Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in finance but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Casey Stubbs, Founder of Trading Strategy Guides, located in Ligonier, PA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
My business is Trading Strategy Guides. And what I do is teach people how to trade in the financial markets. The customers of our company are people who are looking to make revenue by trading the markets. There is a good deal involved with trading because it's a lot different than how most people approach the markets. The average person in the market usually is an investor. Investors will put money into companies and will hold them for long periods. However, the difference between an investor and a trader is that a trader will buy something and close it perhaps a day later, or sometimes even just a few minutes later, to make a profit. And traders do this every day. Many times a day. We teach people how to trade the markets.
Tell us about yourself
My name is Casey Stubbs, and I started trading in high school. I was a real computer nerd. And back then, computers were newer, and there wasn't even internet yet. And yet my dad was a stock trader and wanted to start trading online. Before that, trading was done via phone call. You would call your broker, and you would make a trade. But then, in the '90s, when I was in high school, they transformed phone calls into online trading. My dad wanted to switch to online trading, but he didn't know anything about computers. He asked me to help him get set up. While setting up his computer systems for stock trading, I was learning about the markets. And I got very interested and saw the opportunity to make money by trading. Now I didn't start my current business until 2009. And The reason started Trading Strategy Guides is because the economy was pretty bad, and I had lost my job as a construction worker. I couldn't find work anywhere. I started a website teaching people how to trade. That website took off, and a lot of traffic started coming. I learned that I could use tradingstrategyguides.com as a business because people were hungry to learn how to trade. Trading is a skill that people were desperate to learn.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
I would say that my biggest accomplishment is the ability to help customers learn a difficult skill and earn cash flow in their lives so they can have financial freedom. This is a big deal. And I'm very proud of all the successful students and the changes in lives we have had at Trading Strategy Guides. Another big accomplishment is helping my team members grow and develop the people that work with me in business, teaching them how to work in business, work in my industry, helping them lead successful lives, and being a good coach and mentor to my employees.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
In my opinion, one of the toughest things about being a business owner is the lack of security. When you're working in a job, you know you'll get that paycheck, no matter what. As a business owner, if you struggle with sales, you still have to pay all the bills, and you have to pay your employees, and sometimes you're even the last one getting paid. If at all that week. That can be challenging when you have to skip a paycheck every once in a while because you have to manage your finances.
The uncertainty and the risk-taking that comes with being a business owner is a huge challenge.
Another tough thing that many business owners can't seem to get the hang of, which took me a long time, was learning how to train people to run the business rather than me doing everything themselves. There's a fine line between hiring someone, handing them the reins, and saying go do it. Because usually, that ends up in a disaster. But the trick is to find someone, train them to have a vision, and then release them into that vision when they're ready to go. But if you release them before they're ready, or if you don't give them proper training, a company can crash or burn.
Many business owners say I have to do everything myself, and then they get overwhelmed. And the next thing you know, they are working around the clock and are more of a slave to the business than they were when they were just employees. The secret is to learn how to teach people to run your business so that you can take vacations and don't have to be involved in all aspects of the business.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
The first tip I would say is to do your research on the front end, come up with an action plan and then take action. A lot of people get caught up in making sure they're ready, and they don't take that leap into business. You need to have a fine balance. Go and do the research. Come up with a plan. But then you have to take that leap because you're never going to be in a place where everything's perfect before the launch. Just get out there. Get it done as well as possible, and go for it. And yes, some risk is involved. But that's where the learning comes. You're not going to learn and get the experience until you make that jump as much research as you do on the front end will not prepare you for what is coming ahead. The only thing that will prepare you is being ready, taking that action, and doing the work.
The next tip I would like to say is to build yourself a strong network. Find successful business owners and get mentored. Serve them, learn from them. Join a mastermind group, network, and connect with others because those connections will help you get through some tough times. Those connections will teach you how to overcome things you don't necessarily understand. It will help you get through obstacles without having to figure them out on your own. And so you get to be a friend to someone by serving them, and you get to learn as well. And so it's a win-win situation. And then lastly, you benefit from building relationships. This networking isn't just to serve a purpose, but you have these relationships so that you can enjoy talking and spending time with the people you're networking with.
The last tip I would give people is to be proactive and not give up when things get tough. Start learning. Start making adjustments. Stick to your vision, stick to your plan. You must have a vision written out that you can follow and go back to when times get tough. But don't give up. Keep pushing. And if you keep on the path and keep persevering. The difficult time that you're going through will fade. You will learn and get better. And the secret is don't focus on making things easy. Instead, work on improving yourself daily. If you constantly improve yourself, your business will improve as a result.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
Well, I'd like to thank Subkit for allowing me to share my experience. I think sharing what we know is one of the best things we can do, and I'm quite honored to be able to do that. I'm very thankful for this opportunity.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://tradingstrategyguides.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TradingStrategyGuides/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tradingstrategyguides/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/caseystubbs
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caseystubbs/
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