Raise your hand if selling to your favorite store tops your business bucket list? But as exciting as it is to see your products on the shelf of a store, there’s a whole new set of challenges that come with developing wholesale and retail partnerships. One of the not-so-sexy sides of developing a wholesale/retailer business? You have to get comfortable with having some awkward and, at times, unpleasant conversations.

All good things take time. And time we took. May was not only profitable, but it was a time for us to prepare for our largest launch to date in June. We spent weeks behind the scenes working with our current students, preparing bonuses and other awesome new materials and even working on some alternative ways to bring in more cash. See how May shaped up today.

Ever feel like you need to hide that your business is small?

Early on in my handbag business when I had no one working for me, I would use phrases like, "Thank you for calling us. A customer service representative will contact you within one business day."

I used my first and middle names as my business name to give the company a big "designer" image. And I'd do everything I could to hide that I was 18 years old for fear that I wouldn't be taken seriously.

A couple of years in, I had a big realization.

"I LOVE my business but… keeping up with the financials makes me feel all sorts of icky!"

That statement right there, is exactly what I hear from almost every creative I work with, time and time again! It feels like they have mastered all areas of their business but one. Managing finances correctly is a highly dreaded task for most creative entrepreneurs. I feel their pain, I really do! That’s why I want to provide you with a few simple but valuable steps to help you get started and begin to conquer this “left field” task. After reading this post, my hope is that you feel better and more capable of tackling this head on. Let’s get started!

If you're like most creative business owners, you're super busy doing #allthethings in your business.  You're the chief service provider, director of marketing, and content manager.  It's no wonder that you hardly have any time left to tackle the administrative part of your business.  Let’s be honest.  Your bookkeeping isn't exactly the shiniest penny in the jar either, so it's often pushed aside week after week until it can be pushed no more — which usually signals that it's tax time!  Am I right?

As a product-based business owner, you are the face of your business. You know your line better than anyone else and are ready to chat up buyers + retailers about your awesome assortment of products. As an introvert, though, chances are you will find needing to be so “on” all the time exhausting. Running a business as an introvert comes with its own set of challenges because our natural tendencies don’t always align with how our extroverted clients + customers think.

While it’s tempting to sit back and hope that people will find you and purchase your products, you know that your business and marketing strategy is what sets you apart from the competition. For many introverts, all the “look at me and my business” talk can leave us ready to run for the hills. If you have ever struggled with finding a balance between putting yourself out there (because you know you have to) and staying true to your introvert roots, then today’s post has your name written all over it.

Here’s a little secret: I’ve been self-employed for more than 12 years, but I’ve only been a business owner for two years. Yep, for a full decade I was “just a freelancer”.

My answer to the “what do you do?” question used to be, “I’m a freelance writer”. Not a business owner, not a CEO, not a badass boss babe. I was just a writer who happened to make a pretty good living doing it.

I’ve heard that over 80% of Americans want to write a book, but less than 1% ever do. That’s too bad! I wish I could have a minute to talk with each and every one of them and share my experience. I think some of them would be persuaded to actually put in the effort. Because the truth is, writing and publishing my first book changed my business (and my life) more than any other single action ever has. It was the catalyst that catapulted my success to where it is now.

Becoming an author expanded my audience exponentially, made me a go-to authority in my niche, created an additional stream of passive income, and positively changed my life in so many ways.

We’ve never been more laser focused! April was the month of launching and learning and boy, did we do just that. Inside this income report you will see where we got a 3047% ROI, how we were able to have our biggest launch to date in 7 days, and some insight into transitioning a baby to the nanny life.