When you realise it’s time to stop hiding behind your business name
It’s very quickly coming up to my 5th business birthday and the last 6 months have seen me really looking hard at what I do, how I do it, why I do it and what I truly enjoy. And for a long while I’ve had the niggling feeling that a change was needed but couldn’t quite put my finger on it.
As in person events started opening back up and I have been spending more time out and about, the realisation hit me. I am my business – the clients I work with want to work with me for me – and it’s time to step out from behind the business name Encore Admin Consulting.
Looking back on where I’ve come from…
My first business photos just after I started Encore Admin Consulting in 2016.
I never started my business to build an empire or build a team or with the dream to build it and sell it on for a hefty sum one day. I literally fell into my own business with my first client (*waves* hi Lou) and a few weeks into helping them had a realisation that hey, maybe there’s others out there who would like my help too.
From there I’ve had some phenomenal long term clients who are still with me until today and I’m so insanely grateful that they have welcomed me in to their businesses. I’ve had the absolute honour and pleasure of watching them grow and go from strength to strength. I have worked with over 50 clients since I started this little business that can – some long term ongoing, some adhoc one off projects and it has given me such an insight into businesses and what business owners need to get their systems, processes and teams moving along in a growth direction.
When I started my business I had a 1 year old who was in long daycare (never thought I’d come to the day where I say I actually miss having those longer days), since then I’ve managed to grow my income year on year whilst having a second child and navigating life as a Mum of two. Not only that, moving out of that long day care scenario into my eldest now at school. That has required me to relook at how I work and what services I can offer sustainably for both myself and for my clients.
I also have realised that because I don’t have that desire to grow a team that some clients have needed to move on to new providers who do have teams to help them step up. Which is a massive high five for my clients and I’m happy to see them progress further. It was this progression of my clients that made me really look at what I do and how I work and make that decision to rebrand.
Where things are right now
As I mentioned, I have some fabulous long term clients who I continue to support and that won’t change any time soon. With that ongoing workload and my now shorter availability now that my eldest (and soon youngest as well) is at school, I’ve closed my books for any ongoing administration support clients.
Now, I am working in a more structured way in offering one off consulting packages for business owners who are wanting help in terms of strategising and wrangling their administration tech and systems into a clear and structured plan of attack to move forward. As well as training packages for those who are running their own show, have bumbled their way through so far but want someone who can hand hold to teach them tech tips and tricks – instead of spending hours upon hours trawling Google search results and YouTube videos.
It’s this work that I really enjoy because I am able to translate my years of understanding processes, systems and structure into tangible steps and help fellow business owners get their tech working for them faster.
What does this mean for the future
I’ll be honest, I’m not 100% sure right now.
What I do know is that the process of looking at what I have done previously under Encore Admin Consulting and bringing the pieces over from that website onto this brand new shiny website has given me a huge moment to appreciate what I have achieved so far. All of the resources, templates, courses, content that I have accumulated – I actually haven’t really considered how much I have created along the way – and I’m having a “that’ll do pig” moment with myself.
Moving over to this new website has forced me to be brutal with what I wanted to bring over – I could have copied everything and just kept rolling along as I have been but that would have defeated the purpose. So what you see currently on the new website is how I’m going to be working from this point forwards.
1:1 Consultation Options
If you want to rapid fire questions at an administrative and tech brained person because you’ve been spending way too many hours on Google and YouTube trying to find the answers then book in with me for a Teach Me My Tech Training Consult.
If you’re wanting a little more long term tech hand holding and want to be able to touch base with me over three consultations (weekly / fortnightly / monthly) then you can book in for my Teach Me My Tech Training Package. We spend 3 x 1.5 hour sessions on Zoom looking at how you’re currently using your existing systems and software and I teach you how you can been improving things, or teach you some of my admin shortcuts that will streamline things.
If you’re having general tech gremlins that again, you can’t seem to nail down and fix after copious amounts of Googling and YouTube video consumption then you can book in for a Tech Troubleshoot Consultation with me – 1 hour and I am like the IT person on the end of the line and I take a look at things and see if we can get it sorted (if not, give you a plan of attack – whether it be another contact in my little black book of tech rockstars or next steps for you to try).
If you are using Google Workspace and are having some quirks or are wanting to make sure you’re getting the most out of your subscription, you can book in for my Google Workspace Support Consultation. If you want to learn some productivity tips and tricks as your own pace then jump on over and do my Top 3 Google Workspace Productivity Hacks course on Skillshare. I also undertake brand new Google Workspace setups, so if you’d like to speak with me about undertaking one hop on over and get in touch with me to discuss your requirements.
Group Workshops (in the pipeline)
Down the track I have plans for Group Workshops so that I’m able to help a few more business owners outside of the 1:1 space – when that will be I am not 100% sure yet but you can sign up to the waitlist in the meantime and be the first to know when that is happening.
Online Courses
Finally, there’s still my online course for Google Workspace – but there is going to more courses uploaded to Skillshare down the track so keep your eyes peeled for that (you can sign up to my email list to be the first to hear when they are released)
New look brings new adventures
I’m really looking forward to seeing where this new phase of my business is going to take me. Also what businesses I will work with in the future. I am always looking to learn and grow and discover new ways to bring value to my clients and this new direction feels like I’m stepping into working purely as me and that’s exciting!
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