Ep. #871 - How to Get Unstuck: An Entrepreneur’s Journey

00:02.20
Andrew Morgans
What’s up, Hustlers! Welcome back. This is Andrew Morgans, Founder of Marknology. I’m here as today’s host of Startup Hustle, covering all things e-commerce and Amazon. We’re talking about business consulting. Ah, we’re going to talk about all of it. Honestly, we’re going to cover a lot of stuff today; I think there’s a lot of stuff that comes to selling online and eCommerce, and everything fits into the next thing. Before we get started, I introduce today’s guest. Let’s shout out to our sponsor for today’s episode fullscale io helping you build software teams quickly and affordably. If you’re looking to find a great development team, Full Scale.io is a great place to start. Me and today’s guests are quickly becoming good friends. We’ve been in the same industry around the same people for quite a few years and recently. Um, I met in person several times, and I’ve been on her podcast. Um, we were on an online Seller Cruise together at prospering. We’re at all the same events. So I’m super excited to have her here and really for my own sake and anyone listening today. Get to know a little bit more about her story. How she found Ecom and how she just found this industry, and she’s been blazing ever since and without further ado, Amy Wees. Welcome to the show. Thank you.

01:18.84
Amy Wees
Thank you for having me, Andrew. I am just stoked to be here.

02:45.92
Andrew Morgans
Ah, it’s been on the calendar for a while. Um, but I’m excited to have you here as well. Your name comes up all of the time, and it’s just once you put a face to a name. It kind of changes things. It’s almost like you’re trying to buy that car, then you just see it everywhere and so. Since we’ve met, I’ve just seen you absolutely on everywhere from webinars and podcasts too, um, you know, the Mexico trip that’s coming up. I think this episode might come out even after that trip, but that’s going to be an awesome sourcing trip down in Mexico. Um. Before we get into like even what you do and talking about your business model and how um, all the different ways you’re helping sellers and businesses and brands. Let’s talk about Amy a little bit, and I know some of your backgrounds, but let’s go back as far as you want. I know you’re an entrepreneur now. But ah. You know, growing up as a girl, did you always think that you were going to be. You know, an entrepreneur or run your own business or is it kind of something you fell into go back if you will and just sort of share with us like you know your early years and.

03:42.24
Amy Wees
Yeah, um, well I grew up in Wisconsin. I was raised by a single mom and um, we were dirt poor; very, very poor. Um, I have been working from the age of.

05:15.52
Andrew Morgans
Okay.

04:21.38
Amy Wees
Um, and I, you know, I didn’t always. I guess I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit. I’ve always been hustling because I had to, um, as a kid, you know, we had to scrape together. Whatever we could um and you know I had to grow up very fast. And so that I guess developed in me kind of this ability to like oh you know I could do this, and I can make a little money I could do this, I can do this, and I enjoyed the creativity of it I’ve always been an overachiever you know, straight a student that kind of thing and. I think all of that stem from just really wanting to succeed, really wanting to do more and be more, and to get out of the situation like I didn’t. It’s not that my problem was bad. We were really poor, and I wanted more for my life, and I dreamed.

07:20.64
Andrew Morgans
Yeah, yeah.

06:09.60
Amy Wees
Traveling, I dreamed of doing all these things, and um, I wasn’t going to have that, right? Like, you know, and so I just wanted all of that. So and I thought that maybe my education could get me there. So. I just, you know, got straight a whatever I couldn’t, of course, my parents couldn’t afford college. So I knew I was going to be on my own, and um, I married my high school sweetheart at seventeen years old, and I moved to California and with him.

08:21.46
Andrew Morgans
Okay.

07:18.40
Amy Wees
And I started trying to get jobs and do whatever, right? None before I tried to go to college, I got a job at Target, and I quickly moved from a cashier up to being an executive. I was only, you know ah, was very young. I think I was 18 or None at the time. And um, and I just always was asking them like what more can I do what more can I learn and I already had you know to experience. My none job was at Mcdonald’s. My first like w None job was at Mcdonald’s when I was fourteen years old. I quickly moved up to a crew chief position there and stayed there for many years, and every summer, I’d have three jobs, you know, and just. I worked at Sears as a. I sold men’s suits at Sears. So I learned how to like ah measure for clothing and everything, and then then I started working at Target. I was a cashier in the beginning, and I was like, I need more. I need more I want to do more I want to learn more.

10:04.48
Andrew Morgans
A.

09:14.20
Amy Wees
And I quickly moved up, and they put me in the Garden Center, and I learned all of the plants. I learned everything I could learn about plants, and then before I knew it, they were like they promoted me um and then, of course, him being military. We had to move and.

10:58.48
Andrew Morgans
Okay.

09:46.98
Amy Wees
Once again, we moved to Georgia, and I had to start over again. I was like, okay, now I got to find another job, and so I got a job at a horticulture company, and I learned spreadsheets and inventory management and all of that, and so I was, you know, doing inventory management and that’s when I started trying to go to school. And I also got a job after that at a home healthcare agency doing accounting work because of my work with spreadsheets, right? I learned that I was able to kind of pivot into this accounting work, and I started going to college there in Augusta, Georgia. I realized that these colleges did not care. They did not care if I had end-of-month reports, like, you know, I was not the normal college student. I was working full time. I was paying for everything myself, and it was hard, and my husband and I, unfortunately, didn’t work out. Um, and I was like, you know what am I doing with my life. What do I want to do? I realized that in the military, your college is paid for you get to travel the world. I was like, I’m just going to do this, and nobody in my family has ever served in the military before me, right? So it was just kind of like okay, like this was the unknown. But because of my experience with my ex. I learned that there was an opportunity there. Even though it was a scary opportunity, I just went for it. So I joined the US air force, and yes, exactly.

13:41.28
Andrew Morgans
Yeah.

13:54.20
Andrew Morgans
Good choice, Good choice if you have to choose in my opinion.

12:52.44
Amy Wees
Um, and I just went to tech school and again I got distinguished graduate and all my tech schools academic excellence. You know the whole time I was in the military I earned ° to master’s degrees 100% paid for but i.

14:30.92
Andrew Morgans
So wow.

13:25.14
Amy Wees
The whole time I was working full time and going to school full time and um and because that’s the only thing I know how to do is hustle right? I don’t know how to do anything else so you know for me, it was very normal to like just overload myself with everything that I could learn everything that I could do every opportunity I could take. And yeah I met my current husband of None years Rashid and we met in Korea and we were both stationed in Germany after that and in the same career field and we were best friends and you know ended up starting to date about a year later and then. You know now we have two kids they’re None and None and and 16 xteen years later in marriage. You know we’re both retired from the air force. And yeah, so that’s that’s what happened in the air force right? I was a war planner and I also worked in cybersecurity and. And yes.

16:34.62
Andrew Morgans
Let’s pause there for a none I want to ask a couple questions. Okay, let’s pause there. So um, one I was raised in Africa I know you know that and my listeners probably know that but growing up in in dangerous like war-torn places. Ah. I’ve always just gravitated toward military people people that have served because most missionaries don’t have my experience and most people don’t have my experience in that regard. Just those countries we were at the time in places we were but it’s always been a gravitation toward military people. So it’s very rare to honestly the church and. And and military connect. But like when you understand what some of some missionaries do and the places they are kind of just makes a little bit more sense and you know so I grew up with the marines in Congo being like treating me like their little brother and you know at the embassy and. Things like that. My actual roommate and business partner and one of my other businesses we’ve been in business together for 4 years now. Um do property management in airbnbs and things like that in Kansas City he’s a military intelligence area. He’s out of the army military intelligence was a captain did a lot of the briefings I think I don’t know what wartime. Planning means but from what he tells me I think it’s similar in some regard to like you know how he would brief. Ah you know his superiors and kind of layout plan and things like that and it’s been great for me to be partnered with someone like that that just thinks. Ah, kind of like in that very like this is how I have to communicate the information and plan Abc and contingencies and like you know I’m a dreamer. So ah, you know, being partnered with someone that really thought about those kinds of things um has been um, has been amazing for me and he did the same thing.

18:31.58
Amy Wees
Yeah, it definitely helps in the business for sure like I’m able to get more done than anybody that I know and everybody tells me that they’re like I just don’t understand how you can possibly do everything that you do and how you get it all done and. And for me, it all comes down to you know what your end goal is you know exactly you you lay it all out you lay out the plan and you go execute and you don’t waste your time and other things you don’t worry about what other people are doing. You get to it. Get it done Mark it off the list move forward and if you if you fail fast along the way like oh that didn’t work keep going keep going towards your goal right? and so that’s really served me well and I didn’t know that I didn’t know that that would serve me well it just kind of has always come naturally but I’m sure. Now that other people point out to me that that’s not normal for them that you know that really did benefit me for sure.

21:43.92
Andrew Morgans
Yeah I don’t think that ecom at least was pioneered by a lot of people that wanted to work more I think it was people that wanted a different quality of life than what they had like honestly like private label sellers and things like that and it’s changed right? But in the early days it was.

20:38.70
Amy Wees
Um, if.

22:18.40
Andrew Morgans
I don’t I’ve worked 20 years at this Gm position at Harley Davisson and I won out I want time with my kids. Um I’m I’m more like you. Ah, in regards who had 3 jobs through college supported myself from a poor family from the dirt like you know and I’ve just always worked um just always worked I don’t know I’m I’m in year eight of of marnology I still worked 15 hours 16 hours by choice. Ah, you know it is what it is and I love I love it. I’m just passionate about work and I just found finally something that I love versus 3 or 4 jobs that I didn’t love but that i. You know, just just gave it my all I want to ask None more thing. The computer science thing. So I touched the military piece. Um, the computer science thing so I’m a computer I went to school for computer science. Um, and I think that that’s been one of my my special skills in entrepreneurship now that I’m building you know companies was really well I’m not. Not in networking or security anymore like I used to be one. It is why I gravitate toward white hat because I just I learned security like you know anti-hacking and all that kind of stuff in college but it really allowed me like just like you build a software program at least even in school and you learn you learn these programming languages. You are able to say hey this is how we want the program to work and then to get it to work. You just break it down to these bite size moves like these bite size things you need to create you know and I think that um, computer science that thinking that kind of reverse engineering thinking. Um. Really has been like a huge part of my success and I think for those people that are super creative being able to learn those skills of breaking down like a big vision into actionable steps is like super super critical. Um, you know to success. So I think you’ve got a couple of these building blocks. Not just because I’m relating to them. But these building blocks that like you’ve got computer science. You’ve got like you know a hardworking mom and.

24:39.44
Amy Wees
Yeah, and I actually don’t have computer science I have 0 computer science background I got a master’s degree in cybersecurity because it was fascinating to me but all my undergrad degrees are business and um I was recruited to work on the cyber side of things because.

26:25.56
Andrew Morgans
So cybersecurity. Let me talk.

25:18.78
Amy Wees
Of my war planning and air warfare experience and they wanted that side of things on the cyber side of things so it was actually really hard for me to go through military cyber schools because I didn’t have the computer science background I had to work twice as hard as everybody else because I was like okay wait a minute. You guys are converting hecs to binary and binary to hexs and so I don’t even know what that is so I had to study twice as hard for all the people that had that background and my job that I got was contingent on me passing these schools and so you know it was another way for me to show grit.

27:37.42
Andrew Morgans
Got it.

26:30.62
Amy Wees
And for me to show like I can do this you know I can get through this even though I don’t have this background and so I did go on to get you know the top certifications in the field of cybersecurity and just did some really incredible things in cybersecurity and.

27:55.16
Andrew Morgans
Okay.

27:01.16
Amy Wees
Um, you know, got to do hacking competitions and all kinds of like worldwide hacking competitions and stuff like that and just lead a really incredible team and and do really amazing things. But I do agree that um that anything you learn any of your skills. Um.

28:22.60
Andrew Morgans
Oh my gosh.

27:38.24
Amy Wees
It’s It’s all about how you apply them right? I think sometimes people get stuck in a you know oh I need to learn how to do that and for me application just comes kind of naturally I’m able to kind of take something that I’ve learned and apply it and I don’t know if it’s because in the military everything is fed to us through a firehose. And we’re expected to just like learn learn learn learn learn memorize memorize memorize memorize and then later on you’re gonna apply under pressure right? and you just kind of get used to that and so for me I’m a sponge and I try to just learn as much as I can and then I just apply it under pressure and I’m not afraid to fail because I’ve. I’ve been exposed to that over and over and over again. Um, okay, even if I don’t fully get it. It’s fine I’ll I’ll just you know if I make a mistake I’ll figure it out. You know, but I know that the knowledge is in there and so yeah I think that’s one of the things is just like fire hose and make it work.

30:44.26
Andrew Morgans
And know I like the way you think and thanks for clearing that up because there is a big difference and I know exactly what you mean when you say that um I when I went to school for computer science I actually got gifted to master’s degrees last year kind of like ah through.

30:01.42
Amy Wees
Congratulations.

31:19.94
Andrew Morgans
Through this path. Thank you because I wasn’t going back to school after I got my bachelor’s years ago I was going to basically say I got my bachelor’s years ago and computer science cybersecurity. There weren’t really that many different fields at that time it was like networking and security or programming that was the degrees at school.

30:34.40
Amy Wees
Yeah.

31:55.28
Andrew Morgans
And my but my best friend runs an app security department at the local hospital so he he’s more unlike I think what you were saying there which is like you know cybersecurity and it’s changed now to even application security but an exploding field by the way. Ah, for anyone that’s listening cybersecurity Professionals are like as few and far between as like true ecom professionals us.

31:25.72
Amy Wees
That’s why I wasn’t afraid to leave well I was afraid to leave my None figure cybersecurity job to go into ecommerce full time. But the part of me not being so afraid was like. Look I know I’m like so highly qualified and I could walk into any job anytime if I wanted to go back and get a job later. You know so that actually helped help me like get off the like jump off the cliff and just go for it. You know.

33:23.90
Andrew Morgans
That was confidence.

33:37.80
Andrew Morgans
Um, well there’s a huge difference to me in the natural, the business model ecom is about like growth it’s a growth thing it’s an abundance thing like in in in its like in its context right? I’m generalizing and cybersecurity is like scarcity save it protect it be like. Overly like you know analytical and not that you don’t need both of those things but None is more about like fear and danger and protecting everything and ecom is about like where can I find growth like you know and it’s just kind of a different thinking you’re working kind of in tech and in both sides but it’s just a different mindset as someone I used to work in so at a knock. And network operations control room at Mastercard the credit card company and um, you’re just waiting on basically networks to try to get hacked or break and then you jump in and you know reroute traffic and all of that there’s a part of it that I loved but it was about none of a 12 hour shift that I didn’t enjoy. Because it was just essentially waiting on. You know, something bad to happen and I just really didn’t enjoy that but I enjoyed tech so I found ecom but I want to get I just relating to that is so crazy because I would have never guessed these things a value Amy I knew you were um. Did some amazing things in the military I just had no idea and I know what it means to have to learn both sides like so you crossing over to that cybersecurity and passing these tests that these guys maybe I’ve been in school for for very very long time is is um I had 0.

34:55.82
Amy Wees
As a woman too. There was like no women. There’s just no women so I was it was a lot. Yeah yeah is a lot with being a woman doing that. Yeah.

36:30.84
Andrew Morgans
I had None women in my entire college like career career. So no, that’s really awesome. Okay, so you talked about you’re like you’re in the military um married. And you’re like okay that was my that was my career when did ecom where’s ecom come in.

35:52.20
Amy Wees
So in 2007 I started selling my books on Amazon my textbooks um as a hobby like just while I was going through college and so that’s when I started selling in ecommerce is 2007 um, and I I don’t know I really liked it. It was a lot of fun I started selling different things on ebay just kind of hobby right? and then later on when I was stationed in Hawaii I had my own I was painting wine glasses and beersteins and I had my own Etsy store. Um, and.

37:51.20
Andrew Morgans
Um, um.

37:08.00
Amy Wees
You know? so I just kind of always like dabbled in E-commerce and I had like a fitness non-for-profit while I was in the military I just did different things right? So I’ve always kind of been an innovator I’ve always kind of been a little a hustler right? like that’s just my in my blood but um, but what happened. What had happened was in 2 17 Um I I Get really bad migraines. Um I have chronic severe migraines which means I have 15 or more headache days a month and it’s It’s a very severe condition and it’s no fun and I have.

39:25.24
Andrew Morgans
Oh my gosh.

38:24.38
Amy Wees
Ats and the litter box is terrible and one of the triggers for migraines for me I can control my migraines as long as I can control my triggers and 1 of my major triggers is smells so I can’t be around like cigar smoke. You’ll notice me at events like if people are smoking cigars I run the other way because I don’t want to. And up in the hospital or end up. You know, just not being happy for the rest of the event. Um, and so anyway I have this condition and I have. 3 cats and I you know we were cleaning the litter boxes scooping them a couple times a day we tried the automated litter boxes. We did all these things and nothing removed the smell like we were scooping twice a day and it was. Still smelling like I was going on these cat groups on Facebook and people were like yeah you have to clean it multiple times a day and I’m like I’m doing that you know I’ve tried all the litter boxes I’ve done all the things and you know and of course I went back to scooping because that was the the least annoying thing to do you know? and and. No matter what I could do I could not get rid of the smell and I just was like you know I’ve always been one of those people who carried around a notebook of ideas and I would sketch different ideas I’ve always been an inventor. Um I’ve always created my own prototypes for things at home like that’s just who I am um I’m a creator. And so I was just like every time I would go tdy with my cyber unit I would be sketching in my notebook and trying to figure out how to solve this problem and I was sketching litter boxes like different forms of litter boxes trying to like figure that out for months and i. Was almost a year that I was doing this and um and I woke up at like 3 a m one day and I was like oh my gosh. The problem is the litter box like nobody’s innovating outside of the litter box like everybody keeps trying to create a better litter box. But. All the litter boxes I’m sketching are just basically the same result as every other one that I’ve tried right? I’m like the problem is the litter box. So I wake up at three o’clock in the morning and I start pulling apart laundry mesh and I’m like if I can just find something that I can pour the litter box into and like scoop it all at once. It’s gonna be fast and i’mable to clean. It. Super quick instead of having to sit there with a scoop for 15 minutes you know making a mess and so I was totally making a mess in my laundry room at none a m like pouring litter all over the place. You know.

44:46.70
Andrew Morgans
Their husbands like what is going on.

43:37.66
Amy Wees
He seems to me. He’s been married to me so many years you know he’s used to my craziness and he puts up with it. Well he deserves a med for that. Um, but you know as soon as home depot opened I went to home depot it was like 7 am and I bought like hardware mesh and whatever I could find and then I brought like a. I brought home like a a waistb bi and inside of that like I put the hardware mesh and I built a wood frame with handles and I picked it up and I poured the litter box into it and it worked like a freaking charm. It was incredible Andrew and I was like less than 60 seconds I had cleaned 3 litter boxes. Dump them all in there got got rid of all the waste at 1 time and put the clean that are back in the box and I was like I have something here so I was like this is cool but I had no idea even though I have an Mba and a couple of undergraduate business degrees I can read the 10 k analysis for. Http://amazon.com but I can’t I don’t know how to bring a product to market from scratch I didn’t know how to take this prototype that I had built and I so I was like okay maybe I’ll go on shark tank or maybe I’ll you know and and the crazy thing was I was so motivated because.

46:57.38
Andrew Morgans
Right.

46:10.68
Amy Wees
Was using my prototype every day and I thought I had just invented a better way to clean the cat litter box like a faster way but all of a sudden Andrew I smelled nothing even after. Cleaning and even after ah you know the cats had used the litter box again I went into my tiny little laundry and I saw I smelled nothing and I was like how is this possible so I brought my friend over who has dogs and she doesn’t like cats and I was like am I nose blind what’s happening here. Why don’t I smell it anymore and she was looking at my free litter boxes and with. Stuff in them waste in them and she was like that’s amazing I smell nothing so not only did I invent a faster way to clean, multiple litter boxes at None time I invented like I got rid of the odor. And so we did this study and we figured out that the columps that are in clumping litter when you’re using a scoop you break them apart and contaminate all the clean litter and clean litter doesn’t stink so no matter whether you’re using an automatic cleaning litter box or a scoop you got those clumps and those clumps are getting broken up. And that’s why it stinks after you clean it and with my device you don’t have that problem because you just pour it in and the clumps stay on the top and then you can like any that are stuck to the litter box. You don’t you can just scrape them off and get rid of them. So it’s super fast. Super easy and eliminates the odor and I was like wow I have to bring this to market I have There are so many people even pregnant women that can’t touch litter like so many people that could use this product and so I was like I gotta figure this out and the biggest thing Andrew is I started like calling design firms and stuff to try to help me and. They all wanted like $30000 just to turn my drawing into another drawing and I was thinking okay wait a minute you know I’m the creator I’m the innovator I’m the hard charger I’m not the take no for an answer kind of girl and I’m like no ah I don’t think so you’re not playing me.

51:02.92
Andrew Morgans
Yeah, yeah.

50:16.42
Amy Wees
Companies bring products to market every single day. This cannot be impossible and so I just set out on a mission I was like you know what? I’m going to learn this I started cold calling manufacturers I built my own three d printer I whatever I had to do and everything that I learned I shared for free. I didn’t care I was like I got on Youtube whoever would listen I got in Facebook on Facebook and I just started sharing I was like hey you have an idea I figured this out today I figured this out today and then I was combining it with my ecommerce knowledge because you know I’ve been selling on Amazon since 2007 so I was like you know I know I can launch this I know I can do this right. And people started following me and asking to consult with me and I was like I don’t do that like if that’s not my thing right? I’m just trying to help you and I’m I’m going along the way and before I knew it and I started copywriting too because my molds cost me $42000 and because.

53:21.22
Andrew Morgans
Oh.

52:10.32
Amy Wees
Yeah, they were really expensive. It’s a large product right? and so I was like man I want to pay these things off right? So I started on fiverr I started copywriting because I’m a really good copywriter and I’m also pretty good at Seo with my little hacker mindset right. So I was like oh I’m gonna master this algorithm I’m go figure this stuff out I’m gonna like just be good at this plus I’ve been an instructor in the military for all this time. So I’m really good at teaching I and I like to learn things to the level where I can teach them because that’s how I learn so this was the path that I was on I was just like okay.

54:27.86
Andrew Morgans
Right.

53:22.62
Amy Wees
I’m going to launch this company I wrote a business plan I started going to my local small business development center getting feedback meeting other entrepreneurs getting feedback from my business plan and then I started just sharing whatever I would learn along the way like how to set up a business. What I learned about accounting what I learned about any. Trademarks legal like I just was sharing my journey and I didn’t care who listened I was just like there’s other people out there who are like me who are highly educated and have an idea and have a dream and they can’t get there because they just don’t have they’ve got this stupid. Elastic knowledge that they can’t do anything with on the ground so I was like I’m gonna be their boots on the ground I’m gonna share I’m gonna go charge forward figure it out and I’m gonna share with whoever’ll listen. So. That’s what ended up happening I was copywriting and I figured out the algorithm. So well Andrew that people started. I was turning around these saturated products I would take like a saturated product like a felt letterboard and I would rewrite it as an office sign. So I’d study the market and find out where this product wasn’t selling and I’d be like okay this would make a great receptionist sign or office sign. What’s the keyword opportunity there and I would rewrite. People’s listings. And have them redo their photos and they’d sell out of these saturated products and sometimes become number None in their category and they’re like how did you do that I want to consult with you. How do you? you know and I would for me this is just like I’m I’m the gap filler I’m figuring things out right? so. I started consulting I was like fine fifty bucks let’s just get together like whatever will those people this was 2017 and 2018. Yeah.

57:48.66
Andrew Morgans
What year was this what year was this.

58:02.76
Andrew Morgans
Okay, so and you’d been selling. This was your None private label product right? Okay, okay so I’m like you’ve been selling but you’re doing like okay.

56:55.58
Amy Wees
Yes, yep, and I started at the same time I was doing retail arbitrage and wholesale because I wanted to learn because Amazon had changed so much since I started in 2007

58:37.30
Andrew Morgans
So use this.

57:23.78
Amy Wees
So I needed to learn fba and all of those other models. So I was like launching wholesale product I launched 3 other private label products myself before I even finished my invented product. Um, and I just was like on this path to like learn and share and grow and then at the same time because I’m crazy. On top of my full time job I started copywriting and consulting and I still had my private label and and all these other things that we were doing wholesale everything else, right? And yeah, so that was like in 2018 I literally Andrew. I would come home from work at my cybersecurity job very high profile job right? and I would be on coaching calls from five o’clock six o’clock seven o’clock Eight o’clock Nine o’clock at night I would go to bed I’d get up in the morning go to my gym. Do it all over again all weekend long I’d have consulting calls or I’d be trying to catch up on my business. And I was literally crumbling I would take like two weeks of leave from work and I would still be two months behind I didn’t even realize that amazing at home was born I was happening right before my eyes I didn’t set out to start.

01:00:42.34
Andrew Morgans
Yeah, yeah.

59:44.94
Amy Wees
Ah, consulting firm I just literally built the website over the weekend because I had the domain name and people were booking with me and I was like I need to automate this I can’t keep manually booking on a calendar and meeting on google hangouts like this is crazy and so yeah, the whole thing just like. Took off like crazy and before I knew it I was like my friend efton he is a life coach and he was like Amy you have to quit your job and that Andrew had never occurred to me I had I was like what what do you mean.

01:02:12.90
Andrew Morgans
Yep.

01:01:02.54
Amy Wees
Quit my job like I can’t quit my job I pay the mortgage and he was like ah didn’t you tell me, you’re turning clients away and you’re like working none. What do you think is gonna happen if you put all that energy into your business and I was like no eton you don’t understand. I pay the mortgage you know and he was like no, we’re gonna make a plan and in six months you’re gonna leave your job and we did made a plan I set aside six months of pay like six months of whatever the bills would cost so that I could just focus on the business and efton. Helped me talk off the ledge and that is one of my videos that’s still the most popular video today because I I did ah a video interview with Efton and we talked about me leaving my job and that video really it impacted a lot of people in a big way for them to see like hey she did it. I can do it too I don’t have to be afraid to quit my job because so many people it just doesn’t occur to them. They just don’t like out I even though I invented this product and everything it never occurred to me that I’d have to quit my job crazy.

01:04:36.84
Andrew Morgans
It makes me think about um you know the principal or like the of like the elephant that’s just tied in like he has a rope around his foot and it’s just like this little steak because he’s had it his whole life. But he’s this massive elephant. He could easily like you know, just move on. But he doesn’t because he feels like the little the little rope on his foot and I don’t know if you know this about me but I actually got my start on upwork and marnology turns None in August so ah I think I started in 14 but I was working a day job. Ah and was just figuring out Amazon seo.

01:03:56.96
Amy Wees
Yes.

01:05:49.86
Andrew Morgans
And I think we’re making pennies back then even probably in None you know it’s really changed the industry didn’t exist so it wasn’t like you were seeing other people doing it I wasn’t even like out there in None like you know I was just doing my thing. Busy word of mouth. You know didn’t have any time to spend on my marketing or my website because I was. Building everybody else’s um and I never I didn’t even know what the word entrepreneur meant you know and I just think ah we we definitely need to spend some more time together because the stories are just so close. Maybe we could even like do a really cool Youtube on it. Um, but like my hashtag has been watch me work for None ears You know, ah because I just wanted to I’m nobody from nowhere that found ecommerce and that just went in all in and and and just at a low point. My life just kept investing back in on me I’m just going to go all and what’s the worst that can happen. What’s the worst that can happen. What’s the worst that can happen. Um, and you know. Not that it’s like enormous amounts of success or anything but my quality of life is like so much higher and and um.

01:06:37.40
Amy Wees
Yes, you know I didn’t even pay myself I didn’t even pay myself for like the first couple of years and when I finally hired an accountant. She was like yeah Amy in your part-time where you were just writing listings for like none right? and you were just working part time while still full time at your job you earned over $100000 yourself by yourself between consulting and and listings and I was like oh my gosh like what.

01:08:55.10
Andrew Morgans
Um, over over how much time over how much time was that.

01:07:38.96
Amy Wees
Holy wow. Okay it it was this six month period of time where I was only working part time after my job consulting and writing lessons all by myself I didn’t have anyone with me and now amazing at home is an scor and I’m selling my private label brand. And I just can’t and I have built in that time period I left my job in October of 2018 I started taking people on trips to China I had a China sourcing trip company and and I still do that I just do it under amazing at home and now we’re going to Mexico as a sourcing trip. You know I do conferences I have an events company I have amazing at home. I have built none figure businesses since 2018 since I left my job in 2018 one of those businesses while I was still working full time and I just I didn’t even know you know like there’s and now like you said your quality of life.

01:10:25.20
Andrew Morgans
That’s incredible.

01:09:31.96
Amy Wees
I went to Peru last month. Um without I didn’t even bring my laptop. My team is so on fire like they’re amazing. They just handle everything and I didn’t I just brought my phone and I had the most wonderful time and I was like this is life like this is what it’s like to be a business owner. Get to go to Peru on an entrepreneur’s wellness retreat and have an amazing time and I have amazing people taking care of my bottom line and I know how hard it is I know how hard it is I help people all the time in consulting hire their first employee get past that none you know they put up barriers they put up barriers to their own success. They look at None figures and they go ah no, that’s or they get to None figures and they go I can’t even see None figures I’m just gonna stay right here and be safe because everything else is scary for me and so I love being in the business of giving people permission.

01:12:40.82
Andrew Morgans
Are.

01:11:26.34
Amy Wees
Permission to grow permission to leap. You know that is what I love about consulting because you can really make a difference for somebody and help if you just help them see a path if you can help them through some things that you’ve already struggled with you know and so I love helping people with their toughest challenges.

01:13:04.46
Andrew Morgans
Perspective.

01:12:03.44
Amy Wees
It’s it’s just incredibly rewarding and I swear I get so many messages every week from people that are like you changed my life and that is so overwhelming and you know even people coming up to me at conferences and stuff like I’ve been following you for years. You. Thank you so much for your videos and thank you for helping me and you know I just I can’t it’s so it’s I get so much more joy giving than I do even receiving from it. You know it’s not even it doesn’t feel like work. It feels like joy and love and. Strength and you know all the things I didn’t know life could be like this and I just try to remember I try to remind everybody that I work with that’s stuck in the ruts and they’re trying to scale and they’re trying to grow I’m like hey guys the grass is green over here I promise I promise it’s green. Promise you’re gonna get there. You just gotta keep going keep griing and there’s a way.

01:15:18.30
Andrew Morgans
No, and I’m glad I’m glad you took that month because um I know like with every like every time there’s you know there’s the wins and there’s that month but it didn’t come easy and you know it took a lot of time to get to a point where you can step away for a month I remember the time I stepped away for the first weekend. Ah, was like you know a really big deal. It was ah like an accelerator thing I went to and they were having no laptops or phones or whatever now it’s just like panicking. You know, like what happens if something goes wrong I think that there’s something whenever you when an entrepreneur is born of um. You know, difficulty out of difficulty. Let’s say like financial difficulty with your parents or like you know scarcity that you kind of just build in these traits of like ah you know your mom always helping you. And you know you kind of carry that on like you just like you’re helping you just don’t even know really how to receive that’s something we’ve got to work on you know because you can’t get from a place of empty you know I was talking to Claus Alvarez we talk about that a lot and it’s just like you know, certain people are wired differently and talking about sellers helping sellers and.

01:15:49.18
Amy Wees
Nat.

01:17:27.76
Andrew Morgans
You can give give give but you have to start with with yourself which is like take that sabbatical or or get that month in Peru or like set that goal out there when people ask me like well what’s 1 thing you would change or what’s 1 regret you’ve had or what’s 1 thing you’ve done wrong as an entrepreneur for me I’m like I regret.

01:16:19.22
Amy Wees
And.

01:18:02.80
Andrew Morgans
I don’t have regret I don’t want to use that word I would say um I’ve always set my ceiling too low for for you know how how much I can grow or what I can accomplish and I think I’m setting it high you know I Really do I Just I think I’m setting it like high and then I get there and then I’m lost again because I set it too low and then I’m like okay.

01:16:54.00
Amy Wees
Maybe.

01:18:42.28
Andrew Morgans
Um, you know for me, it was coming from low income was I have to believe that I can manage wealth and manage funds and I’m worthy of that and you know I can help how can I help other people get there if I haven’t accomplished that myself or at least in my mindset so it was um these things are are things that ah. We’re talking business right? We’re talking business consulting. We’re talking to Amazon consulting and Com consulting. But it’s also just personal. It can directly relate to your personal journey and you know you as the entrepreneur you as a leader I talked to people about leadership and I’m like I remind them that like all of us are leaders. We’re leaders of our own life none you know or maybe you have ah a cats or you have a dog so you’re still their leader you know’re still like their pack leader and you’re still taking care of them and um, we start with ourselves and it goes outward from there and I think um. 1 last thing I’ll say is like a lot of education I think it was in Dc I was reading an article about the the school systems in Dc who was talking about the mayor. None thing he did to absolutely change the neighborhoods there and the education system was giving kids from inner cities schools and neighborhoods a vision of. Letting them literally see what life is like in different places outside of their neighborhood and the difference in and children simply being able to see that the grass is greener. Let’s say or that you know there’s this different life that you can actually like enjoy your life and what you do versus just clocking in and out um is possible and the difference in. Um, you know, grades grades and like finishing rates at school and high school and all those things in those cities in Dc has made a huge change because of some of the initiatives. The mayor’s been doing and I might be misquoting some of that but the principle being whenever you’re able to give a vision or cast it and I think that’s why you’re so passionate about what you do is like. Didn’t know if is possible for me. Um I’m sharing my work watch me work. You know that’s my that’s my slogan but that is not about a braggaddosious thing or an ego thing. It’s about literally I’ve been posting this for None ars because I want you guys to see you know what hard work and intentionality and focus can do creating a life by design. And I stumbled into it by accident as well like I had no idea what I was doing I just got excited I was trying to find a side hustle to pay off my my divorce at the time and um so I was like you know, tinkering and side hustling and found ecom I think in a similar way as you I didn’t have a brilliant invention. More so as just working with people with their inventions and helping bring those to life. But um, adding a little color to that just because I think everything you just shared trying to trying to frame that for anyone that’s listening is is the absolute value and I think that I didn’t understand.

01:24:11.90
Andrew Morgans
The value of a consultant or a coach or a mentor or paying to learn something until I felt like I had something to teach others and you know now that I know that I can help others and help other businesses and really see them grow and change their lives I’m way more open about receiving. Coaching or that mentorship or like you know sourcing and what can I learn about for me was finances a big thing with finances and understanding how to really do accounting and bookkeeping and and get some help there and not just from a do it for me, but from a teach me kind of thing just making a little plug about. You know people that are maybe like so feeling stuck that are listening or like want to know where they can take their their brand or their business and just are like I need someone to just come in here and maybe just even give me encouragement or like push me in the right direction or help me get a little bit more organized, a lot of creatives are not also organized I think that’s something that hearing your story. Resonates with me as you’re kind of a hybrid in that Sense. You know you’re a Creative. You’re an inventor you’re sketching all the time. But you’re also extremely process- oriented and organized and you know your team’s running your stuff so that’s not something that most people I think um, develop in their lives.

01:25:14.40
Amy Wees
Yeah, and even the even like big companies with a lot of money you know I I have gone into you know I I do some contract work for some of the bigger companies helping them. You know, operationalize and build systems and manage their teams and.

01:26:56.74
Andrew Morgans
Yeah, yeah.

01:25:52.56
Amy Wees
Um, and me and my team just come in and just you know just overhaul the thing and get them organized but I I’ve noticed that every company that I’ve come into is very disorganized and you know that’s the reason they have high employee turn turnovers because when people come in and they don’t. Feel that they’re making a difference and they don’t know where they fit into the organization and they don’t have communication or follow-up and they don’t have a system that they can work within. They don’t get anything done. They feel like their hands are tied at work. They don’t enjoy themselves so there nothing gives me more. Um. Pleasure then to be able to come into an organization and help them get organized and help their team feel just like rock stars. You know and everybody who meets my team. They’re just like Wow where did you find those people and it’s like it’s not where I found the people. It’s what I did with the people I found you know it’s.

01:28:59.32
Andrew Morgans
Yeah, yeah.

01:27:45.88
Amy Wees
Giving them a purpose giving them. Ah the ability to grow recognizing their strengths holding them accountable. You know sinking communicating empowering you know, but all of that you can You can say all those cool words about your employees. You can be like yeah I’m gonna. Communicate with them and I’m gonna sing with them and I’m going to empower them. But if you do that all without any system or Organization. You’re going to end up in the same frustrated place and so for me, it’s just the None step is always build the plan. The None step is build the system for the plan.

01:30:01.36
Andrew Morgans
Yep.

01:28:59.80
Amy Wees
Third step is operationalize that system right? like start make start making it work and build your templates and just go go go go go if I do something more than None times. It’s like like. For example, if I type out an email that’s a similar email twice. I go build a zap for it and that email is then drafted in my inbox every time something comes in with that subject line right? if I am asking people for information more than a few times I go build the form on my website I don’t build it now I have my team do it right? They know how to do it. We have processes for all that. But. It’s just so incredible. How much you can get done. You know people ask me that all the time like how do you get all this stuff done and it’s like we have a system. We have a system that empowers people to move and move fast and just go go go and do it and I just I love it. I love applying those skills. Outside of the military because it’s just so impactful and effective and you know and I’m very grateful for for those skills and having learned those skills and also for my my own you know drive to want to figure it out to want to create but then also. Put the puzzle together I just thrive from that.

01:32:49.14
Andrew Morgans
Problem solving problem solving at its finest and it’s the short saying but my roommate says it all the time. No your job must be a military thing just know your job like you know what are we here to do today. What’s your job today. Do you know it is it clear. You know all right? Let’s go. Let’s got. Let’s execute you know and you can have a team of 3 it doesn’t matter does everyone know what they’re doing today does everyone know what they’re in charge of you know what’s the process. What’s the plan. let’s ah let’s execute so

01:32:22.70
Amy Wees
You know we have we have a slack channel um called kpis and that every day our people make their little to do list and they put their kpis in the slack channel on this like it’s so nice in the morning when I wake up to just be able to go through everybody’s Kpis for the day. And you don’t have to be super detailed like it’s like None or 3 words of like I’m going to do this then we do this then we do these are my top priorities for the day. It’s so good to be able to look across the team and see that because then that also helps us communicate with each other if we know that this person’s working on a big project that is really top priority for our organization.

01:34:49.90
Andrew Morgans
You’re not going to interrupt him.

01:33:37.58
Amy Wees
We’re not going to bother them with some little hey do you remember where this file is located. You know like we’re we’re going to work it out or work with somebody else. But yeah I agree like you need to know what your responsibilities are and and be able to communicate those and. Your goals I mean I think the big thing for entrepreneurs too is just goal setting is huge and something I do in my mastermind group is we do monthly planning sessions we do annual planning and quarterly planning sessions and the way I teach planning is unlike anybody else. So I don’t use like the smart goals because nobody has time for that nobody is dead for that. You know so what I do is teach people how to set their top goals break them down into executable steps and I have like a process for that and then I teach them how to put it on their weekly schedule. And that allows them to stay laser focused on what they’re doing and not what somebody else is doing and not go chasing squirrels right of you know oh that’s interesting. Let me go get into crypto today or let me go do this and then we’re not even you know and the other thing it does for you is so many entrepreneurs all they do is put out fires. It’s because they have no goals. They don’t have any organization and then when you’re setting goals. So what I do is I set goals with my team so during our weekly s sinks at the end of the month the last week of the month we sync over our month our plans our goals for the next month

01:37:12.72
Andrew Morgans
Yep.

01:36:28.40
Amy Wees
And then we break those down and now we know what our priorities are and so it’s just like we put them in order. We give them a week number and now we we stack those tasks on a Monday for that week and then the weekly planning. We just look at the task for the week drag them across the calendar and go and do. Right? And it’s just it’s so effective and so efficient and um and that’s a huge thing like it’s it’s a game changer when you know how to set goals when you know how to plan and you fitd it into your existing schedule and you don’t feel like oh my gosh is this a smart goal to have all everything written properly. No. Set your goals get it done put it on your calendar. Do your best outsource what you need to outsource and keep going.

01:39:12.22
Andrew Morgans
I love it. Amy um, that is just absolute fire. Ah and you know I know for me all hell can be breaking loose you know and maybe it was growing up the way I grew up but you know his mom would gather us together. Whatever you know she’s we’ve been in war zones like you know and had to have a mom. Mom and kid talks. You know, kind of about what’s going on so some real talk and you know is no matter what was going on it was we kind of go to worst case scenario and maybe that’s not the best example to bring up but in general bring up worst case scenario right? and it’s usually not that bad and it. Like I know my anxiety immediately drops by 90% when I have a plan right? and whatever’s going on if it’s money if it’s family if it’s a health thing if it’s whatever might be going on. It’s.

01:39:17.22
Amy Wees
Um, yeah.

01:40:56.56
Andrew Morgans
As soon as we sit down as a team or even in myself like sit down and mike do I have a plan do I have a plan am I just sitting there thinking about this problem nonstop like without really knowing what I’m attacking but when I sit down and have a plan even if it’s six months out or a year I know this plan is going to take a year to get there like let’s say it’s fixing a credit score. It’s. Who knows you know what? that could be paying off $40000 molds you know, um, you kind of just set a plan out there. You’re like okay I’m going to go write Seo and like offset this cost and before long you had an entire business. You know from it or our business was coming from it. So I think that plan.

01:40:23.98
Amy Wees
Um.

01:42:08.76
Andrew Morgans
Not just for getting stuff done but for reducing that fear and reducing that anxiety and reducing those other things that can be counterproductive to executing um, it all starts with a play so we’re we’re coming up on an hour I want to give you None last shot to um, just the last couple of minutes just share something. You know we’ve we’ve talked about a lot. I think it’s it’s super inspiring, especially if someone is is thinking about these things and making the leap or feeling unorganized or one would they know where to get help. We’re gonna have all of her show or all of her contacts and information and and stuff in the notes so you’ll be able to find Amy um, but. As well tune into all of her content. You know it’s it’s amazing. You’re on all kinds of channels I believe so there’s not just one size one ah size fits all but you know someone there’s something for everyone and um, but what’s you know What’s None thing to leave with ah you know, maybe an entrepreneur that’s feeling overwhelmed or. Or simply someone that’s ah you know, stuck in their None to None maybe someone. That’s either overwhelmed that’s already taken the leap or someone that’s maybe in their 9 to None or or in their daytime job. That’s just just dreaming about more and in a different quality of life.

01:43:11.34
Amy Wees
You know this answer has changed for me over the years but something that has made a humongous difference in my life is knowing that I have the power and the ability.

01:44:37.00
Andrew Morgans
Good.

01:43:49.14
Amy Wees
To choose to be happy and the only thing that is keeping me from doing that is realizing that I am not my thoughts and for me I started on this journey I went on this. I did this miracle morning. It started with Hal Alrod’s miracle morning book. It’s called the miracle morning. There’s a movie on Netflix too if you if you’re not into reading books but miracle morning watch the movie read the book and start doing some of these things that hal teaches in the morning to start off your day but then the. And thing that Hal did is he recommended this book and I actually read this book on the Seller Cruise and it really changed my life. He recommended this book called the inner work an invitation to lasting freedom and happiness and what this book is about is. Showing you that you you can literally watch your thoughts go by when you have a thought you can watch it that means you are not your thoughts and so many people get stuck in these negative thoughts or they get stuck in the past or they just. They don’t realize that they are not their thoughts and it drags them down and so I read this book the inner work and it just really started something in me and then I went to Peru and I learned about meditation and I learned how to really calm the mind and how to like separate all those thoughts from. Who I am right? and and now I’m am reading a book called living from a place of surrender and that has just been really really incredible and just kind of showing you all of that. But if I could leave. It doesn’t it doesn’t matter what you’re doing in your life whether you’re at your None to None or whether you’re hustling as an entrepreneur whether you’ve got it all figured out and like it’s the best time of your life. You know if you can’t get out of your own head and your own negativity and you can’t be in the moment. None of it matters. So I’m on this journey to really focus on being in the moment every day and in that I’m creating my future and a lot of people don’t realize that they have the perfect ability to create their future and that your future is created. Not by what you visualize in the future but by every moment that you experience every single day and you have the choice in every moment to be present and have gratitude and think about the bigger picture no matter what you’re going through and to me.

01:49:27.96
Amy Wees
You know my mantra since I’ve been an entrepreneur and I’ve been really really awesomeling has been enjoy the journey because what is it all for if we can’t enjoy the journey and so you know for me that’s that’s what I’d recommend. That’s what I’d leave you with is you know, go on that journey start with the miracle morning read the inner work. Um, you know, check out some of these these books that teach you about mindfulness and realize that you are not your thoughts and you don’t have to be stuck in a negative situation. No matter where you are. You can absolutely have the most incredible life and you can choose to be happy and I just think that that is. Such a powerful thing and it’s changed my life in such an impactful way and it’s saved my marriage It’s it’s helped me teach my kids how to not get negative about other people saying things about them. Everything like Tony Robbins says all you need is within you now. Right? And and just being able to help people realize that and also myself realizing that has been more powerful than anything I could do as an entrepreneur and it’s really helping me just live the most amazing future that I could live by creating every moment and appreciating it day to day.

01:53:11.54
Andrew Morgans
Wow Amy thank you for that those those beautiful um I say something to my crew all the time kind of coined it and I just say in those moments like when I’m in those moments I’m just like a reminder like I feel like I’m reflecting in real time. It’s like I’m reflecting back on the moment I’m in about how beautiful it is but in real time and it’s just like a little silly thing but just bringing like you know that presence to that moment and whatever we’re doing like you know we had clients in town. They flew in 3 of them. You know like 3 Ah this brand flew in it wasn’t just one he came in they stayed two days they met with our team in our office that we’ve you know built and I’m I was stressed because I’m hosting that means I’m not doing everything else and um, you know I just my sister sent me a text I was just like. You know I woke up today. We have a lot to go do. But I’m just like so grateful. Um for the life. We’ve made and I’m getting to do with my best friends and what could be better than that. So absolutely beautiful. Um. Shoutout again to our sponsor for making content like this happen full scalele io helping you build software teams quickly and affordably a great place to start if you’re looking to find a development team I think um, full scale is an awesome, an awesome company. They’re the they’re the company behind startup hules. So to all our listeners. Amy this is beautiful I got a little choked up just even hearing that so that was beautiful and um, thanks again to our hustlers. Um for tuning in. We appreciate you appreciate your attention if you enjoyed this podcast share it with your friends. Um, you know we we provide this content for free to to help sellers to help. Entrepreneurs to just help whoever’s listening. You know, hopefully learn a little bit more and get some value. So amen I know it’t be the last time. Thanks for part one we’ll pick this up where where you left off I’ll tune in in a couple of months and and see where you are with things I know you’re doing a whole lot. So thanks again for your time today.

01:56:00.62
Amy Wees
Thank you, Thank you so much for having me