Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Jenny Erickson, Owner of ACThoughtful Consulting, located in Queen Creek, AZ, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We serve micro-business owners <$1M and <10 employees who are looking to build sustainable businesses that impact the world and themselves. They have ideas but can't do it all themselves, so they are running fast and hard --- not always to the results they want. They need help getting them over the edge. We identify the work they need to delegate and the systems they need to build in what order, implement them, help hire their team, and help them add the discipline they need to know their business is running well, doing the right things, and honoring their big why in the world, and for themselves. Whether it's family, impact, travel, or all of the above.
Tell us about yourself
After 20 years in corporate, I realized that too many people were going to work each day because they had to --- to environments filled with bureaucracy. But micro-businesses were the opposite. They were courageous people who woke up every morning, chose their work, and lived each day based on its success. I wanted more people to have the ability to start, grow, and sustain a business that would impact themselves AND the world. I also had a unique systems-building skillset I gained from dealing with 200M+ budgets across all aspects of the business, from operations to go-to-market, but I lacked the patience for implementing overly complex solutions. And I realized that I could simplify what I knew into repeatable systems that worked well for small businesses and were tailored enough to be effective at a price point that made sense for these tight-margin business owners. With my background in consulting and leadership development, as well as being a manager of teams, I also knew what it takes to build and lead a team at all stages, from the small to the large. The adjustments people have to go through along the way. So I decided on my customer first, my services second, and my team third. And as I picked one, it informed and shaped the others.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
I've just made the shift to CEO - What I mean by that is I am no longer leading day-to-day operations. I have an amazing team who delivers amazing work for our clients. I took a sabbatical this last month, and they ran the ship without me. This puts me in a position to focus 100% on developing new solutions to customer problems, understanding what's going on in the market, and developing a solid pipeline so my team can deliver. While this is what it looks like on the surface, underneath it all is a strong culture people WANT to work for and having a right hand who understands and can help realize that culture --- especially in the areas I struggle and I'm proud of the culture and brand we've created both inside and out.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Loss of control! When you start to hand work to other people, it doesn't always look like the way we want to do it. We get frazzled and sometimes overreact because, underneath the business owner title, there's a human with real fears, real needs, and the money --- it means so much more when every dollar spent, or every failed risk impacts your own income and the food you put on the table. It's important that people are open with their team as they work through these transitions and GET HELP! We need people to help us shape who we want to be --- need to be --- for each iteration of our business.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Tip #1: Love the planning, not the plan. You won't be sure of anything until you do it. So the quicker you can get to market, talk to people, sell projects and do them, the better. Do not overthink it! But shooting from the hip leads to running with your head cut off. Build a rapid plan that has assumptions. If you can quickly test those assumptions and they have a high degree of impact on your plan, do it. If not, implement and monitor and then change the plan if those assumptions prove wrong.
Tip #2: Know what you want and be okay if that changes. Build around a concept that gets you closer to what you want and constantly re-evaluate.
Tip #3: Don't lock yourself in. If you are a hard worker with good skills who is not afraid to put yourself out there, you will have no problem landing work. But what you want to charge, how you want to organize it, and how your niche down will change after you get real-world experience, so don't lock yourself into long-term pricing or contract structures that keep you from flexing. You will likely change your pricing and structure 2-4 times in the first year. Give yourself the space to do that.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://acthoughtful.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jennylynneerickson
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennylynneerickson/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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