Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Anne Scottlin, Founder of Scottlin International, located in Santa Monica, CA, USA.

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

I am a global impact strategist. My passion is powerfully supporting leaders and changemakers to make the world a better place. I work with people with a heart for humanity and a vision to make an impact. I work with clients one-to-one and serve as a consultant and board member for various enterprises and nonprofits.

Most people don't have what it takes to create change on a global scale, national, or even local scale. It takes a beautiful balance of passion, compassion, determination, and support. If you have those, you're halfway there! Where the majority of big-hearted people fall short of achieving their vision is not knowing what to do next. How do you get started if they have never created a new program or movement? Or, if you have started, how do you create effective and replicable results? I help people activate their cause with confidence. We co-create and implement a strategic plan to transform your vision into a reality, to start a global movement, a national nonprofit, or a local program.

Tell us about yourself

I'm driven by the deep need of everyone I meet around the world to experience more joy, health, and wealth of all things positive. Since I was twelve, I've always been a teacher, trainer, or coach in various capacities. So it was a natural fit early in my professional life to pursue work in these areas and exercise my creative muscles as an author and actress. After getting three degrees, I also trained at the College of Executive Coaching in Santa Barbara, CA.

After spending a decade in the industries of professional empowerment and growth mindset, I started to notice a pattern of need in many of the humanitarian and global impact clients I worked with. What they were really asking me for was strategic business, personal, and even emotional support in fulfilling their visions to create meaningful change. So I began to use my professional, academic, and humanitarian training and experience to help people strategize and move their vision from concept to execution. I also found enormous joy and satisfaction in this work. I knew I had found a deeper dimension to my own personal vision. As I saw movements born and lives changed, I found my bliss in creating a springboard to help more people do the same. I do this primarily through my strategic one-to-one Vision to Impact Program but also as a project consultant for nonprofits and global impact enterprises.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My biggest accomplishments as a business owner are definitely plural. First and foremost, seeing my clients succeed financially, personally, and professionally as they follow their vision to make an impact.

Another accomplishment I'm proud of is building and maintaining my social media following of over 165,000. I have followers worldwide and get millions of views a month. I also have my own weekly podcast, #ScottlinTalks.

And finally, I am proud of my accomplishments in writing and publishing. My first book, Live for Joy, is an Amazon Best-Seller and a Winner at The Global Book Awards. My second book is about to go to the press, and my third book will be released in 2023.

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

One of the hardest things that come with being a business owner is learning how to manage time, especially in our new professional environment, where so many of us work from home. This is particularly true for many of us who are self-employed, and it is often hard to integrate our time between life and work. With all the daily distractions of life, family, pets, appointments, delivery people, and a host of other things, it is harder to concentrate for long periods. I have found tools and techniques that work well, and I teach those to my clients as well.

Another challenge of being a business owner, especially when you are self-employed, is staying motivated. When you don't have to answer to a boss or when you allow yourself to set soft deadlines, it is often hard to get your word count is done for the day (if you are a writer) or start that next social campaign this Monday as scheduled, when nothing particularly bad will happen if you start next Monday instead. It's really easy to let things slide, and schedules can get mushy. The best solution I've found is creating accountability with my team and my coaches. Having a coach is one of the greatest and most powerful tools when running your business. I practice what I preach… I believe in coaching, I coach, and I also get ongoing coaching.

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

There are 3 tips I would give anyone looking to start, run, and grow their own business today:

  1. Do what works, not necessarily what others tell you that you should do. I realize this is risky territory, but there is no such thing as a one-size, one formula fits all. You are unique as your own personality, your own products, and your services. Own it. Work it. You don't have to have a substantial social media following to have a contemporary business. On the other hand, you could have a huge social following and end up with no business. Find what really works for you and stick with it.
  2. Collaborate and get support. Going at it alone is no fun. As mentioned above, being self-employed makes it even harder to stay motivated, have discipline, manage your time, and accomplish your goals promptly. Find others to cooperate with, share ideas, and combine skills with. It makes the journey immensely more fun and often more profitable. And get a coach, a mentor, or a group of people you know and trust that support you and hold you accountable in a strong but compassionate way as you work and grow your business. There's no point in going it alone, and anyone who says that you're somehow less than others unless you're completely self-sustained and independent is gravely misled.
  3. Lastly, anyone starting a new business or growing an existing one needs to run their business like a business, not a hobby. Carefully maintain records. Track expenses and income and set aside your estimated income tax quarterly for the following year's taxes. If this isn't your area of expertise, find someone to help and learn to do it right. You don't need an MBA to run your business in a practical and duplicatable way. Be smart, run a tight ship, and spend the majority of your time doing what you do best. Remember that for any tasks you aren't great at, there's a freelancer that would love to do it. So keep an open mind and stop trying to be all things to everyone, including yourself.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.annescottlin.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnneScottlin
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annescottlin/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/annescottlin
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annescottlin/

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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