Leaving Corporate America and Managing Your Own Business | Terrie Chantel

Today's episode features Terrie Chantel from TerrieChantel.com. Terrie is a successful speaker and business coach. She teaches teach business owners how to monetize their skills, uplevel their personal brand, create profitable offers, and convert followers into buyers. Being an entrepreneur wasn't always comfortable for Terrie. Check out how that changed for her and how she's helping others do the same. Listen, learn, and let us know what you think about this awesome episode! Episode Summary Terrie's Background Terrie graduated high school at age 16 and college at age 20 Both of her parents were “workaholics" This made Terrie believe that "amount of work = financial benefit" At 17, her uncle wanted her to co-sign on a car to build her credit That gesture changed her life At age 22 she went on to buy a house and really understood money Passing Down Money Lessons Terrie has three boys, ages 10, 15, 17 Her #1 tool she uses is to “paint a millionaire vision in their mind” This is the act of making wealth achievable in their mind She also gets them to use her debit card to pay bills online Just getting them involved in finances and eliminating the taboo Now her 17-year-old is already an entrepreneur Bondage vs Freedom Her uncle was like her dad and went towards the plan he set out She graduates college and goes directly into corporate Terrie stayed there for 10 years 5 years into that career, she started moving into management The pressure was increasing, work was coming home, and the money didn’t seem worth it That’s not what she envisioned It felt more like bondage than freedom Seeing a New Way She didn’t have other peers she could turn to who felt this way Terrie was always the girl, the youngest, and often the only black person  Being surrounded by all these 6-figure earners, Terrie saw how high earners spent money But everyone worked themselves to death and just watched their vacation pile up Simply put, Terrie had no idea there was another option So Terrie started her own side-hustle Through this, she begins to meet other entrepreneurs Then she did realize there was another way Can't Let Go of Stability Terrie gets laid off around the holidays and gets pregnant with her second child So she really starts taking her side hustle serious In her first month, she had 100 clients through a lot of hustle She would even set quotas for handing out business cards But even with all that success, she still went back to corporate work It just felt too secure Terrie did keep the business going by hiring and training someone She admits not everyone is driven to be an entrepreneur But if you have that passion, you have to follow it Tips for Starting that New Business She says some people jump to marketing too fast To help others you need to be financially stable yourself She focused mainly on customer service and building a solid product Once those frameworks are set, then you can focus on other things like marketing If you can’t consistently hit the number you need for bills, that’s a bad sign This means it’s time to take a pause and look at your processes She likes to look at it in three-month chunks Terrie says you should be seeing a consistent profitability to know your frameworks are set Valuing Yourself Then we talk about valuing yourself This includes charging a premium for your services Stop focusing on yourself and think about the client Think about how you’re going to change their life Then you’ll see just how much you're really worth Key Takeaways Security is addicting: Terrie had trouble walking away from her normal W-2 job. It's a valid feeling! Don't Jump To Marketing: Solidify your product offering and take care of your clients, let marketing come later. Call to Action Get creative with that work ethic.