How I Made 7-Figures in My First 18 Months in Business

A few weeks ago during our quarterly masterclass in the IHML Membership, one of the members asked me to share how I was able to make my business to 7-figures in my first 18 months in business.

I answered the question, but later on, not only did I think of a few more things that I did during that time, but my husband James (who had apparently been listening to my answer through the door!) reminded me of some missed key steps as well.

For that reason, I decided to record a full-blown podcast episode on how to make 7-figures in your business (and even answer some of our community members’ questions!) where I reveal…

What I sold in the beginning and what my pricing looked like
The step-by-step process that I implemented during that time (I literally break it down month by month) and my marketing strategies
The sacrifices I made to reach that goal (Yes, there were some but they didn’t feel like a sacrifice at the time!)
The exact amount of money that I spent on coaching support (you may be surprised!)
My top mindset shifts to move past my money blocks and think like a successful business owner
What I’d do differently if I was starting over
And of course…lots of my mistakes!

“As you’re upleveling observe yourself. What are the blocks that you have? What are the ways in which you’re holding yourself back?” – Emily Williams

The truth is, although this stat looks shiny on paper, it wasn’t always smooth sailing, and there were tons of challenges and failures along the way to making 7-figures.

If you want to learn more about my journey, check out this episode. I promise that it’s full of valuable insights and practical tips that can help you build your own successful business regardless of your financial goal!

In This Episode:

[03:44] Emily’s unique circumstances. Emily explains her situation when she started her business, including her lack of responsibilities and debt.
[06:21] Investing in a coach. Emily talks about her decision to invest in a coach and the amount of money she spent to get results.
[09:36] Working through money blocks. Emily discusses her experience with money mindset work and how she overcame her fear of talking to people about money.
[11:06] Building the Business. Emily talks about her dedication to building her business, investing in a coach, and working through money blocks.
[14:24] Investing in a High-Level Program. Emily talks about how she invested $120,000 in a high-level program to take her business to the next level, and how she hustled to make the money for the investment.
[19:00] Investing in a Coach. Emily talks about investing $120,000 in a coaching program and the risk tolerance required for such an investment.
[21:14] Upleveling Mindset. Emily shares how she up-leveled her mindset by observing her own blocks and limiting beliefs, using the example of buying a $7 chocolate bar.
[26:28] Flying Business Class. Emily talks about giving herself the gift of flying business class from Bali to London, and how it was a rational decision to try it out and see if it was important to her.
[27:13] Investing in Desires. Emily challenges listeners to explore their desires and not immediately cut off the option of achieving them due to perceived limitations.
[29:01] Expanding Knowledge and Raising Rates. Emily discusses the importance of expanding knowledge and experience in order to validate higher rates and serve next-level clients.
[31:15] Authentic Branding. Emily emphasizes the importance of living out the message being preached and being authentic in branding, including investing in photography and standing out from the crowd.
[36:00] Expanding the Business Model. Emily talks about the challenges of working with 27 clients and how she expanded her group program offers and raised her rates to work with higher-level clients.
[37:36] Learning the Hard Way. Emily shares the lessons she learned the hard way, including the importance of growth being painful, hiring quickly, and building a stronger foundation.
[39:10] Focus on Profit and Team Building. Emily discusses what she would do differently if she were starting her business today, including focusing on profit, team building, and putting more structure in place. She also emphasizes the importance of tuning the plan to what feels aligned for each individual.

Quotes:

“It was actually more in service to the client or to the customer for me to go deeper with them on money and to act and operate from a place of being a coach versus worrying about being liked.” – Emily Williams

“Never lower your prices to the point where you feel like you’re gonna resent your clients.”- Emily Williams

“As you’re upleveling observe yourself. What are the blocks that you have? What are the ways in which you’re holding yourself back?”- Emily Williams

“Don’t cut off the option before you even explore it is what I’m trying to say.”- Emily Williams

“I wouldn’t require myself to move as quickly and I would focus more on profit than just you know making money and spending money to up level but I know that those initial investments really helped me to gain traction quickly and to feel supported and to understand how to actually do this online business thing and that was a topic I didn’t know much about and so learning from somebody who’d been there and done it was huge.”- Emily Williams