Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal and business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Jill Felska, Founder of Want to Work There, located in Austin, TX, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Want to Work There empower people teams with practical, actionable advice that they can start implementing as soon as today to take immediate steps toward creating better workplaces. Get & give simple, practical, and actionable knowledge from people operations experts who've been there.
We're like the secret culture sauce to help you attract, engage, and retain incredible talent – and create a truly great place to work in the process. Want to Work There offers modern, easy-to-digest management training for new managers and seasoned pros alike – so your whole leadership can get aligned quickly on what it means to be a great manager.
We believe ping pong tables are perks and can't replace building a real company culture. And that's because it's not always easy, which is why we've made the things we wish we had when we were starting out – resources, guides, downloads, the podcast, and the newsletter – free to access.
Tell us about yourself
I'm Jill Felska, and I founded Want to Work. Thereafter years of working in the HR and people space. After seeing first-hand just how difficult it was to build an authentically great company culture, I knew my calling was to help them create better workplaces and happier humans so everyone can do their best work.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Taking the leap. Not just with Want to Work There, but the very first business that got me on the path to entrepreneurship. I quit a solid 9-5 role at a globally known PR agency to start my own consultancy with my wonderful friend Jenn Korducki-Krenn. We went from working out of a beautiful office in downtown Chicago to sitting with laptops in our own small apartments.
Taking my first client call in my pajamas is something I'll never forget. Video calls weren't a thing back then, so it was all phone communication. After dressing up every day to go into the office and sit on similar calls alone in a windowless office, the joy of being able to cut the commute, sit on my couch and enjoy a coffee in the morning – all while building our own business – made me never look back.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
Every challenge that comes with working remotely, and being CEO, is mixed together when you're a business owner. Focus, business management, sales... You name it; a business owner must do it. One thing that made the sales process easier for me was learning to expect the no's to get to the yes's. If I know that rejection is a natural part of the sales process, I know that I must average a certain number of no's before I get to a yes. This means that every no, instead of feeling like a rejection, feels like a step toward a yes. It's amazing how that one little mental shift can keep the positive momentum going.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Be intentional about as much as you can. How much you commit to, who and when you hire, and what you invest in your business: All of those decisions come with planning, preparation, deliberation, and a little bit of gut instinct. Invest intentionally, and you will grow intentionally.
- Take care of yourself. I got a call on Thursday night that someone had extra Taylor Swift tickets and to get down to the venue NOW. You can bet every piece of work-related worry went out the window as I threw on a rainbow dress and high-tailed it to the show. Do what you need to take care of yourself.
- Get the right tools that work for you. As someone with ADHD, it can be incredibly hard to focus sometimes, so I use a digital timer that I can glance at from my seat. When I'm really committed to completing a task, I'll set the timer for 30 minutes and get to work. Being able to physically see the timer gets me to follow through.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.wanttoworkthere.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wanttoworkthere
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wanttoworkthere/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wanttoworkthere/
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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