than not, there is a boundary issue.  It’s one of the crucial and foundational missing pieces.

Think of your life a bit like a garden.
It’s full of things you’re growing, ideas, relationships, your health, clients, creativity, goals.

Now imagine that this garden has nothing protecting it. There’s no fence, or boundary.
Nothing separating it from the public footpath that runs by it.

So people just wander in whenever they want. They pick the flowers. They trample the new emerging seedlings you’ve so carefully planted. They take your tools. They leave their mess behind. They disrupt your weeding and nurturing.
They don’t mean harm, all they see is an open space.  Nothing tells them they can’t just wander in and treat it however they feel.

If this garden is like your business, and your time, and your focus, it’s no wonder you feel frustrated, resentful, unappreciated, even disrespected.
But the thing is, you haven’t put a gate up. You’ve left it wide open.

You didn’t set boundaries.
It’s your responsibility to determine who comes into your world, when, and for what purpose. 

You decide what you will focus on. You decide what you will no longer allow.

When you don’t put a boundary around you and your business, and other people wander into your space and hijack your resources,  you feel invaded.
 Instead you can choose to empower yourself by placing boundaries around whatever needs your protection.

No one else has the responsibility to be your gatekeeper.  Expecting them to know when you haven’t shown them?  That’s not fair, on you or them.  It’s your responsibility to close the gate and put up the sign.

You can’t resent people for walking into a garden that has no boundaries.
 But you can decide that changes, and start putting new boundaries in place, today.

Because if you don’t there will be consequences.

Some common signs that your boundaries need reviewing and upgrading that you may recognise, and these are based on real patterns I’ve seen with my clients:

• Your schedule gets hijacked by emails, dms or other people’s urgent needs
• You people-please or feel guilty saying no, especially at work and with family
• You work late evenings and weekends because you tell yourself you didn’t get enough done earlier
• You agree to things you really don’t want to do
• You do free work for friends
• You over-deliver constantly or give away too much free content and advice
• You feel resentful but keep saying yes
• You feel put upon or unappreciated
• You’re constantly in a reactive state
• You struggle to protect time for your own priorities and wellbeing – I always advise scheduling ME TIME before anything else because otherwise it just won’t happen.
• You feel overwhelmed from feelings of busyness
• Your nervous system never gets a break and you’re in a constant heightened starte of anxiety , worry or stress

If you’re still telling yourself that boundaries are a luxury or you don’t have time to set boundaries, hopefully by now you can see the toll this is having on you.  Boundaries aren't just practical, they are deeply emotional.
And they even affect the identity you hold as a business owner.

Who do you need to become to hold boundaries, or do the boundaries help you to step into that new self and business leader identity? So which came first, the chicken or the egg?  

Do strong boundaries come from a strong identity or does a strong identity  come from strong boundaries.  I think they go hand in hand.  

To be someone who sets and maintains boundaries, you need to cultivate traits like:

Confidence. Self-respect. Clarity of vision. Emotional intelligence. Calm. decision-making. A regulated nervous system. Self-trust. Discipline. Detachment from other people’s reactions. Leadership.

Most people struggle with boundaries not because they don’t know how to set them — but because they haven’t yet become the person who believes they are allowed to have them. So yes boundaries require identity work.  But action is a fantastic teacher.

And when you do upgrade your identity, boundaries become easier, natural, and non-negotiable.

So let’s get into the how.  How do you start to set helpful and supportive boundaries?

As always, we start with the end in mind.  You need to know what it is that your boundaries will protect. Start with your plan.

Reflect on your vision. What do you really want?
That brings clarity on what really matters. What you want to prioritise. What makes a difference and maintains momentum so that you can reach your goals or be the best owner, partner, friend or parent you can be.
Your plan is your north star, all roads lead there and your boundaries protect your journey.

Let your plan be your guide let it guide your decisions.

If something doesn’t serve the plan, it’s a no.
If it does, it’s a yes.

It’s not that complicated.

Make sure you review your plan daily. Why? Because This keeps you proactive instead of constantly reactive.

You’re going to want to define your non-negotiables.

This includes:

• What you always do because it serves you
• What you never do because it’s a distraction
• What you always charge because it’s a fair energetic exchange for the results you offer (remember, money is energy like anything else)
• What you no longer tolerate because it’s damaging to your priorities
• How you respond to requests in a way that preserves the integrity of your business and your life
• What must be in place for you to say yes

A few simple and practical boundaries you can put in place to protect your time.

• Set designate times to look at your email inbox (e.g., half an hour before you break for lunch and & 3pm)
• Don’t look at emails first thing because if someone has asked you to look at something it can be very hard to put it to one side, the instinct is to deal with it there and then, and then what’s happened to your plan?  You’ve allowed someone else to override it.
• Limit social media scrolling or clicking on links on websites.  Know what you’re there for and stay on track.  These sites are designed to distract you, don’t give them that power!
• Use timers to get tasks done, put a sign on your door to let people know you’re working or an out of office on your emails to protect your precious and essential down time.

Another important one, that can be the most challenging, is communicating boundaries with your family.

Put away the guilt and just explain what you need.  They will probably want to support you and this is one way they can do that. It also sets expectations.  They don’t know the line between Mum time and business time if you don’t communicate that it’s important to you to have time to work on your business.  You can agree on signals — like the door being closed.  Clarity makes things so much simpler for everyone.

Boundaries make space for what’s really important.

On your deathbed you’re not going to worry about whether you answered an email the minute it came in or mopped the mud off the kitchen floor.  What you will remember is the quality time, the relationships, how you cared for your precious body, the good times.  These are the things that need time and planning but that we often neglect.  So put them first, not as an afterthought, when you have to squeeze them in between the other stuff.  Reconnect with what truly matters.

Leading on from that, create space. Because space is where the magic often happens.  So what are you going to let go of to make the space for new ideas, new experiences, the aha’s, the special moments.  
When your time is overly scheduled and rigid there’s no time for exploration and change.  New ideas can’t come in.  There’s less choice to say yes to new opportunitues.  And you have confined yourself to just one possible future.  What could you miss out on?  Space requires boundaries to preserve it, because if you don’t protect it, someone else will come in and occupy it for you, dictating what that precious time is used for.

Another skill to cultivate that sets productive boundaries is setting expectations with your clients from day one.  Because clarity prevents confusion and even conflict later down the line.  When everyone knows where they stand, they know what they’re agreeing to and that makes for smoother sailing.

And lastly, get comfortable with saying no, or not yet, kindly of course.

Saying no in the right context is kinder than overcommitting and becoming resentful or having to let people down.

Ultimately, the consequences of not having proactive, well considered boundaries are unpleasant and numerous:

 burn out, resentment, feeling out of control, over-delivering to your detriment, attracting the wrong clients, losing momentum, procrastination, overthinking and indecision, overwhelm, guilt, never feeling “caught up”   making sacrifices,  losing your mojo or even falling out of love with your business

It’s a high cost.  One that you don’t have to make and can avoid with a few well thought out boundaries.

Because when you have the right strong boundaries for you: You feel grounded, You’re proactive, instead of constantly reactive, You make better decisions, You hold your standards to your values not other peoples, You attract better clients, You move towards your goals faster and easier, You feel proud of how you lead yourself, You create space for the vision, You actually enjoy your business, You make consistent progress, You have a better regulated your nervous system.  You take your power back and stand in that power every day.

This is the transformation I’ve witnessed in clients who have chosen to redefine their boundaries.  They’ve taken that responsibility and no longer relinquish it to outside forces.  Tey feel in control, not controlled.  And the knock on effects are life changing.

They go from feeling overwhelmed, pulled in every direction…
 to feeling calm, strategic and in control because their boundaries are now a match for the identity of the person they’re becoming.

Boundaries aren’t meant to confine you — they’re meant to set you free from all the things that have been holding you back and distracting you from realising your goals.

Boundaries create space to execute the plan for the life and business you actually want.

Start with the vision and design your boundaries that support you as you make it a reality.

So as you move into a new year, I invite you to reflect on two things:

1. What do you want your life and business to look like?
2. What boundaries would make that possible?

Because the truth is:
The business you want will require a new level of boundaries.
And that starts with stepping up and being who you need to be and doing what you need to do.

And of course you don’t need to do it alone, I’m here to support you every step of the way as you build your business and evolve as the owner or leader you know you are destined to be.

Thank you for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode.