"Will and determination can take you far, if you don’t let fear get in the way" with Sarah Finch

Photo Credit: Jessica Kaplan Photography

Two decades ago, Sarah Finch shifted her experience as an actor into a career in learning and development by earning an MA in Educational Theatre at NYU and convincing a small communications training firm to hire her.  Since then, she has helped thousands of leaders through her training programs, leadership coaching, and keynote speaking in L&D roles with high-profile organizations like The Second City, Vista Equity Partners, and the YMCA.  Five years ago, she decided it was time to lead her work with her own voice and launched her solo business providing leadership and team development her way – with a unique mix of practical expertise, business acumen, and theatre-savvy. Her client list has since tripled and she is having the most fun of her long career.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

I was going to be an actor. That was my childhood dream. I went to Northwestern University with the sole purpose to be a theatre major and then act after graduation. I had some mild success in the local Chicago theatre scene but learned after a few years that I absolutely hated auditioning and the lack of control that most actors have over their careers. That was a tough realization and required a lot of souls searching for me in my mid-20s. At the time I was also working as an administrative assistant just to pay the bills. I ended up at Arthur Andersen shortly before it collapsed. In that very old-school, corporate environment I saw first-hand how my theatre training would be helpful for many of the consultants I worked with. Since I had to find a new path other than acting, I looked for a graduate school program that would help me transfer what I knew from theatre to a world of corporate training. That lead me to NYU and the rest is history. I have continued to develop my own expertise and skills through each job I have had in this career….a career path I never knew existed when I started working!

What inspired you to start your business?

Fortune and fate. My job with Vista ended unexpectedly and not on my terms, but with a healthy severance package so I had the luxury of some time to decide what I wanted to do. My husband had been encouraging me for years to go out on my own, and it seemed that the universe was giving me a chance to try. So I took it.

Where is your business based?

I’m based out of Chicago, Illinois, but I do a lot of my work virtually – even before the pandemic. Most of my clients are not local, and many are global. Over the last two years it has been particularly interesting to work with clients all across the US as well as in Europe, Australia, Asia, and South America through my Zoom screen.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

First, I researched what type of business I needed or wanted to be and the logistics of set up, taxes…the boring stuff. Ultimately, I decided to simply be a sole-proprietor, obtained an EIN and business bank account, and created business cards (which was my biggest waste of money since I never used them!). If I grow over time, I may move to an LLC model, but for now, this works for me.

The second thing I did was build a website. I was convinced that I couldn’t say I had a business without that. In retrospect, that probably slowed me down a bit as it took me several months to make the site look how I wanted it, but when it was done it was my launching tool. It also forced me to define what my business did. I definitely was aspirational in some of the services I listed, but it was all work I knew I could do if asked. I also solicited some testimonial quotes from a few of my past clients to help show some credibility right away.

When it was done, I shared it on LinkedIn, and direct messaged about 100 people in my LI network to let them know what I was doing. I increased my presence on LinkedIn and tried to post something at least once a week. I also was setting up informational conversations with people in my network and finding additional networks to tap into. I took advantage of some great networking Facebook groups I was already part of as a member of the National Speakers Association and learned a lot from talking with women who were already doing things similar to what I wanted to do. It took 6 months for me to land my first client through a referral from a former boss of mine.

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

The most effective thing for me was the network I built before I started my business. I didn’t know it as it was happening of course, so this is all hindsight, but the relationships I created and the good work I was doing apparently left a positive impression. At least 80% of my business has been direct hires from my network or referrals from them to new clients. I’ve tried to keep connected with those relationships as well, mostly through LinkedIn these days.

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

My belief in my ability to make this work was absolutely my biggest challenge. As an actor, I can take anyone’s message and make it my own. After so many years of incorporating the messaging and point of view of my employers, I wasn’t sure that I knew what to say on my own. I doubted that I really had anything someone would want to pay me just me to do without the name of a known organization attached to mine. A type of imposter syndrome, I suppose.

To help counter that thinking, I spent a lot of time writing thoughts and ideas down in a notebook so I could find words that were mine – not Second City’s, or Vista’s or the Y’s – but mine to offer up to my clients. With every client engagement, my confidence grew and that helped as well.

I also decided not to create a business name other than my own. That might change down the road, but it was important to me to establish that I am the one doing this work, that I am the business this time.

How do you stay focused?

In terms of my actual client work, the focus is never an issue. Whether I’m coaching a CEO, running a group training, delivering a keynote, or creating the content, I’m 100% in tune with that work. That’s the easy part! It is like being on stage for me; I’d do a lot of it for free because I love it. But I have two kids and we have bills to pay. My husband is successful in his job, but not to the point where I don’t have to work at all. I keep focused on the business side by regularly reviewing my accounting ledger and seeing if I’m on track. That process grounds me and motivates me so my business can continue to thrive. That part isn’t super inspirational, but it is reality.

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

My path has been unconventional compared to others in this industry. I’m not the only actor to move into this realm, but the organizations I’ve worked with during my career is absolutely unique. Who else has worked with an esteemed improv theatre, one of the most successful private equity firms today and one of the biggest non-profits in the country? Let alone that in each of those roles, my clients were external so I was working directly with just about every type of industry.

Second City gave me the opportunity to work with so many big business names like Deloitte, Kraft, Major League Baseball, Farmer’s Insurance, and so on; my client list from those 7 years is enviable. Vista had over 50 portfolio companies while I was with them and the YMCA was made up of over 800 local Y’s, each with their own culture. That breadth of experience with so many different types of organizations and leaders at all levels is hard to earn.

Combine all of that experience with my theatre skills that allow me to connect and engage my audiences and I stand out. There isn’t a single client that I’ve worked with who hasn’t commented on my bio and how interesting it is….my Second City experience alone usually gets me into a conversation. I was able to create my own path to my business today, and my story has helped me stand out and be successful.

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

Keep doing good work? Honestly, this is my weakest area as an entrepreneur. I’ve been spoiled to have so much referral business, that I’ve been able to grow with very little marketing effort. I need to change that, and it is in my plan for this year to really expand how I market so I can reach new clients.

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

Don’t let fear hold you back. If you have the desire to try to build a business, that is more than many people have to start with. Will and determination can take you far, if you don’t let fear get in the way.

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

The app is definitely my Peloton app, which I use with my budget-friendly non-Peloton bike. I don’t read a lot of blogs, though I’m starting one of my own this year. Two books come to mind – Talk to Me: Listening Between the Lines by Anna Deveare Smith was one I read over and over early in my career. Her style of communication, and ability to interview people in ways to really distill their inner thoughts just amazed me. Another is the book Switch by Chip and Dan Heath. I was first introduced to it at the YMCA when we used it to help with a massive culture shift, and I still reference it in my work today. The concepts are so easy for people to understand, yet often the things most forgotten when trying to drive change in a team or organization.

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

Calendly. I couldn’t possibly manage my calendar and scheduling with all my coaching appointment, client meetings, travel, training, etc. without it!

Who is your business role model? Why?

Brené Brown. She didn’t set out to be a famous author and speaker. That happened because she is passionate about the research and work she does, and people wanted more from her. Also, she has stayed true to herself throughout her growing success. I saw her speak once at a conference and she was even more genuine in person than I expected.

How do you balance work and life?

In a household with two working parents and two busy kids, it is a constant challenge. However, it is SO much easier to do now that I have my own business than it was when I worked for others. My kids and husband actually get more of me now than before. I can pick them up at school, have more control over when I travel, and generally be less stressed about work because I put my own pressure on myself vs managing someone else’s pressure. If I need most of a workday to take my daughter, who is a competitive figure skater, to a competition I can schedule my calendar accordingly 90% of the time. That flexibility is the key to my balance and starting my own business gave that to me.

What’s your favorite way to decompress?

Playing the piano. I have played since I was 5, and it is my version of meditation. When I play, I’m fully focused on the music and everything else goes away. I don’t do it nearly enough, but I always benefit when I do.

What do you have planned for the next six months?

To up my marketing game! I just revamped my website, and am recommitting to creating more presence on social media beyond LinkedIn including a new Twitter and Instagram account. I’m also developing some new on-demand tools and online programs. I’m thrilled with the growth of my business, but there is only one me and a finite amount of time I can offer, so I need to expand my services in a way that can help people even when I am not available to work with them directly.

How can our readers connect with you?

The quickest way to connect with me is via email at sfinch@sarahfinch.com or at my website www.sarahfinch.com

You can also find me on:
LinkedIn:   https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahfinchleadercoach/
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/sarahfinchleadercoach
Twitter:      https://twitter.com/SFLeaderCoach
Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/sarahfinchleadercoach/

"Don’t think too much, just do it" with Haiyan Dong

Photo Credit: Cheryl Lam

She grew up from a lower class in China. Her life was forever changed when she came to the United States with 85 dollars. She successfully built a company as an immigrant through constant self-learning, now she is starting another one. Life is a big adventure, she is always exploring more.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

I was born and grew up in Hubei, China. People always ask me, is it close to Beijing or Shanghai? It's in the middle of China, not close to any big cities. I was the first person that went to college in my whole family.  I came to the United States for school in 2012, because I received a full scholarship from the University of Oklahoma to be a graduate student at OU. I didn’t understand spoken English when I first arrived in Oklahoma, but I managed to become a teaching assistant and successfully graduated with a master degree in Chemistry.  I came to the United States with a half-full suitcase, and 100 dollar cash. After graduating from OU I saved up a couple thousand dollars from my scholarship.  Then I moved to California with my husband to start my own business.

What inspired you to start your business?

Growing up my parents had a small business. So I knew I would have my own business one day. Back in 2015, I couldn’t find a good job with my degree in California. My husband was working with a fragrance company back then and he said to me that I should start selling terpene flavors to vape companies online. So I learned to build a website by watching youtube videos and started the business right away. After the website was built, I started promoting it on forums, and someone said the wording on the website looks like a high schooler's writing. I felt really excited because someone thought my writing was as good as a high schooler. We started from our apartment, when people called us, I answered the phone call as  the customer service girl. If they were having a website issue, I would become the tech department, always switching hats. Over the years, we have grown into bigger commercial buildings, but I still enjoy wearing different hats. We’ve been wholesaling terpenes for 6 years. Last year we decided to launch a B2C brand called BOOM focusing on hemp derived products, drinks, tinctures, vapes, gummies etc. 

Where is your business based?

We are based in Orange County, California, our clients are all over the world. We have several different joint ventures and partnerships with other companies as well.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

I built a website and set up a business email and phone number. Filed paperwork to the state of California. These were the first steps. Everything is on google if you want to know how to start a business. 

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

Many people are aware of hemp products. What we do differently is that we try to bring people social and fun experiences with our boom products.

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

I had two biggest challenges in life. One was when I was 18 trying to pass the entrance exam for college in China. The competition was insanely high with over 10 million applicants in the same year. Our school started at 6:30 am, and finished at 10pm everyday. When I went home I had to study for another 2 hours. So I had less than 6 hours of sleep everyday in my senior year. We had Sunday mornings off. No holidays or weekends. In winter time, we didn’t have a heater, the room temperature would be about 30 degrees F, and my legs would be cold all day and all night. I knew I had to pass the exam otherwise I would stay in poverty and end up working at a clothing factory and making $300 every month for the rest of my life. So I passed the exam. What was driving me was simply desperation. It was the biggest stress I ever had in my life. I couldn’t eat anything and stopped my menstrual cycle. I weighed about 90 lbs (I’m 5’5’’), my mom would call me a walking skeleton. I still have night-mares of not getting into a good college up till today. 

Another challenge I had when I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018. I had surgery before I was diagnosed and recovered very quickly.  My doctors told me to take anti-cancer medicine for 5 years. I didn’t take the medicine because I didn’t want to compromise my quality of life. But I was living in fear of getting cancer again for a very long time. For about two years I would question myself about the meaning of work and life. It was painful because that was the first time I felt death was close to me and I wasn't as capable as I wanted to be. In the end, having breast cancer actually helped me to adapt to a healthier lifestyle and pushed me towards more inner exploration. I still have a 30% chance of getting breast cancer again. But I think I will deal with it when that happens. 

Looking back, I think the fastest growth comes from pain. And pain gives depth to our lives. 

How do you stay focused?

I’ve always been very focused when it comes to work. I made my career goal for my 40s and 50s when I was 25. I think the reason I am focused is because I enjoy complicated experiences, like building a company and self growing. I enjoy getting out of my comfort zone to feel alive.  I think a human can achieve anything with willpower and knowledge. When it comes to life, I am very spontaneous. If I want to go somewhere I can just start driving immediately. Can’t fly easily these days because of Covid, lol. 

I don’t have kids yet, so that helps me to stay focused. Lol.  I learnt time management from a management book by Peter Drucker a few years ago. It is very simple, you write down what you did in a day and how much time you spent on these activities. Then you optimize your time spent on different activities. Time management is a great tool to keep yourself organized and focused. 

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

Better product, better pricing and excellent customer service. We have a 100% customer retention rate. We only hire intelligent people. We have high standards with our products and business operations.  We also have a very diverse company culture, making us inclusive and balanced. 

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

Word of mouth. We have good products, people love our products so they give us good reviews and refer other people. We believe good products should market themselves. 

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

Don’t think too much, just do it. If there are things to be done, do it, if you don’t know how to do it, learn. If you believe you can then you can. At some point you will break yourself into pieces and question yourself in pain, but you will always put these pieces together and then become a stronger person. 

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

My favorite book so far is Sapiens by Yuval Harari. It combines knowledge from history, science, philosophy, religions  and is described in a very unconventional way. It is politically and emotionally neutral, so it can sound a little cynical to some readers, but I really enjoyed it. 

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

Google. I google everything. I started my business by googling how to make a website,  then I googled how to hire, how to build a team, how to build a brand etc. 

Who is your business role model? Why?

Elon Musk, When I have problems at work, I always say: if Elon Musk can send rockets to Mars, why can’t we fix this small issue. 

How do you balance work and life?

Don’t separate them. I used to try to separate them, if I get an email on Saturday, I force myself to reply on Monday, but I realized it doesn’t work for me because I would think about it on Sunday and keep reminding myself to reply on Monday. So now I just respond immediately to simple emails whenever I see them. Work hard and play hard, so they can be balanced. 

What’s your favorite way to decompress?

Sleep and eat. I sleep 9 hours everyday. I’m a big foodie, food makes me happy. I also drink boom, our CBD and delta-8 drinks, they are great for relaxing our body and mind. My coworkers enjoy delta-8 vapes to decompress, but I only like edibles and I don’t vape. 

What do you have planned for the next six months?

Grow Boom into a multi-million revenue brand. 

How can our readers connect with you?

https://www.linkedin.com/in/haiyan-d-0bab5318a

"Ask for advice" with Siran Cao

Photo Credit: Siran Cao

Siran Cao is the CEO & Co-Founder of Mirza, a femtech meets fintech company on a mission to close the gender pay gap. Siran graduated with a degree in Gender Studies from Harvard and had expected to go into academia, but somehow stumbled into tech. She built the driver support organization for Uber in New York and oversaw the support business for the US Northeast, before moving to London for a degree in Social Business & Entrepreneurship at the London School of Economics. With Mirza, Siran's gone full circle and looks forward to bringing together her passions: women’s empowerment, structural change, and building a company of the future.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

I’m an immigrant and raised by a single mom. My mom was one of the women whose career took a back seat when I arrived, with the confluence of factors from childcare to gender norms at play. My dad left my mom and me when we moved to the States, so I grew up watching my mom rebuild in a new country. I believe that care and family are central to the future of work. Caregiving has always been central to paid work—our economy is built off the backs of women’s unpaid caregiving work, and today’s workplace and care ecosystem still hasn’t changed to acknowledge the realities of women’s participation in the paid workforce.

My experience growing up with an incredible, driven, caring mom while facing the difficult financial realities for so many women, led me to study Gender Studies at Harvard. I had wanted to go into policy or academia and thought it would be a path to making structural change, but I wound up in tech. The bulk of my career before Mirza was at Uber, where I built and scaled the driver support team for Uber in New York. Uber shaped my belief in the power of technology to transform our society.

What inspired you to start your business?

My co-founder, Mel, and I started Mirza as a reaction to digging into the gender wage gap—it was one of those scribbling on napkins moments, but as we explored our fury on why caregiving and career crash, leaving women as the safety net. But as we’ve dug in more, Mirza is a synthesis of so many shared experiences, the moment we can all think of when we realized having it all is simply a myth. We're driven to change how our social and work structures force trade-offs between the personal aspirations, careers, goals, the things that shape the work self and our roles as caregivers, the selves we cherish with families.

Where is your business based?

Mirza is based in London, but as two Americans who just happened to meet here, we’re looking at the US market as our key focus.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

One of our key hypotheses was that we tend to think of our personal and professional lives on separate tracks, but those tracks crash when care responsibilities emerge—it most readily comes when we start families. We started mapping out the points at the intersection of personal and professional and dug in more on that care thread. With that, we had conversations, sought advice from people we respected; having both just finished our master’s, it was predominantly with our former business and entrepreneurship professors. We read—a lot. We read academic studies on the gender wage gap, the motherhood penalty, books on the subject like Opting Out, Invisible Women, and research into what's been tried in the past. With each piece of research and learning, we honed in on what we thought about as a solution. We thought about what to build, and how to test our understanding of the problem, and those potential aspects of the solution.

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

Networks are the single most effective strategy, in my mind. Through the London School of Economics network, we met collaborators, our amazing PR team, and pitched Mirza from the Centre Stage at Web Summit. And through the Famtech network, we met partners, advisors, and supporters who helped elevate our work. 

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them? 

My biggest personal challenge is focusing on what we need to do today to bring Mirza's vision to life. It’s so easy for me to look at the vision for the future, feel complete confidence in our ability to bring it to fruition, that I can run full force at something too early. I’d say it’s less that I have overcome that and more so that I have the best possible co-founder who’s grounded in what we need to do in the near term to achieve that long-term vision.

How do you stay focused?

Well, given my prior answer, honestly, Mel keeps us focused! Personally, it helps me to break down the key targets into the things I need to accomplish each week, and I schedule them. If it’s on my calendar, I’ll do it. And having a finite block of time means that I’m sprinting against the clock to fit it all in.

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

We’re focused on building innovations in the care sector, taking a very structural approach. One of the biggest differentiators is that we're building a solution based on understanding structural forces at play and not relying on the existing understanding of how things work or how things are done. We think about how care is paid for and what care work is paid for, and who should pay for care from a first-principles perspective.  

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

Just for visibility, working with mission-aligned influencers has been amazing. Overall, partnerships have been the best way for us to grow.

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

It’s very meta! Ask for advice. Reach out to the folks you admire, the people with experience you wish to learn from, and share with them why you care and why you’re passionate. Then ask for their perspective.

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why? 

My favorite app is Audible. I listen to so many audiobooks. I find it easiest to think when I’m walking, and I process information well as I move, especially in green spaces.

My favorite blog is Jezebel. It played such a key role in bringing about a mainstream feminist resurgence. I have some issues with how mainstream feminist language has been co-opted into products and a focus on the self, obscuring the movement’s aim for structural change, but that’s a whole other topic.

And please read Anne-Marie Slaughter’s latest book, Unfinished Business! It so perfectly encapsulates why we need to change how we value care and caregiving work.  

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

Excel. It’s just so powerful. Businesses have to be powered by data.

Who is your business role model? Why?

I have two: Sheila Marcelo, who founded Care.com, and Tony Hsieh, founder of Zappos. Sheila built a business on care to address a problem she felt and understood, and she was light years ahead of the market in addressing employers’ responsibilities for care. I’ve always been inspired by Tony’s approach to leadership and culture, how he created a workplace that made everyone feel seen and at home, that he’d take customer calls on Christmas Day to spend that time with his team and show where company priorities lie.  

How do you balance work and life? 

Question of the moment! I don’t believe in work-life balance because balance means things are at an equilibrium. And as a founder, I think we have a work-life integration and dance–at times, we index more on work, and then we have an easing-off period when things are a little lighter. I make sure we know when we have full-on sprints, and then after the sprint, the team gets to walk and recover.

What’s your favorite way to decompress?

For me, decompressing from the day means some form of exercise every day, probably playing around with kettlebells. You can get into a flow state, and it’s so much fun. I also love going for a walk in the park every morning, so I can let my brain run. 

What do you have planned for the next six months?

We’ve got some exciting partnerships lined up! And some great panels and campaigns too. In February, we’re hosting a conversation to help spur some Valentine’s Day gift ideas. It's about sharing the mental load. What could be a better gift, right? We’re doing a campaign for working dads soon too, stay tuned! And finally, we’re working with some incredible companies to launch our care solution, so that’s a pretty big chunk of the year.

How can our readers connect with you?

Our website is heymirza.com, and we’re on all the socials @MirzaSaysHey! LinkedIn is the easiest to find me, and you can also find me @heysiran on Twitter.

https://www.heymirza.com/

https://www.instagram.com/mirzasayshey/?hl=en

https://twitter.com/mirzasayshey

https://www.facebook.com/mirzasayshey/photos/?ref=page_internal

https://www.tiktok.com/@mirzasayshey

https://twitter.com/heysiran

https://www.linkedin.com/in/siran-cao/?originalSubdomain=uk

"Living Overseas Led to Her Career" with Robin Blackburn

Photo Credit: Robin Blackburn

Robin Blackburn is a content and social media marketer living in Tomball, Texas – but that’s not what she’s always done. After living overseas for five years, she decided that she wanted to pursue a career in writing copy and creating content. After returning to the U.S. – she made it happen. Now she does it with a focus on creating connections, opening conversations, and building communities.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

My first job out of college was as a French teacher. And I did this for almost 10 years when I realized it was just not something I could see myself doing for the rest of my life. I took some other jobs after that (everything from a technology instructor to teaching spin classes) – and still hadn’t found what I really wanted to do. During the time of various jobs, I had children (two boys) and then my husband’s job took us overseas for five years (to Malaysia and Poland).

What inspired you to start your business?

Living overseas was the kick in the ass I needed to figure out what I wanted to do.

I started a blog while we were overseas to fill my time and keep friends and family back home up-to-date on what we were doing. It included are travels, of course, but also just day-to-day life living in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Warsaw, Poland. It became my outlet for sharing the good, the bad, and the ugly about being an ex-pat.

When I got to Poland, I found a part-time job helping an international company with their written content – proofreading, writing copy, etc. They taught me a TON – and I loved it! It was all remote work, and the team was great it really gave me the itch to want to write for other people.

I continued working for them for about 18 months and then we returned back to the United States. At this point in time, I needed to make a decision. Would I go back to work in a traditional manner or would I try to make it as a copywriter/content creator? In my heart, I knew exactly what I wanted to do. I wanted to continue to write copy and create content – and I decided to make it happen.

Where is your business based?

I currently work from my home office in Tomball, Texas – but I spend my summers in Upstate New York - and work comes with me wherever I may be. Having a business that could travel was important. I wanted to flexibility to bring work with me – and this work allows for that.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

I started by finding a few clients on Upwork. And I’ll admit that they were low-paying and not exactly the work I was looking for. But I built up my reputation as someone who consistently created good content and always delivered on time. I always put in 110% to whatever project I found because I wanted to get those five-star reviews. It was important to me that I was always receiving positive feedback and excellent reviews. Once I had that, people started telling others about my work – and business just took off.

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

Nowadays, I primarily rely on referrals. Everyone talks about finding clients on social media or through other sources, but I find referrals to be the best way.

Most of my clients have referred me to people in their circle and my clients’ list has grown. There is no better feeling than having a client say, “I’d like to share your contact information with Susy Q…is that okay?” Yes! It’s most definitely okay!

While I have social media and a webpage – they’re mainly for “proof of life” – so that if people need to make sure I’m “legit” they can see that I’m out there and sharing content. But I don’t rely on them to find new clients.

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

My biggest challenge has been work-life balance – and I still don’t have it mastered. I try very hard to shut work down at a reasonable time each night – and not pick it back up until the morning - but it doesn’t always happen. Plus, my husband is the same way – so he’s no good at telling me to get off my phone! I guess I’m still a “work in progress” on this!

How do you stay focused?

One thing I try to do is schedule only one client meeting per day. This allows me to stay focused on content creation. Additionally, I think this helps me put that focus and attention on my client for that day. I have time to prepare for whatever may be on the agenda – without having to worry about my next call.

I also take a look at my list of projects each day and figure out what needs to get done and the approximate amount of time it will take me – creating a schedule for the day. I love a schedule! And I love being organized. It’s that organization that allows me to deliver quality content to my clients without feeling pressed for time or rushed. It also allows for on-the-fly content that clients may need in a rush!

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

When I started, my clients were amazed that I was always delivering content ahead of due dates – and that continues to be my focus. I know how to write and do research – and so do others. But people also want to know that they can depend on you. They want to know that you are going to meet or exceed their expectations – and that’s what I aim to do.

When I would talk with a new client, I often heard that they had issues with previous content writers delivering on time. I kept hearing it over and over again. I don’t want clients to worry about not getting what they need. I want there to be plenty of time for any revisions and I want them to know that I value them as a client. I put my focus on delivering quality content ahead of deadlines. It’s one of the things I pride myself on – and my clients have always shared this with others as something they appreciate.

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

I have a webpage and social media, but referrals have been the most effective way for me to grow. You can never dismiss the importance of providing quality service to your clients – because when they’re happy, they’ll tell others. This has worked for me consistently. I find that I currently have a waitlist of clients because of referrals.

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

Don’t be afraid to say no. Occasionally, people will ask if you can do something that’s not in your scope of work or outside of your comfort zone – and while you could probably do it – you need to be able to say no. You want to showcase your expertise – and people will respect you for saying no to a project that you could do – but just isn’t in your wheelhouse. Additionally, this is a great opportunity for you to refer work to other experts in your network. I love being able to give a referral to some other business owner who has the skills and expertise to deliver on something that I can’t.

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why? I’ve got to say that I love LinkedIn. It’s a great way to connect with people and there is a wealth of fantastic information available to you there.

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why? I use ClickUp to manage all of my projects for all of my clients. It keeps me organized and it’s so easy to use!

Who is your business role model? Why? I have to say my father. He owned his own accounting firm and I saw all of the hard work and effort he put into that business to make it a success. He showed me that hard work does pay off – and he’s been an excellent sounding board as I’ve grown my business.

How do you balance work and life? As I said, I still don’t have this mastered. But I’m working to set better boundaries with clients – and myself – to not constantly be “on.” It’s not easy to do when your job is tied to technology, but I’m going to keep trying.

What’s your favorite way to decompress? I love to read and I love spending time in the kitchen! My family benefits greatly from my cooking!

What do you have planned for the next six months? I’m considering bringing on another copywriter to help with some projects – which is really exciting. This will allow for more growth – and maybe a better work-life balance for me.

How can our readers connect with you? You can connect with me on Instagram: @robinblackburnsmmarketing or at robinblackburnmarketing.com