What I’ve learnt over the many years of being a business owner is the importance of having a strong team around you.  I've learnt that you don’t have to go it alone; in fact, going alone is taking the long (and risky) road to building a business.  Asking for support is more than okay, and having others who are there to challenge you is a good thing for your business growth and learning.

I was reminded of this earlier in the week, when one of my mentor clients posted a blog in our VIP clients' secret facebook group. Kim Wight and I have been working together for the past 12 months, and she had decided to write about her experience in building a strong support team around her and her business.  I thought I would share her experience with you as follows...

"I have now been in business for eight years, but 12 months ago my business model changed when I split from my business partners and was on my own. I admit that I was a little scared and worried if I could do it by myself.  While I knew I had the expertise in my role as a mortgage broker, I was concerned about how I could grow my business.

But I believe the universe has a way of opening doors for us and it certainly did in my case.   

About the same time as my business changed, I attended a networking event where the keynote speaker was Deb Pilgrim, who described herself as the 'Entrepreneur’s Business Mentor'.  After hearing Deb speak I decided to take up her offer of having her mentor me. I had spoken with other mentors and business coaches in the past but there was something about Deb that made me feel I needed to use her service. Was it business chemistry, or that inner sense that tells you this is the right thing to do?

We talked about my business, my personal life, my fears, and my plans, and together started to chart a course of action. Notice how I've kept saying ‘my’, because with Deb it is about what you want, and about how you will achieve it. It is not about an old business model pulled out for each client regardless of their experience or challengers as many other mentors or coaches do. 

In the beginning there were times when I put up road blocks and thought I would never get to the place I wanted to be. There were tears as I started to underestimate myself, but at all these times Deb was there quietly asking the right questions and giving tremendous insight and guidance to me.

It was during one of these times that Deb introduced me to Joanne Prior of Think Yourself Successful.  Joanne has this amazing ability to focus on your life and make such positive affirmations that you cannot help but be inspired and rejuvenated. I would recommend everyone needs a bit of Joanne in his or her life.

My business is part of a franchise group, but my goal was to develop my own brand of Kim Wight and be known and recognised as an expert in my field.  To do this I had to start promoting myself. I needed to make myself stand out from all the other mortgage brokers.  We worked on my core messages and elevator pitch, so that at networking events I would stand  apart from other brokers who tended to churn out the same old content. I had always wanted to be a keynote speaker, so one thing I began to do was write e-books which I could offer to people after each presentation as an add value.

Then with the support of Deb I launched into social media. I interviewed a number of experts before deciding to work with Tracey Jarvis of Social Media Girl. Tracey had her work cut out as I had dabbled in Facebook, but Twitter and Google were like a foreign language to me. Tracey helped me to further see my Kim Wight brand. She set up my web page and taught me how to not only use social media, but to enjoy it!  I now get such a buzz when people ‘like’ my page, follow me on twitter, and then mention or retweet me –  this is my greatest compliment.

So where has my business gone in the last 12 months? Well, I have had a 50% increase in profit. I am now having my blogs pinged to other sites; I have journalists contacting me for comments on finance, and I am a regular finance commentator on Angela’s Business Mix on 99.7FM.   

I am being asked to present not just on finance matters, but also on networking and the use of social media in small business.

In essence that networking meeting where I meet Deb Pilgrim opened a wonderful new world for me. The value of my time with Deb has far exceeded my expectations, and my goals have not only been met but in fact I feel as though I have been blasted into another universe of opportunity.

So I say “Thank You’’ to my team: Deb Pilgrim for your support, guidance, understanding and enthusiasm for my success, to Joanne Prior who empowers me to be magnificent, to Tracey Jarvis for sharing her expertise of marketing and social media and to Angela Vithoulkas who has been so generous and given me the opportunity to speak with thousands of people through her program Angela’s Business Mix.   Cheers to the team who changed my life.’  Kim Wight

So who is on your team?

Let's continue our conversation, feel free to jump over and leave your comments and ideas around what your offers are on our blog.