Monday Mumpreneur with Rachel Swann
On Mondays we feature a mumpreneur just like you and me who’s ready and willing to open up their lives and their business to us.
They share with us their motivation, their challenges and their proudest moments in business and they also tell us how they take time to nurture themselves.
If you’re looking for inspiration, then our featured business mums show you what’s possible.
This week’s mumpreneur shows us that you don't have to be an extrovert or pushy when it comes to sales and that a more gentle approach still gets the job done.
Your name: Rachel Swann
Tell me about your children: Katie 13, Holly 11 and Beth 9
Where do you live? Leeds, Yorkshire
PC or Mac?
PC, although I love my iPhone and iPad for work too
Tell us about your business
I'm a consultant for mums in child-centred businesses. That means that their target market is children with their parents and carers. I support them in their marketing and advertising and help them to create amazing customer service for their business. I can help with the practicalities of running a business and can use my experience as a coach and hypnotherapist to help with some of the internal stuff like lack of confidence and imposter syndrome as well as the icky feelings around selling and chasing up money.
What motivated you to become a mumpreneur?
I wanted to have flexibility so that I could be around for my kids when they were younger and I wanted to be my own boss.
What’s been your biggest challenge in business?
I'm naturally quite an introvert and not a natural salesperson, so that makes it quite hard. When I started in business I tried to learn about marketing and sales but all the traditional advice seemed to be that you just need to man up and get on with it. I found sales and marketing really difficult as well as networking.
How have you overcome it?
I've studied with some great mentors and coaches and learned that there are ways to connect and make sales for introverts. It’s a more gentle way of selling but it still gets the job done.
What’s been your proudest business moment?
Being asked to present on business building 2 years running to my colleagues at our franchise AGM when I ran my child-centred franchise.
What’s your catchphrase or favourite quote?
"Done trumps perfection every time" Carrie Wilkerson. It's something I see a lot with business owners, waiting till everything is perfect and it just leads to inaction. You can also include the Nike catchphrase too 'Just Do It!'
What do you do to relax or nurture yourself?
I have a huge corner bath with jets and lights in my bathroom. I get a bubble bar from Lush, a book, candles, my iPod and sometimes a cheeky glass of wine and spend an hour relaxing in there.
What was the last treat you bought for yourself?
A Stella and Dot necklace in January (not on sale either)
Favourite colour: Green
Favourite flowers: Carnations
What one piece of advice would you like to give to a new mumpreneur?
Get a mentor or a coach early on in your business. They can prevent you from making some of the common mistakes and give you accountability to make you progress faster. It really is an investment rather than an expense.
To find out more about Rachel and her business, visit her site:
And connect with her on social media:
www.facebook.com/therachelswann
www.twitter.com/the_rachelswann
www.pinterest.com/therachelswann
Think your mumpreneur story will inspire our community? Drop me an email over on the contact page – and I’ll be in touch. Or let me know in a comment below.
