Author: Henry Murphy

I was on my phone editing a blog the other day, and I caught myself doing what I always do, screenshotting.

And I don’t mean just one or two. I’m talking 20 screenshots, easy, just to get through a single blog post.

If you’ve been following me for a while, then you already know, 

In 2021, the optometrist declared me legally blind due to a specific eye condition.

The day I got the diagnosis, it honestly didn’t bother me that much.

Don’t ask me why.

But some days after that?

It hit hard.

Real hard.

It takes time to mentally recover and get back in the creative flow when life hands you something that heavy.

The glasses I wear don’t really correct my vision.

But they allow me to zoom in 10x with my left eye, just enough to help me edit, write, and create on my phone.

If I’m honest, sometimes it’s discouraging.

But every morning, I remind myself that God has given me the grace to keep going.

It’s the same kind of discipline I talked about in my last blog:

“Dangerously Disciplined: Why the Best Growth Happens Underground.”

That kind of quiet, personal focus is what gets me up in the morning.

I get up and read, well, you know, that’s Audible for me with the eye condition and all.

Whatever stirs me up, I write about it.

I don’t believe inspiration should be wasted.

If it’s a good thought, I’m going to write it down.

Talk about it on social media.

Share it in a blog.

Because there’s so much foolishness out there, and if we’ve got something positive to add to the world, we should.

Okay, I’m rambling a little now, but I’m just realizing:

I literally live by a screenshot.

And still, I’m thankful.

Thankful I get to do anything that encourages someone else.

I don’t know what your ailment is.

I don’t know what you’re battling today.

But I hope this blog finds you in the middle of it, and reminds you that you’re still called.

Still created for something.

I write these blogs in faith.

I write to encourage someone, maybe you, to push forward, even when it’s hard.

To do the thing God created you to do.

To become everything He designed you to be.

We will never be perfect.

That’s not the goal.

The goal is consistent effort.

The goal is to bear fruit.

I don’t know exactly what Paul’s ailment was, but it’s clear he was dealing with something.

And yet, he kept pressing.

He became everything God called him to be.

My ailment is my eyes.

I live by a screenshot.

But by the grace of God, I will do everything He’s called me to do.

God Bless The Entrepreneur®️

When I say dangerously disciplined, I don’t mean that in a bad way, I mean it in the best way possible.

See, I wasn’t always disciplined. For a large part of my life, I lacked structure. But now that I’ve found discipline in certain areas, I finally see what I’ve been missing.

I’m sitting here looking at the trees and how beautiful they are. But when you start to look down, you see the roots. That’s where the discipline happens.

Underground.

Unseen.

Unapplauded.

Discipline shows up when nobody’s watching. It doesn’t need an audience or a pat on the back.

It’s just you and the work. You and the vision. You and the routine.

And anything that tries to pull you out of that rhythm?

You recognize it instantly.

I recently had a conversation about a new opportunity. It looked good. It sounded exciting.

But once I slept on it, I knew, it wasn’t for me.

Not in this season.

Why?

Because it would’ve derailed everything I’ve been building.

All the discipline.

All the focus.

All the momentum.

It’s crazy how distractions often show up right before the breakthrough, right before the fruit starts to appear. You’ve got to be disciplined enough to say no. Even to the good things.

“Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid.”

— Proverbs 12:1 (ESV)

If you’re just starting out and you’re not quite there yet, I want to encourage you:

Start anyway.

Discipline can be lonely. You might miss out on some things.

But as long as you know your why, stay focused on your what.

If you’ve been disciplined for a while but haven’t seen fruit yet, keep going.

It’s coming.

And if you’re in the season where discipline has produced fruit, encourage someone else.

Remind them that it’s worth it.

That the quiet grind leads to public harvest.

Because this journey of entrepreneurship can be tough.

And we all need a little encouragement.

God Bless The Entrepreneur®️

I ran across a reel today, actually, my wife sent it to me, and it hit me hard.

It was talking about how there are some things in life we just don’t get to choose.

When we’re younger, we don’t get to choose what family we’re born into.

We don’t get to choose what our parents teach us.

We don’t get to choose the trauma, the dysfunction, or the brokenness we might have grown up under.

And here’s the hard truth:

If we came from a family that struggled with mental illness, we had to sit under that.

It became part of us, whether we liked it or not.

If our father was abusive, that shapes us.

If our mother was married three or four times, or if both parents were alcoholics, we witnessed that.

We experienced it.

And yes, it becomes a part of our story.

But here’s the other side of that truth.

As we get older, we get to choose.

We have the power to change direction.

We have the power to renew our minds.

We have the power to break cycles.

You can’t undo what’s been done, but you can change where you’re headed.

You are not the pain or dysfunction you came from.

But you can push through it, grow through it, and come out better, stronger, bolder, and more courageous.

And when you do, when you make that shift, 

you don’t just win for yourself…

You become the choice for someone else.

You become the light.

The model.

The one who shows up and shows what’s possible.

You get to serve from that place.

You get to give what you never got.

And that’s powerful.

God Bless The Entrepreneur®️

It won’t be polished.

It won’t have bells and whistles.

It’s probably going to look generic, you know, like that off-brand product sitting next to the name brand everybody knows.

I was nudging one of my clients the other day, encouraging her to get comfortable with just getting started.

She sent me this super polished video that she loved, beautiful visuals, crisp edits, music on point. And yeah, it was dope.

But I reminded her:

That creator has probably been doing this for years.

She’s just getting started.

Her first 30 videos?

They most likely won’t look anything like that one.

And that’s okay.

Because what’s unpolished now will be polished later.

You’ll learn.

You’ll grow.

You’ll find your rhythm.

You’ll figure out faster ways to film.

You’ll get better at editing.

You’ll master close-ups and pullbacks.

You’ll learn to tell stories better.

But all of that comes after the start.

You can’t shortcut the process.

This is just a reminder to fall in love with the journey of entrepreneurship, and everything that comes with it.

Because even though she’s unpolished on social media right now, there are many areas in all of our journeys where we show up unpolished at first.

But that’s the point.

It’s not about perfection.

It’s about progress.

It’s about the journey.

God Bless The Entrepreneur®️

Let me take you back to 2013.

I can’t even remember the name of the platform I was using when I first got started, Big Something. Not even worth mentioning. OK, maybe I’m being a little harsh, because it did help me get going. But if I’m being honest, it was missing way too many data points, and I needed more than just a checkout page and a dream. I needed data.

I don’t quite remember how I stumbled across Shopify, but the moment I did , game changer.

Immediately, it showed me things I didn’t even know I needed. One of my favorite features to this day is the heat map. Listen, we used to send out text messages to our entire list, and depending on how large the list was, it didn’t take long to hit everyone. And when it did? You’d see dots popping up across the map in real time.

Man, that was a feeling.

I remember seeing New York, Cleveland, Tennessee, Florida, Houston, and it hit me. Those were all stops on my past tour. It was confirmation that people were still tapped in. Still watching. Still rocking with the brand.

Now imagine pairing that kind of real-time excitement with AI.

Here’s how AI helps you turn Shopify data into direction:

1. Customer Behavior Insights

With Shopify apps and AI add-ons, you can analyze how customers interact with your site:
• What are they clicking?
• What products are sitting in carts but not getting purchased?
• Where are they falling off?

This lets you adjust layouts, product descriptions, or even pricing strategies based on real behavior, not just vibes.

2. Personalized Marketing & Timing

AI tools can figure out when your customers are most active and help you:
• Send email campaigns at the right time
• Trigger automations based on behavior (like win-backs or post-purchase flows)
• Offer dynamic discounts or upsells based on a customer’s journey

3. Smart Content Creation

You still write the story, but AI helps you say it better. Whether it’s remixing your top-performing content, drafting new product descriptions, or helping you organize your blog topics, it’s all you. AI just helps polish and speed up the process.

4. Sales & Inventory Forecasting

One of the things I wish I had early on , the ability to predict. What’s going to sell? What needs to be restocked? AI tools help track those trends so you’re not wasting money over-ordering or losing money from selling out too fast.

5. Split Testing and Optimization

Let AI help test subject lines, thumbnails, images, descriptions, and tell you which ones are working and why. That means you can stop guessing and start scaling.

Here’s the point:

AI won’t replace your instincts, it enhances them.
Let the data speak, then let AI help you move on it. Execution over assumption, every time.

Use the platforms. Don’t let them use you.
AI is a tool, a powerful one, and if you’re building a business, you can’t afford to leave that kind of help on the table.

God Bless The Entrepreneur®️

My wife woke up early,which is kinda unusual for her. But her perspective had shifted.

She was getting serious about her schedule.

She said, “OK babe, I’m heading out to Starbucks.”

I was like, “Hello? You trying to leave me?”

She said, “I thought you had a lunch date.”

I reminded her, “Yeah, but I told him to pick me up from Starbucks. That’s why I asked you for the address.”

We laughed, sorted it out, and ended up spending most of the day there together.

And honestly, we kinda love this Starbucks.

It’s across the street from Chick-fil-A, down the road from Target and Publix, and just around the corner from a few other places we like.

It’s the perfect little work zone.

She started working on a project she’s trying to launch soon.

I sat down with my Blonde Americanos (yes, plural) and started dreaming big about some things I’m building for The Ground Up Academy.

Probably had too much caffeine, but man, I was in the zone.

Meanwhile, she’s sipping on her peach green tea (I always forget the name of it, so she has to text it to me, every time. Lol).

But here’s why I’m writing this blog,.

Something powerful happens when discipline finally clicks.

You know you need structure, but sometimes you don’t know how to put it into motion.

For my wife, it just clicked one day:

“I need to start going to bed earlier, so I can wake up earlier.”

That might not sound like much, but for years, she used to say she wasn’t a morning person.

And I believed her.

She’s the nicest person in the world,  except in the morning. 😂

But it turns out, she just needed more sleep.

So when she changed her bedtime, it changed everything.

Sometimes the breakthrough isn’t something big.

Sometimes it’s just a tiny tweak that shifts everything.

We know the goal. We might even know the objectives.

But often, we overlook the smallest barrier standing in our way.

We were so locked in that day, so focused on doing what God told us to do, that time slipped away.

And then the barista came around and said:

“Last call.”

We looked at each other and laughed, because that had never happened to us before.

Get locked in on your vision.

Eliminate distractions.

Make the small adjustments.

And do the work God has assigned to you.

God Bless The Entrepreneur®️

When I first started in business, I had one business account.

That was it.

No structure. No strategy. Just vibes.

And honestly, I wish someone would’ve sat me down when I walked into Chase.

I wish the person who opened my account was knowledgeable, or at least gave me a little nudge.

But they didn’t. And I didn’t know what I didn’t know.

So I spent a long time trying to figure it all out.

Money was coming in and going out, but I had no real system. I couldn’t track profit. I couldn’t budget. I couldn’t grow with peace of mind.

That’s why I’m sharing this with you now.

Because if you can get this part right early, it’ll save you stress, confusion, and even regret down the line.

Start with Structure

If you’re serious about building something real, you can’t treat your business like a hustle.

That starts with how you handle your money.

So when it’s time to open your business bank accounts, don’t just wing it.

Set it up right the first time.

Here are the 5 essential accounts I recommend for every entrepreneur:

1. Incoming Deposits

This is your “home base.”

Every client payment, sale, or transfer comes here first. Don’t mix this with anything else.

2. Operating Expenses

This is where your rent, payroll, software, and monthly bills get paid from.

It keeps your spending in one place so you always know what’s going out.

3. Tax Account

Uncle Sam doesn’t miss.

Take your taxes off top and drop them in here as you go.

A good rule of thumb is to set aside 15% of every dollar that comes in.

That way, when tax season hits, you’re ready, and not scrambling.

4. Profit First Account

This one changed the game for me.

It’s how you make sure you pay yourself, and do it consistently.

 Want to go deeper? Read “Profit First” by Mike Michalowicz. That book reshaped how I think about money in business.

5. Ad Spend Account

Marketing can get out of hand real quick.

Having a separate ad account gives you control, you know exactly how much you’re fueling your growth with.

If I could do it all over again, I’d start with this exact structure.

Even if you mess up, at least you’ll mess up inside of a system, one that helps you learn and course-correct faster.

It’s not about being perfect.

It’s about being prepared.

Give yourself a fighting chance to:

• Stay within budget

• Avoid overspending

• Know what’s going where

• And grow with clarity

Structure protects your peace.

Get this part right, and everything else gets easier.

God Bless The Entrepreneur®️

Funny story, well, at least to me.

Imagine a guy sitting at a bus stop with a 17-inch wheel and rim still attached, flat tire and all. Right next to the bus stop, you see his car jacked up. Now, you have to consider a few things here:

Maybe he didn’t have AAA.

Maybe he didn’t have the money to call a tow truck.

But he did have the money to hop on the bus, take the tire to a place like Firestone, get it fixed, and catch the bus back.

That’s a prime example of someone doing what they gotta do.

It ain’t pretty, but it’s progress.

I talk to my clients all the time about this, especially those thinking about scaling their e-commerce brands, but they haven’t even handled the basics like a trademark yet.

And I gotta tell them:

Back it up. Back it up. Back it up.

You can’t skip the foundation.

You say you don’t have the full amount to get the trademark filed?

Fine. But where’s the fund?

Are you putting aside $10? $25? $50?

Because listen,  we all tend to spend money carelessly sometimes.

• That trip to Chick-fil-A three times a week? Easy $80.

• That spontaneous Target run? Easy $100.

And most of the time, we don’t even need those things.

We just want them.

So before you tell yourself you can’t afford to make a move, ask yourself:

Are your priorities in order?

Are you really doing what you gotta do?

Because doing what you gotta do sometimes means choosing the bus over the Uber.

Choosing discipline over convenience.

Choosing legacy over lifestyle, for now.

You don’t need it to be perfect.

You just need to start moving in the right direction.

God Bless The Entrepreneur®️

As an entrepreneur, you should get comfortable with the word maratho, because that’s what this journey is: a marathon race. But it’s not a race built on speed; it’s built on persistence.

Every now and then, when we’re building our skill set and aiming toward a clear goal, it’s easy to get fixated on one thing. But as entrepreneurs, we can’t think like that. We can’t afford to.

Yes, we need to understand how things work in our business—but only enough to do our part until we can bring in someone better at that particular role. That’s where Who Not How by Dr. Benjamin Hardy and Dan Sullivan comes in. They remind us that the real question isn’t “How do I do this?, but “Who can do this better than me?”

It made me think of this one scene in Frasier. Man, I’m laughing just thinking about it. He was trying to learn how to ride a bike for the first time. When you’re learning a new skill, it’s easy to get fixated. Frasier got so locked in on a fire hydrant that he couldn’t even focus on the ride itself. All he had to do was concentrate and ride, but he couldn’t. He was distracted. He made it way harder than it needed to be. He finished the race hours later, long after everyone else had gone home.

And it’s the same thing in business.

Don’t get fixated on tasks.

If you’re currently in that social media phase, give yourself room to grow. Allow yourself grace. And when your business can afford it, bring in someone who can coach or handle that space. Someone who can give you the framework to improve and scale.

But don’t let your fixation on one area keep you from moving on to the next.

You might need to build your email marketing, but you’re so focused on perfecting Instagram posts that email never happens.

You may need to start running ads, but you’re still obsessing over reels.

You end up spending your energy trying to be perfect, and of course, perfection never comes.

I want to encourage you today:

Don’t get fixated.

Just keep going.

When you enter a new area, expect to be bad at it for a while. That’s part of the journey.

Do what you can, grow, and move forward.

That’s how you build momentum and finish your race.

God Bless The Entrepreneur®️

One of the women I’m mentoring said something recently that hit me in the gut, in a good way.

Right after our coaching session, I sent her a 60-day content plan tailored specifically for her brand, her voice, and her goals. It wasn’t just a one-size-fits-all strategy. It was built for her. She felt good about it, she really did. But then she sent me a message and said:

“I don’t know what I’m doing.”

But listen, it wasn’t the kind of “I don’t know what I’m doing” that leads to quitting. It wasn’t defeat. It was the opposite. It was a battle cry.

Here’s what had just happened:

1. She had just bought a high-quality tripod, because she knew she needed to start recording her workouts and nutrition videos.

2. She had invested in herself by paying for the coaching.

3. She realized that the example video I sent her wasn’t something I was going to edit for her. She’d have to do it herself.

She took all that in… and still said, “I don’t know what I’m doing, but I’m doing it anyway.”

That’s courage.

That’s what this journey requires.

She said, “I see it. I see that women need this. I want to show up for them, regardless.”

You see, when we come to the realization that we’re supposed to be doing something, but then keep making excuses not to start, eventually those excuses stop working.

“I don’t know what I’m doing” isn’t a reason to stop. It’s a reminder that you’re at the starting line.

Everybody starts there. Nobody shows up an expert.

You’ve got to move anyway. You’ve got to show up anyway.

That woman is going to change lives, not because she knew everything when she started, but because she started anyway.

And you?

You’ve got too much in you to let fear or uncertainty stop you.

God Bless The Entrepreneur®️