Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Carla Rodriguez, Co-Founder of Inf Care, located in Fairfax, VA, USA.

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

The name of the business is INF Care. INF Care Provides a virtual service to proactive aging adults who want to age at home and recognize that they need a certain level of assistance to do so. With our virtual wellness service, we connect remotely with our clients, provide our clients with a way to keep track of their self-care throughout the day, Mental activities to keep the mind sharp, and provide assistance on our end with reminders for appointments and taking medication.

At INF Care, we believe that using technology is most effective when it is easy to use, easy to understand, and easy to integrate into your existing lifestyle; that is the same approach we take with our virtual wellness solution.

Tell us about yourself

Before working at INF Care, I worked at a non-profit and got an inside perspective on the resources that are provided to seniors that help them age in place successfully. I was surprised that the resources they provided were few and limited to a number of individuals. Even now, the resources are still few leaving a large gap in the area of early-stage care that does not get enough attention.

I am motivated everyday to do what I can to change the way individuals age. I want to bring more attention to early-stage care because the earlier you establish a certain level of assistance, the longer you can stay aging at home. Most importantly, I want Adults to be okay with recognizing that they are aging and that they need assistance, too often I come across seniors who are constantly in denial of their lack of ability to care for themselves and reject any level of assistance until an adverse event occurs that forces them into a level of assistance that can be intense and stressful.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

At the moment, the biggest accomplishment is the fact that the business is still up and running despite the challenges that the COVID-19 shutdown threw at every business. As a team, myself and the other founder of INF Care went into overdrive, working twice as hard to do everything in our power to keep INF Care alive. During the process, I was overwhelmed, stressed, and at times felt defeated, but I stayed positive, motivated, and calm for the sake of the INF Care team and myself. Now that I feel I can take some time to think about it and process the number of businesses that were not fortunate enough to continue operating through the COVID-19 shutdown, I recognize what a great accomplishment I was able to be a part of.

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

Staying flexible within the business in all aspects. As a business owner, you may already have an idea of who your customers are, how you want to market your business, how a product or service should be delivered, etc. Once you’re in business, not everything works as you expect, which leaves you with one choice, be flexible and be open to changing things on the fly. This can be difficult at times because you feel that changing certain aspects of a business makes it feel like you’re not staying true to your vision. It no longer looks like the business envisioned in the beginning. The best thing to do is realize that as a business owner, your main objective is to keep the business operating, and if you have to be flexible and open to change to do so, it’s better to be aware and accept it from the get-go.

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

  1. Before starting your business, connect with other individuals, business owners preferably, that can give you insight into what their day-to-day is like, responsibilities, and a real perspective of what will be demanded from you once you start your business.
  2. Rely on something else other than profits to be your everyday motivation to give 200% of your time and energy to running your business. It may sound cheesy to say this, but the reality of the fact is that if you are driven by just making money, sooner or later, you will hit a brick wall. Give yourself a vision of what you want your business to stand for as your everyday driver.
  3. Be able to listen to all the advice and criticism that is given to you about your business, but only take in the bits and pieces that can really help. This will help you become more of a constructive thinker, which will benefit how you run your business.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.inf.care/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/INFCareforSeniors/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/inf-care/

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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