I’m Natalie Clare, 26 years old. Originally from the Philippines but raised and residing in Dubai. I’m a bit of a rebel… I don’t like being told what to do and I hate being stuck in places where I don’t like to be. As a teenager with typical Asian parenting, I ran away from home numerous times. This experience has taught me how to live independently. I managed to buy my first car while I was still living away from home and that was when I won my parents’ blessing to make my own decisions.

What is your entrepreneur story? How did you come about building your business?

I was raised in Dubai, the city of opportunity. Whilst everyone was trying to get a job, I managed to escape my lucrative job… and I did it cold turkey! It all happened so fast.. It started when I got myself an interview for a Social Media Manager role at a company that I liked the look of (I was interested in their culture). However, I did not have any experience in Social Media. I managed to land the job but I knew nothing about it! So I crammed on YouTube to learn all about Social Media management. Then I started to come across suggested videos of millennials my age who were making a living doing similar things with their online business. I was intrigued so I wanted to start my own online business. I tried to do it as a side hustle but it was very difficult. Working 9 hours a day at my job and then coming home to work more hours on my laptop was physically impossible for me. On top of that, I had anxiety because I desperately wanted to make my business work, but all my time was going towards this job that I no longer cared about. So 2 months after being hired, I decided to give up the monthly paycheck in exchange for my time and energy to work on my new business.

What is your business model?

Affiliate Marketing is earning commissions by promoting other people’s products/services. The company provides you with an affiliate link to promote their products/services and when people click the link to buy, it gets tracked to you and you get a commission. Most of the big establishments you know have an affiliate program and some of them have “sticky cookies” which means if somebody clicks your link and closes the page, and 6 months later decides to buy, as long as you were the last one to promote to them, then your name will still be traced, and you will still get the commission. There are many different kinds of affiliate programs (low ticket, high ticket, and recurring commissions). I help burnt-out employees start their Affiliate Marketing business online.

How were you able to grow so fast?

Here’s a cheesy answer but it’s the truth. I was able to grow without thinking about money. Many people obsess about whether their business is making money or not, and they start to worry if it’s not. When you focus on the money, it never comes. When you love the process and focus on helping your audience by giving them ridiculous amounts of value, somehow money magically rolls in. I do this by posting educational and inspirational content on social media as opposed to spamming people with ads and discount codes.

Can you give me an overview of who you are, what is your educational or overall background? What are some of your achievements?

I started my career at the age of 17 straight out of High School. I worked my way up from a Receptionist role to an Operations Manager > Account Manager > Brand Manager and Social Media Manager. 9 years of being in the rat race, only to find out that the 9 to 5 was not for me! Today I show people the possibility of quitting their 9 to 5’s by teaching them how to start their online business through Affiliate Marketing.

What have you learned through your experiences as an entrepreneur that can be used by aspiring business individuals?

The most important lesson is “Do not wait to start your business until you are ready” because you will never be ready. If you are truly business-minded, you’d have already understood the fact that business comes with a whole load of risk and failure. It’s being able to stand up from the failure that will make you stand out and become successful. In the beginning, I felt the need to watch every course there is and read every best-selling book there was. It was not until I took action when I started to see results. People get stuck in the paralysis analysis phase but never realize that the best lessons you can ever learn are from the mistakes you make and that is because these are experiences you will never forget.

What makes your business so unique and successful?

The best thing about Affiliate Marketing is it’s one of the most passive income businesses today, which means you do the hard work upfront (build the machine) and later the business continues to generate money even while you sleep! Apart from that, you do not need to create a product, deal with any business operations i.e. customer service, inventory, order bulk from suppliers, etc. You won’t be limited to getting paid by the hour like any other service-based business out there. Plus it does not require a high capital or investment to start! Affiliate Marketing when done right can give you Time-freedom, Location-freedom, and Financial-freedom.

What have you learned through your journey as an entrepreneur?

I learned that being comfortable is dangerous and being on the edge is actually a great opportunity to grow. Whenever I am comfortable, it means that there is a problem- the problem is I am remaining stagnant and I am not growing. I find that my best results come from those times when I forced myself to make that video even when I wasn’t in the mood. Therefore I create challenges for myself such as the “21-day YouTube challenge” where I post 1 video a day for 21 days. I’m happy to face challenges because they push me to take action and action builds momentum in your business.

What skills and attributes make you as successful as you are?

I am naturally stubborn so I believe that is what gives me a strong mentality. I’ve got a lot of passion and perseverance in me. I’m the type of person who “when I want something, I will do anything in my power to get it.” A lot of people give up on their businesses because they victimize themselves and settle for “it wasn’t meant to be.” The truth is, everything works… but it is entirely up to you to figure it out and make it work.

Why is online business, marketing, etc important?

We are now in the digital age where the internet is the future. Television and Advertising are slowly dying- Podcast is the new radio, YouTube is the new TV. Billboards and magazines are being replaced by Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter, and Supermarkets are now delivering your groceries with the tap of a button. The internet is already taking over everything we once knew, and how can you do all of this effectively? Through Marketing. To me, marketing is NOT about selling, promoting or pitching. Rather, it is bringing awareness to the solutions of people’s problems. Marketing CANNOT CREATE a desire for a product/service. It can only take the hopes, dreams, and fears that ALREADY EXIST in the hearts of people and focus them onto a particular product/service. It is not about CREATING a desire, it is about channeling and directing it.

What is your giveaway idea through this interview?

For burnt-out employees, get your FREE Affiliate Marketing training at www.BreakFreeAndProsper.com 

For entrepreneurs, grab your FREE Marketing books at www.BreakFreeAndProsper.com

Our biggest motivator is not the riches and pleasures in life, but rather the pain we would have to face if we didn’t make it work. I would be willing to do whatever it takes so that my family would never have to starve, but I’ll be fine without a Lamborghini

The post Quit her lucrative job cold-turkey and started her online business: Success Story of Natalie Clare. appeared first on CEO Medium.

Hi Eric, can you tell us a bit about yourself and what you do?

I´m Eric Steigner, an entrepreneur and digital marketing consultant from Germany. In the last 3 years, I´ve been part of the biggest webinar project in Germany. We helped scale one of the most influential digital franchise companies in Germany to 7-figures. 

I’m also the co-owner of the biggest agency program in the country. I´m the strategic head behind some of the biggest advertising campaigns in Germany. What I do is pretty simple: I look at existing businesses, break them down into simple building blocks, and put them back together in a more profitable and scalable way.

How did you create your brand? What inspired you?  

I started my journey back in 2018 as an IT Student at a university, while working part-time at a grocery store, making 450€/month. I tried every business model in the books. Nothing worked for me. My motivation was never money – I´ve always wanted an independent life. Just my rules – doing what I love, when and where I want.

Fast forward a bit: I dropped out of university 2 times. Met my first business mentor (the founder of an 8-figure weight loss company in Germany) and decided to work for him in Bulgaria. 

I got insights into big 7- and 8-figure projects quickly, and was managing 6- figure ad campaigns after just 2 months. I felt like a sponge – absorbing every piece of information I could while developing a big skill set.

Fast forward again: I started a new project on my own and got my first clients. I was shocked! The principles that I was used to, along with the knowledge and standards in building an offer that works, creating viral ad campaigns, and writing killer copy… were just not there. Things that I thought everyone knew about…were hidden gems for most of my clients.

That’s where I realized that entrepreneurs are the only people that can change the world. Because of that, I have to share my Insights with as many entrepreneurs as possible. 

How does your brand work? 

I mostly work with Entrepreneurs that already have an existing offer/service. I take a look at their whole business, break it down into simple building blocks, optimize every single one of them, then put them back together in a more profitable and scalable way. 

I teach them how to look deep into their market, finding their audience’s deepest, most hidden fears and wishes, and how to create an offer that will sell like crazy. After that, we set up traffic campaigns on Facebook, Google, and YouTube, and scale them through the roof.

Do you have a giveaway idea to help our readers? 

Business doesn’t have to be complete chaos. It should be simple and fun. My clients make more money, sleep better, experience better relationships, and know exactly how to scale to the next level. 

What challenges did you face while building your brand? What daily challenges do you face? 

A challenge that I struggled with for quite a while was my age. I´m just 22 years old and most seasoned entrepreneurs think that I´m too young to know anything about business. And normally, I would agree…if there wasn’t my first mentor. I got the chance to skip 3-5 years of learning and went directly to managing 6- and 7-figure projects and spending 5-6.000€/day in ads. My results speak for themselves.

How do you manage your business finances and funding? 

I started from scratch, working for 450€/month and reinvesting every penny. For the first 9 months, I didn’t make any money. 97€ a month went into my funnel building software and 350€ into ads. There was nothing left for more than 9 months. Working 12-14h a day, 7 days a week. Skipping parties and losing some friends. But in the end, it was worth it. I’m currently making 6-figures a month doing what I love – having awesome people around me. I’ve got several employees and my business is fully automated.

What’s your future vision for your brand? What’s your next level dream? 

Entrepreneurs can change the world – so I want to help where I can. Provide them with everything I know about building and scaling a digital business. I know how hard business can be – especially at the beginning. So I want to personally help at least 10,000 entrepreneurs build and scale their business and live the life they have dreamed of.

Do you have a message for those looking to create something of their own and make a living from it? 

If you have a dream – stick to it. It will be hard, you will struggle, there will be people blocking your way… 

But in the end: It will be worth it. I will be happy to help you on your way.

Follow Eric Steigner on Instagram

The post Digital Marketer Eric Steigner’s Marketing Helps Companies Scale to 7-Figures appeared first on CEO Medium.

She’s passionate about helping spirit-led believers who know that, without a doubt, they’ve been called to share their important work with the masses. Her clients are women who are passionate and on fire about their work. With a love for all things marketing and strategy, she offers a transformative range of educational courses and programs to help them succeed. 

Tell us a little bit about yourself. What do you do?

I am a marketing expert with an extensive background in marketing. With 4 years of experience, I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Media and Communication. 

In my last working role, I was a Marketing and Brand Manager for a prestigious small business, which was a popular celebrity hang-out. Nowadays, it’s my mission to help online coaches, spirit-led believers, to master marketing and strategy for their online coaching businesses. 

How did you create your brand? What inspired you?

I am on a big mission to help as many online coaches as possible get massive exposure to their work and help them make marketing easy. I teach them exactly how to achieve these goals in my signature course, God in Marketing.

I’m also working on a blog ( oliviagenevieve.co.uk/blog) that educates and informs online coaches on how to master marketing and strategy for their coaching businesses. I share insider tips, fresh perspectives, and key information to help them get one step closer to their work of reaching the masses. 

How does your brand work?

It’s an online hybrid model, which consists of courses and high-level programs. 

With self-study courses, it’s about helping as many Christian women as possible with marketing and strategy in their coaching businesses. I also offer high-level, exclusive programs which are available for ambitious women who are ready to receive specialized and customized support over the course of months. 

Do you have a giveaway idea for our readers?

I have two high-level programs: a mastermind and a private one-to-one program that teaches ambitious online coaches exactly how to get massive exposure to their work on automation, so their work reaches people endlessly. This way, they don’t have to launch their offers all the time and feel chained to their business. In turn, they have more free time to spend as they wish. 

What challenges did you go through while starting your business? What are the challenges you go through on an everyday basis?

Though I know the importance of rest and recuperation, because I’m passionate about my work and love it to pieces, and because I also love technology, it is sometimes challenging to get off it and actually switch off. 

I see this as a negative, but also a positive — it is proof and evidence that I am most certainly in the right business! 

How do you manage your business finances?  

Spreadsheets are key to managing finances — Google Sheets are my friend. I don’t believe in being completely obsessed with money, because that takes the focus off being of service, which for me is first and foremost. Above all, I do believe in knowing exactly what is happening with it, for example: tracking where it is coming from, how many sales were made per month, exactly what my business expenses are per month. 

Tell us about your future vision for your brand. How far do you want to take it? What is your dream about taking it to the next level?

It is my big goal for my work to reach many, many Christian women from all across the world because I know that so many spirit-led believers will massively benefit from it. My perspectives and teachings on marketing and strategy are a little different from most people’s, which I believe is needed in the online space. For this reason, I am especially passionate about my work reaching the people who I know need it. 

What message would you like to give to anybody who has a plan of creating something of their own and making a living through it?

Passion, though very important, isn’t the only thing you need when starting a business, because feelings can be changeable. 

Here is what you also need: grit and perseverance, because results don’t always happen overnight.  You need to firmly commit to the decision that you are going to stick with your business, that you are not going to quit, no matter what. That is a key factor in how you are going to see success. 

Also, know your target audience through and through!

The post Olivia Genevieve Offers Educational Opportunities for Passionate, Spirit-Led Online Coaches appeared first on CEO Medium.

How did you decide to start your business? Tell us more about yourself.

I was born and raised in a small city in Canada. I attended business school there, and my 1st year of University. I kept thinking about how I could turn my passion into a stream of income. At the time, this was fitness. I decided to start an online fitness business, which I grew and maintained while in school and traveling between terms.

By my third year of University, I was weighed down and anxious about being in school. The material being taught was seemingly irrelevant to becoming an entrepreneur. It simply wasn’t applicable to creating a life of freedom and fulfillment on my own terms.

I didn’t want to let my family down by quitting school and had a lot of guilt. Instead, I came up with a biz plan. I persuaded my Dad to let me drop out, so I could pursue my first house flip project. The idea was to become a real estate developer like him.

This plan worked and allowed me to learn more hands-on, so I did another infill build project. While these real estate projects were in progress, I turned 4 other ideas into startup businesses. These included an esthetics business, 2 consignment businesses, and doing social media management. 

It didn’t take long to realize that modeling my life work after what my Dad did was not for me. I was here for something else. All these projects were my way of searching for more meaning and purpose in my life…

Starting these separate businesses for surface reasons (money and meeting perceived external expectations) left me empty. Many of the business structures wouldn’t allow for full time and location freedom, which was part of the underlying drive for doing it in the first place…

I knew I wanted more.

I tried and quite a few times until I completely gave up on myself. I felt like the only way to succeed in not only making an impact but also having time and location freedom, was by having a man “save” me…

I felt like a damsel in distress.

Eventually, I saw everything I needed was already within me. I already was good enough.

This newfound sense of purpose and deep-rooted self-worth was the accumulation of personal development, joining masterminds, and working with coaches.

And that’s when my 7th business started, at the age of 22. By that point, I felt like a woman completely in control of her reality. I chose to help other women. I want women across the world to be able to create and scale their own purpose-driven, impactful, online course businesses.

I help women gain clarity and see the gifts they have to offer, the ways they can help people, AND how to make money doing it. They can do this whether they’re in their pajamas at home, or traveling around the world.

Essentially, I help them turn their past into their purpose and their passion, skills, and experience into successful online course biz.

All people need to make this happen is to invest in a strategic combination of coaching, masterminds, and online courses.

Talk about fulfilling “work”!!!

How did you go about creating your brand? What pushed this seventh business into play?

The sole idea was based on the fact that a person’s transformation starts on the inside. It starts with a person’s beliefs. Women need to know that their dreams were meant to be lived!

Most people don’t have a firm understanding of how to turn their past into their purpose. Helping them do this is essential, all while being extremely rewarding.

Fulfillment comes from a life of making a difference and serving other people. That’s why I call women who lead an aligned and an intentionally successful life a Queen. I combine this with helping women become aware of their feminine energy. I show them how to balance wisdom and intuition while being collaborative, playful, and creative in their masculine energy.

This is vital if they want to create tangible, grounded results. A woman who has developed this awareness and lives up to it is a mature Queen, whereas someone who demands, forces, and believes that circumstances happen TO her instead of FOR her would be considered an immature princess.

How does your brand work? What is the process?

We work 1:1, through a mastermind or course that provides you with a transformational, life-changing experience. This in turn leads you into becoming a successful entrepreneur so you can scale your online business.

The 3 steps required to become an online course Queen are:

1) First and foremost, you must BEcome the Queen version of yourself. This includes building success habits, gaining clarity on your purpose, and transforming paradigms and limiting beliefs into an aligned, authentic, and confident power source. (BE)

2) Learn and DO all the prioritized actions required to start or scale an impactful business. This is where business and online marketing strategies come into play. (DO)

3) Then you can HAVE your dream become reality. At this point, you’ve already created an automated, transformative process that is your online course. Now you get to help people and experience time and location freedom while earning passive income. (HAVE)

Can you share something with our readers, an idea that might resonate with them?

Creating a 6-figure business is absolutely possible if you focus on the right things…

Most entrepreneurs have information overload. They don’t actually know what to focus on to get results. For example, many women spend months on websites, business card creation, paid ads, etc., none of which you need to get started to have thousands of dollars coming in and ACTUALLY be in business.

Intentionally combining your experience, passion, and purpose and turning it into impactful online course biz is the best means for you to create a fulfilling life that you LOVE. That fulfilling life can include time, financial, AND location freedom.

What was your biggest challenge as you grew your business? How do you handle current challenges?

The biggest challenges regarding brand creation would be from years ago when I had lower self-awareness, confidence, and minimal understanding of my gifts. I didn’t know how to turn them into money, freedom, and fulfillment. Hence, the 6 startups were based SOLELY on creating money without purpose and passion.

I have minimal challenges in my daily life now that I have a loving support system, a coach, and a high-level peer group. I made this possible by setting my standards higher and investing in myself.

I do occasionally indulge in too many sci-fi, magical, or hero shows and loose sleep, ha…  That in turn can make it challenging for me to show up present, collected, and as my best self for the people I love. 

How do you manage your business finances? Did you fund your business with loans?

There was no funding involved in this business. I paid off my business loan from the sixth startup, and with the cash brought in organically in my first month with my 7th business. I’m only 23 and I’ve already done over 6 figures in sales. The expenses are very marginal, and the profits are very high. 

Where do you see the future of your brand going? What’s the next level?

The short-term plan is to grow my team and increase the opportunities available for women at all points of their journey of going from newbie entrepreneurs to Queen CEO.

Higher-level masterminds are definitely coming ASAP, as well as retreats and live events as the COVID-19 situation recedes.

This brings to mind a commonly said quote: 

“Most people overestimate what they can accomplish in 1 year and underestimate what they can in 10.”

If that’s the case, then imagine that instead of just a decade, what is possible for you to create and accomplish in a LIFETIME….?!  A lifetime working toward one bigger mission allows for SO much growth, expansion, and opportunity. And, this is just the beginning. 

I’ll definitely be helping a billion people’s lives. Think Oprah meets Tony Robbins, but like, me in 50 years.

Dreams are meant to be lived. Anything is possible. 

Do you have a message for other creators trying to make a living through their creative efforts?

“You may not have it completely perfect your first time, or your sixth time, but you’ll never figure it out if you give up. Giving up is what the real failure would be. Having someone experienced in your corner will make the process and your growth infinitely faster. Your dreams are meant to be lived. They are not yours just for imagining, they are yours for the taking.”

Company name: Sophia Rising

Facebook URL :     www.facebook.com/groups/onlinecoursequeen

Instagram URL :     www.instagram.com/thesophiarising

The post Sophia Rising is Helping Women Make Better Choices appeared first on CEO Medium.