Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Dr. Melissa Bird, Life coach, Lay preacher, Author, and Keynote Speaker, based in Corvallis, OR, USA.

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

I am a life coach, spiritual leader, and public speaker. I inspire personal understanding and healing through contemplation and help women learn how to use their intuition to change their lives and communities.

Tell us about yourself

I started my coaching business in 2017 to help women figure out how to find their voice in politics. I had just finished my Ph.D. and knew that the academia route was not for me. My favorite part of running my own business is how much has changed for me in the last six years. I have learned so much about the structure of running a business, and every day I am so grateful that I am able to do the work of helping others heal so that their lives become full of love and joy.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My biggest accomplishment is sticking with my business, allowing it to evolve, and realizing that I have a "real job." I remember when I first started my business, I kept thinking maybe I should go and get a job with an organization or company. It wasn't until another entrepreneur pointed out that I had a job that actually paid me quite a lot that I realized that I was already very much employed! What a joyful moment to realize that when I went all in on focusing on my business, I could literally create the job of my dreams.

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

One of the most difficult things that I have faced is my own self-doubt. There is something breathtakingly difficult about admitting you are an entrepreneur in a sea of so many other entrepreneurs, especially in the coaching field. Through every disappointment I have faced in my business, 100 other amazing things have reminded me to follow my purpose in this work. We can fall into the myth that running a business is hard, or we can choose to remember that we decided to do this work because we are called to it.

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

  1. Hire a virtual assistant who knows how to do everything that does not bring you joy. If you don't love to do websites, sales funnels, and social media, then hire someone who loves that work. I would never have survived without my virtual assistant. She is truthfully the number one reason I am able to continue my work in the world.
  2. Remember that you will not make money overnight, and money comes from many places. Each year my income has doubled, and that is how I know I am running a successful business. Just when I think I can't possibly go on, something magnificent happens that keeps me going.
  3. I am torn between telling you to prepay your taxes and telling you to remember your "why." Taxes are boring, so here is my third tip, remember WHY you have chosen to run a business. Who are you serving? How are you helping your customers? What do you know to be true about the work you do in the world? When you are clear on your why, the rest is just icing on the cake.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.drmelissabird.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/birdgirl1001
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/birdgirl1001/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-melissa-bird-016640199/

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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