Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Stephanie McPhail, MS, CEO of Being Loved Shouldn’t Hurt, located in Houston, TX, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

I am a toxic relationship recovery coach. Along with my husband and partner David, we specialize in helping professional women heal, transform and thrive after unhealthy relationships so they can create and attract all the best that life and love have to offer.

Tell us about yourself

I created my business after doing the inner work of healing after leaving a toxic and abusive marriage. With a newfound sense of self-love and confidence and years of experience as a health educator, crisis counselor, and advocate, I realized that there are a lot of other women struggling with relationships that keep them from living their best lives. I became determined to share with other professional women the exact tools and strategies I used to transform my own life, inspiring them to recognize that no matter what they have experienced, they can truly put their past in the past and know their best years are ahead of them.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My biggest accomplishment as a business owner is being able to witness profound and dramatic shifts in the peace, joy, and overall quality of life of countless women around the world. By providing our clients with our proven framework to shift their trajectory and put their painful past history to rest, we create a ripple effect that changes the dynamics of all of their relationships in an often subtle but powerful and positive way. Because of our success, I have been featured in countless magazines, podcasts, and healthy living summits. I have written two books that were number-one new releases, was asked to join the prestigious Codependency Recovery Council as a featured expert with the renowned Avaiya University, was invited to ring the bell at the New York Stock Exchange, and got to interview Denzel Washington on healthy relationships on my weekly cable TV show.

What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?

One of the biggest challenges is transitioning from being a coach to a coaching business owner. Doing what I love comes easily and naturally to me, but in order to succeed in business as a two-person organization, we’ve needed to learn and implement marketing, sales, technology, social media management, and more. When I first started, I just wanted to help people, and as I grew, I realized I had to get really good at marketing and messaging in order to attract the clients that I was looking to serve and be able to do so at the highest level.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. If you are just starting your business now, I would definitely recommend staying in your current job until you are sure that you have gotten out all the kinks so that you can consistently bring in new leads and not be worried about money.
  2. I would also say that being a business owner is not for the faint of heart. There are times when they can be very stressful, and we have to remind ourselves that it’s not personal; it’s just something to figure out and work through so that we can keep helping the clients that need what we do.
  3. Get clear on your intended outcome, especially in terms of the lifestyle you desire and the impact you want to have. Then become a student of business and hire coaches and mentors who have proven success in helping people accomplish similar goals.
  4. The last thing is to make sure that you still take time for yourself, it’s easy to give yourself long days and long hours, but if you don’t take time to take care of yourself, then all of that work will be for nothing if you lose your relationship with your family and friends and stop enjoying the things that make life beautiful and amazing.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.beinglovedshouldnthurt.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BeingLovedShouldntHurt/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beinglovedshouldnthurt/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanie-mcphail-12079a40/


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.

Turn your craft into recurring revenue with Subkit. Start your subscription offering in minutes and supercharge it with growth levers. Get early access here.