“What does your wife do?” People ask me that question all the time during networking events and speaking engagements. “She’s an exercise physiologist and medical exercise specialist with a private practice in Richmond. She works in tandem with physicians and physical therapists whose patients are undergoing joint replacement or spinal surgery.”
Sounds cool doesn’t it? The story of how she decided to go out on her own is nothing short of amazing because she’d decided to pull the trigger on the idea just a few months after giving birth to our daughter!
This is an interview about how changing her thinking gave her the power to start a business, be an awesome wife, and terrific Mom. That’s why I consider her Wonder Woman!
Chris: You’ve been in your industry for over 20 years and had been contemplating starting your own business for about 10. Many people thought you’d be foolish to leave the security of a steady paycheck— including you. What changed?
Amanda: Starting my own business was something I’d always wanted to do, and I knew that if I didn’t leap soon, I would continue putting it off for another 10 years. The thing that clinched it for me was running the actual projected revenue and expenses— you know, a performa. It was a no-brainer after that. I realized starting my own business would give me the 2 things I wanted most: 1) I’d be able to make more money working fewer hours, and 2) I’d have more time with my daughter, which was something I desperately wanted.
Chris: Even after running the numbers, you still struggled with the idea (and sanity) of launching a business with a newborn in your life. Something about your mindset changed, and it shoved you forward with your decision. What was it?
Amanda: You and I were having a conversation about my mother, and you asked me what she taught me about being an entrepreneur. I told you she’d always encouraged me, and told me I could achieve anything if I put my mind to it. You questioned that because I’d previously shared with you that she’d always regretted not following her own dreams of starting her own business, and had passed on several opportunities. Then I realized, despite what she’d “taught” me (with her encouraging words) I’d unwittingly “learned” something completely different from her. In fact, I was doing exactly what she had done: I was playing it safe and keeping my head down. What a shock!
Your next question was, “What will you teach our daughter, and what do you want her to learn?” That was it. The clock started ticking, and with a new sense of urgency. I got a pen and paper and started tinkering with my business model that day. It helped that I was also married to a talented business coach 🙂
Chris: What practical advice do you have about balancing motherhood with being a business owner?
Amanda: As you know, my tendency is to put 100% of myself into my work. To avoid being an absentee mom, you helped me devise one, simple question for assessing my opportunities: “Does this opportunity get me closer to, or further from, my goal of being a profitable business owner and have the time to be good mother?” That’s a key question for me because I come across opportunities often that would help my business, but tack on a disproportionate number of hours away from my girl. I am re-wiring myself to look for opportunities that have good business upsides without adding more hours at work. So my advice is to create a simple question you can ask yourself when you are contemplating an opportunity— one that keeps you honest about your goals as a person— not just as a business owner.
Chris: You give everything you’ve got emotionally to your clients, your child, and your husband. How do you make time for yourself to re-charge?
Amanda: I’m still working on this one, but giving myself permission to put myself first every once in a while has been a huge help. Exercise has always been my “me-time,” both for my body and my mind. Ironically, although I work with people on exercise all day, many times I can’t fit it in for myself. But it is a priority; it makes me a better mother, wife and trainer. My favorites are running with my dog, and going for long walks with my family (baby in a stroller or backpack, for now). I’ve also learned that reading a good book before bed, (ideally a novel) helps me unwind and keeps me from working all night.
Chris: Now that our daughter is turning 1, what are you shooting for by the time she’s 2?
Amanda: Growth. I have several ideas about how I will achieve it, but I want my business to be twice its current size by the third quarter of 2014. Adding an apprentice or two, expanding my offerings, and finding a larger space will all be a part of that. I also want more quality time with my family away from home; at least 2 good vacations would be a great start.
Chris: Last question, what can I do to help you have another kick-ass year?
Amanda: Keep doing what you’re doing. Help me stay focused, feed me grapes, rub my feet, you know—the usual. But seriously, the thing I need the most help with is making time to work on my business instead of always working in my business. What I mean is I need to block time to work on creating professional partnerships, promoting my services, and finding ways to expanding my practice. I genuinely love my work and my clients, and as a result, I tend to over-schedule myself, focusing exclusively on providing the actual services to my clients, and leaving no time for strategically growing the business. So you can support me in finding ways to create that time in my schedule.
Chris: I think I can do that! Besides, it’s easy when you’re married to Wonder Woman! So, if you’re Wonder Woman, what does that make me?
Amanda: Really!? You really want me to answer that?
Chris: Um, no… probably not.
