Empowering Women In Business
GLOBAL April 2018
kayla
ITSINES
Changing Lives | Changing Bodies | Building an Empire
07 12 15 20 22 24 27 42
FEATURED ENTREPRENEURS
David & Jessica Fabricius - Dynamic Power Couple
YOUR BUSINESS ONLINE
the good, the bad and the ugly of ecommerce
FEATURED EDITORIAL
Kayla Itsines: Changing Lives | Changing Bodies | Building an Empire
START A PROFITABLE BUSINESS
ON OUR COVER: Kayla Itsines is a personal trainer and the world’s most influential fitness identity, helping over 30+ million women worldwide to become healthier, stronger and more confident.
in five easy steps
YOU’RE HIRED!
top tips for hiring your first employees
LET GO OF FEAR
and finally start your first business
SUCCESS STORIES
real life female entrepreneurs’ achievements
SEVEN TIPS TO GAIN clients from LinkedIn
ďŹ ve
RE V I TA LIS I NG
career lessons learned by an elite fitness enthusiast
What are your top 5 lessons you have learned throughout your career as a personal trainer and author? Be authentic, only do something if it means you | 1 are staying true to yourself. I always ask myself quickly before I make a decision - does this feel right? Is this right for my community? If the answer is no or I am not sure, I’ll hold off until I know the right way to move forward.
2 |
This is a big one - don’t compare yourself to others. Everyone is on their own journey, and
is following their own dreams. This has been true for me in co-developing BBG with my partner Tobi Pearce, and it’s also true for those in my community using my BBG and BBG Stronger programs.
Don’t be afraid to try. Everyone has had that | 3 moment in their life when they were about to
start something new, or embark on a new journey, and it can be scary but it’s important to feel the fear and do it anyway. When I developed first e-Book, I was a little unsure of how it would go, but I felt that it was the next step forward for me, and even though it was new and a little scary I don’t ever regret taking that first step.
4 |
It’s okay to have setbacks! Not everything in your work or personal life will be easy and
straightforward. Sometimes you might have a few learning curves along the way, but you need to remember that it’s okay.
5 |
This ties into lesson 5 - be patient, and don’t be discouraged if something is taking you longer
than you expected. I have been working in the health and fitness industry for many years. It’s taken me a long time to get to where I am in both my career, and it’s been through the support of my friends and family, and my dedication to helping people that continues to inspire me everyday.
WEB www.sweat.com @sweat 4 | APRIL 2018
Woman Entrepreneur | Global
Kayla Itsines is a personal trainer and the world’s most influential fitness identity, helping over 30+ million women worldwide to become healthier, stronger and more confident.
www.womanentrepreneur.co | 5
A
pril is one of my favorite months of the year. It is a month of family and a month of loving and, of course, eating way too much chocolate! April is also the beginning of the second quarter of the year and is a fresh start for you if you have not performed the way you wanted in the first quarter. The good news is, put the first quarter behind you and start fresh! There is no reason for you to beat yourself up about the past, all you can do now is focus on the future. The entire editorial team is so excited about this issue as we have the world’s #1 fitness influencer, Kayla Itsines. Kayla shares all her successes, secrets and struggles in this exclusive issue. This entire issue is dedicated to online businesses and how you can expand and grow your business online. We hope that you enjoy reading our April issue of Woman Entrepreneur. We love hearing from our readers and encourage you to send your suggestions to us: editor@womanentrepreneur.co xoxo Erna Basson Founder and CEO | Woman Entrepreneur
Erna Basson is an award-winning entrepreneur, world-class business coach and international keynote speaker. She is well known for starting, growing and selling companies fast and her passion is to help people become entrepreneurs so that they too can achieve and live their dream. She is the Founder and CEO of Erabella Beauty , the fastest growing hair extensions brand in the world. She is the CEO and Founder of Woman Entrepreneur, a global platform to Empower Women in Business
editor@womanentrepreneur.co www.womanentrepreneur.co
FEATURED ENTREPRENEURS
Jessica and David are a dynamic power couple focused on helping people globally build financial freedom through real estate entrepreneurship. Jessica is a capital funding authority, funding deals between $75,000 to $75,000,000. David is a world renowned, award-winning business motivational speaker and sales trainer who has positively impacted the lives of leaders, high achievers and aspiring individuals from 143 countries across five continents. They are the recipients of the Mega Entrepreneur North America award and have shared educational event programs and stages with Steve Wozniak, Robert Kiyosaki, Gene Simmons, John Travolta, Mel Gibson, Hugh Hilton, Dr Nido Qubein, Brett Michaels, Vanilla Ice, Tony Robbins, Sir Richard Branson and many other luminaries.
What are the key factors that got you to where you are today?
D: A high-level obsession with the use of time, energy management, relationship building, asset allocation, branding, strategic marketing, selling, work-life integration and philanthropy.
What is the key thing you want people to know about you as a power couple?
We care deeply about people and are passionate about helping them achieve success by sharing our 30+ years of knowledge about what works to build a beautiful life of success and significance, together.
What have been some of your greatest successes/achievements?
Jessica created a globally-recognized biomedical company, starting at 24. She received the Women Making History Amelia Earnhardt Innovator of the Year Award and in 2017, she interviewed Gene Simmons (Kiss Founder) in front of 2,500 people from 72 countries. Jessica has been a cancer survivor since 28 and raised 2 sons with Asperger syndrome. David is a JCI World Senator, recipient of the JCI Four Outstanding Young South-African award and finalist in the JCI Ten Outstanding Young Persons of the World. He is the recipient of the USA 0-1 Special Talents & Extraordinary Abilities visa, the Key of Freedom from The City of Miami, and many more international and national awards and distinctions for personal excellence and selfless service to humanity. Together they have travelled the country speaking for YPO, EO, FortuneBuilders and many more. They transform lives with The David & Jessica Show, through their numerous books (not available on Amazon) and with their proprietary Core 7 Coaching System™, where their coaching clients reach up and level-up financially, spiritually, mentally, emotionally, physically, socially and sexually.
How do you balance your private life from work life when you are working together?
D: We live obsessively focused on helping others, and yet we also make time for healthy work-life integration using our world famous Vital 7 System™. J: You really cannot separate the two, rather it becomes an interconnection and blending into a core lifestyle. We use our systems, like the Core 7™ and V7™, because they were designed for this purpose and more. 8 | APRIL 2018
Woman Entrepreneur | Global
“Our formula for success is simple; add massive value to people by empowering them to build financial freedom by actively investing in multi-family real estate for a passive income. www.womanentrepreneur.co | 9
What advice can you give couples wanting to go into business together?
J: Don’t. LOL!!! Seriously, realize you must set your boundaries, priorities and role clarity – figure out who will do what. Be appreciative of each other and be sure to say it. Most importantly, take moments throughout the day to connect as a couple: a quick kiss, a touch when walking by, a moment to dance to “your” song.
What has the impact of marketing & branding been on your business?
Branding and marketing has played a major role in our business success – it is the foundation for our 6,763.94% growth in 2017.
Name 3 business principles that are of core
What are the three fundamental principles
you can give women wanting to start their own business?
J: I wish someone has shared with me all this information back then. #1 Get a coach, or two or three. This investment in yourself is what can make your success happen and keep you going when you hit those potholes. A good coach will transform your life. #2 You do not need to act like a man to achieve your goals. Women and men are meant to be complimentary to each other. Harness the feminine power that you have and use it to create your world. #3 Speed of implementation. Take action. Do it. You can lose out by waiting too long or overthinking. Trust your instincts and go for it.
value to you?
How do you overcome rejection?
The law of attraction plus the law of massive action plus the law of association. We believe who we are generates an energy field people can feel, and that nothing great happens until we commit to action. We also believe we become the company we keep and are therefore very selective about who we choose to invest time with – both professionally and in our personal lives.
D: Write and visualize your goals, then take a new positive action – immediately.
What has been the hardest part of being an entrepreneur?
J: Not knowing what you don’t know. There is so much to learn and once you start acquiring knowledge, you realize how much you didn’t know and how important that “missing” information is.
What are the 3 things about entrepreneurship that you experienced that no one told you about?
J: Only three? There’s so many. #1 Let’s start with the naysayers, critics and haters. Yes, you WILL have them – no matter who you are or how much good you do. The more successful you become, the more of them you have – including friends and family. #2 Get a coach! Learn from their mistakes so you don’t have to make the same ones. This can save you so much time, trouble and money. #3 The amount of work required to be successful. You always hear about the “overnight” success, however they never mention the years of hard work to get there. 10 | APRIL 2018
J: Going after the next project, goal or deal. A glass of wine and dark chocolate also goes a long way.
Once you start acquiring knowledge, you realize how much you didn’t know and how important that missing information is.
How do you stay motivated and what keeps you going?
We visualize our goals each morning and last thing at night. We also reaffirm them with each other during our communication process we use regularly.
What is your favourite quote and explain why? “When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds: Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.” - Patañjali It is foundational, catalytic and generative to the mindset needed for creative expansion and possibility thinking. Every entrepreneur needs this belief in “thinking big” possibilities. The world has enough small thinking nay-sayers. Creativity and large scale success demands being unreasonable. Woman Entrepreneur | Global
Name 3 top business books you have read? #1 Millionaire Underdog – JT Foxx #2 10X - Grant Cardone #3 Think & Grow Rich – Napoleon Hill
What does success mean to you? D: Success is being of massive, useful service to as many people as possible and living life on our own terms while helping to make the world a better place for all. Ultimately, it’s about helping our coaching clients flourish, prosper and thrive. J: Gosh, I thought having a Gulfstream, Rolls, an oceanfront condo in Florida, the partner of your dreams, and so much income producing assets and businesses that almost nothing could derail you is also right at the top. With Gene Simmons, Kiss Founder
With Christie Brinkley, Entrepreneur and Model
G E T I N T O UC H W I T H
With Steve Wozniak, Apple Co-Founder
WEB www.meetdavidfabricius.com EMAIL d a v i d @ d a v i d f a b r i c i u s . c o m EMAIL j e s s i c a @ d av i d f a b r i c i u s . c o m www.womanentrepreneur.co | 11
Some platforms that I would consider when moving into ecommerce: WOO COMMERCE Just because it’s so simple and customisable. It will take some techy help, but the beauty is it integrates to everything and there is normally some plugin that will help you achieve what you want. The bad part is you need a bit of tech support to keep it going and the ugly is, when it breaks, you are on your own in the short term.
SHOPIFY It is fantastic for a quick get up and go. It has a million options to customise and largely integrates to other systems with a bit of convincing. The bad is that the costs seem to add up very quickly and, when customising, you need some support to keep you moving. SAMCART Ultra-simple and focused on keeping you pointed in the right direction. It’s not very customisable, but the deep integration into key systems is stunning. It does seem like a lot of money for what you are getting, but the reliability can’t be ignored. QUIVERS For an ultra-sophisticated multi store you can’t beat it. Some of the functionality is simply out of this world and the ability to run a global business with retail store delivery is something to behold. The cost of support for customisation comes with the territory, but is well worth it when taking your global brand online.
INFUSIONSOFT As all-in-one CRM ecommerce systems go, you can’t beat this. The ecommerce is left wanting in some areas, but for any growing business it ticks all the right boxes. The bad is that not every region is covered and the ugly really is that, with a bit of effort, Infusionsoft could truly make it world class. CLICKFUNNELS The glory of Clickfunnels is the ability to extract every cent out of each check out with upsells and one time offers flying at you from every angle. It really is the next step for ecommerce but has some way to go in the reliability stakes and, in many regards, tends to be overrated. So, if you want to make sure that you have the good and avoid the bad and ugly then head this simple call. Do your homework. Focus on your client’s journey first and then your journey. Test and learn fast and above all, focus on results.
About the Author: Wesley Longueira | Chief Catalyst at Virtual Edge I am key to the success of our working relationship with our clients, my role is the implementation and client training specialist. My background is training, coaching and mentoring having professionally specialised in this field after I graduated as a Bachelor of Education with Honours from Wits University. I hail from a learning and development background and have ‘been there and worn the T-shirt’. From teaching to running sizeable training companies and directing university qualifications to working in e-learning and engaging with industry representative board members there is not much that can surprise me. I live by the motto of “doing whatever exposes more people to better learning” hence digital marketing is perfectly suited to my passion. My passion for people and wanting and getting them to succeed in their business is what ensures you will get success in your business. I am the ‘go to’ member of our team when we set-up your CRM campaign; decide on how to best use social media; working on the best strategy to get maximum impact out of your activities in inbound digital marketing. www.thevirtualedge.com 12 | APRIL 2018
Woman Entrepreneur | Global
Ah yes, the dream of going to bed and waking up in the morning and there is more money in your bank account. You have set up your online store and have taken the same strategy you have always used and simply put it all online. How clever you are. Why isn’t everyone else doing the same as you? Wait, thank goodness they aren’t. It must be too difficult for them. Now you have built it and surely you will be able to retire in the next 6 months. Well, realistically, make it a year. Yes, all of this is a possibility and it does happen every day, just not to people I know. The reality is no one has overnight success. It has been years of dedication and focus that culminated into one night of success. It all started to work and what was a trickle is now a good constant flow and with dedication becomes a gush of fortunes. The general experience I have when helping people set up their ecommerce is that they want to get it done really quickly and treat it very much as a bolt onto their business - 2 things that rarely work in your favour. The first question you have to ask yourself when starting out is: “where do your clients hang out online”. Do they buy online and will they be buying the same product you are now selling online? Rarely are the answers 100% clear, so here are some tips to use when setting this all up.
THE GOOD When properly executed, ecommerce can really take your business into the stratosphere. I have seen ecommerce be a win-win for everyone. Clients can check out when they want and where they want. They don’t have to wait for quotes or invoices and the rules are pretty clear on how to get refunds. The product is then delivered in the expected time frame and condition. On the business owner’s side, I have seen how people have thought it all through and have integrated their marketing CRM system to offer people goods and services and had an all-in-one system that allows them to make multiple offers automatically. Then to have that automation stop when the purchase is successful. On top of this, they had the data to be able to offer more at a later stage or even offer loyalty programs and so on. On occasion people have gone all in and have integrated and automated all the way so that the CRM talks to the ecommerce and accounting software. This seamless delivery is achievable when you choose the correct systems from the beginning so that you know where you want to end up. THE BAD This is when people really have not thought it all through.
They have really just bolted on the ecommerce to the business in the hope that customers will figure it out. It’s never clear what they are getting and the check-out process is difficult, if not impossible. They end up going for what is in front of them and seem to solve the problem for today, but create many frustrations for tomorrow. These decisions are often influenced by price and knowledge of what is available. The reality is you can never turn on the floodgates if you just create more work for yourself and create bottlenecks for yourself and customers.
THE UGLY Possibly the worst I have seen is when people
are stuck with legacy ecommerce systems. 3 or 4 years ago they may have signed up to a system that was all the range. Now they find themselves in a place where it is too difficult to migrate in the short term and sit in a bit of purgatory. They leave a lot of money on the table and often ask themselves why they started. The ugliness can be overcome when you focus on what you really want to achieve and simply take the plunge. The benefit is that it is usually a quick migration, as you know what to look out for and your business is geared for this kind of action. What is always a surprise is how much money has been left on the table in these situations and the lesson is to never let it happen again.
www.womanentrepreneur.co | 13
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FEATURED EDITORIAL
KAYLA itsines
have your dream job and do get to do makes your programs different from 1 | You 5 | What what you love everyday, how did your love of others available out there, why should people fitness and nutrition begin?
use your programs within the Sweat app?
Growing up I was always keen to get outside and get moving, as I loved the way exercise made me feel and how it energised me. During highschool I was really involved in sports and athletics, and PE (physical education) quickly become my favourite lesson. During PE lessons we were also taught about nutrition and the important role it plays in physical and mental health.
I think what makes my BBG and BBG Stronger programs stand out is the goal. It’s not about finishing a program after you’ve reached a goal weight, it’s a healthy, maintainable lifestyle change that focuses on the importance of eating well and being active so that women can feel confident. I believe education is one of the most important aspects of any health and fitness journey, so I love being able to give women the tools they need to become fitter, stronger and healthier.
2 | How did you start your business?
I’ve always had a strong passion for helping people and a love of fitness and sport. After I finished high school, I started studying to become a PE Teacher, however I deferred my studies to focus on becoming a Personal Trainer at the Australian Institute of Fitness. I fell in love with Personal Training straight away, as it not only allowed me to focus on my passion, but also gave me an opportunity to connect with other women and help them on their own health and fitness journeys. Once I graduated from the Australian Institute of Fitness I started working in a women-only gym, and started to develop my client base. To help my clients track their progress I started uploading their progress photos onto Instagram. My partner Tobi and I co-created the Bikini Body Training Guides (BBG) together in 2014. We developed the BBG program to educate and support women throughout their health and fitness journey, helping them to feel stronger and more confident in themselves. Tobi, Sweat CEO, launched the Sweat app in 2017, and at that time I became one of the SWEAT trainers. My BBG and BBG Stronger programs are both now available to use within the Sweat app. The training and education provided in the BBG and BBG Stronger program, together with the amazing support of the BBG Community, has helped millions of women from all over the world. It still gives me butterflies when I think how lucky I am to be able to help so many women around the world!
it always in your plans to make BBG as 3 | Was popular as it is now? I have always wanted to be able to help as many people as I could on their own health and fitness journeys, but I never anticipated that BBG would be as big as it is now. I feel so grateful and humble to be a part of the BBG community and that my programs have touched so many women.
do you think is more important, having 4 | What a strong personal brand or a strong business
is one of the most important things you 6 | What have changed or put in place that has made BBG what it is today?’
Using social media, particularly Instagram, has been key to allowing me to be able to reach so many women around the world, and build the BBG community to what is it today. I personally believe that social media is a fundamental aspect of any business, and has been an incredible tool for me to use to be able to reach and share my fitness method with women globally.
was the hardest thing that you 7 | What experienced when you started developing
your programs, and how did you overcome them?
When I started as a Personal Trainer, I found that I was almost booked out everyday with client one-on-one sessions. My clients started requesting more workout time with me, but I wasn’t able to accommodate them. I found this really frustrating, as I really wanted to be able to help more people and to be able to accommodate their requests. It was then that Tobi and I developed the BBG e-Book, so that I could help more women achieve their health and fitness goals.
editor personally follows you on 8 | Our social media, and you had a post up one
day saying “You are not lazy, you are just unmotivated” - what is the top tip you can give to someone to get motivated?
Set a clear reason why you are starting your health and fitness journey. It needs to be something that really resonates with you and means something to you. Write it down so that you can look back and use it as a source of motivation for any of those times you feel a little flat.
brand or both and why?
Knowing who I am and what I believe in is at the core of everything I do. I think that being authentic builds strength in developing your own brand profile, and for that reason is equally as important personally and professionally.
16 | APRIL 2018
Woman Entrepreneur | Global
It still gives me butterflies when I think how lucky I am to be able to help so many women around the world!�
www.womanentrepreneur.co | 17
us about your new book, how long 9 | Tell has this been in the making and what can people expect?
My new book, The Bikini Body Motivation & Habits Guide, is something I’ve been working on since I published my first book in 2016.
is your view on the Woman 13 | What Entrepreneur platform and the vision we have to empower women to start or expand their businesses? The encouragement and support of women is at the core of what I do, so I love that Woman Entrepreneur hero this, and that
The Bikini Body Motivation & Habits Guide is all about building motivation and creating healthy habits that can help you make positive changes to your life. I’ve included some of the tools I use to keep me focused on my goals, so that these can be applied to you and your personal situation. It also includes a 28-day meal plan and workout plan, as well as lots of nutrition information.
are your 3 top tips to business 10 | What women when launching a new product, service or business?
Surround yourself with positive and supportive people. I’m really close with my family, and they have been there to support Tobi and I throughout the whole journey. I couldn’t be where I am today without them! Research, research, research! You can never be too prepared. Before launching my second book, The Bikini Body Motivation & Habits Guide, Tobi and I wanted to learn more about what was really happening in the lives of those in our fitness community, so we put together a survey that was completed by almost 40,000 women. That feedback gave us invaluable insight and helped us to shape the content of the book. Listen to your customers, and take on their feedback. Women who had completed my BBG program gave me feedback that they were looking for a new challenge, and wanted a way to focus on building strength. Taking that on board, I launched my BBG Stronger program in 2017.
have an unbelievable social media 11 | You following, with massive engagement
stats. What are 3 of the top tips you can give to any business woman wanting to grow her social media platform? 1. Be yourself and be authentic. You count! I am 100% open and honest with my followers. I believe this is why women follow my Instagram account. It’s a place they can go and are surrounded by like-minded and supportive women. It’s not just a page, but a community that uplifts and encourages each other daily. 2. Post regularly so you can give your followers new content to engage with. I post on my Instagram several times a day, and vary between progress photos, inspirational quotes, nutritional information and funny facts and stories about my life. 3. Encourage conversation with your online community. I’ll often ask my followers to share their motivational tips, things they are grateful for, or even places they like to travel. It helps to build engagement, and gives my clients a platform to be able to communicate with each other and support each other on their health and fitness journeys.
motivates you? What is your 12 | What drive? Why do you do, what you do? I get so much motivation from the amazing women in the BBG Community. Seeing and hearing about their incredible transformations, not just physically, but mentally, is such great motivation for me to keep educating and sharing tips with women around the world. The BBG Community is made up of some of the most dedicated and hard-working women, I feel so blessed to be a part of it. There is nothing else like it in the world, and the community inspires ME to be the best version of myself every day. These women are the reason that I want to continue to learn and grow and become more educated every day so that I can continue to help women become healthier and more confident all over the world.
the platform gives women an opportunity to connect with likeminded women to help them on their journey.
is one of your favorite quotes and 14 | What why? “The only limitations are those you place on yourself.” I love this quote as it reminds me that I am in control of my life and my own potential. When you realise that, you can become unstoppable.
I get so much motivation from the amazing women in the BBG Community. Seeing and hearing about their incredible transformations, not just physically, but mentally, is such great motivation for me.�
www.womanentrepreneur.co | 19
STEP ONE What is your business? This may sound like a simple question, but you would be surprised at how many people cannot answer this simple question. A lot of entrepreneurs are so passionate about what they do that they go on and on about themselves and their services, but they tend to confuse potential clients. As it has been said over and over again, the confused mind does not buy. So where should you start? Here is some advice on how to construct an answer to the question what do you do? Start with these three basic questions: 01 | Who are you? 02 | What do you do? 03 | What problem do you solve? Your answer should not take more than six seconds and be stated in 15 words or less. It is harder than you think. So that is why it is extremely important to work on your messaging as a first step. This message will be the cornerstone of everything you do and lay the foundation of your business. Once you have clarity on your message, basically you know what you want to be when you grow up. It is now time to make sure you know who you are talking to.
STEP TWO Who is your target market? I know this sounds like a lot of marketing jargon but tailoring your message to the right client or customer is critical, so your message does not land on deaf ears. Start by sitting down and visualizing your ideal client. Who would you wake up in the morning and be completely excited to work with? This is crucial because you are building a business that you are passionate about and if you attract less than the ideal clientele you may have just created a job for yourself that leaves you unmotivated and frustrated. Build an avatar of your ideal client. In other words, what does this client look like? Start with basic demographic information such as, are they male or female, how old are they, are they single or married, where do they live, what profession are they in, what is their household income? This gives you a basic place to begin and to start picturing your ideal clientele. But, I believe the more important insights come in the form of psychographic information. This information digs into the values and interests of your ideal client. Think about what they like to do for fun, what types of movies do they like, where do they shop, where do they vacation? Write down and collect information about their overall lifestyle. Is your picture or avatar getting clearer? Then next and maybe the most important piece of information to collect is, what does your target market fear? Fear is a big motivator for people to open their wallets or purses to buy. Again, think about your ideal clientele: where are they in their lives? Are they baby 20 | APRIL 2018
boomers and one of their biggest fears is not having enough money for retirement? Are you looking at clients with children or people just getting out of college? What are their fears, and can you offer a solution to provide them peace of mind? Can you give them a picture of their ideal life? If so, you can open up their hearts, minds and wallets. A word of warning especially to new business owners: Do not - I repeat - do not try to be everything to everybody. In the beginning it is going to be hard and you need to be comfortable with being uncomfortable. You will be doing some investing but there is a tendency to take on anyone willing to pay you or to widen your market, so no one is left out. Take my word of advice as someone who did this in the beginning, you will be sorry both financially and mentally. Those who are not your ideal clients will end up as a time waster and pay you less than you are worth. When you get into this pattern your profitability and happiness plummets.
STEP THREE Start building your credibility. What is your story, what can you provide, what makes you different from all others in your field? This is an extremely important step. Passion and an idea are great starting points but if you are going to charge clients for a service, you need to have the knowledge base, credibility and content to give them the best authentic experience that money can buy. So, if you feel you need to get a certification or attend some seminars to shore up your knowledge or to build your content, start now. I say this with caution, some get caught up in this step and are afraid to launch their businesses before they get x, y and z. You then become a permanent student and never really take the next step to fully launch your idea. You need to have enough knowledge to help your clients and should always be learning but don’t hold off starting and researching because you do not feel like you are ready. Self-confidence is a key factor in landing your perfect client and starting a profitable business. This is also a great time to start looking at your personal social media presence to see what message you are putting out there. Does your social media position you in a good light for your business, does it show you as an expert in your field? Would a client hire you based on your social media presence? If the answer is no and your social media is an array of food pictures, cat videos and pictures drinking with your friends, it is time to clean it up and start filling your feeds with credible content that shows yourself as the expert. When you walk into a room you want people to ask what are you doing, and can you help me do that too? Your personal brand will become a vital part of your marketing and we will cover that in an upcoming article. Woman Entrepreneur | Global
STEPS TO STARTING a profitable business Michele Malo
You have always had a dream to be your own boss, bringing your passion to life. Your new business represents your why, the reason you believe you were put on this earth. But, is your passion positioned to create profits? Are you clear on your why? Do you have a message that speaks to solving a fear or problem to your potential clients? Will your product or service give your clients the life they dreamed of? The steps to bringing your business to life may not be as traditional as you may think so, before you go out and build a website and spend money on marketing, follow these first steps to build a fundamental solid foundation to your new venture.
STEP FOUR Get out there and start talking to your target market, see what resonates with them. Your business will go through many different strategies and tactics before you find the right combination that really takes off into a profitable venture. Your network in your net worth, get out there and network. Join the Chamber of Commerce, go to trade group gatherings, Masterminds, get out there and talk to people and build relationships. Find your tribe that can be sounding boards, alliances and potential clients. You never know the one person or event that can change the trajectory of your life. That can never happen if you stay at home behind your computer. People buy from people they trust and know. The more people you can connect with, the better the chance you have for that referral or alliance that can change the landscape of your business. STEP FIVE Get a coach. This was the biggest lesson that I wished I had learned early on in my entrepreneurial career. You don’t know what you don’t know, and many new business owners stay in a place of scarcity. By that I mean they are afraid to invest in their own education and guidance system. I guarantee you will end up spending more as you make mistakes and take your business in the wrong direction just because you thought you could do it alone. Some advice when looking for a coach, find out who their coach is. That will show you who they are and what they strive to become and, if they do not have a coach, run! How can they ask you to invest in coaching if they do not believe in the practice themselves? So, there you have it. The beginning steps of building a business has nothing to do with websites and marketing materials. It takes thoughtful planning and some soul searching before you even begin the business plan and begin spending on websites and brochures. If your business does not have a steady foundation it will never be profitable or sustainable. In the next instalments we will explore and explain in depth the strategy and processes that will turn your passion into profits.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR | Michele Malo - Your Business Accelerator Michele is an Amazon best-selling author, speaker, master connector and business expert. She is the Master Marketing Consultant at Michele Malo, Your Business Accelerator, where she identifies, strategizes and advances businesses by breaking down barriers through communication. Michele pulls from 18 years of Fortune 500 corporate experience and five years of being a successful serial entrepreneur to help accelerate your profits within a year of taking on her program. As a powerful and polished speaker, Michele inspires audiences with her personal story and proven strategic principles to help guide audiences to a better, more fulfilling life and career. She provides listeners with actionable tools and takeaways based on extensive research and education, delivered with sincerity, compassion and humour.
www.michelemalo.com | Email: michele@michelemalo.com | Facebook: michelemaloyourbusinessaccelerator www.womanentrepreneur.co | 21
Hiring the right employees is key to the development of your business. When someone is not a right fit you can run into challenging situations which cost you money, time and can be damaging to the work environment. When you hire the right employees, your business will thrive, your sales and profit will increase and your overall work environment will be successful. The below steps can help new entrepreneurs and existing business owners grow their teams. JOB ANALYSIS / DESCRIPTION:
RESUME SCREENING
Have you defined the role(s) you are seeking to fill? What is your job analysis, have you determined the knowledge, skills and abilities you will be looking for to fill the role? Once you have determined the job, you can create your job description. Keep in mind people apply for roles based on their interests in the job, therefore the job description is your key to entry into a pool of applicants.
In today’s world when someone has held the same role for 3 years, this can be considered loyalty to the company / position. Maternity, paternity leaves, people’s health and family situations could create gaps in history, therefore do not automatically shy away from a resume because there is a gap in history. When someone has very little work experience, look for extra-curricular activities, volunteer time or tutoring experience.
Include information about your company culture and social responsibility in your job description.
ATTRACTING JOB APPLICANTS Will you advertise on your company site or are you part of any local business group sites? What about LinkedIn and other local community sites which are cost-effective? Do you have any referrals for fellow business owners? As much as possible, it is not recommended to hire family or friends. To narrow down your applicants, include a salary range with benefit information on your posting. Ensure your advert grabs the attention, interest and desire of any applicant and that it tells the applicant how to take action and apply for your role. 22 | APRIL 2018
Google the person’s name or seek out their LinkedIn profile prior to deciding to interview them.
RE-SCREEN INTERVIEW Book a time for a 15-20 minute call to assess their interest in your company, confirm their previous work history and other items listed on the resume. It is also a good time to question and set the expectations for the hours of work and the salary. The applicant should be given a realistic view of what the role entails. Follow your gut. Only when you feel there is a possibility should you set a date for an in-person interview. Woman Entrepreneur | Global
Josée Larocque-Patton
For hiring your f irst employees
INTERVIEW
BEFORE CONSIDERING TO HIRE
Always have two leaders in an interview. As far as possible, one male and one female to ensure gender equity. As a back-up, have a two-tier interview process - two separate interviews by two different gendered leaders. Pre-set your questions and always include behavior questions. If you have gotten this far, you know the person has the qualifications to do the role and now you are assessing their values, beliefs and want to determine if they will be an ambassador for your company.
Discuss your candidate choices with other leaders and determine which applicant will be the right fit. Plan the applicant’s first 3-5 days down to each detail; who will meet the applicant on the first day, what paperwork needs to be completed, when they will have lunch, how they will get paid and when. And also who will they train or job shadow with.
Do not ask any personal questions which may be considered unlawful in your country. Should an applicant share personal information, advise the applicant you do not require the information for the interview and continue with the interview. |Please always advise applicants they will be contacted should they be considered or move to the next level and not just leave them hanging. Hire for attitude, train for skill.
REFERENCES, BACKGROUND CHECKS You are looking to seek out if there are any skeletons in the closet. Just like you Googled the person when you reviewed their resume, it does not hurt to do another social media check. All applicants usually provide 2-3 references, although many companies no longer provide references and only confirm employment. Your number one question to ask is “would you rehire?” If you cannot get a straight answer from the person providing a reference, or if the answer is long winded or beating around the bush, it is usually a sign that something is up. Think about it… when an employee is great, you could hear it in someone’s voice and the leader will usually automatically have positive things to say. If you want a criminal background check, this should be shared with applicants at the onset of the job posting to avoid discrimination claims.
A new applicant’s on-boarding is their first impression of you. Be prepared and ready to embrace them with open arms.
EXTENDING THE OFFER Verbally extend the offer and set a date and time to meet in person. If you are not able to meet in person, at least send the job offer by email and have them electronically return the offer. The preference is to have the job offer letter and all on-boarding material ready for the new employee to sign and review on day one. Include all details in your offer letter, salary, health and dental benefits, employment termination clause, potential bonus, vacation percentage, stock options and any other employee benefits you can provide (birthday day off with pay etc.). Follow up, check in and ensure your new employee is set up for success.
For any other best practice tips or questions feel free to contact Josée Larocque-Patton Josée Larocque-Patton | Founder & CEO of The HR ICU www.thehricu.com | email josee@thehricu.com www.womanentrepreneur.co | 23
F
or many, the thought of starting their own business can be an exciting, but terrifying idea. We’re taught from a young age to seek security. Go to college, get a good stable job, and invest our money wisely. For most people, starting their own business and leaving a career is just too much of a risk. The beautiful thing about life is that the greatest adventures and achievements all require a certain level of risk. When becoming an entrepreneur, risk is something that needs to be embraced! So how do you get over the fear of starting your own business, and just really go for it? The first step to overcoming that fear is to let your excitement outweigh your fear. The thing is, that feeling, fear, mixed with excitement is the very best scenario there could be. If you didn’t feel any fear at all, it would mean that this was something that really wasn’t all that challenging or uncomfortable for you. Pursuing anything that you’re not passionate about, is not a good idea. That fear you’re feeling is a great indicator that this thing you’re considering doing is really important to you! So, allow yourself to lean in to that excitement, because here’s the truth. If this new pursuit is a complete and utter failure (which it won’t be), there will always be another job out there. But, when you really take a leap of faith to create a business right from your zone of genius and passion, you have the opportunity to create something unique that this world has never experienced! Something that will be extremely needed. When fear starts to bubble up, our minds typically travel to the land of ‘what if’. What if I fail? What if I run out of money? What if nobody buys from me? What if I make mistakes? What if I embarrass myself? The typical ‘what if’ scenario is not your friend! Unless you flip it right on its head. One thing I regularly have my clients practice, is the reverse what if. It’s all about training our brains to automatically travel to the most positive optimistic outcome, instead of travelling to that dark scary place we seem to automatically find ourselves in when scary or uncomfortable opportunities present themselves. The reverse what if, is all about consciously training your brain to think of every good thing that could possibly transpire if you take the risk to pursue this opportunity that your heart really desires. What if I succeed beyond my greatest expectation? What if I inspire thousands of people? What if I solve peoples’ problems in a real tangible way? What if my product becomes so well known, it’s sold all over the world? What if my brand becomes a household name? As you go through these positive what if statements in your mind, you are powerfully attracting these outcomes. The more often you practice this, the stronger the pull will become.
Starting your business doesn’t have to be as black and white as you’d imagine. You don’t have to wake up one morning and decide to radically alter your entire life’s path. You don’t have to immediately march right in to your boss’s office and plunk down your letter of resignation on the desk. The reason so much fear comes when most people start imagining what it would be like to start their own business, is that they think they have to immediately quit their job, and they worry about running out of money. There are so many possible scenarios, and it’s all about finding one that fits with the level of risk you’re willing to take! It’s perfectly possible to start building your business while still working at your regular job. It’s totally an option to preplan and spend a specific number of months putting money aside, to prepare for the day when you do quit and go at your business full time. Just remember that there are many options, and if you take the time to do some serious thinking about what would make the most sense in your life, you will find one that works for you and your vision! Another reason fear is so prominent at the beginning stages of starting a business, is that we tend to think that we have to do it all alone! We start to imagine all of the mistakes we’ll make, and when we think about just how much we will need to learn in order to become successful, it overwhelms us. That is why it is so important to hire a coach. You need that support system to be by your side every step of the way. Hiring someone who is currently in the position that you wish to be in, who has already gone through everything you’re about to experience, is the smartest thing you could do. They’ve already made all of the mistakes, so you don’t have to! It’s all about finding someone who aligns really well with you and your personality, who believes in your vision and has the experience to help you create it! At the end of the day you can either overcome your fear of failure or get comfortable living with regret. There’s nothing worse than waking up one day and realizing that another year has gone by, and you’ve barely moved forwards from where you were the year before. It feels terrible to have a deep passion or a brilliant idea that you just sit on and do nothing with because fear is standing in the way, and it’s just too overwhelming for you to bare. It’s time right now to pursue the things that light you up! The time has never been better to move forwards towards the ideas and opportunities that set your heart on fire! Get excited to experience the necessary mistakes and failures that will lead to big huge success coming to you. The sooner that you’re ready to overcome this fear, the doors will open to a whole new world of possibilities and experiences for you!
Lindsay Adamson - International Speaker, Success Coach and Author email lindsayadamson@gmail.com lindsayadamsonofficial lindsayadamsonofficial 24 | APRIL 2018
Woman Entrepreneur | Global
LET GO OF
FEAR and finally start your first business
The beautiful thing about life is that the greatest adventures and achievements all require a certain level of risk. When becoming an entrepreneur, risk is something that needs to be embraced! Lindsay Adamson
www.womanentrepreneur.co | 25
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SUCCESS STORY
EM I golding Emi Golding assists people turning their start-up business into a million-dollar enterprise. She guides them through the process, every step of the way, from start to success. As a qualified psychologist and serial entrepreneur, she is uniquely qualified to make sure both her client’s mindset and business acumen are positioned for success. She is a renowned business consultant in the corporate world and specialises in workplace culture, change management and wellbeing programs, assisting companies to improve their productivity and profits.
www.womanentrepreneur.co | 27
1.
Give us a bit of background about yourself?
I’m a corporate psychologist, Fortune 500 Consultant, International Speaker and Executive Coach. I’m the person companies call in when they need to increase their profits and perform at their best. I started my career in psychology working with people with severe mental health issues, and quickly became known as the authority on recovery from mental ill health. While there I saw that, while we were very good at supporting our clients, often the workplace was not so great at looking after the wellbeing of its staff. In fact, some workplaces I saw were completely toxic environments! I saw rates of mental distress increasing, and saw that workplaces were not equipped to support those people. I branched into corporate psychology and discovered the massive impact that mental ill-health was having, not only on the employees, management and executive teams, but also on the business itself. Billions of dollars are lost every year in mental health related absenteeism, presenteeism, lost productivity, human resources issues and psychological injury claims. That led me to co-found the Workplace Mental Health Institute, which helps corporations to increase profitability, protect themselves legally and improve the engagement, resilience and culture of their workforce. Building on the success of the Workplace Mental Health Institute, I’m also now giving back to start ups. I’ve co-founded ‘First Business First Million’ which helps business owners and entrepreneurs to start their first business and take it to their first million dollars, in the shortest timeframe possible.
2.
What are your core business principles and values that you will not compromise on?
Be willing to do what other people won’t In business, clients won’t just walk up and knock on your door, you have to be willing to go to them. I was always a shy person – I got nervous approaching people, especially if I was trying to sell them my product or service. If you’re going to survive in business, you have to be willing to step out of your comfort zone and do the things that others won’t. I’ve learnt how to overcome the fears of selling, of public speaking and of doing something new that hasn’t been done in a particular industry before. You HAVE to be willing to take action, even in the face of your fears and even when others say you can’t do it. Invest in yourself I have invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in personal and professional development since I began my career in business; what I call my ‘real’ education. What I have found time and time again is that whenever I invest in myself, it comes back tenfold. Education is the one thing that stays with you forever. Whenever you learn something, you can’t unlearn it. You can use it going forward for the rest of your life, no matter what you do in business – or in life. Education is never an expense it is always an investment. Make decisions quickly As a more analytical type of person, I used to find myself in a situation where I would over-think every decision, umming and aahing, back and forth. I assumed there was a ‘right’ answer and that if I just thought about it long enough, I would figure it out. The problem was that, while I was busy thinking about things and trying to come up with the perfect plan, my competition was making decisions and implementing them before my very eyes! By the time I decided to take some action it was too late! I have had to learn in business that speed of implementation is everything. Especially as change is happening faster and faster in the world, the ability to innovate, make a decision quickly and just do it, is absolutely imperative. 28 | APRIL 2018
3.
What is more important to you; motivation or execution? Why?
Execution - at the end of the day, success is about the results you get. And that requires execution. You are not always going to feel motivated but, if you can just get it done, you’ll get the results. On the other hand, you may have plenty of motivation, but if you don’t take action nothing is going to change. Success - in business and in life comes to those who take action.
4.
What inspires and motivates you?
To me, what I really love most about my work is seeing the difference I can make in people’s businesses and their lives. I love it when I get an email from a client who tells me how something I taught them has just created for them an extra $55,000 in revenue, or they call to let me know they have just secured the amazing deal they were going after, or I get a letter thanking me for the impact I’ve had on them and their family, that is what moves me. I love to help people, to see them get results and succeed.
5.
What has been your biggest fail to date? How did you overcome that and what did you learn from that? My biggest fail has been not moving fast enough in the beginning to get the guidance and support that everyone needs. For a long time I had no business coach and I just ‘winged it’, painstakingly trying to do everything on my own. It’s crazy because for any other area in life, we know that if you want to do something well, you find the best person who can teach you. Yet, when it comes to business, so few people do that. For me, that meant I wasted so much time, energy and money on things that didn’t get me the results and that just delayed my success. I was one of the lucky ones, because most businesses just fail and the owners have to go back to a job with their tail between their legs, usually with a much smaller bank balance than they started with. Once I found good coaching, I saw just how quickly things started moving and I started getting the kind of results I was after.
6.
What is the secret to your success?
A combination of investing in myself and taking action fast. Not leaving it till tomorrow. The faster I do something, the sooner I start to get the results I want. I’ve spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in business education and coaching, but every time I have invested in myself, the returns have come back tenfold. Education is the one thing that can never be taken away. As a result, I am now in a position to help others to start and grow their business, so that it can be profitable for them and allow them to have the lifestyle of their choice.
7.
What quote do you live by and why?
There are 2 quotes I got from my coaches which have been absolutely instrumental for me: ‘Say yes, then figure out how’. When given an opportunity, often fear comes up for us, especially if we haven’t done it before, or we don’t know if we can. All the doubts run through our head. But you never know what that opportunity could lead to. So, this quote helps to kick the doubt away. Just say yes, and then figure it out. Once you’re committed, there is always a way to get something done, whether it’s by partnering with someone else, or getting some coaching so you can do it. The other is ‘it doesn’t have to be perfect it just has to get done’. As a recovering perfectionist, I used to get into paralysis by analysis’, where I didn’t actually get as much done because I spent too long trying to ‘perfect’ it. What is perfection anyway? That perfectionism helped to a point, but ultimately, to take life and business to the next level I needed to operate in a different way. Woman Entrepreneur | Global
8.
What advice can you give to fellow female entrepreneurs on the same journey as yourself?
If I can do it, so can you. My competitive advantage is that I am willing to get coached. No one can do it alone! You need a team of people. People from both genders, all races and from all beliefs. People who have been there before and have conquered the challenges you are facing. You need both the actual business strategies and the know-how (the tool set, as we like to call it). You also need the psychology - the “mindset” - to be able to achieve it. Either one without the other is a recipe for failure. But together, anything is possible.
9.
How do you differentiate yourself from your competitors? What makes you unique?
It’s a mix of business experience and know-how, with the understanding and qualifications in the psychology of business and personal achievement. There are a lot of coaches out there who won’t actually help you with the strategy, they just help you with ‘motivation’ (glorified cheerleaders, really), but you still have to figure it all out yourself. Then there are coaches who will tell you what to do with your business, but it’s usually not specific enough, and your personal needs are left out of it completely. We give you the support on both sides of the equation, because one doesn’t work without the other. With First Business First Million, my team and I have put together the business coaching program and support we wish we had when we were just starting out. The nitty gritty details of the things you need to know, PLUS the personalised support specific to YOU and YOUR business. And it’s all about getting there fast. Taking the uncertainty and the doubt away and replacing it with real world results.
Emi Goldings’ list of notable achievements: Emi has spoken on stages around the world including USA, UK, South Africa, Japan and Australia. She has founded and built an international brand in workplace consulting Emi is proud to have been featured in Cleo Magazine, Sydney Morning Herald and other publications She was an expert panel member for the development of Guidelines for Managing Mental Health in the Workplace. Emi has been successful in tendering for numerous Government Department contracts She has worked on social enterprise projects for Randi Zuckerberg, the marketing genius behind Facebook Emi has been Featured in “Fear to Freedom”, by Adrian Kwan Emi has met with numerous celebrities and interviewed Bethenny Frankel, Real Housewife of New York and founder of Skinnygirl products about her experience in business
GET IN TOUCH WITH EMI WEB www.emigolding.com EMAIL emi@emigolding.com FACEBOOK @EmiGoldingPsychologist INSTAGRAM @EmiGolding TWITTER @EmiGolding
www.womanentrepreneur.co | 29
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SUCCESS STORY
erica LYN N
Creative Director and Founder of Tutta Bella Gown
www.womanentrepreneur.co | 31
“We have the power to do so much in this world and our business and passion can be a great recipe.
Tell us about some of your wonderful achievements? My first business happened by chance when I was 11 and was not quite as glamourous as fashion design! I had sewed some cloth nappies for my younger siblings and mother’s friends. This lead to more of her friends asking if they can order “Erica Nappies” and soon it grew into one of the most popular cloth nappy companies In Australia at the time. We had an Erica Nappy website and listed on a few other channels, including online auction websites like eBay. A single cloth nappy would sometimes sell for as high as heck $80 for one! That’s how much people loved them. It was exciting to see the appreciation people had and all the positive feedback I received for doing something so big at such a young age. I did this until I was 17 when I unfortunately gave up on it, because I wanted to be like ‘normal people my age’ and took a job at Coles.
What are your core business principles and values that you will not change or give in to? I believe a wedding is one of the most important days of one’s life and want my brides to feel absolutely beautiful. I do this by ensuring they make the right decision on which gown to wear. When I sense I don’t have the ideal gown in stock, I will do what it takes for the bride to have their dream gown, whether I need to contact other designers or introduce them to our couture service where we can make any gown imaginable. I will never force a sale onto my brides just to move stock. I genuinely want them walking the aisle feeling like the most beautiful woman. Integrity is a must.
What’s more important to you: motivation or execution? Why? They are both equally important. You simply can’t have one without the other. Motivation is the key ingredient for what drives you to execute the desired outcome.
What inspires and motivates you? I’m really passionate about helping others making a lasting change in their life, especially through challenging their limiting beliefs that are blocking them. I faced many challenges and diversity growing up. I am proud to look back on all my challenging experiences and now I surround myself with the right people. I don’t want others to suffer the way I did and I want people at a young age to identify their taxing obstacles and take control of their thoughts. I am also really passionate about helping put an end to poverty. My business is still in the start32 | APRIL 2018
up phase being less than a year old, but I honestly do have immense visions and goals for how I am going to continue to utilise my business to assist making a positive impact on others. My business is not only about fulling my childhood dream, but it’s also about my desire to have a constructive influence on others.
What has been your biggest fail to date? Please share with our readers how you overcame that and what you learned from it. I do remember some trying times, but I don’t see them as actual failures. They have shaped me to become the person I am and do the things I am doing today. Failures are learning experiences. Every no points you closer to a yes. I am young and I am growing and my mind is constantly adjusting. I welcome positive criticism and feel that’s a big asset for me. I can say with honesty that I am proud of myself and my life so far. Sure, there are some things I wish I did differently, or things I didn’t take so long to execute. Overall I am a way different person to who I was in my teenage years especially and I am grateful for that, considering what I’ve been through and the positive outcome I gained from that.
What is the secret to your success? Learning to model what other successful people do and to surround myself with them have been a great advantage. It can save years of mistakes! Get a coach! I have been fortunate to work with JT Foxx who is one of the most successful business coaches in the world. He taught me to get out of my story and detach myself from it. I held on to my past for so long and I was ultimately getting in my own way. Because of him I also had the honour to meet successful people, including the likes of John Travolta, Hugh Hilton, Mark Whalburg and Christie Brinkley. Their journeys truly inspired me. I owe a lot of credit to Pina Fiorenza, a very successful designer for 30 years. She helped me starting up and she is still helping me. She has been my coach for the past 2 years and was the first person to teach me how to truly believe in myself and in my fashion design endeavours. She was so used to me absorbed in self-doubt that I cried to her once saying thank you. She suggested I see a psychologist - it was so funny! I exclaimed, “I’m crying tears of gratitude for the impact you’ve had on my life!” Find these people for you! Your environment is everything! I can’t stress that enough. Woman Entrepreneur | Global
G
Erica with John Travolta Erica with Stephanie Rice and Serena Carli
rowing up in a small town in the countryside, Erica was the second oldest of nine children. She always knew her calling was to help people. She first used a sewing machine at the age of ten and told her classmates that she wanted to be a fashion designer when she grows up. When Erica was 15, a quote by Katherine Heigl starring in 27 Dresses, “I want to help someone on the most important day of their life”, inspired her decision to become a Bridal Wear Designer. At the age of 24, when Pina Fiorenza stopped designing ready to wear gowns and offered Erica to sell her final range on consignment, Erica saw this as a life changing opportunity to start Tutta Bella Gown and approached other well known designers too. She is now an up and coming fashion designer in the bridal industry and is much loved and respected by brides all over Australia. What quote do you live by and why? Oh, I love quotes! I have a new favourite each week! But something that really sticks to me is a cartoon I saw once. Two people were sitting at a table and it read “what do you do?” “Oh, I’m a cashier.” “Not what do you do for a living, what do you do for the world?” We have the power to do so much in this world and our business and passion can be a great recipe.
What advice can you give to fellow female entrepreneurs that are on the same journey as you?
Erica with Christie Brinkley
Fashion is an extremely competitive and widespread industry and it’s not always what you know, but more often who you know. You really have to network in every way possible, even if it means starting off as a tea lady for an existing designer. You need to get your name out there and be around the people who are already making it happen. You have to take setbacks. I did unpaid internships at numerous design houses. I got fired from a boutique job because I wanted to take a Saturday off! You really need unstoppable drive. Days can get long! Even when I was working as an unpaid intern there were times I would work from 7am to 10pm. Most weekends I had to decline invitations going out. Being fairly young many of my friends did not understand why I needed to get my priorities in line and my goals in front of me.
How do you differentiate yourself from your competitors and what makes you unique? It seems natural to me to always offer an exceptional experience and superb service, because I genuinely love and have passion for what I do. Brides often spoil me with compliments about my service and passion. They aren’t just my clients, they truly are my friends and I think this really helps me to be competitive, especially since I am not yes as established as others. It is important to me to treat my customers as friends, because in return, they are trusting me with their wedding. A lot of them I am able to remain friends with moving forward, it’s a good feeling knowing that I am creating genuine connections with integrity. To add to the experience, Pina Fiorenza will sometimes be present when I am working with a bride, bouncing off her knowledgeable ideas. Erica Lynn Ryan | Creative Director and Founder of Tutta Bella Gown EMAIL info@tuttabellagown.com WEB www.tuttabellagown.com erica.lynn__ erica.ryan.900
erica-ryan-848b4192 www.womanentrepreneur.co | 33
ERNA’S LIST OF ACHIEVEMENTS INCLUDE: Named South Africa’s Top Entrepreneur Under 30 by Fast Company Magazine in 2017 Featured on the cover of Fast Company Magazine in June 2017 Received the 2017 Global Female Entrepreneur award in Los Angeles
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SUCCESS STORY
ANASTACIA snelleksz Anastacia established one of Australia’s first pole fitness studios in 2006, which soon became one of the world’s largest franchised pole dancing studios. She is a highly recognised and sought after choreographer, creating memorable shows for many high profile events. She is currently writing a fantasy fiction novel that challenges the traditional thinking around women’s sexuality and questions what feminism has done to the relationship between man and woman.
When in Japan, Anastacia discovered pole fitness as a fun form of exercise and introduced it to women all over Australia as an alternative way of staying in shape.
A
nastacia established one of Australia’s first pole dance businesses in 2006 and soon after became the world’s largest franchised pole dancing company. She has a Certificate in Small Business Operations as well as a background in commercial, ballroom and Latin dance. She founded her first dance company at the age of 21. Physical Rhythm was a dance tuition business that she operated for 6 years before selling it to move into the world of pole dancing. Anastacia is a self-taught pole dancer, wholly dedicated to her craft. Within a year of opening the first studio, she was nominated and chosen in the final seven for the Telstra Business Women’s Awards under the categories of Marie Claire Young Business Women’s Award and Commonwealth Bank Award. More recently, she was also a finalist for the My Business Awards, for the GIO Award for Women in Business. She was ranked number 45 in the Australian Pole Dance Magazine’s Top 50 most influential figures of 2015 and number 23 for the following year.
36 | APRIL 2018
She is a highly recognised and sought after choreographer, creating memorable shows for many high profile events. Her choreography has been used for many shows from international Pole Studios that have seen her work online. Adding to her long list of achievements, Anastacia has also run major pole dancing events over the past ten years including; Miss Pole Dance Victoria An event attracting guest pole performers and judges from countries all over the world. The Pole Games A competition where pole studios get to compete against each other Fantasy A student showcase across all branded studios with over 200 performers Mischief The annual student competition Woman Entrepreneur | Global
1
Give us a bit of background about yourself ?
My parents were strict Anglo-Indian who moved to Australia where I was later born. As a child, school was not enough for my dad. All of his kids had to take up at least 3 extra-curricular activities in addition to our school studies. My older sister got all the fun stuff – dancing, gymnastics etc. I got stuck with piano, athletics and tennis – all of which I hated! But they all taught me some really valuable life lessons that I still live by to this day. Piano taught me to be creative and have an emotional connection to music. Athletics taught me to always aim for first place and tennis, which I HATED, taught me that, in order to be your best you need to become great at the things you wish you didn’t have to do. In high school my best subject was business studies, second best law. At the time “business” wasn’t a career so I didn’t even consider starting my own business. I got fired while doing my work experience week in high school – who gets fired from work experience! I guess I was always made to walk my own path. During high school I was forbidden to take up dance. My older sister had started working in nightclubs as a podium dancer and my strict parents didn’t feel dancing was a “career”. That was my drive to build an empire out of dancing and prove them wrong. Fast forward a few years, I started my first dance company which was aimed at introducing ballroom & Latin dance to high schools as an alternative form of fitness. I also created the program as an aid to assist with the male/female relationships that generally are so awkward at that age. At the time I had a very young daughter and we were on the waiting list for government housing. I refused for my life to play out like that and I knew I had talent and that people would pay to learn from me. I sent out letters to every primary school, high school & university in Melbourne offering my services. I went from being a single parent earning nothing to earning $4000 per week. It cost me nothing but the talent in my feet.
2
Please share some of your greatest achievements with us.
I built up the Latin and ballroom dancing company and sold it after 6 years. I was given an opportunity to live in Japan for a few months on a Salsa tour, which I took and ran with. Whilst there, I discovered pole dancing as this new form of dance and fitness and I was completely intrigued by it. Very quickly I became obsessed and knew I had to bring it back to Australia. What I fell in love with was not the sport, it was the feeling it gave you to take complete control of your own sexuality as a woman and be able to unapologetically express yourself. I was hooked. From there it became my mission to give as many women as I could the same feeling through my own pole dance studio in Melbourne. In 2006 I opened the first studio and within 8 years I had 8 thriving studios. In addition to this I have been fortunate enough to produce events that lead to hundreds of women having the opportunity to get on stage and live a life long dream of performing at sell out events. My biggest achievement to date is that I have very recently sold this company also. As much as I loved my brand, I was feeling confined to only being able to help women that were brave enough to enter in the first place. I still feel compelled to help women with their confidence and freedom of expression on a much larger scale and I need to be able to reach the world now.
3
What are your core business values that you will not compromise on?
I strongly believe in quality content and a high level of training. Having strong systems and not allowing staff to deviate from those systems were always really important to me. What we were doing, was quite literally a dangerous sport and I needed to feel comfort in knowing that, whoever was instructing a class, was instructing it in a way that I could be sure was protecting our customers’ bodies. I took our clients wellbeing very seriously, often more seriously than they did.
4
What do you think is more important, motivation or execution? Why?
Execution. I think relying too heavily on motivation can lead to a lack of productivity. It means that, in order to do something well, you need to be inspired to do it. This leads to an all or nothing mentality – the idea that if you’re not motivated, you shouldn’t get started at all. Whereas execution is a process, it’s a system that needs to be followed and it’s not reliant upon your mental state at the time.
Email: info@poledancefranchise.com.au
5
What inspires and motivates you? Why do you get up in the morning, get the work done and do it all over again the next day? Up until I sold my current business, my motivation was seeing all the women’s lives change as a result of doing classes with us. Pole dancing gave them confidence that they carried with them into other aspects of their lives. But now, my motivation is to help people on a much larger scale by using my experience in watching women grow throughout my career into who they were meant to be. I want to reach the world with my message and show people that however you choose to live your life is completely in your hands and you owe no answers to anyone. I want the world to love freely again in whatever way feels right for them, without judgement or expectations. I want people to live with adventure, happiness and confidence.
6
What has been your big�est failure to date? How did you overcome it and what did you learn from it? Any failure I’ve ever had has come from me forcing myself to do things when my heart wasn’t in it. I always wanted to please the community and there were a few times I felt pressure to run events that I really didn’t want to run. I have a really big problem with letting people down and when it’s that versus looking after myself, I will please the people instead. Any time I’ve done this, the event was either cancelled or didn’t have great ticket sales. It’s taught me that everything I ever do, I have to go with my gut and if I have a bad feeling about it, I shouldn’t do it. Just because a service was once successful, doesn’t mean it always will be and that’s ok. Always go with your gut.
7
What is your secret to success?
I don’t think it’s a secret but I would say my intuition. I somehow always know what’s best and I have complete faith in myself that things will always work out. Things will always be ok and when times are tough, it’s just a lesson I need to learn. I rarely get stressed. When something happens that is out of my control, I look for the lesson and then I look for the solution. I give myself a maximum of 30 minutes to be irrationally emotional and then I quit it and find a solution. I never have a “poor me” mentality – even though I quite easily could capitalise on my sad story, I never have.
8
What quote do you live by and why? “Do good deeds in private so only your heavenly Father will reward you”
Why? I guess social media has made people seek attention in ways that aren’t authentic and that’s not something I can respect. I don’t believe we should help another in order to accrue likes on Facebook. When I help someone or someone is grateful for something I have done for them, it’s a private moment between me and that person and by publicising the gratitude, it removes the romanticism of it.
9
What advice can you give to fellow female entrepreneurs that are on the same journey as you, and want to achieve the same success that you achieved?
Firstly, I would say that, as an entrepreneur, we are very lucky to be in a space where those that are more successful than us are always more than happy to help. If you want to be a singer, Beyoncé is not accessible to you. But if you want to be an entrepreneur, there will be someone highly successful in your network or your industry that will happily sit down with you and impart their knowledge over lunch. Advice from people who have done it for years before you, can save you 10 years of making mistakes. Don’t think your craft is enough to start a business – it’s not. In fact, I would say your craft is maybe 10% of what will make you successful. Become and expert in business, like you are in your craft – that needs to be your goal.
10
How do you differentiate yourself from your competitors?
One thing I’ve never really focused on is my competitors. I know that goes against most traditional business teachings and probably makes no sense, but it’s always worked for me and kept me focused. I know that I’m very creative and innovative, so I never felt the need to watch what others were doing. I always preferred to come up with the “firsts” of my industry – the first to create a dedicated aerial fitness studio, the first to have 3 studios within 3 years which then grew further after that, the first to make it rain on stage, the first to sellout theatres etc. Being the first satisfied me more than worrying about my competition.
Facebook: www.facebook.com/anastacia.dancer
Instagram: www.instagram.com/anastaciapole www.womanentrepreneur.co | 37
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SUCCESS STORY
cate r i n a DOR NBR ACH
AUSTRALIA’S #1 RELATIONSHIP EDUCATOR Caterina Dornbrach is a passionate, confident and an infectious woman. She supports, guides and educates others to understand the effect their blueprint has on their adult life. She facilitates individuals to become the best version of themselves before they can work on rebuilding their relationship or marriage. She is in a flourishing relationship and has been a relationship and personal coach since 2012. Caterina continuously invests in learning and gaining new skills as she believes it keeps her growing and also aids her in developing programs. She is the owner of Empower Couples, a company dedicated to supporting and educating individuals with relationships, marriage and personal hurdles. . She provides relationship coaching, guidance and support to build a solid foundation in order to live your dream relationship.
1| Tell us about some of your amazing achievements?
Every achievement in my life is amazing, because they all form part of my individual core personality. My greatest triumph was to discover who I truly am and the decision to become the best version of me. That moment I learned to value me, to overcome and release the hurt, pain and guilt that were a large part of my life for such a long time is something I will always be grateful for. I definitely consider my loving, fulfilling and harmonious relationship for nearly 10 years to be an amazing achievement, considering how many unhappy relationships there are all around us today. My soon to be husband is my best friend, my rock and greatest supporter. He has always believed in me, even when I didn’t believe in myself. Together we have sustained what so many others refer to as the “HONEYMOON STAGE”. We believe you should celebrate Valentine’s day every day. For so many others it seems to be the only day when they put 100% into their relationship, which truly saddens me. When Darren and I share that we have never had an argument many people state that it is apparently healthy to argue - which I totally disagree with! Take a moment and look at that statement from a different perspective. How can an argument be healthy when, firstly, it affects your relationship and, secondly, it makes you feel either not heard, sad, angry and frustrated - sometimes all of these emotions at once? When you take the time to view things from a different perspective and you feel with your heart instead of thinking with your head, you may be surprised by what you find. Our children! We are a blended family and I am grateful and blessed to have been given the gift of experiencing parenting in a nurturing, loving and harmonious environment. Unfortunately, my children’s environment was not even close to the one my darling and I created which really has affected them in their adult lives today. From my own experiences I gained a profound understanding of the environment we create as parents which is the blueprint we design for our children. Often that blueprint will affect them to some degree in their adult life and they may also repeat the same cycles. I would like to dedicate this achievement to all my clients. I work with clients that have such a sense of feeling lost, sadness in their eyes and a negative perspective on life due to their painful past experiences and unhealthy blueprints. The fact that people entrust and share their deepest darkest pain with me, is something I will always consider to be an honor and am extremely grateful for. My role as a coach is to assist them in gaining the understanding that they have the choice to either stay where they are or commit 100% to becoming the best version of themselves. Yes, it’s hard work, however when you focus on the end result it is always worth it. Everything I do when coaching, is with my clients’ best interest in mind. It’s never about me! I always value them so they can grow to value themselves!
are your core business principles and values 2| What that you will not change or give in to? In order to move forward you MUST understand it will take 100% commitment from you to put in the effort to make a change in your life. You have to focus and make it a priority in order to achieve it, no matter what it is. If a client cannot commit I choose not to work with that client. It’s my integrity which I hold in high regard and I am aware that, if a client is not committed, it doesn’t matter what I or any other specialist say, it won’t make a difference. Very much like the quote “you can lead a horse to water but you cannot make it drink”, there is no difference when seeking support. Treat everyone as you wish to be treated which, for me, is with the highest of respect, value and no judgment! NO excuses. Remember, you don’t know their stories or circumstances, so always be caring and kind. I will not give into the belief that we do not all have a choice in life. There is balance within everything. Here are a few examples: happy - sad, good - bad, right - left, black - white, rich - poor, healthy - sick… you get the picture. You can choose the light or the dark path. Whatever you want in life, you can have, but without a deep desire and passion to have it, you won’t achieve it. 40 | APRIL 2018
do you think is more important, motivation 3| What or execution and why? There are millions of motivated people on this planet, however, unless you take action, you’ll achieve nothing of great importance or significance. Everything is about balance. If you have passion, persistence, perseverance and a certain sense of self-value, it will hold you accountable to the mission you endeavoured. Always focus on the end-result, as this is what will drive the execution to the end. John C Maxwell says, ”We cannot become what we want by remaining what we are.”
inspires and motivates you? Why do you 4| What wake up every morning? My life is what motivates me. I have honestly been blessed with the most phenomenal life and the most beautiful man to share it with. I now know what is possible if you choose to go after it. I want to support and guide anyone who wants to live a purposeful and happy life, not just choosing to exist in it. I see pain and sadness within the eyes of people I pass in the street daily, and this saddens me. At the same time, it motivates and inspires me to give a gift each and every day, even if it’s only the gift of a smile and eye contact. If I can connect with one new person every single day, I can make a difference in that person’s life, if only for a fleeting moment. If you choose to become fully aware of what you value and what’s most important to you, it will inspire and motivate you to achieve anything. Take a moment and look deep within and ask yourself the question: “What do you value most?“ Woman Entrepreneur | Global
L
eaving home at 16, becoming the mother of two by the age of 19 and being in a long term volatile relationship, she had to become an adult well before her time.
During those difficult times she always believed there was something more to life and that she had a greater purpose. She knew it was not her fate to end up like her mother. Caterina’s mother came to Australia as a German immigrant at the age of 13. She was put straight to work as a cleaner and live-in nanny and had no formal education. She endured much trauma, pain and sadness, had no self-value, survived 3 failed marriages to men who were not worthy of her love. She became a stay-at-home mother to 6 children and had no support network. Predominantly, Caterina worked within the retail industry for several years and advanced her way into management roles, always striving to learn more and be challenged in everything she did. Because of her drive and dedication she was offered an office manager’s role within the construction industry. That was the pivotal turning point in her life that led her on the path she is on today. Whilst gaining experience in a different industry, she also attained the feeling of being respected from her peers and colleagues. This enabled her to build self-belief and achieve inner strength and, within 4 years of being in her job, she had enough confidence and with the assistance from her daughter to escape her 22-year turbulent and toxic marriage. Caterina decided, in order to internally heal and live a fulfilling life, she needed to release old pain from her blueprint and discover who she was and what she wanted. Through education, research and personal development workshops, she moved forward in her life rapidly. It became evident that true self-awareness was the missing skill she needed in order to sustain true inner happiness and self-respect. Through her learnings and personal experiences her coaching is unique and distinguishes her from others. She stands by her beliefs: you must choose to commit 100% no matter what and DO NOT allow your past to define your future. This is what Caterina teaches and what she lives by every day. She says: ”Life isn’t just life. Do not choose to just exist. Life is to be lived.”
has been your biggest fail to date? How did you 5| What overcome it and what did you learn from it?
do you differentiate yourself from your 8| How competitors?
I don’t have failures; I have lessons I learned from. To fail means you are giving up, which is something that does not resonate with me. Lessons come to us daily in many different ways and it is only when we are open to receiving them that we can truly learn and grow. The language we use also has a profound effect on our mindset and state of being, so I’m very aware of the words I choose to use. Being mindful of our self-talk is imperative, because we are often our harshest critic and it can often be the maker or the breaker of what we achieve in life.
My point of difference simple!
6| What is the secret to your success?
Success comes from feeling and knowing that this is my purpose and my true passion in life. I have overcome painful hurdles in my life by learning and implementing the skills and techniques I now coach. Congruence is also a key factor. I live and breathe what I share with all my clients and they can see and feel it.
advice can you give to female entrepreneurs 7| What that are on the same journey as you? First and foremost, you MUST value and believe in yourself. If you don’t do this, others will not value or believe in you either. The good news here is that value and self-belief can be worked on by addressing and raising your awareness of your blueprint. Everyone has one and it is generally the one thing that will hold you back from achieving everything you desire. It’s a lot easier said than done. I know this because I have gone through that journey myself. However, if you want something bad enough, make the decision to change, no matter what. With 100% Commitment you will achieve it over time. “The most valuable investment you will ever make is the investment in yourself.” Equally important is having a coach. You don’t know what you don’t know, and a coach will look at your situation from an objective perspective and give you critical guidance and skills where needed to move forward and obtain your set goals. Lastly, always be transparent, congruent and hold yourself with the highest of integrity and intention!
I find and address a client’s BLUEPRINT. Everyone has one and it is always this one that is holding them back from achieving their full potential and desired outcome. Each client receives individualized coaching that is tailored to their needs. During a session there is NO note taking, as being 100% present with a client is most important. There is not a one-size-fits-all set of questions that will determine this. We are all individuals and we should all be treated as such. Especially when it comes to working on our inner selves. I have an innate ability to connect with all my clients at a cellular level and they truly do feel this. It’s about ensuring my clients feel I care and that I am there for them 100% of the way. When clients gain an understanding of their WHY’s, it assists them in being able to let go and move forward. To see clients grow over time because they believe they have a choice, is an achievement and credit to their dedication. Many of my clients have received other types of support from different therapists for many years. The fact that it’s been years of therapy is of a deep concern to me. They all say that no-one has truly connected with them like I have and that is my surpassing uniqueness. I’m your coach! I am here to support and teach you new skills. I am not your enabler to keep you where you are right now.
G E T I N TO U C H Caterina Dornbrach | Empower Couples Email: info@empowercouples.com Phone: 0468 848 868 EmpowerCouplesCoach www.womanentrepreneur.co | 41
THE MINDSET
Your mindset for success on LinkedIn needs to be one of business and getting things done. That’s why people are there. It’s not other social media channels where you share what you had for breakfast and where you have been on holiday, it is a place of business. Which means people are there to do business. Yes, you want to build relationships, but you can also pick up clients from one message. It’s has been the fastest converting platform I have seen. Make sure your offer is ready and you are going in with clear intent.
YOUR PROFILE
Your profile page should be a sales page. People are coming to your profile to see how you can help them and if they want to interact with you on any level. Your sole focus on your profile should be how you can help people solve the problems they are facing in their business. Make sure you have the following in place:
A professional profile picture A background picture that tells people what you do A summary that is focused entirely on how you help people solve problems A clear call to action at the end of your summary that takes them to more information about you Testimonials so people can see what results you help achieve
INVEST IN SALES NAVIGATOR
Having a paid profile is key. Only 7% of LinkedIn users are using paid profiles, which means the opportunity to capitalize on this is huge. When you use Sales Navigator, it allows you to specifically target your ideal client anywhere in the world. You can go deep and segment your audience by many different attributes such as: Geography | Post code | Title | Industry | Company headcount | Seniority | Years in current position | And much more If you are looking to find directors of larger accounting firms that have between a 50 – 500 company head count, you can do that – so it’s super targeted.
CONNECTION STRATEGY
Once you have edited your profile, set your goal to connect with 30 people per day and focus not only on your ideal clients, but also suppliers, media houses and other people or industries you want to connect with. This will help you grow your connection base and be seen as a person of influence. You will see initially that you will be doing a lot of hard work, but there will be a point where people will start reaching out to connect with you. This is a numbers game. Set aside 30 minutes each day to do this and your business will change. The more focused you get, the faster you will see results. When you connect with someone, add in a personal message as they will be more likely to accept so you can start the conversation.
ASK FOR WHAT YOU WANT
As stated before, this is a place where people come to do business. Have a direct conversation, tell them why you want to connect and what your intentions are. If you are looking to get clients fast, then I have found that the more direct you are, the better people will tell you if they are interested or not. If they tell you they are not interested, you can still keep them as a connection and you can keep in contact for a later stage. Tell them how you can help them and ask them if they are looking for that kind of help and want to have a conversation. Then you start to build the relationship, ask for a meeting and see where it takes you
CONSISTENCY & FOLLOW UP
LinkedIn will notify you when it is someone’s birthday, work anniversary, when they have a new job or change their title. Even when they post articles. This gives you the perfect opportunity and reason to connect with them and be top of mind. Send them a message on each of these occasions, remind them that you are still there and give them an opportunity to take a look at who you are and what you are doing. Each time you reach out to them, give them your contact details and let them know how you can help them or simply just offer to help. People are always looking for help in their businesses and good help is hard to find these days – be their shining light.
PRO TIP
Write all your copy before you even start out. Your implementation time and success will be so much faster. Make it as personal as possible and write from the heart to really connect with people. You will see more success than you can handle
If you use these techniques, you will be able to pick up your first client from LinkedIn in as little as a week. If you need some inspiration, go and check out my profile, connect with me and ask me some questions. Too your success on LinkedIn Matt Clark 42 | APRIL 2018
Woman Entrepreneur | Global
If your business requires any kind of selling or connecting with other business people, then really care about just 1 thing: the ability to reach people, build relationships and get them to buy without having to spend hours walking them across the line. As it turns out, this ability to reach people anywhere in the world, build relationships and get them to buy is the difference between making $1 000 and $1 million and more. If you need an image in your mind of making $1 million, just picture a successful business with lots of clients that pay you what you’re worth and send you more business. I ask you this, have you been cold calling or knocking doors? Then you’re the last of your kind because the technology of selling has made huge advantages in the last 5 years. There is no need to speak to unqualified leads anymore. You can find and reach out directly to the person you are looking for. This seems like great news for a company like yourself and most businesses in general, so what’s the problem here? Why is there an opportunity in this market? Why am I here? Adrian Gore, the founder of Discovery once said, “becoming an entrepreneur is like jumping out of an airplane with silk worms instead of a parachute and hoping that they are over-achievers!” Many people have tried to create a system to get clients on LinkedIn that can be understood and used by the non-technical business owner. Few succeeded. Why? Because it’s hard. You can’t just set up a profile and expect people to come rushing through the door. Trying to figure out how to set up ads is not high on most business owners’ lists. So, I’m going to share 7 tips you can use right now to get high quality clients from LinkedIn without spending a cent on advertising. About the Author: Matt Clark is a sales funnel expert and the creator of The Automated Income System. He has built his own multimillion-dollar companies both online and offline (door to door sales). He works with businesses all over the world helping them to automate, grow revenues, profits and free up more time. His clients have been able to entirely automate their businesses and create more revenue in one month than in an entire year - growing their business x5 by just doing things differently. His mission is to elevate the level of business worldwide by making tools and strategies available to business owners. Get your free copy of his book, The Automated Income System: How To Charge More, Work Less And Feel Great About It, on his website. Or get in touch with Matt directly if you need some help implementing these tools and to find out more about what is possible for your business. Email: matt@thevirtualedge.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattclarksa Website: www.thevirtualedge.com www.womanentrepreneur.co | 43
Daniella Princi
Mental Health illnesses are on the rise, stemming from a sense of stress, business and overwhelm, diss issues, limited quality time at home, and the like. Even when we come home from work we struggle to
As a Psychologist and Empowerment to Success Coach, I strive to guide people to live and lead from a toward reducing these challenges. From consciousness comes truth and authenticity. Living your life a achieving the greatest version of yourself and your company - that is where success begins (both per power; knowing, loving, understanding and connecting with self. No longer striving for the external wo and validation, but rather internal drive, motivation and achievement.
Throughout our lives, especially through relationships, work and raising a family, we become dis-conne may even feel lost. You may feel as though your life is in chaos, or is simply… overwhelming. You have life’s passion and meaning; possibly living a life without a sense of direction and achievement. You can experience the enjoyment of moments outside of work.
In our quest for success and perfection, things can get rather chaotic and overwhelming. It’s no wonde unhappy, as though you’ve lost control of your life. But, you cannot give anything to anyone if you don
DO SOMETHING JUST FOR FUN
BE HERE NOW
Part of this journey is to incorporate activities in
Another step is mindfulness. Being mindful refers to bringing mindfulness practices into each moment, and assists you in being connected to the moment, and to self… anchored, grounded, connected to truth, in synchrony with who you want to be. Bring that to a situation, to a relationship, to a conversation, your workplace, your interaction with your children and you will bring a greater level of consciousness and awareness to your life. How often do you speak to others while thinking about something at work? How often have you driven to work or home, with no recollection of how you got there?
your life on a day-to-day basis that re-connect you with yourself; to give back to yourself so that you can keep giving to those around you. Often when I work with people and ask them what they do for fun - what their hobbies and passions are - I am met with a blank stare. Take some time now to think: What things did you use to do that you loved, but no longer do? Then start reintroducing them! They will fill your bucket and fuel you to start to feel more balanced within your life; and help you disconnect from work.
REMEMBER TO BREATHE Set up a space, just for you, where you can sit and breathe… Use an app to teach you mindful breathing; go for walks in nature, do something you love, soak in a bath… I often hear excuses (because, let’s face it, they are excuses), about not having time. We have to make time. Now is the moment to prioritise yourself! What is one thing you can give up that brings no meaning or fulfilment to your life that can be used for something more meaningful and lifeenhancing? 44 | APRIL 2018
Dis-connecting from work and being present and mindful to every moment and experience, being open to receiving, being open to experiencing each moment as a gift and as an experience that is an opportunity to learn and grow, is a part of mindfulness. So, be present, be open… to now! Not worrying about the future, not being defensive, not bringing your worries to where they do not belong! Rather, be open, present and embrace what is right here, right now! What is to come, will be… Living from a place of acceptance and non-judgement is so freeing and empowering. Woman Entrepreneur | Global
satisfaction in life and work, relationship issues, emotional regulation o switch off and are not present to those around us.
a place of empowerment and consciousness; moving people and working, leading from a place of value and integrity, rsonally and professionally). This is a place of intrinsic orld or external influences to gain a sense of success
ected, and end up wearing so many masks. You lost touch with yourself, your identity and your nnot dis-connect from work and you cannot
er you sometimes feel frustrated and ’t give to yourself first.
NURTURE YOURSELF FIRST Nurturing yourself is another important component of dis-connecting from work and re-connecting to self. It refers even more specifically to aspects of self-care and putting yourself first - a concept foreign to many. Examples include taking time out on a daily or weekly basis purely for you, practicing morning rituals, evening rituals, mindfulness, movement, nutrition, massage, detox baths, socialising, having personal space - whatever you need throughout the process to love, value and honour yourself. This will improve your ability to connect to yourself, to fill your bucket and then give to others. The reality is, we live a life of many facets and the ability to live this life with the most value, purpose, fulfilment and meaning, starts with connecting with and nurturing yourself around work and to be more mindful in every experience you have. Take the time now to implement these few changes in your life and watch yourself better dis-connect from work every day, and re-connect with yourself and your family.
SOME APPS TO TRY Smiling Mind www.smilingmind.com.au A 3-minute Tea Infusion Meditation www.madameflavour.com Headspace www.headspace.com Take-a-Break Developed by Satinder Singh Happify www.happify.com Calm www.calm.com Simple Habit www.simplehabit.com Oak Meditation www.oakmeditation.com
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Daniella Princi is the health and wellness expert behind “Your Intrinsic Life”. She is a professional psychologist, coach and international speaker, assisting you to reconnect and transform your life, mind, body and soul. WEB
www.yourintrinsiclife.com
daniella@yourintrinsiclife.com
YourIntrinsicLife www.womanentrepreneur.co | 45
When you’re just starting out on social media you may be overwhelmed with questions like what to post, where, how often, and so on. I’m going to give you some general social media tips so that you can get started instantly on building your presence online - the way a social media marketer would. STEP 1 | KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE What platform is your ideal client using? Many people are too worried about posting on as many social platforms as possible, but it’s better to focus on putting out amazing content for 1 or 2 platforms instead of mediocre or repeated content on all of them. The first step to social media is knowing where your audience is, where is it worth your time to post? Instagram is great for businesses revolving around a visual aspect. Facebook is the market leader for social networking sites and is pretty much a go-to for any business. LinkedIn is where business professionals connect for B2B (business to business) opportunities. Twitter is great for the influencers and thought leaders of the world. The next factor we look at is competitors. Search for social media accounts that offer what you offer and do what you do. This allows you to see successful accounts that you can get ideas from. Pay close attention to the certain hashtags they’re using, if they’re posting specifically on certain dates or times, or what type of content their followers like most. You want to take ideas from those that are successful in your field and incorporate your brand to it. STEP 2 | CONTENT I often get asked, “Christina, what should I post on my social media?” It really just depends on your business and what platform you’re on. Generally, Facebook or LinkedIn has a mix of photos, videos, shared content, articles or blog posts. Instagram is more of an aesthetically pleasing social platform. Accounts that have a certain feed or theme where followers know what they can expect to see, do exceptionally well and grow much faster. A tool I often use for creating social media content is Canva. They have stock images and templates, making social media less of a hassle than it needs to be for the busy entrepreneur. Also, when posting, the key to growing your brand online is by providing immense value. If every single post is you selling your service, you will not grow your fanbase. Gary Vaynerchuk’s book title sums it all up: “Jab, jab, jab, right hook”, refers to constantly giving an overload of value - over and over again - and going for the sale thereafter. If you’re an all-natural skincare line, some examples would be giving your online audience tips on great skin care, an all-natural homemade face mask, the benefits of healthy eating on the skin… the options are endless. 46 | APRIL 2018
Woman Entrepreneur | Global
Christina McMasters
STEP 3 | CONSISTENCY Once you begin building your presence online, note that the only thing worse than not being on social media is being on social media inconsistently. A potential client that’s searching for a local restaurant in the area and seeing you haven’t posted anything in over a year, isn’t exactly going to get a great first impression from you. When it comes to posting, there really is no magic number. Just don’t post to the point of annoying your followers with content overload. For Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn once a day keeps you in the back of your client’s mind without being all over their feed. It is common to post multiple times per day on Twitter and Pinterest. Speaking of posting, a way to stay organized and not let social media get in the way is by scheduling your posts ahead of time. For Facebook you can schedule posts right on the social platform. A tool I often use for my clients’ Instagram accounts is Onlypult. This tool allows you to schedule and automatically post based on set times so you can spend less time posting daily. Once you become consistent, you’ll start to form an online fanbase of current and prospective clients. Messages, reviews and comments will start to pour in and it is crucial to not let potential or current clients go unnoticed. This tip I call communication, engaging with followers and other users on social media will grow your page much faster than those who don’t. Posting consistently is one thing, reaching out and joining discussions and meeting people is another. Having a Facebook or Instagram page for your business is really more than just simply posting, it’s you utilizing a free tool that your clients are already on to further increase brand trust, awareness, loyalty and connections. Social media and growing an online presence, when done correctly, can be an endless lead generator. A few things to remember - find where your audience is, figure out what they like, consistently give value and communicate with current and potential clients. Anything you post on social media contributes either positively or negatively to your brand, so choose wisely what you post for the world to see. Most importantly, remember that social media is meant to be a fun way to connect with people, spread the word about your mission and can grow your business immensely! Thanks for reading! Visit our website to read more social media tips and tricks.
Christina McMasters | CEO of Black Paw Marketing www.linkedin.com/in/christinamcmasters/ www.blackpawmarketing.com www.womanentrepreneur.co | 47
I
was a very slow starter when it came to having a professional presence online through social media platforms, that changed at a networking event about 6 months ago.
A former business colleague suggested I attend an upcoming business networking event, as they knew a high-profile individual whose connection would be beneficial to me was going to be there. I eagerly accepted the invitation and was quietly excited to formally meet the person in question. What I didn’t know was that my former colleague had reached out to this individual to confirm their attendance and set up the introduction with me. There’s tip number 1 – If you are going to connect people, it will make for a far warmer meeting if you have briefed both parties prior to the connection. For ease of explanation, let’s call the high-profile person I was meeting “Brian”. Naturally I wanted to make the best first impression possible. Remember, you only get one chance to make a good first impression, so I researched as much as I could about Brian prior to the networking event. I wanted to ensure we had plenty of common ground to talk about and keep momentum. I went to the event completely pumped, I looked good, felt good and was confident I knew as much about Brian and his businesses as I possibly could. These feelings of confidence were about to be dented. The first words out of Brian’s mouth after I introduced myself and shook his hand were: “Ah, the international man of mystery”. You see, whilst I was happy with my level of research into my new contact, I failed to consider that Brian would be doing his research on me. Only, he would have had much less luck than I did. My online presence was pretty much non-existent and, for potential business partners, investors or clients, that often raises alarm bells. Take the next 2 minutes to do this simple test; Google your name and see what pops up on the front page of results. Then search your name in Google images and see what pops up there. If the only results are Facebook pictures of you on a girls’ trip to Thailand on your eleventh mojito, you can kiss that new business partnership or capital funding you were hoping to secure goodbye!
JEREMY K. STREETER Networking Expert | Entrepreneur | Property Developer & Investor Owner at Intelligent Millionaires Network Sydney
48 | APRIL 2018
Woman Entrepreneur | Global
EFFECTIVE O N L I N E N E T WO R K I N G Jeremy K. Streeter
Your online presence is more often than not the first impression someone will have of you, so it needs to portray a message congruent to you and your businesses. It forms a massive part of your personal and business brand, so you need to grow and protect it. Think of your brand as what people say and think about you when you are not in the room. In a recent Business Insider podcast that Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn, appeared on he explained that a strong network is more important than even the most detailed or ambitious career plan. “And so, as opposed to saying, ‘I have a master plan,” Hoffman said, referring to either a great start-up idea or plan to climb a corporate ladder, “you’re better off focusing more energy on building as strong a network as possible, because that’s the thing that most catapults you, in terms of your capabilities, in terms of your abilities to do things.” In the book “Never Eat Alone” by Keith Ferrazzi, he details how Hoffman explains to him that “LinkedIn is a closed network, and for a very simple reason: For the network to have value as an introduction tool, the connections need to have meaning. It’s up to you to vet each and every request so that if someone comes to you and says, ‘Would you introduce me?,’ you’re in a position to evaluate whether the connection would be of mutual benefit.” Online networking does not mean another avenue to spam potential clients with your details and profiles in the hope of getting a sale. You should treat it as a wonderful platform where you can hone your networking skills on a truly global scale. Personally, I find nothing more annoying than accepting a connection request online via Facebook or LinkedIn only to be spammed by the person 1 minute later asking if I would like to buy their investment property or latest ICO. Do that, and you will quickly find yourself “unfriended” and deleted. Treat the online connections the same as though you were meeting in person at a business networking event, be courteous and grateful for the connection and show a genuine interest in how you can help the other party. People do business with people not products, build a relationship based on integrity, honesty and a genuine desire to help the other party get what they need. Do this and you will be able to grow your network globally!
www.womanentrepreneur.co | 49
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