Female entrepreneur turns her Fastlane business into a $500K Slowlane one ‍♀️ (oops!) Now she's rebuilding...

[mrsn1mbl3life]

Hi all!

I don't want to make this super long so I'll try to hit the high notes! Feel free to ask more questions if you want to know anything more in-depth.

I'm a 30-something female entrepreneur with an online business. I've been running it for 4 years now, 3 years full-time. In the beginning, I was selling digital products and doing pretty well with it. I was making anywhere from 5-10K a month which was awesome because I had no inventory, but I was getting super impatient because I wanted to quit my job and the sales weren't consistent enough for my husband to feel comfortable with me leaving.

So...I started to take on 1-on-1 clients because I could charge more and hit my financial goals faster. Because my 1-on-1 work was in high demand, I was quickly selling out months in advance and collecting as much as $5K per client.

The only problem was...I hated the work. And the hours were killing me. Thinking I could "buy my freedom" by "scaling", I ended up hiring a bunch of people I didn't need to hire.

It "worked" in the sense that I was bringing in $30K, $40K, sometimes $50K a month, but my expenses were crazy high and I hated my life doing so much one-on-one work. On top of that, we found out I was pregnant and there was no way I was going to be able to continue that pace.

So...I fired everyone except for a few overseas contractors and quit all my 1-on-1 work. I had to take a break for about a year just to get used to motherhood but I am now rebuilding my business to focus exclusively on digital products. Before I go into 1-on-1 work, I was doing a good job scaling with Facebook ads, but like I said, I got really impatient, started chasing dollar signs instead of focusing on what would be the most sustainable form of revenue for me in the long run. Lesson learned!

I first learned about @MJ DeMarco via Pat Flynn's Smart Passive Income podcast (I used to binge listen when I worked a full-time job, lol). I read his book and LOVED it! It encapsulated everything that I knew was true in my gut but couldn't put into words.

Since my teenage years, I've always been interested in becoming wealthy and used to feel guilty that I wasn't "smart enough" to save up $1,000 and put it in a mutual fund when I was 16, because when I turn 65, by golly that $1,000 would have turned into $1 million! Ha! Not saying conservative investing is bad but I just knew there had to be a better way to build wealth while your young instead of waiting until 65.

Anyway, I feel pretty confident in my plan and want to reach financial independence in the next 5 years or sooner. My goal is to take the profits from this business and roll it into Real Estate and other high-margin, passive income businesses.

I'm excited to join this forum after lurking on and off for a few years and I look forward to connecting with you all!

Oh! And I've attached a screenshot of my stripe sales just so you know I'm telling the truth. I use both Stripe and PayPal in my online store so I've made more than what is shown here because this doesn't show my PayPal sales.

 

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[pmaloneus]

Welcome!

 

[AgainstAllOdds]

Welcome to the forum! I think you'll fit right in here.

That $500K, what kind of margin is that at? Is it enough for you to live off of?

Also - congratulations on becoming a mother.

 

[mrsn1mbl3life]

Thank you! Motherhood is literally the hardest thing I’ve every done but it’s the most rewarding too. I have a whole new respect for all the working moms out there!

As for margins, my take home pay has been about 70k every year except last year - I didn’t pay myself at all and just stayed home with the baby while doing the bare minimum to keep my business afloat. I was also bleeding cash because I had 2 full-time employees that I took forever to let go because I felt guilty about it.

Also, I should note that I was working a near six-figure job for the majority of 2016 so any net profit that year was mostly gravy.

My husband works full-time as well so even when my margins got thin, covering our basic living expenses was never an issue.

As for the forum, it’s definitely time for me to dive in. One of my biggest goals this year was to connect with entrepreneurs who are way smarter and making way more money than me, lol! I’m trying to elevate my circle so I’m excited that his resource is even available.

 

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[ChrisV]

Oh! And I've attached a screenshot of my stripe sales just so you know I'm telling the truth. I use both Stripe and PayPal in my online store so I've made more than what is shown here because this doesn't show my PayPal sales.

Ummmm that says 484K, not 500K

Just kidding

Welcome and congrats on the baby.

Can I ask what your digital products are?

My suggestion is to perhaps cut back on the 1-on-1 clients and create a few very premium digital products that sell for big ticket prices. $500. $1000. $5000. Whatever. Then charge more for your 1-on-1 coaching. It appears it's in high demand, so you can likely get away with that. You'll be able to work less while still bringing in the same paycheck. Or you can start doing high-ticket seminars or webcasts.

 

[minivanman]

Personally, I don't see why you had to prove yourself. Just relax and feel at home. This is the internet, if someone isn't telling the truth, that's on them. Now if someone gets on here and says they live on the hillside in Hollywood Hills and drive a different high priced sports car every week..... then there might be doubts without proof. But then again, why does that person need proof for the internet? Sorry, I kinda got off track there Welcome to the forum and have fun!

 

[reedracer]

Welcome aboard!

 

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[mrsn1mbl3life]

Ummmm that says 484K, not 500K

Just kidding

Welcome and congrats on the baby.

Can I ask what your digital products are?

Thank you! Most of my digital products are self-help related trainings. Time-management, self-mastery, that sort of thing.

 

[mrsn1mbl3life]

Personally, I don't see why you had to prove yourself. Just relax and feel at home. This is the internet, if someone isn't telling the truth, that's on them. Now if someone gets on here and says they live on the hillside in Hollywood Hills and drive a different high priced sports car every week..... then there might be doubts without proof. But then again, why does that person need proof for the internet? Sorry, I kinda got off track there Welcome to the forum and have fun!

Thanks, I appreciate it. I just know how it is when you come on a forum looking for genuine advice and people aren't being honest or telling the whole story. I'm a pretty transparent person but since I'm new here, I didn't want anyone to think I'm blowing smoke.

Not that what I've done thus far is even so great! Honestly, I've made a lot of mistakes that I'm just now realizing in retrospect, which is why I'm here. I really want to learn and I know there's a lot of heavy hitters on this forum.

 

[Bekit]

Hi all!

I don't want to make this super long so I'll try to hit the high notes! Feel free to ask more questions if you want to know anything more in-depth.

I'm a 30-something female entrepreneur with an online business. I've been running it for 4 years now, 3 years full-time. In the beginning, I was selling digital products and doing pretty well with it. I was making anywhere from 5-10K a month which was awesome because I had no inventory, but I was getting super impatient because I wanted to quit my job and the sales weren't consistent enough for my husband to feel comfortable with me leaving.

So...I started to take on 1-on-1 clients because I could charge more and hit my financial goals faster. Because my 1-on-1 work was in high demand, I was quickly selling out months in advance and collecting as much as $5K per client.

The only problem was...I hated the work. And the hours were killing me. Thinking I could "buy my freedom" by "scaling", I ended up hiring a bunch of people I didn't need to hire.

It "worked" in the sense that I was bringing in $30K, $40K, sometimes $50K a month, but my expenses were crazy high and I hated my life doing so much one-on-one work. On top of that, we found out I was pregnant and there was no way I was going to be able to continue that pace.

So...I fired everyone except for a few overseas contractors and quit all my 1-on-1 work. I had to take a break for about a year just to get used to motherhood but I am now rebuilding my business to focus exclusively on digital products. Before I go into 1-on-1 work, I was doing a good job scaling with Facebook ads, but like I said, I got really impatient, started chasing dollar signs instead of focusing on what would be the most sustainable form of revenue for me in the long run. Lesson learned!

I first learned about @MJ DeMarco via Pat Flynn's Smart Passive Income podcast (I used to binge listen when I worked a full-time job, lol). I read his book and LOVED it! It encapsulated everything that I knew was true in my gut but couldn't put into words.

Since my teenage years, I've always been interested in becoming wealthy and used to feel guilty that I wasn't "smart enough" to save up $1,000 and put it in a mutual fund when I was 16, because when I turn 65, by golly that $1,000 would have turned into $1 million! Ha! Not saying conservative investing is bad but I just knew there had to be a better way to build wealth while your young instead of waiting until 65.

Anyway, I feel pretty confident in my plan and want to reach financial independence in the next 5 years or sooner. My goal is to take the profits from this business and roll it into Real Estate and other high-margin, passive income businesses.

I'm excited to join this forum after lurking on and off for a few years and I look forward to connecting with you all!

Oh! And I've attached a screenshot of my stripe sales just so you know I'm telling the truth. I use both Stripe and PayPal in my online store so I've made more than what is shown here because this doesn't show my PayPal sales.

Welcome!

Great story... wow, you've been through a lot! Major respect for running a business while being a mother. I'm sure that stretches you every day!

I like the idea of a nimble life (from your username). What does that mean to you or how have you implemented that?

 

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[Primeperiwinkle]

Welcome to the forum, you sound awesome! Thanks for sharing such a cool story.

 

[mrsn1mbl3life]

Welcome!

Great story... wow, you've been through a lot! Major respect for running a business while being a mother. I'm sure that stretches you a lot!

I like the idea of a nimble life (from your username). What does that mean to you or how have you implemented that?

Yay! You get it! LOL!!!

Being "nimble" has a lot of significance to me because I first decided I wanted to live a "nimble" life in my early 20s after getting into major credit card debt. I had to work 3 jobs while I was in college to pay all that off, and I realized then that all I really wanted was freedom. Time freedom, creative freedom, and of course financial freedom.

I picked that username for this forum as a reminder, because I feel like I got away from "the nimble life" when I was building my business. I took on all kind of crazy expenses I didn't need to take just because it made me feel like "real" entrepreneur.

On the outside, all my friends and family envied me because I quit my job and was making money on my own, but in reality, I literally hated what I was doing. I could barely travel anywhere because I was so tied up with 1-on-1 clients and I would wake up in the morning asking myself "Is this what I really started all this for?" The answer was a big fat NO!

So I'm going back to being "nimble" in all areas of my life - my business, my finances, but most importantly, my state of mind.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

Welcome to our little corner on the web!

Appreciate the awesome introduction and the business background. You'll fit right in around here!

I first learned about @MJ DeMarco via Pat Flynn's Smart Passive Income podcast

Wow. Talk about "legacy value creation" -- I did that interview probably TEN YEARS ago! Nice to see it still produces awareness.

 

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[LittleMissFancy]

Welcome welcome from one lady Fastlaner to another Congrats on becoming a mom and on your business success thus far!

I know you mentioned that your product was self help materials so I would imagine your 1-on-1 clients viewed you as a life coach of sorts? Can you expand a little more on your products if you are willing to share?

 

[SD Entrepreneur]

Hi all!

I don't want to make this super long so I'll try to hit the high notes! Feel free to ask more questions if you want to know anything more in-depth.

I'm a 30-something female entrepreneur with an online business. I've been running it for 4 years now, 3 years full-time. In the beginning, I was selling digital products and doing pretty well with it. I was making anywhere from 5-10K a month which was awesome because I had no inventory, but I was getting super impatient because I wanted to quit my job and the sales weren't consistent enough for my husband to feel comfortable with me leaving.

So...I started to take on 1-on-1 clients because I could charge more and hit my financial goals faster. Because my 1-on-1 work was in high demand, I was quickly selling out months in advance and collecting as much as $5K per client.

The only problem was...I hated the work. And the hours were killing me. Thinking I could "buy my freedom" by "scaling", I ended up hiring a bunch of people I didn't need to hire.

It "worked" in the sense that I was bringing in $30K, $40K, sometimes $50K a month, but my expenses were crazy high and I hated my life doing so much one-on-one work. On top of that, we found out I was pregnant and there was no way I was going to be able to continue that pace.

So...I fired everyone except for a few overseas contractors and quit all my 1-on-1 work. I had to take a break for about a year just to get used to motherhood but I am now rebuilding my business to focus exclusively on digital products. Before I go into 1-on-1 work, I was doing a good job scaling with Facebook ads, but like I said, I got really impatient, started chasing dollar signs instead of focusing on what would be the most sustainable form of revenue for me in the long run. Lesson learned!

I first learned about @MJ DeMarco via Pat Flynn's Smart Passive Income podcast (I used to binge listen when I worked a full-time job, lol). I read his book and LOVED it! It encapsulated everything that I knew was true in my gut but couldn't put into words.

Since my teenage years, I've always been interested in becoming wealthy and used to feel guilty that I wasn't "smart enough" to save up $1,000 and put it in a mutual fund when I was 16, because when I turn 65, by golly that $1,000 would have turned into $1 million! Ha! Not saying conservative investing is bad but I just knew there had to be a better way to build wealth while your young instead of waiting until 65.

Anyway, I feel pretty confident in my plan and want to reach financial independence in the next 5 years or sooner. My goal is to take the profits from this business and roll it into Real Estate and other high-margin, passive income businesses.

I'm excited to join this forum after lurking on and off for a few years and I look forward to connecting with you all!

Oh! And I've attached a screenshot of my stripe sales just so you know I'm telling the truth. I use both Stripe and PayPal in my online store so I've made more than what is shown here because this doesn't show my PayPal sales.

Great job, I've learned that writing goals down like you did is crucial, make it happen!

 

[Kade]

Hello and welcome to forum ! And congratulation on becoming a parent !

So...I fired everyone except for a few overseas contractors and quit all my 1-on-1 work. I had to take a break for about a year just to get used to motherhood but I am now rebuilding my business to focus exclusively on digital products. Before I go into 1-on-1 work, I was doing a good job scaling with Facebook ads, but like I said, I got really impatient, started chasing dollar signs instead of focusing on what would be the most sustainable form of revenue for me in the long run. Lesson learned!

If you don't mind sharing, what are your most valuable lessons you learned from this enterprise ?
By 1-on-1 do you mean counseling and did you switch from digital product to counseling ?

 

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[Timmy C]

What an introduction.

Good to have you on the fastlane forum as a member!

Congratulations on your success so far.

 

[mrsn1mbl3life]

Welcome welcome from one lady Fastlaner to another Congrats on becoming a mom and on your business success thus far!

I know you mentioned that your product was self help materials so I would imagine your 1-on-1 clients viewed you as a life coach of sorts? Can you expand a little more on your products if you are willing to share?

Sure thing! Most of my products are digital courses, workshops, and ebooks. I've also done live events and live group coaching programs. I train on everything from time-management to self-discipline, as well as money management and business marketing.

I guess my clients view me as a bit of a hybrid between life coaching and business consulting. They typically have entrepreneurial aspirations themselves, so even though they come to me for personal development help, many of them end up wanting help with either marketing a business idea or managing their money, so I created products in my business to address that as well.

 

[KeepGoin]

Is your engine behind generating leads/sales content marketing through various mediums or is it paid traffic?

 

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[mrsn1mbl3life]

Is your engine behind generating leads/sales content marketing through various mediums or is it paid traffic?

It's a mix of both. I have a large-ish social media/podcast following so both of those generate traffic. Then I run paid ads to free opt-ins to grow my email list and sell directly via email.

 

[mrsn1mbl3life]

Hello and welcome to forum ! And congratulation on becoming a parent !



If you don't mind sharing, what are your most valuable lessons you learned from this enterprise ?
By 1-on-1 do you mean counseling and did you switch from digital product to counseling ?

Yes, by 1-on-1 I mean that I did a lot of counseling/coaching/consulting directly with my clients. Also, the segment of my clients who were interested in starting a business in a similar industry, I did extremely hands-on, borderline marketing agency work in terms of helping them get their businesses up and running.

The most valuable lesson I learned is honestly that time is more valuable than money, so design a business that makes money without taking up all your time! I didn't really understand the concept of "leverage" back then but now I try to leverage EVERYTHING.

 

[KeepGoin]

It's a mix of both. I have a large-ish social media/podcast following so both of those generate traffic. Then I run paid ads to free opt-ins to grow my email list and sell directly via email.

Awesome skill to have that system down at your age. Congrats on your success.

 

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[Deleted69818]

Hi all!

I don't want to make this super long so I'll try to hit the high notes! Feel free to ask more questions if you want to know anything more in-depth.

I'm a 30-something female entrepreneur with an online business. I've been running it for 4 years now, 3 years full-time. In the beginning, I was selling digital products and doing pretty well with it. I was making anywhere from 5-10K a month which was awesome because I had no inventory, but I was getting super impatient because I wanted to quit my job and the sales weren't consistent enough for my husband to feel comfortable with me leaving.

So...I started to take on 1-on-1 clients because I could charge more and hit my financial goals faster. Because my 1-on-1 work was in high demand, I was quickly selling out months in advance and collecting as much as $5K per client.

The only problem was...I hated the work. And the hours were killing me. Thinking I could "buy my freedom" by "scaling", I ended up hiring a bunch of people I didn't need to hire.

It "worked" in the sense that I was bringing in $30K, $40K, sometimes $50K a month, but my expenses were crazy high and I hated my life doing so much one-on-one work. On top of that, we found out I was pregnant and there was no way I was going to be able to continue that pace.

So...I fired everyone except for a few overseas contractors and quit all my 1-on-1 work. I had to take a break for about a year just to get used to motherhood but I am now rebuilding my business to focus exclusively on digital products. Before I go into 1-on-1 work, I was doing a good job scaling with Facebook ads, but like I said, I got really impatient, started chasing dollar signs instead of focusing on what would be the most sustainable form of revenue for me in the long run. Lesson learned!

I first learned about @MJ DeMarco via Pat Flynn's Smart Passive Income podcast (I used to binge listen when I worked a full-time job, lol). I read his book and LOVED it! It encapsulated everything that I knew was true in my gut but couldn't put into words.

Since my teenage years, I've always been interested in becoming wealthy and used to feel guilty that I wasn't "smart enough" to save up $1,000 and put it in a mutual fund when I was 16, because when I turn 65, by golly that $1,000 would have turned into $1 million! Ha! Not saying conservative investing is bad but I just knew there had to be a better way to build wealth while your young instead of waiting until 65.

Anyway, I feel pretty confident in my plan and want to reach financial independence in the next 5 years or sooner. My goal is to take the profits from this business and roll it into Real Estate and other high-margin, passive income businesses.

I'm excited to join this forum after lurking on and off for a few years and I look forward to connecting with you all!

Oh! And I've attached a screenshot of my stripe sales just so you know I'm telling the truth. I use both Stripe and PayPal in my online store so I've made more than what is shown here because this doesn't show my PayPal sales.

welcome to the forum and congra for the Motherhood!