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Mistakes I Made Building My Business

Mistakes I Made Building My Business

What Business Can Really Look Like:

Since starting my business I’ve been on quite a journey. I would have never guessed when I first saw the word Virtual Assistant on Facebook back in 2011 that it would have led me here. But I am so glad it did. If you have been a part of the online business world for a while, you might have learned there are a lot of people promising you can have a 6-figure business. They often make it sound so easy to create the same success they have had. I’m here, not to make flashy promises, but to show you how you can create the business YOU want and be REAL about what it takes.

I am writing this is a result of a comment someone made in my Facebook group. It’s funny how such a small comment can have a big impact. Someone wrote this week, that what I am sharing is done in a way that is real and that they haven’t seen in other groups. I don’t know if this person thought much about it when she wrote it, but I sure did. It got me to thinking about interactions I have with people and so many of us, even me at times, want everything on the outside to look good to others. The reality is, that often times, we only talk about the good and not what it actually took to get to that place.

While this may not give you direct business advice, I want to share with you some mistakes I have made while building my business. I’ve also thrown in a couple good choices I made too!

Business is not always pretty.
~Sara Lingenfelter

5 Things I’ve Never Shared Until Now

Here are 5 behind the scenes things that happened to me. And some of these I’ve never talked about until now. If I was to tell the entire story on all these we would be here a while so I’ll just give you a brief summary of them for now but I am happy to share more details, you just need to ask me.

  • The time I only charged clients $10 an hour! I was just starting as a Virtual Assistant and had NO idea what I was doing. Now I charge a LOT more but we all start somewhere. And my first 2 clients taught me so much that at the time I was really ok with this rate. Now knowing what I know, I would not suggest anyone start with rates this low!
  • The time I almost had a 10K month, then things came crashing down! Yeah, I was happy and then suddenly very unhappy. Here I am, all about systems and strategy for my clients but didn’t have my own in place. Because of this, I wasn’t ready for the growth and I had some very upset clients as a result. I still hate this happened but learned from it and moved on.
  • The time I worked 70 hour weeks and as a result gained 40+ lbs! Well, I was married, we had just bought a house and still owned our other house. The timeline was we bought the new house in October 2012, then in Nov find out husband has a pain pill addiction and had for quite some time, then 2 days before Christmas, he gets fired from his job. I spent the next 6 months working non-stop so we could make both house payments and take care of the 3 kids. Fast forward to present day, I am now divorced and have almost lost all the weight I gained 🙂
  • The time I quit my job to do my business full-time because of a new, big client, then a week later decided to not work with her but still quit my job! Nothing like quitting for a huge opportunity only to turn it down! I started to have a bad gut feeling about the client and I made the right choice to not work with her. And right away I landed other clients so it all worked out. But up until then, I was just doing my business on the side part-time. It took a while for me to realize my potential.
  • The time I asked a well-known person in the online world to be my mentor and she said yes! I credit her for teaching me how to grow my business to where it is now! I was so scared to ask her but I did. And when she said yes I couldn’t believe it. I did pay her, not a lot, but it’s important that I had an investment and stake in the game to motivate me. She and I worked together 1-1 for about 6 months and it was amazing! I will be forever grateful for her guidance and support.

Curious why I shared these? Yes, I do want to be real with you all. But more than that I want you to know things happen, good and bad. We don’t know the future but we always have a choice each and every day to make changes. Whatever you face now or in the future, you are not alone!

Can You Help Me Out?

It can be hard to ask for help but once you learn how it’s great! We need to support each other as much as we can. There is plenty of success to go around! Here’s what I want to ask you. I have a free guide that teaches women how they can start working from home as a Virtual Assistant. I’d love if you share this guide with a friend, on social media, or some other way. Any little bit helps!

My goal is to help moms build their empire. And that empire can look different for each of us. If I can support you somehow just hit reply and let me know in what way 🙂

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