Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Mahlena-Rae Johnson, speaker, writer, and content creator, based in Toronto, ON, Canada.

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

In addition to being a speaker, writer, and comedic genius, I am The Only Executive Storytelling Expert for Introverts and the CEO of my company Mahlena Speaks.

I honed my relationship-building skills while earning my MBA at the University of Southern California. I later translated my quiet savvy for connecting with like-minded individuals into expanding my media empire from the US to Canada. On my weekly Instagram show, Who Are You and What Do You Want? I teach my audience of shy yet ambitious professionals how to connect with colleagues by telling their own stories.

I have a passion for writing and speaking about professional development topics, including personal branding on LinkedIn, executive storytelling on YouTube, and building a new network for millennial immigrants and expats.

Tell us about yourself

I started my business because I had an idea for a book in 2006, and I wanted to publish it. Sixteen years later, I am publishing my fifth book, ELLIES, a sci-fi novella available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble, in June 2022. I have also expanded in creating web series, films, and short stories and speaking to audiences on communication for introverted executives. I want to help other people tell their stories, especially as an MBA and a social media maven who knows there is a story inside every person, especially humans like me from marginalized communities.

Each of us has a light inside of us. We should not hide our light under a bushel basket. We should set the world on fire.

Over a decade ago, I was an ambitious introvert struggling to figure it out all independently. But now I don’t have to. We don’t have to. I am here to help you answer the following question: Who are you, and what do you want? And then I will teach you how to say it out loud.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My biggest accomplishment as a business owner was actually starting my business, Mr. J Media, in 2007 to publish my first novel, Steve the Penguin.

My biggest accomplishment as a human was immigrating from the United States to Canada after the 2016 election. We wanted a safer home, especially for me as a Black woman. It took a lot of work and determination, but in 2018, my family and I flew from Los Angeles to Toronto, ate pizza in our hotel room, and figured out how to start our lives all over again in a new country where we knew no one. It was difficult then, and some days it remains difficult. We are still developing our community in our new home. But we are happier, healthier, and less stressed out.

It's easy to talk about your goals and why you want to accomplish them. It's much harder to commit to those goals and take action on them, even if it doesn't work out. I like to take action.

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

One of the hardest things about being a business owner is finding like-minded people with big dreams of making the world a better place. For example, my long-term goal is to become a Billionaire Mum. Only $1B to go. 💰

Honestly, I want to create a community of fellow ethical billionaires, host Mahlena's Davos—an alternative to the yearly World Economic Forum—and make Earth a more equitable planet. But I need more people like me, an INTJ with a heap of moxie and chutzpah, to learn how to connect with each other, so we can disrupt the system, smash the patriarchy, and achieve world domination.

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

  1. Solve someone's problem. If there is no problem, then there is no reason for that person to purchase your good or service.
  2. Generate a profit. Regardless of what Netflix or Twitter are doing, your business should intake more money than it puts out.
  3. Do what works for you. Not every successful business owner is necessarily a blueprint for what you need to do. Take the parts that make sense for your business, and adapt as necessary.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

I <3 choco-chip cookies.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://mahlenaspeaks.blogspot.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mahlenasguidetolife/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mahlena/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn "one day" into day one.