There are things I don’t (usually) say publicly… certainly not in writing, primarily because I don’t relish the idea of being sued. But my being coy about this isn’t serving anyone… so, here goes:
When I was FIRST dancing with the idea of being a self-bosser, I had $50 to invest.
And a willingness to bet on myself.
Plus, a BURNING DESIRE…
not to be an entrepreneur,
frankly… not EVEN to be “successful.”
My burning desire was singular: to be a FULL TIME mom to my growing family.
that’s it and that’s all.
NO judgement for women (like my very best friends) who did NOT have that burning desire to be at home with their kids all day, every day, ad nauseam.
MY desire in this area wasn’t right or wrong or righteous or not, but it was MINE. And it wouldn’t go away. The idea leaving my kids in day care, even FAMILY day care… just wasn’t in the cards. I couldn’t wrap my head around it.
So, there I sat.
🤦♀️ College educated.
🤦♀️Pregnant.
🤦♀️ In debt up to my EYEBALLS with student loans.
🤦♀️ Zero credit to “fill in the financial gaps” while I was figuring stuff out.
🤦♀️ And $213 in the bank. (in SAVINGS. I was probably down to zero in checking. Our meager expenses took nearly every penny we earned.)
But I QUIT my job.
I didn’t quit slowly either…
or make a deal with myself that once I earned $XXXX “on the side,” I’d quit.
I didn’t set an arbitrary “one day in the future” date, to APPEASE my desire to be at home, to trick myself into that “one day” mirage.
No, I quit. I burned the plows. (1 Kings 19:21) And I’m sure my in-laws were QUITE concerned about who their son married. I mean, who QUITS their job with no plan?
I quit my job with NO plan A or B,
with NO money coming in,
with NO guarantees,
NO mentor,
and — back then —
NOT EVEN an example to follow.
My plan was to “do something on the computer or phone to make money from home.”
I ended up billing myself as an “at home secretary” that first year because the term “virtual assistant” hadn’t yet been created.
That first year, I never had ONE thought about building a brand. Websites were WAY too expensive. Funnels didn’t exist. Coaches weren’t yet a thing. The internet was still sort of in its infancy. There was no “content marketing” and zero social media, unless you count MySpace… which I wasn’t on.
Instead of ALL OF THIS,
I sent print letters and followed up by phone.
I THOUGHT about my prospects,
what they MIGHT NEED that intersected with my skills,
and I PITCHED THEM DIRECTLY.
“Hey — I would love to try my hand at _______________. I can do X for $Y. How do you feel about starting next week?”
⭐️ I didn’t wait for them to find me.
⭐️ I didn’t wait for them to have a need that MAYBE they’d remember to ask me about.
⭐️ I didn’t “build credibility” first. I built credibility THROUGH the (paid) work itself.
⭐️ I didn’t send them a white paper about “at home secretaries” and how amazing they are… or 7 Ways At Home Secretaries Would Save the World.
I just made them a custom offer. And I received $63K in payments that year. I did all of this without EVER losing sleep over whether or not someone thought me pushy or salesy or over-zealous. Mainly because I was losing sleep to do the work, but still….
I did it all without thinking about ALL of the things people starting businesses today are told are NON-NEGOTIABLE:
👢 Brand building.
👢 Ad buying.
👢 Community creating.
👢 Networking.
👢 Logos.
👢 Websites.
And you know what? I’d do it this way over and over and over again.
Because SUCCESS demands BOLDNESS and AUDACITY. The audacity to be simple. The audacity to go direct. The audacity to JUST MAKE AN OFFER.
To this day, I have never known someone who quit their job slow. (Unless their bills were paid elsewhere, a benevolent husband for example.) I have never known someone to “play business on the side” and win.
Because the truth is,
WILD success
Success in ALL the ways
Success that creates FREEDOM — not only financially but also in lifestyle preferences —
demands you go ALL In.
My point: Let your business idea SEDUCE you into a FULL TIME courtship…
You will NEVER regret fully backing yourself.
You will NEVER regret going all in on a vision that lights your soul on fire.
But you WILL regret
👎 playing small,
👎 placating your soul with promises of “later,”
and
👎 pushing your dreams into the fairy tale land of “one day.”
If YOU know that you were born for more,
that your business is UNDER performing
that YOU are under performing,
and you are READY to go ALL IN…
message me about joining Women Who WOW.
This month’s focus is on 1:1 and LIVE coaching.
No agenda other than bringing your vision into reality. And next month…
Oh woman…
Next month, we go full quantum up in here!
Next month, we begin an intensive that will UP-LEVEL everything, including — but definitely not limited to — income.
