The Everyday Entrepreneur with Teresa Heath-Wareing: The Most Important Question To Ask In Challenging Times

THE ONE QUESTION THAT COULD CHANGE EVERYTHING.

Okay guys and gals, I know we’re all knees deep in quarantine right now so I wanted to be very specific about who I chose for this month’s star of The Everyday Entrepreneur. Grab your favorite isolation snack (it’s okay if that’s a stiff margarita for you today) and snuggle up with this quick read for a whole heck of a lot of inspiration, all the feel-good warm fuzzies, and of course some “you CAN do this”-isms. 

I am truly honored to have the chance to interview this incredible woman, not to mention just listen to her talk (she has the best British accent). I feel like she should narrate one of those meditation apps, seriously. 

But first… how we met (this is proof that you CAN build strong relationships on Instagram!). 

We started as IG friends and by pure "chance" met in person at the Social Media Marketing World conference in 2018 when we just happened to be sitting next to each other waiting for Jasmine Star to speak. 

We've stayed in touch ever since and have exchanged expertise over her podcast, gabbed on IG, and now I get to share her mighty wisdom with you all! I am just so grateful to have a friend like her during these times and I hope you find her words to be a bright spot in your week the way that I have. 

Teresa is an award-winning international speaker, TEDx speaker, trainer, podcaster, author and business owner. She works with businesses, entrepreneurs and marketers to help them enhance their digital marketing & social media efforts. She is recognized alongside some of the world’s social media & digital marketing thought leaders and is widely regarded as one of the United Kingdom’s leading Marketing influencers. 

Teresa has spent the last 15 years in Marketing working with international brands such as Land Rover, Jaguar, Rightmove, and Leadpages. She speaks to and trains business owners and marketers all over the world. As well as in her online membership - The Marketing that Converts Academy. Teresa also hosts a popular weekly podcast called ‘Marketing that Converts’ and has interviewed the likes of Amy Porterfield, Pat Flynn, Micheal Hyatt, Jasmine Star, James Wedmore, and Brian Fanzo.

I know you’re all just on the edge of your couches wishing I would stop talking and just get to the action, so without further adieu:

Holly: Welcome, Teresa! I can’t wait to hear what you have to share with my audience today!

Teresa: Thank you, I'm really excited to talk with you.

Holly: Let’s get right to it. This is a crazy time! People reevaluating how they think about their businesses and their goals. 

With your accomplished experience in the digital marketing and online space, let's dive into your perspective on what's happening in the world. 

But first, tell us about your business, and how you got started.

Teresa: I never intended to start my own business at all. I joke that I'm an accidental entrepreneur because basically, I went through a bit of a life change.

My husband had left. I was at home with my two-year-old daughter, and working in this Marketing job that I really enjoyed. But something started to change in the job, and I thought, you know what, I’m going to look for another job.

So unlike me and slightly arrogantly, I thought, well, someone else will pick me up. I've got lots of marketing experience. I'm really good at what I do. I'm sure I'll find another job.

But nothing was forthcoming. People were saying nice things, but they were like, no, I can't afford you. I live in a small part of rural England and there aren’t big businesses, who pay the salaries I wanted. 

I started to think about doing the business thing myself. When my boss at the time heard about it, she asked me to leave the company.

There I was, with one month's salary, no rich parents, no rich husband, no savings. My back wasn’t against the wall. I didn't have a job or any money.

I initially started as a Marketing consultant, and then I became interested in the online world that we're in now. I love teaching, I love sharing my knowledge, and I loved the thought that I could speak to people all over the world about what I knew.

So, I started to build an online presence, an agency and then started to speak.

I also started to speak at some really amazing places. It was then that I realized how hard it was becoming to run an agency and look after clients.

I started to slowly drop down the agency work, which I have to say was probably scarier than starting in the first place. I shifted into doing the online business thing more and launched several different online programs.  

Today we have an online program for business owners called The Academy. I also have a 90 day more intense program where I help businesses scale and move quickly. 

Finally, I have my podcast that I speak on every week. And, obviously, at the moment, I'm not speaking in front of audiences anywhere.

Holly: How did you know you had a good business idea? And how did you build your confidence enough to make it a reality?

Teresa: What's interesting now, is looking back, I really don't know. 

I had worked in an agency, and I was bringing in business for other people, and I was good at that. I had a huge amount of passion for what I did. When we would go for a pitch, we would often win, and that gave me the confidence that if I could do this for someone else, why couldn’t I do this for me?

But in all honesty, I kept thinking, if I don't make money, my daughter and I were going to lose our home. I wouldn’t be able to feed her.

Sometimes, and I'm not saying this is the case for everybody, but sometimes you need something that is big and scary to motivate you to start a business. It makes for a pretty strong why.

I did underestimate what it's like to actually run a business, however.

I just thought in my head, I know what I'm doing. I do this every day.

Well, yeah… but when I did this type of work while working for someone else, I didn’t have all the other stuff to do that comes along with running an actual business as well. 

I had to hustle. I'm not massively into the hustle thing, but sometimes you just have to do it. 

Sometimes you have to go, right, come on, we've got to work really hard now, and get this stuff done in order to move forward.

Holly: Yes! I mean, having a child and knowing that you are solely responsible for that person, talk about motivation right there.

What would you say to someone that just got laid off from their job because of coronavirus and who stands at the crossroads of starting their business or taking another corporate job?

Teresa Heath-Wareing: They've got to think about where they are right now. If someone is truly in a position to start a business, then surely this is the perfect time to do it. Because you've got nothing else to lose at this point.

I would absolutely say, if you are sitting here reading this and you've got an idea doing something you’re good at, and you know, in your heart of hearts that you could make this work, then absolutely, why not? Even as something on the side!

Holly: I love it! Especially the idea of adding more streams of income that can bring future stability. As we know, additional income can be a very strong motivator. 

Teresa Heath-Wareing: What's interesting, is being an entrepreneur was always deemed the risky thing to do. 

As an online business, I can hand on heart say that due to the coronavirus very little has changed for me on a day-to-day basis. This includes where I physically work - which is from home already. 

But obviously some things have changed. I have lost people from the membership program I have and some clients on the agency side.

And still, I couldn't be more grateful right now. I love what I do more than anything because I help people take action. 

When things are comfy, we procrastinate. 

I've got a great example. A friend of mine who runs an art gallery very close to where I live has an amazing space and he's super passionate about what he does.

We've had conversations about social media and advertising and what he could do, and he's like, yeah, I will, I will, I will.

I've been saying to him for ages, look, you need to go live on social. Put yourself on camera and talk about the artwork because then lots of people can see your passion and why you chose the pieces you do. 

We talked about this 12 months ago, and the other day I looked at my phone and he was on camera finally doing it!  And I was like, yes! It took a pandemic! 

So the time is now. Taking decisive actions will move you much faster. The problem is, we so often make lots of excuses for ourselves. And we do go on, saying, I will do that someday, or I'm not quite ready for that.

Holly: The time IS now! 

Tell us, what businesses do you think are doing well right now? And what is that first action that someone could take today to get started on their dream even during a pandemic?

Teresa: So what's interesting, there's a lot of people out there who think this is a terrible time, and business is falling over, and, and don't get me wrong. If I was in the hospitality industry, I'd be panicking although I've seen some amazing, creative things being done there as well. 

There are still so many businesses like that are succeeding and thriving through this. Let's take Zoom, for instance. Suddenly, everybody knows what it is, which is hilarious! It’s a household name. 

We've got supermarkets who have never had such amazing months, because everybody's panic buying, but OK. These are both big examples.

But let's go back down to things like services-based work. We've got some web designers in the Academy, who are using this time to really take off with their businesses.  

We've got people who do online, who do coaching in person who are taking their business to video.  Suddenly they realize that they can serve not just people in the 10-mile vicinity of where they are, but they can coach people anywhere in the world. 

Another good example. I know a lovely, lovely woman who does nails. And you'd think that's it. Boom, done, she's out of here. Because you can't physically go somewhere to get your nails done right now.

So when I spoke with her the other day, I asked her what's gonna be happening now with her business.

People’s nails are growing, and they’ll need to take them off but don’t know-how.  So she jumped straight on it and recorded a video on how to take your nails off.

She then put a set together that someone can buy that has all the things they need to take their nails off! She said, “OK, I can teach you, here's a set, you can buy it from me.” 

That's just brilliant. If you're creative and you're willing to put yourself out there and help and support people, you’ll still be around in the rebound. 

Holly: I’m starting to see so much creativity and innovation happening in industries that have not innovated or evolved in so long. 

And even if you don't have a business right now, and you're really good at something in your day job, why not offer your services as a side hustle? Coaching, website updates, copywriting, the list goes on! Extra stream of income.  

Because, quite frankly, who doesn't need a little extra cash right now due to job market uncertainty in so many industries.

Teresa: I couldn't agree more. If you've lost your job, then obviously you've got a lot of time on your hands suddenly. Or if you have got a side hustle idea, now's also the time to do it.

Holly: Where do business owners go from here, and how do we think about dreams and goals in this new world?

Teresa: I set my goals for the year, and I thought to myself, well recently, that's going to be interesting when I get to quarter two, and I review them. So much has changed.

Sometimes I want to go and hide under the duvet. I actually think, can I drink wine at three o'clock in the afternoon?

No. I can't. I know I've got to keep going.

One thing that really helps me is something that Brendan Buchard said, “Who needs you to show up for them today?”

If I stay in bed all day drinking wine, I'm letting people down. People who need me to show up for them today. 

So if you sat there thinking, well, that's it, dreams and hopes are over and done. I am convinced that there is no reason why you shouldn't be going after similar dreams as goals as you thought about six months ago.

For example, one of my goals is to speak in front of 20,000 people in 12 months. 

I haven't taken that goal down. It has changed to speaking online, because all of a sudden, I can't go and physically speak in front of people right now.

In a few month’s time, life is going to be getting back to some normality and all these people who stopped moving forward will have to kind of pull themselves up, and quickly. They will already be behind! 

“Whereas, by keeping going and even if it's a bit slower, a bit quieter, we need to keep going and keep going, and keep going.”

Holly: I see two different things happening. There are the people that are taking action right now and then people that are paralyzed and don't know what to do.

We have to be okay with adjusting our dreams and goals to be a little different. We need to continue to tweak our goals to continue taking action now, rather than shelving them completely. 

Holly: What is one thing you would tell people to do in terms of taking action if they don’t know where to start? 

Teresa: Find people who need your help. Post on social media, even if you don’t have an official business, just go and post that you’re available to help people.

“Does anybody know anybody that might need some help with <your skill>?”

Tell people that you are offering your services. It's the most simplest and basic thing ever. And don't get me wrong. When I launch something, I like things to be perfect. I'm going to do all the steps, tick all the boxes. 

But right now, you just need to go out and do it without things being exactly the way you visualized.  

Put your neck out there and say, I am offering this service, and I can help.

Holly: Done is better than perfect! I wholeheartedly agree on just getting out there.

On that note, where can people find you online, listen to your podcast, and learn more about your programs and your business?

Teresa: Go to TheresaHeathWareing.com or pick your favorite social platform and come and say hello, because I will be there. My podcast is called Marketing That Converts and a new episode drops every Monday. 

Holly: Is there anything else you want to share today that you think could be valuable?

Teresa: Have that confidence in yourself. Keep things moving. Not only for us but for other businesses. I'm still, you know, aiming to do everything as normally as much as possible. 

Holly: Thank you so much, Teresa. Everyone, please go check out Teresa Heath-Wareing online. She has so much free, valuable, content. I appreciate you being here today, Teresa! 

Teresa: Thank you, Holly!

I’m not fangirling, you’re fangirling! How freaking impressive is she?! I just feel so so grateful to have had the chance to sit down and pick her brain for inspiration and I am even MORE glad that you were all here to join me for the ride. I’m just about ready to have t-shirts made with her “keep going, keep going, and keep going” phrase on it because uh-hum how relevant is that right now but also ALWAYS. 

Once again this series has brought to light advice on not giving up, simply putting one foot in front of the other, and making a business owner out of yourself!

Genius. I just loved my time with Teresa and I hope you were able to soak up her radiance through this screen and use it to do something amazing for yourself this week. Until next time!

Holly works with professionals to create services-based businesses using expertise and strengths they already have. Holly is the creator of The Consultant Code, a program will have you up, running, and profitable with your services-based business in 60 days or less! Want to learn more? Drop her a note at: holly@hollyknoll.com