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Make Uncertainty Your Friend: Meet Farnoosh Torabi, Award-winning Financial Strategist

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Farnoosh Torabi, award-winning financial strategist and host of the daily podcast, So Money.

When Farnoosh Torabi got laid off from her job as a journalist at TheStreet.com, it was in many ways the day her real career began. Instead of going the safe route and finding another job, Farnoosh ran with her big idea—and it changed the course of her career.

Today, Farnoosh is an award winning financial strategist, best-selling author and sought after speaker. She’s the host of the daily podcast So Money where she interviews financial luminaries, entrepreneurs and influencers about their personal stories around money.

I recently had Farnoosh on my show, Solopreneur on the Whatever It Takes Network, where she shared why she thinks living with uncertainty is the key to successful entrepreneurship—and fear of failure shouldn’t stop you. Here’s more of Farnoosh’s hard-won wisdom.

How did you make the decision to leave your last job or go out on your own? What was that job, and how did you know it was time?

I got laid off! So, the decision was made for me. And sometimes those are the best decisions. I didn’t resist the fact that I was unemployed. I turned it into an opportunity to finally break out on my own and take the little freelancing I was already pursuing alongside my 9 to 5 to go completely rogue and venture out on my own full time.

What did you think you were going to be when you grew up?

A talk show host.

When did you realize this was (or wasn’t) going to happen?

I’m still hoping it will happen! My podcast is sort of making that dream come true.

What is it about your life now that you can’t believe you do, and wouldn’t believed if someone told you 5-10 years ago?

I can’t believe I get to work with companies and help them with their media strategies and educating their clients and employees about personal finance. I always assumed journalists work with newspapers and TV stations…but I’ve also worked with companies like TJ Maxx, Macy’s and Mass Mutual (and they pay better!).

Where do you think most of us waste our time? What do you recommend doing to change it?  Responding to emails right away.

I must get over 100 personally directed emails each day and if I were to actually respond to all of them that instant, I’d never get any real work done. As one of my podcast guests Chris Brogan told me, “email is the perfect delivery system of other people’s priorities.” I write back to people who are on deadline first but all others hear back from me 24 or 48 hours later…sometimes a LOT later.

What’s the worst advice you’ve ever been given (did you take it?)

You might want to consider changing your name. A news director once told me this after learning I had aspirations of being in front of the camera. It’s funny because all I ever wanted as a kid was to have a different name. I wanted to be Ashley or Christina. Farnoosh was weird and the kids made fun of my name. And by the time I was in high school and college I really appreciated being different. ANd then BAM! I start a new job out of college and some old white guy is telling me to be the same again…I laughed. Of course I didn’t follow his advice.

What advice would you give yourself if you could go back in time 10 years?

Start an email list. Period.

What lesson(s) did you learn the hard way (could be your career, or life in general):

When you write a book, no matter how awesome, there’s a really good chance that it won’t fly off shelves.

Any other advice you want solopreneurs/entrepreneurs to know? Resources you recommend or folks you like (think: books, brands, programs, services, anything you read/used and were like “YES!”)

-ScheduleOnce for setting up appointments
-TinyScan for scanning documents (I use this ALL the time as I sign a lot of contracts every year)
-A great CPA
-A great financial advisor
-Podcasters Paradise

For more about Farnoosh and how to create a richer, happier life, visit farnoosh.tv, somoneypodcast.com and @farnoosh on Twitter, and pick up her book, When She Makes More. 

Watch a new episode of Solopreneur every Tuesday at 4pm on the Whatever It Takes Network. 

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If You Hang Up On Gary Coxe, He Calls You Right Back

Gary doesn't give up. He just doesn't. Click here to find out how he can make your thoughts up and disappear.

Gary doesn’t give up. He just doesn’t. Click here to find out how he can make your thoughts up and disappear.

Gary Coxe never takes no for an answer—and it’s why he’s killing it in business and in life (and called into my show from some tropical island). It’s also how he got on my show! Because he and his staff just keep at it. Turns out, he’s also charisma personified.

For the record, I did not hang up on him. But plenty of people have. No skin off his back. “How do I know they didn’t drop their phone in the toilet?” (That has happened once. But he’ll assume that’s the case if you hang up on him.)

This guy not only started his own business and was making six figures IN HIGH SCHOOL, he negotiated a deal with the principal that allowed him to drop out and focus on business without consequence (watch the episode to hear this guy’s unbelievably ballsy story). Since then, he’s made millions—which he credits to not only providing value, but also following up more than most people are willing to.

Today, Gary is an accomplished author and speaker who’s sought out by individuals, companies, and media to improve their lives and businesses. I recently had him on my show, Solopreneur on the Whatever It Takes network, where he shared his biggest lessons: Your own head games are getting in the way of you making the sale or landing the client, and persistence and follow-up are the two key actions you need to be taking every day. Here’s more from Gary on how he made it big.

You gotta catch this interview. Click to watch.

You gotta catch this interview. Click to watch.

Do you have another day job? If not, what was your last one and when did you make the decision to leave it?

I have been self employed since I was 11 years old.

What did you think you were going to be when you grew up?

Had no idea and I haven’t grown up yet. 🙂

What is it about your life now that you can’t believe you do, and wouldn’t believed if someone told you 5-10 years ago?  

That companies pay me up to $20,000 for my advice and I get to personally fly my clients on my Beyond First Class Program in the Bahamas. This gives me the opportunity to intimately work with people to improve their lives and their businesses. And, probably meet amazing people that I’ve had the opportunity to meet in my travels as well. (Find out more about the details of the program).

Where do you think most of us waste our time? What do you recommend doing to change it?

We waste most of our time with unnecessary emotions and thoughts. If we don’t know psychologically what stops us from taking the action to get what we want in life, we continually take one step forward and 10 steps back. When we figure out our own head games, we can get ahead. A lot of the time we’re telling ourselves negative stories. We’ve got to stop the negative self-talk about ourselves.

What’s the worst advice you’ve ever been given (did you take it?)

Financially, to make suggested investments from people who don’t know what they are doing.

What advice would you give yourself if you could go back in time 10 years?

Believe even more and have more emotional control.

What lesson(s) did you learn the hard way (could be your career, or life in general):

Just business overall. I didn’t take enough to understand business models and educate myself early in my career.

Any other advice you want solopreneurs/entrepreneurs to know?

I don’t believe the average person really appreciates how powerful our thinking is. If we did, we’d invest so much time in mastering it.

MAKE YOUR THOUGHTS DISAPPEAR!

This, says Gary, is the key to pushing through your inner obstacles and achieving more than you imagined. Because those thoughts really are the problem. Find out more about how to gain emotional control in your life by banishing thoughts.

For more about Gary and how to create lasting results in your business and life, visit www.garycoxe.com and @garycoxe on Twitter, and pick up his book, You Can’t Fillet a Nibble: It’s the Catch That Counts. 

Watch a new episode of Solopreneur every Tuesday at 4pm on the Whatever It Takes Network. 

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Work Smarter, Not Harder: Overcome Busyness with Carson Tate, founder of Work Simply

Carson Tate, productivity coach and author of Work Simply: Embracing Your Personal Productivity Style

Carson Tate, productivity coach and author of Work Simply: Embracing Your Personal Productivity Style

Carson Tate was working in sales when she realized there was a direct correlation between how organized she was and how much revenue she brought in. When her colleagues adopted her system and started earning more, she knew she was onto something.

Carson saw that as her cue: She left her full-time job and launched her business, Work Simply, Live Fully, which helps professionals of all stripes to take back their time and grow their bottom line. Today, she is a dynamic teacher and coach known for personal transformation and simple, powerful, actionable content. A nationally renowned expert on productivity, Carson has been featured in Bloomberg Businessweek, Forbes, Fast Company, The New York Times, Working Mother and more. And she’s just published her first book, Work Simply: Embracing Your Personal Productivity Style, with Penguin Group (2015).

I recently had Carson on my show, where she shared some no-BS insight on how and why to stop wasting time on things you think are productive (but aren’t), and a way to think about time in terms of investment, not just tasks, by keeping your activities and revenue aligned, and maximizing unexpected free time. Here’s more from Carson on the biggest lessons she’s learned throughout her career on how to conserve time and energy, everyone’s greatest assets.

How did you make the decision to leave your last job and go out on your own? What was that job, and how did you know it was time?

I was working in outside sales and had been asked continually over the years by my colleagues how I got my work done so efficiently and stayed so organized. I developed a process to help myself manage a new facet of our compensation system and when it went viral in my organization I knew that there was an opportunity to serve others and it was time to leave my job.

What did you think you were going to be when you grew up?

A doctor 🙂

Click here to watch the episode.

Click here to watch the episode and take back your time.

When did you realize this was (or wasn’t) going to happen?

In my freshman year of college when I was taking chemistry 101. This was only the beginning of my science journey and none of the concepts made any sense. There was no way I was going to make it through organic chemistry. I quickly moved down the hall to the psychology department.

What is it about your life now that you can’t believe you do, and wouldn’t have believed if someone told you 5-10 years ago?

That I would be serving others through my writing, coaching and teaching.

Where do you think most of us waste our time? What do you recommend doing to change it?

Meetings. Before you automatically accept that next meeting request, ask yourself if this meeting will produce a significant return on time investment for you. If not, consider declining the meeting.

What’s the worst advice you’ve ever been given (and did you take it)?

Just stick with it. I have learned that the goal as the entrepreneur is to fail and fail fast. Don’t stick with it. If it is not working, let it go and learn from the experience and then go try again.

What advice would you give yourself if you could go back in time 10 years?

Focus on today and the rest will take care of itself.

What lesson(s) did you learn the hard way (could be your career, or life in general)?

Sticking with things that are clearly not working is a significant waste of time and energy. Let go. Learn and move forward.

Any other advice you want solopreneurs/entrepreneurs to know? 

Every time you say yes to something, you are saying no to something else. Time is your greatest asset and liability. Invest it for the highest return in your life.

For more about Carson and how to manage your time in a way that gets creativity and inspiration flowing, visit www.carsontate.com and @thecarsontate on Twitter, and pick up her book, Work Simply: Embracing the Power of Your Personal Productivity Style.

Watch a new episode of Solopreneur every Tuesday at 4pm ET!

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Content First: How Alexis Wolfer Made The Beauty Bean Worth Talking About

Alexis Wolfer, founding editor in chief of TheBeautyBean.com

Alexis Wolfer, founding editor in chief of TheBeautyBean.com

Alexis Wolfer is the founding editor in chief of TheBeautyBean.com, a TV host, a certified health coach, and a real beauty activist. She is also the author of The Recipe For Radiance: Discover Beauty’s Best-Kept Secrets in Your Kitchen (Running Press, 2014) and the forthcoming Radiant Bride (Running Press, Dec 2015). I recently had Alexis on my show to chat about how she turned her unique and forward-thinking take on beauty and health into a business.

Alexis was working in women’s magazines when she started her master’s degree in human rights and women’s studies at Columbia University. It wasn’t until grad school, she says, that she understood the importance of loving and respecting your own body, which is the ultimate human right. But she didn’t see any magazine out there with that message. That was her light bulb moment. She knew she wanted to create something that empowered women to feel great about themselves and treat their bodies well.

She had the idea nailed—beauty content with a feminist twist and a focus on natural ingredients—but Alexis had to learn everything about launching and monetizing an online women’s magazine, from soup to nuts. Here’s more from Alexis, including why you DON’T need a business plan when you’re starting out. You simply need to stop planning and start doing.

Click here to watch the episode. It's worth it.

Click here to watch the episode. It’s worth it.

Do you have another day job? If not, what was your last one and when did you make the decision to leave it?

Nope. My last day job was at Stylecaster.

What did you think you were going to be when you grew up?

Oh man…EVERYTHING. Literally from an archeologist to surgeon, I wanted to do it all (and still do).

When did you realize this was (or wasn’t) going to happen?

Who said it isn’t!?!

What is it about your life now that you can’t believe you do, and wouldn’t believed if someone told you 5-10 years ago?

I would have never thought I would do TV!

Where do you think most of us waste our time? What do you recommend doing to change it?

In planning! Sometimes you just need to DO IT and figure out the details later.

What’s the worst advice you’ve ever been given (did you take it?)

To write a business plan. And NO WAY. For what I do (without investors) it would have been a complete waste of time.

What advice would you give yourself if you could go back in time 10 years?

I would just assure myself that it would all work out so I could stop stressing so much.

What lesson(s) did you learn the hard way (could be your career, or life in general):

When someone tells you something about themselves, believe them! Learned this in a romantic relationship, but it holds for business ones too. Now, I always pay attention to how people describe themselves—they’re always right!

Any other advice you want solopreneurs/entrepreneurs to know? Resources you recommend or folks you like?

I re-read The Alchemist every couple of years. I know it’s not a business book, so to speak, but the life lessons are powerful and always a good reminder. And I LOVE TripIt!!! It’s the best if you travel often!

For more about Alexis and living a beautiful life from the inside out, visit TheBeautyBean.com and @TheBeautyBean on Twitter, and pick up her book, The Recipe for Radiance.

Watch a new episode of Solopreneur every Tuesday at 4pm ET!

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