Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in freelancing but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Mat Casner, Founder of Freelance CEO, located in Mound City, KS, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Redlogic Communications Inc. is a brand, web, and graphic design company that has been in operation for over 15 years. I started the company as a side hustle in 1998, and it eventually became my full-time business in 2006. As the owner of Redlogic, I have extensive experience in all aspects of branding, web design, and graphic design.
In 2018, I decided to take my years of experience as a full-time freelancer and help others by forming Freelance CEO. It's been an incredibly rewarding and fulfilling next step in my professional journey, as I'm able to show others in weeks and months the best business practices that have taken me years to learn.
Tell us about yourself
I'm very blessed. I have the skills, talents, experiences, and passions that make me unique and the life circumstances that helped shape me. I've been blessed to share my gifts with great clients and help them achieve success. I feel extremely blessed to have been given the opportunity to have a successful career while also having the time and financial flexibility to be close to my home and family - which is something that I hold very dear to my heart. What drives me to achieve great things is the thought of being able to serve my clients to the best of my ability and being able to provide for my family in a way that lets me also invest in the things that matter most to me.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
I started my full-time freelance business in 2006 while I was still working in corporate marketing. At the time, I was working 50-70 hour weeks, which put a lot of stress on me as a young family man. I felt like I was missing out on key moments in my family's life as they were growing up.
As a business owner, my biggest accomplishment was learning how to build a business from home so that I could be close to my children as they were growing up. Today, my four children are grown adults, and I can look back over the past 20 years with no regrets, knowing that I was able to be present and my children know that they were a priority to my wife and me.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
Being a business owner, especially a freelancer, can be tough because of the isolation and the fact that you're constantly learning new things. When I first started out, I was passionate about serving others and creating a business that I knew was possible. I didn't have any prior business, marketing, or accounting degrees when I started my journey as a freelance service provider. So I had to learn everything about being a business owner all by myself, which, as you can imagine, was very difficult. I wish I had known sooner that there was such a thing as a mentor for business owners because it would've saved me a lot of time, energy, and money. Once I learned about mentoring relationships with other business owners, my growth as a business owner skyrocketed. And now that I've experienced that success, I want to help other business owners achieve the same level of growth without making the same mistakes I did.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
If I could have a conversation with my younger self with the knowledge that I have today, I would tell myself these three pieces of advice:
- Know your reasons for wanting to start and run a business. Your motives have to be greater than simply yourself so that you can find joy in the struggles and have the motivation to keep going when times are tough.
- Don't go it alone. Find a mentor or coach that you trust to guide you along the journey.
- Play the long game. Develop good habits that will serve you both in the short and long term. These habits will help you serve your clients better and build relationships that are both profitable and last longer, giving you and your business the best chance at success!
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.matcasner.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/matcasner
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/matcasner/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/matcasner
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matcasner/
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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