Why I Started My Business

When I first started my business, I was looking for freedom.

My eldest daughter was just about to start school and I wanted to be there at the end of the day to pick her up. At the time, I was working 4 days a week at a design agency in Kent but I knew I wanted something different.

So I made the decision to leave the security of my job and start my own business.

I wanted the freedom to choose how I spent my time, the flexibility to work around my family and the opportunity to build a career doing work that I genuinely loved.

Like many people, I thought entrepreneurship was the answer (and in many ways), it was. I got to be there for school plays, sports days and all those moments that matter so much when your children are growing up.

What nobody really talks about is what happens after you’ve built a successful business Because while I had created freedom in one area of my life, I was slowly creating a different problem in another.

The Reality Nobody Warned Me About

As my business grew, so did the demands on my time.

I had more clients, more projects and more responsibility than ever before. More people were relying on me and at first it felt exciting because my business was growing and things were going well.

Then something happened.

I realised I had become the bottleneck in my own business because everything depended on me.

If I stopped working, the income stopped too. If I took time off, things slowed down. If I got sick, there was nobody there to keep things moving. Everything relied on me showing up every single day.

I had escaped the traditional 9-5 but I’d accidentally created a different version of it. One where I was working harder than ever before and that’s when I realised something important…

The Lesson That Changed Everything

The biggest lesson I’ve learned over the past 10 years is this… a business only creates freedom when it can generate value without constantly requiring your time.

Now I’m not talking about never working again (or sitting on a beach somewhere while money magically appears in your bank account!), I am talking about creating things that continue to work for you even when you’re not actively working.

For me, that meant exploring things like online courses, memberships, digital products, group programmes, automated systems and evergreen marketing.

It meant finding ways to package my expertise so I wasn’t constantly selling my time.

Once I understood this, everything changed. I stopped asking myself, “How can I fit more work into my week?” and I started asking, “How can I create something once and help more people with it?”

That one shift changed the way I looked at my business forever!

Why I’m Passionate About Helping Others Avoid the Same Trap

Over the years, I’ve met so many brilliant business owners who are stuck in exactly the same position.

They’re talented, experienced and amazing at what they do but they’re also exhausted.

Their diary is full and they’re constantly busy but they’re still worried about where the next sale is coming from. They’re working evenings and weekends because there never seems to be enough time. They’re trying to grow their business but growth often means taking on more clients, doing more work and putting in more hours.

I know exactly how that feels because I’ve been there myself!

That’s why I’m so passionate about helping business owners create scalable income streams that give them more freedom, flexibility and choice because what’s the point in building a business if it ends up running your life?

I truly believe that your business should support your lifestyle (not the other way around!).

Why I Created the Online Business Growth Summit

This is exactly why I decided to create the Online Business Growth Summit.

After 10 years in business, I wanted to bring together experts who could help entrepreneurs discover smarter ways to grow.

Not by working more hours, constantly chasing the next client or by trying to do everything themselves but by learning how to create scalable offers, build an audience, improve their marketing, increase sales and put systems in place that support long-term growth.

The summit will cover everything from creating your first online course or membership through to marketing, sales, podcasting and building a business that gives you more freedom and flexibility.

In many ways, the Online Business Growth Summit is the event I wish had existed when I started my business 10 years ago because (while there is no shortage of advice about how to start a business), there is far less conversation about how to build one that doesn’t rely on you every minute of every day and I believe that’s one of the most important conversations entrepreneurs need to be having.

Join Me in October

The Online Business Growth Summit takes place from 6th-8th October and it’s completely free to attend.

If you’re ready to stop being the bottleneck in your business and start creating more freedom, flexibility and scalable income then I’d love for you to join us.

Join the Summit Waitlist today and be the first to hear about speaker announcements, session details & special updates and while you’re there, come and join our free Facebook Community where you’ll be able to connect with fellow entrepreneurs, meet speakers and follow the behind-the-scenes journey as we count down to the event.

Here’s to the next 10 years of building businesses that work for us (not because of us!).