Tangie Seals, Business Coach for Millennial Entrepreneurs
Tangie Seals envisioned her dream life, examined her skillset, and put the two together to build a Soloist career that leads her to living the life she wants- all while helping others to do the same! She sat down with the Soloist Collective to tell us how she did it.
On getting the idea
Originally I wanted to use my double major in economics and international relations so I could work for a consulting firm like Accenture. It didn’t take me long to realize that that was more what my friends wanted.
I just wanted to travel.
So I did. After graduation, I hit the road and roamed through South Africa and Brazil. It was over a conversation with a girl at a bar in Brazil that I discovered a whole new way to live. The girl in question was a digital marketer who earned American dollars, all while living in Brazil. Basically, my dream.
On going solo
Just because I knew how I wanted my life to look didn’t mean I knew what I wanted to do with it. So I went to graduate school to study finance, which is where I inadvertently stumbled on an idea.
I called up a business coach and said “Here’s what I like doing. How can I do it?”
We worked together to figure out how “working with entrepreneurs in the early stages” could become a career around “giving people advice on how to start their business.” Specifically, give millennials advice on how to start their service oriented businesses.
From there everything came together quickly. I designed my own website and put together a long list of questions for friends and family members who had started businesses to ask them about their pain points and challenges. Then I asked those same people to share the survey with their own friends and families. The responses I received allowed me to create programs around actual needs experienced by my targeted audience.
Once the website was up, I created a lead magnet and then, other than posting on Instagram, I just kind of left it alone. Much to my surprise, people started contacting me immediately, asking for details about what I was launching.
On narrowing down the focus
Each client I worked with helped me focus my business goals. Working with a friend who needed help launching a boutique made me realize that I much prefer working with digital businesses. Assisting with the launch of a hair product line made it very clear that I’m better suited to coaching people with services rather than products.
On challenges
As the business grows, I find myself struggling with imposter syndrome. I’m young and I look even younger than I actually am, which, while it makes me perfectly positioned to give guidance about and to millennials, makes me worry that people won’t take me seriously or will question whether I’m qualified to give advice.
It makes intake calls a bit tricky, which is a challenge since you can’t make money if you don’t close! To get over my fear of that first contact with a potential client I had to make a mental shift. Now, instead of thinking of it as a sales call, I think of it as a discovery call.
I worked with my business coach to put together a discovery call script that would help me keep the call short and on point. Then I called up a good friend and we practiced running through the script until I felt like I could make a call without spontaneously combusting with anxiety.
My friends are great. It really took the pressure off to be able to practice.
On strengths and resources
Every time I come across a challenge, like figuring out what to charge or what programs to offer, I lean on my business coach and my friends for advice and then I get to work.
I think that my business strength is that I get these almost manic bursts of energy. When I’m excited about something, I only need an hour or two of sleep each night. My body and mind kick into gear and I can work through things quickly.
