Small Business Story with Suzie Flynn

Suzie Flynn is an award winning mindset and business coach who helps Executive Assistants break from the corporate world and start their own Virtual Assistant business. 

The Catalyst for Starting a Business 

Suzie begins by telling the story of how she decided to take the step to start her own business. 

“In my mid to late 30s, I started to get frustrated with the corporate world, dealing with redundancies and all of the challenges that came with organisational restructuring. Then I came across coaching. I didn't really know what it was, but it sounded interesting because my background is in psychology, so I started to explore it. Then sadly, I lost my parents in 2013, about six months apart. For me, that was probably the catalyst for making a decision to do something different. “ 

“So I invested some inheritance money, and went on to do other training like NLP and EFT. And then ultimately, when I was about to be made redundant again, and I was about to buy my first home at the same time, I decided that I had all the training and I really had to get this into action. In January 2017 I had some of my own coaching and realised that I actually did want to be a coach, so I stepped into that. That is when I started building the coaching business, and it just flourished from there.” 

The Benefits and Challenges of Running Your Own Business 

Suzie continues to share the benefits, but also the challenges she experienced from being her own boss.   

“My business gives me so much of what I've always been looking for - to make a deep difference in people's lives, not just in terms of setting up a VA business, but helping them know what is possible, having freedom and flexibility, making a huge transformation and just having my clients see those wins. Another benefit that I've received from running my own business is the willingness to invest in my business. I invested in Helen Pritchard’s LinkedIn Mastermind, and that's really helped my business take off. And during the lockdown, I decided to invest in seven-figure coaches and started I Heart My Life with Emily Williams.” 

Suzie admits that struggling with the imposter syndrome has been one of the biggest challenges for her. 

“Probably one of the biggest challenges that I face as a business owner and as a coach, and this can happen to anyone, is about the imposter syndrome, that feeling that you're a fraud, that you're going to get caught out, that you don't know enough and that there are better coaches out there than you. Although I feel like I've definitely overcome it now, I think it's something that doesn't go away. It does stay with you, so I'd love to share a few tips on the strategies I've used to help overcome my imposter syndrome. I have a spreadsheet (but you can use any kind of document) that is called Suzie is AWESOME. Every time a client writes a testimonial, I bank it there.” 

“Another thing that you can do is to list out the things that you're good at,” Suzie continues. “So every day, write down three of your strengths. It could be anything, it doesn't have to be related to work, but what we're doing here is we're effectively reprogramming our brain for success, because if we keep feeding the negative thoughts, then that's what we'll get. So instead, we get into the habit of having a gratitude diary, or looking back at that AWESOME list, and constantly priming our brain into success and away from that imposter syndrome.” 

Marketing and Finding Clients 

Suzie mostly uses LinkedIn to build relationships and connect with her potential clients, and recently she has started getting more referrals through her existing clients. She shares some advice on the amount of time someone should spend on LinkedIn and the strategy behind it. 

“Firstly, focus on just one platform as you're getting started, and become known in your field. I spend about an hour a day on LinkedIn. It doesn't even need to be that amount, but what is really important is consistency. It's important to post every single day. You would think that maybe you're spamming in that way, but the fact is, many people may not even see your post due to the LinkedIn algorithms. I put out, shamelessly, about 10 different promo posts a day that link to different pain points of my ideal clients, and I get likes, I get leads. I look at it as reminders, because people need to have several engagement points before they actually make a commitment. It's also about stepping into your bravery and being visible, which can be scary. Doing videos especially can be scary for some people, but it’s an important part of marketing.” 

Business and Private Goals 

“Goals are so important,” Suzie says. “My coaches are always nurturing us to get clear on our goals. At the moment, one of my goals is to get fully booked on my VA Freedom Startup coaching program by the end of the year. My next goal is to get a five-figure income, then get to six, then to seven, because I believe this is a lot around money mindset. I believe that the more money you earn in the business, the more people you can help. I am also looking at building an online mindset course and a group coaching program next year, creating a membership site, and I would like to have a podcast at some point.” 

As for my private goals, my dream would be in five years time to hit that seven figure business and to work with a project management company to build schools in Africa, and to go three or four times a year. I want to give the children that have such a poor upbringing, the opportunity to have an education and to have a choice and freedom. It's a big, big dream, and I know I need a lot of money for it, so that's why I want to build my business, grow it, and invest in it,” Suzie concludes.   

Connect with Suzie Flynn

Website www.suzieflynn.com

Quit the 9 to 5 https://suzieflynn.com/quitthe9to5

 Linkedin https://linkedin.com/in/suzieflynn

 Facebook https://facebook.com/suzieflynncoaching

Connect with Elizabeth Wright

Linkedin www.dhirubhai.net/in/virtual-assistant/

Admin and More Website www.adminandmore.co.uk

To listen to the podcast https://anchor.fm/smallbusinessgrowthclub

Join Small Business Growth Club www.smallbusinessgrowthclub.simplero.com

Try our Networking Group https://smallbusinessgrowthclub.eventbrite.com