53. From Virtual Assistant Agency Owner to Systems + Scaling Strategist | Diane Lam

In this episode, I chat with systems and scaling strategist Diane Lam. Together, we explore the importance of creating solid backend systems for intentional business growth. 

Diane shares her insights on how service providers and coaches can build scalable businesses without burning out. 

We discuss the challenges of scaling, how to set up automation and processes, and the importance of boundaries in achieving sustainable success.

Key Points Covered:
✨ The importance of setting up systems to avoid burnout
✨ How to scale your business with ease and flow, rather than adding more work
✨ Tips for optimizing your client experience with effective backend processes

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🎧 Podcast produced and edited with love by @FerAssists 🩵

Transcript

[00:00:00] Andrea Elibero: Andrea here, your host and passionate business coach and scaling strategist for Soulful Service Providers and Coaches. Welcome to another episode of Soulpreneur Scaling Stories. Have you ever wanted to look behind the curtain of your fellow entrepreneur's business to see what actually went into scaling it?

[00:00:22] Well, you are in for a treat because that's exactly what we are doing here. In each episode, we will be uncovering the truth behind the lessons and the stories behind what it truly takes for sole preneurs to scale their businesses intentionally. I'm hoping that their stories will help you to unlock the true potential of your business so you can create your own soulful, abundant and aligned laptop lifestyle through intentional scaling.

[00:00:46] So whether you're just starting out on your scaling journey or you're a seasoned entrepreneur seeking inspiration, this episode has something incredible in store for you. Are you ready to rise, grow and create? Create a business that fully supports your dream life. Well, let's [00:01:00] dive in before we begin.

[00:01:02] Make sure to hit that subscribe buttons. You never miss an empowering episode filled with real stories and soulful insights.

[00:01:11] Hey, welcome back everybody to Soulpreneur Scaling Stories. I'm really excited today to have Diane Lam with us, who is a systems and scaling strategist. Hello, Diane. How are you?

[00:01:25] Diane Lam: I'm so, so happy to be here. It's always great when I get to have a chance to chat with you.

[00:01:29] Andrea Elibero: Yes, we met at a networking event and fell in love.

[00:01:36] Diane Lam: Yes, the first night like it was insta love like in the movies.

[00:01:39] Andrea Elibero: It really was. It's the business best you love. So, um, introduce yourself and tell us what you do. What does your business look like?

[00:01:50] Diane Lam: Hi everyone. I'm so happy to be here. So in this iteration of my business, I focus on a system strategy and the back end operations so [00:02:00] that business owners can really scale to those multi six figures and beyond really setting up those simple but solid. System foundations so that there is a lot of clarity and certainty in what's happening on the day to day And my mission is to really make that kind of expertise super accessible to growing business owners as they're going and trying to hit those multi six figures because I Find that those are the business owners who really need that really tactical Customized foundation support the most because they just have fewer resources to grow their business from so that's where I'm really focused right now And I'm really excited about that Like really trying to help that group of entrepreneurs become big clients for everyone else down the road.

[00:02:39] Andrea Elibero: Amazing. And you're reminding me. I was actually having a coaching session yesterday with my client and she was nervous about working with Higher higher end or higher earning clients like these six and seven figure business owners and And I started laughing almost [00:03:00] because I know you know that most of the time things are just a hot mess express in the back end And I'm like, no, no So I had to set the record straight of I have been in like seven figure businesses where like the whole everything is on fire There's no systems like nothing like I'm like, how did you get this far like in spite of you know of what you're doing?

[00:03:20] So I'm sure you have lots of stories about that as well

[00:03:23] Diane Lam: Oh, yeah. Like, and I think that is something that we don't see from the backside of the business. We're like, oh, wow, it looks so beautiful. It's like really, really put together. And a lot of times, Those business owners who already have a certain level of success, well, they can afford to just, you know, hire more people and throw some bodies at the challenges or the obstacles and the hurdles that pop up as they're like, you know, developing their business further.

[00:03:44] And these kinds of more beginning business owners, people who are like just making their first hundred K don't have that luxury. Right. And that's, that's where I find a lot of more of the. foundational systems really, really can help get them to that place without being like, oh, well, I need to [00:04:00] hire like five new VA's, sign on an agency because like I'm drowning, um, in what I'm doing right

[00:04:05] Andrea Elibero: Yeah, that's, uh, yeah. Yeah, and this is such a good point, such a good point, and why, listen, like I'm a fellow systems nerd, like, like, we know these things, and like, so I'm like, I could talk systems all day, but it is so important, like, even if I take my own business, this is the first thing that I do when I do something is I set up systems, because I know that, that without it, like, yeah.

[00:04:27] I'm just going to feel all over the place. I feel so supported knowing that like I was just away for like a week and a half and I didn't have to worry about anything, you know, because like everything's there. Everyone's good. Things are flowing because these things are set up. And it's such a good point that you made that when you are not at seven figures, you know, when you are growing, like this really holds your business, like systems hold your business and then you don't have to hire so many people and spend so much money.

[00:04:57] Diane Lam: exactly. And like a lot of times, even if it's, you're just by [00:05:00] yourself, right? Like sometimes I'm like, well, how did they do that thing again? I don't remember. And just having the process, because you really dialed it in and focus. I'm like, oh yes. These are the 10 things I have to do every single month. Um, and this is how I do it.

[00:05:12] Okay, great. That's a refresher. Cause I don't touch like things like,

[00:05:15] Oh, all those financial statement reviews, what am I doing again? Like, what am I looking for? Those are all things I'm like, Oh, these are the, these are the things I need to like really look at. These are the numbers and the metrics I need to like focus in on.

[00:05:26] Um, and they're just things that like, even when you're working by yourself, like we forget, like I read somewhere that you can only really remember like seven or eight things at one time. Um, so I was like, Oh, that makes so much sense. Like. Highlights everything everything everything I forgot in my life.

[00:05:42] Andrea Elibero: to tell you a super nerdy story that you're going to appreciate. I don't know if anyone else listening will appreciate, I'm sure they will, but so I came across this TikTok video of this woman who she made a plan like in her notes app, like Of her all of her outfits for every day of her trip [00:06:00] and like with like actual pictures of the outfits like put in there with the weather like it's a whole thing and I was like intrigued I was like okay I'm gonna be like a super nerd and also I wanted to procrastinate packing and for like for my I recently went to Switzerland I was like I'm gonna try this out and I posted it on Instagram and people made fun of me and it's fine because like I would make fun of me too but let me tell you something when I was actually on my trip it was a lifestyle And I was so happy that I had it because then I didn't have to think about it.

[00:06:29] Like I was like, Oh, let me just look in my apps. I didn't have to be like, what did I pack again? And like go through my outfits and like think about clothes, you know, and, and I feel like this is what systems are in business as well. And I was like, Oh, this is really cool. Like, yeah, I was a nerd and like spent an hour doing this thing before I left, but it saved me so much time and brain space and like stress when I was on my trip.

[00:06:49] So I just thought this was like really funny and I recommend for everybody to do that.

[00:06:54] Diane Lam: Oh, I love that. The next time I go on a trip I'm gonna capsule my wardrobe too because it is a hot mess sometimes when I'm like [00:07:00] packing where I'm like Oh, I just packed a bunch of t shirts a bunch of like things I'm like, can I even make an outfit with that? Like did I do pants? Like,

[00:07:09] Andrea Elibero: But with a packing system, you totally can. So I'm going to give that to you. You can revolutionize the travel business with this offer. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. So let's get back into actual things. So I want to talk about your journey, but first before that, I want to talk about your current offers now, because I think they are so cool and I don't see, I personally haven't seen anybody package.

[00:07:32] systems the way that you're doing it, and I really love this. So can you explain what you do, what your offers are currently, and where this idea came from?

[00:07:40] Diane Lam: Yeah. So my primary offering right now are, is my systems accelerator program where we work together for two days a month, right? Two half days. And we focus on one system so that when you walk out of those two half days, that system is totally done. It's built. It's ready for you to start implementing and using.

[00:07:58] So we go through, Okay. Mapping out what [00:08:00] that process is. So, um, what tech you're going to use in that process. What can you automate? If, is it automatable, right? Because I think that people think that automation is very sexy until they realize what it takes to get there. And they're like, oh, no, no,

[00:08:14] Andrea Elibero: Yeah,

[00:08:15] Diane Lam: right. So we map out all of those things over two half days and then it's done and you can move on and you have that certainty that it is solid because I put my eyes on it and I'm consulting, um, in real time in these group intensives, right?

[00:08:26] So I have six of them that we cycle through. We start with sales or we start with marketing. We go into sales, uh, client. Experience like the onboarding, offboarding, client servicing, then we go into program delivery, um, the back end kind of organization, internal org, and then team growth and management, right?

[00:08:43] So like, you know, how are you going to bring people into your team and really get great performance out of them? So we run through that every day. Every, every six months, like we run through all of those pieces and you can come to one if you want to build one system and you can come to all of them if you want to build all of your foundations and, um, over the [00:09:00] period of six months, but that's kind of how I'm doing it.

[00:09:01] It's a group setting and you get, um, kind of that consulting. Like there's a lot of the stuff where you don't know what you don't know. And sometimes you need to ask, like, do I need a CRM? Which one is the best for me? Um, and after I just ran the sales and I'm worried when I was like, half those people didn't need CRM.

[00:09:16] Cause like you. It's not how you work now that we see the process, right? So it's really trying to make that high level consulting that's available to seven figure business owners available in a group model. So that's what I'm really focused on. I'm super excited. And you know, bringing more people into that kind of systems atmosphere.

[00:09:34] Andrea Elibero: Yeah. And I love the fact that you made it a group one and they still, they're still getting high level consulting. And so it's really scalable. It doesn't take up that much of your time once you develop these things and it's highly systematized. Right. So it's like you're cycling through, you know exactly what's happening.

[00:09:52] And I love that people can then go to, like you have repeating clients like automatically. So it's less sales. So where did this idea come from? Cause I think [00:10:00] it's really cool. I think it's really innovative.

[00:10:02] Diane Lam: That's a really, like, I think there's been a lot of iterations of this. I've been trying to find this program, um, for a while, probably for the last, almost year, year and a half, probably yeah, close to 18 months. Um, when I realized like, I don't want to work in an agency, done for you is not the thing I ever wanted to do, but I kept falling into it.

[00:10:22] Um, and I wanted to find a way to like, okay, How can I serve this earlier stage business owner and also make it sustainable for me, because like just looking at the numbers, right, like pricing accessibility is super, super important for me. Um, I think you and I have talked about like time for it's like, Oh yeah, I've invested in that big thing.

[00:10:40] And it's put me in like, some not great cashflow situations. Um, so. The numbers really needed to make sense. And so I tried a number of different models first. Like, I tried a longer term model where it's like, okay, we'll build, like, the whole back end over, like, you know, three to six months. And I'm like, I don't know that that necessarily works.

[00:10:56] Like, you lose focus when you are going about your day to day, and [00:11:00] we really needed that time to really, like, let's do the thing together, right now. So as I was running different tests, beta tests, like I think it's all of 2023 or the second half of 2023 and a bit of the first half of 2024 was like me testing different service

[00:11:15] Andrea Elibero: hmm. Okay. So this is really important, right? Cause you're not like,

[00:11:18] I feel like sometimes people think like, oh, this person has this amazing business and they think it just came like, it just like, this was their first try and like, they just did it. And you spent over a year going through and testing different models to see what would fit and what works best for you and the client.

[00:11:33] And I think that's so important to highlight. Yeah.

[00:11:36] Diane Lam: Yeah, a hundred percent. Right. Cause like in the earlier state iterations of my business, I kind of fell into the things that would make me money. And I found that I'm like, I don't like this is not what I set out to do. I don't like this work. And this time around, I'm like, I want to find the place where I'm really enjoying how I serve.

[00:11:52] And it is really benefiting the actual client at the end of the day. Right. And that took some testing to figure out like, well, what do I like about this and what will [00:12:00] really serve them? So I had to do it. There was no other way I could mean I could have built an entire business and scaled it up. And Realize I'm like, Oh, this isn't it.

[00:12:07] This is in the way, which I previously, I didn't want to do again.

[00:12:11] Andrea Elibero: Yeah, so amazing. So speaking of, let's just thank you for the segue So let's go back into when you had a baby business and you're first starting So what was your business when you first started out online?

[00:12:21] Diane Lam: So the original idea for my business is nothing to do with what I'm doing now, right? Or even any conception of it. Cause so the reason I actually left corporate was because I was so angry that they did not approve my last set of PTO that I was requesting six months in advance. I'm like, I just want any business that will let me take unlimited vacation.

[00:12:42] That's what I'm going to do. Um,

[00:12:44] Andrea Elibero: mean, it's a good goal. Yeah Yeah

[00:12:50] Diane Lam: building teams within my companies, the various financial institutions I was working in. Um, and I knew that the virtual assistant world was starting to blow up. So my first [00:13:00] iteration was a VA agency, right? Where I was with

[00:13:03] Andrea Elibero: year was this?

[00:13:04] Diane Lam: 2018.

[00:13:05] Uh, where I was like, I'm going to have an agency, uh, to really support a lot of the kind of entrepreneurs I knew at that time were, you know, uh, ex consultants, ex like C suite executives who were kind of starting their own practices. And that's what they were looking for. Kind of that, like, maybe like. Contractors, but also who gave off that kind of like traditional corporate vibe. Um, so that was the original idea

[00:13:30] Andrea Elibero: Okay, wait, so I'm laughing because you guys have to follow Diane on Instagram because like, I think it's actually really funny that you were like a corporate girly because, because you're not. Like, I love following you. Your stories are hilarious and I love following you and it's just like funny to imagine you in like, I don't know, like a suit, like serving these like C suite guys, like doing your team building agency things.

[00:13:52] Diane Lam: was wild. Like it doesn't get I was like it feels like many many lifetimes ago But that was definitely my life for what like I spent [00:14:00] 13 years, almost 14 years in the corporate space in large financial institutions. So like, you know, power suit, I'm very, you know, I'm very well accustomed to,

[00:14:10] Andrea Elibero: Okay, so so you were doing that you're like, okay, let's have a VA agency serving these these people

[00:14:15] Diane Lam: and I was like, I really quickly found out, I'm like, I don't want to have an agency. I don't want to run this kind of business. Um, when I took off, like, you know, I had some pretty good retainers, like, you know, really traditional type of business owner who was like coming out of the corporate space. So they're expecting the same level of support that they were getting in the corporate space.

[00:14:32] And that's. There's some challenges to translating that to a contractor relationship, right? And I found that like The churn on that kind of business was really, was, was a lot. And I don't, I don't want to do this work. Like I was always on. Um, and that kind of started me down the route of coaching where I was getting a lot of guidance on like, well, what does the different iteration of the business really look like?

[00:14:57] So moving away from like [00:15:00] selling the VA services, I moved more into more operational support. I had, uh, I had, I guess the original onset was like a OBM style agency We brought in retainers and it was more like, you know, I built a team around me and it was a little bit higher end, um, in terms of like the service offering.

[00:15:17] So it felt more of that like cuts between VA and, um, you know, you're really back end operations. A lot of these people were building their practices, right? A lot of lawyer, I worked with a lot of lawyers, accountants, a lot of high level consultants, um, who were building out their practices as well. And so they really needed a lot of that operational back end support.

[00:15:37] Um, and that was the second iteration, which was. Also fine, but then I was like, wait, now I, now I, I, I have like six bosses instead of one. I'm still in the same, I have the same problem. I painted myself into a corner again,

[00:15:53] Andrea Elibero: It's kind of interesting yeah, because you went from corporate then to working still with corporate people Oh [00:16:00] Who still had the same, even though they're not incorporated anymore, but it's like still, you know, in the one hand, like I can see why you did that, right? Because this was your experience, like you can network, you can get the people, you're attractive to them, because like you can talk to them and all of that.

[00:16:13] And then I can also, I can't even imagine the things that you went through, the requests you had, the expectations they had, like

[00:16:20] Diane Lam: yeah, I literally had like, I think in my peak, I had like six different bosses. And I was like, this is, this is not it. This is not it either. Um, and there was another transition after that, um, and where I moved away from the retainer model for like ongoing. Cause I like, that maxed me out even when I had team members. They still want to buy me, right? Cause they're used to working with one person, their right hand person. Um, so I moved into a model where I was project only, right? So we moved away from corporate types and we started working with more, um, more coaches, more online business owners who were like really putting [00:17:00] their business in the online sphere.

[00:17:02] Who maybe had a little more flow to them who weren't maybe like fully from the corporate background. Um, and that's where I was like, okay, we'll focus on projects for them. Um, and it was like, I'm losing the projects as in multiple as one project where we built everything in their backend. Right. So a lot of these people would hit like that hockey stick moment where they're like, we're in a deflection point.

[00:17:23] Um, something has to change. Um, and that's where me and my team would come in. We'd be like, The paratroopers, and we would build everything. We would build out all of their tech. We would build out their automations. We build all the systems, document everything. We would train everyone that was there. Um, and then we would leave,

[00:17:39] Andrea Elibero: So let me ask you, yeah, I'm done with you now. Like, so in, because you switched a lot, like that second pivot or whatever number we were on, like at that point, like there are a lot of things that switched in your business. Your audience completely, what you were offering, I assume maybe your team stayed, stayed the same,

[00:17:55] Diane Lam: there's

[00:17:55] Andrea Elibero: less.

[00:17:56] Diane Lam: changes, but not big changes.

[00:17:57] Andrea Elibero: Hmm. So, what, [00:18:00] In that switch, can you talk about some of the, some of the things that were surrounding changing your audience and how you did that? And maybe some tips that you can give about that? Because that is something that a lot of people are nervous about when they're pivoting that now they have to get a whole new audience if they want to do something different.

[00:18:20] Mm

[00:18:22] Diane Lam: so when you're especially playing in a little bit of a higher tier, right, where you're talking about like a couple thousand dollars on the minimum for a retainer, um, and like, you know, the projects I was selling were like multiple five figures a pop. Um, I don't think that the audience really shifts as much as you think, right?

[00:18:39] Because maybe there's a lot of these corporate S people, but it's really narrowing in on the personality fit. Um, cause a lot of those people left corporate for the same reasons I did. Right. So finding those people and really filtering them through and like making sure they knew kind of what the personality fit was, um, and what the expectations were at the onset, like really helped [00:19:00] me move into that space without having to find a new audience.

[00:19:02] A lot of them were already there. They were the same people. They were like, I didn't really feel that free at my law firm. Like, you know, big law wasn't for me. Big four consulting wasn't for me. Um, because I want to be a little more goosey, goosey, flexible and like. Showcase more of my life right so a lot of those people were already kind of there So I didn't have to make such a big deal pivot in terms of like finding the initial client base.

[00:19:22] The second part around like, okay, well, I want to work more with like solid online business owners who only want to do their work online. Um, I found that like, you know, being in the right rooms with these people is where I was able to really connect and build them into my network because I think that at that investment level, no one is going to see like my post on Instagram and be

[00:19:41] Andrea Elibero: right, right, right, right. And that's what I was going to point out as well, because you're working with these higher end people. It is a lot of networking. It's more of connecting and one on one connections and not so much of, oh, I need thousands of people to follow me on Instagram. Like it's totally different.

[00:19:57] So for people who are interested in this, [00:20:00] in working with these types of clients, how did you connect with them? Like, where did you do your networking?

[00:20:05] Diane Lam: I will say that like a lot of it, I just not found a great solution for this guys. Like, let me just put that out there right up front, but it does feel a little bit pay to play like being in those mastermind communities. Um, I joined a couple of different masterminds and that will, I mean, at the time I was like, wow, this is a lot of money.

[00:20:21] Um, yeah. But being in those rooms is what really set me into motion of like, Oh, I can tap into this community. Now they get to really know me. Now there's a real connection and now they don't mind either working with me or referring me to other people that they know. Right. So for me the best pools have always been like the paid communities where you're either getting into like a high level mastermind or some other group coaching esque program, um, is where I was really able to tap in.

[00:20:48] And I. I find that, you know, it's kind of hard to, it's hard to gauge from the outside, whether it's going to be the right people. It's not until you're actually inside of it, um, that you're like, Oh, okay. These are the right groups of [00:21:00] people. They are open to, you know, building their business in this way. Um, so this is all for me to say, like, I don't have a good answer, but that's where I

[00:21:07] Andrea Elibero: No, but, but you're right though, because the thing that came up for me that when you were talking, when you're describing it that's interesting is that Oftentimes, in these masterminds, it's a lot of coaches or a lot of people wanting to do something like that and not as many service providers. So you being having a totally different kind of business who supports them, then there's less competition, but you stand out, right?

[00:21:31] Like, because there's not that many of you in there. And then they automatically think of you when they, when they're ready to do things.

[00:21:38] Diane Lam: Exactly. And it's like one of those things that we're even now where I'm like, where are, where are my people? Right? Like, where do I want to hang out? Um, and that's one of those things. It's like, oh, well, I've always been in these paid communities, um, that operated at a higher level. And that's where I know that I get, um, I guess, you know, if I'm looking at it from a transactional point of view, like that's where I'm going to like find people where I can like, Oh, this is my pond that I'm going to fish in.[00:22:00] 

[00:22:00] Um, but like, I mean, from if you're just starting out, I think it's, it's kind of challenging to do that because like some of these masterminds can be quite expensive. Right. Um, but that's kind of where I found those like really high end business owners, really high in clientele started there.

[00:22:16] Andrea Elibero: Awesome. Okay. So then, so now we're in like the project based with the coaches and these things.

[00:22:22] Diane Lam: And then so we were paratrooper in, Okay, so when like we fix everything and then we'd leave, right, which was okay, but also really challenging in terms of like a lot of like, I think that a lot of business owners who get to a place where they suddenly made a lot of money, and they suddenly need to invest in a lot of systems very quickly.

[00:22:40] Um, there's sometimes a leadership gap. Where they don't trust the system. They've never seen it working. They've never worked in this way before. So they don't trust it. They don't want to use it. Um, you know, they're working with a lot more new, new team members, new VAs, new, new OBMs, new contractors in their business.

[00:22:55] And they haven't established kind of that leadership or that trust yet. So they don't [00:23:00] want to delegate anything. Right. Um, so that's the second challenge that I saw coming out of the, out of the projects where I'm like, well, We built everything, but you're not telling me that you don't trust anyone that you hired.

[00:23:12] So why did you hire them? Um, and that was another challenge where it's like, okay, well, we're not supporting them to the capability if we're not able to serve them, right? They're not able to actually use the systems at the end of the day or use the technology. Um, and that really got me thinking like, okay, well, what do we do here?

[00:23:30] What is the gap to fill it in? Um, and I was like, the only thing I could find was really just pulling me back into retainers. I'm like, this is the work I don't want to do. Um,

[00:23:40] Andrea Elibero: Well, this is interesting though, because you're at a place then of like, because I can see, you know, the way you're talking that it's very important to you that what you're doing is. is useful that like that you're actually helping people to grow and you want to do it in a way that feels good for you, so so like your values are very strong [00:24:00] in that and I Appreciate that you're like no like this is driving my business Like I need to run a business in a way that I feel good about it and not just saying okay Well, I'm making all this money and I'm doing all these things and being successful and that's their problem They don't want to use the systems that I built, you know, like like You having that drive you, having your mission and your vision drive you, I think is really important.

[00:24:19] And, and I know a lot of people listening to this, like a lot of my audience is the same. And I think that's why people get into these places where they feel like, Oh, like, I want to pivot. I want to do something different, because they're not quite satisfied with like, with how they're serving people and what they're doing, you know, day to day.

[00:24:36] Diane Lam: exactly, exactly. And I was like, I found that I was never really satisfied in those, in those, in those business iterations. Um, like I didn't feel super connected to that kind of business. I will say that, like, I'm like, well, this is what my coach is telling me to do. Like, it seems like it makes sense. Like, you know, I was getting a lot of external like opinions that helped drive those decisions that helped me draw that drove me to those different types of businesses,

[00:24:58] Andrea Elibero: Ah, wait, back up, [00:25:00] back up, back up. Because this is so unimportant. So, because this happens a lot, right? And I think it's important to Like knowing what I know now, I would ask different questions to coaches that are potential coaches, right? So I, I want to back up to this cause it's so important. Like if it's important to you to do something to like run a mission driven business, but you're working with the coach was like, well, this makes sense.

[00:25:23] And this is a way that's going to make you a lot of money. Like this is a great business. And you're like, okay, like, you know, so can you talk about, did you feel at the time, did you feel like, okay, they're my coach, I'm going to do what they, What they say, or did you feel like kind of questioning it, but like, okay, I'll try it.

[00:25:40] Like what was going on internally when you were getting this advice? Yeah.

[00:25:45] Diane Lam: so I feel like I'm very aligned with, I'm very clear and aligned with my values now, but I wasn't as clear on them before. Right. In those different iterations, I was like, well, I'm not really, you know, when it ever asked me, I'd never really. dug deep into them. Um, but those things are just [00:26:00] important for me personally.

[00:26:01] Like it doesn't feel good when a client's like, uh, wait, what do you mean you're leaving? Like, Oh, I don't, I don't, I don't want to use any of this. Like I changed my mind. Um, like that doesn't feel good. Right. So that's what really drove some of my decision making. Like, well, what is the next thing for them?

[00:26:14] Um, but I will say that like in those moments, like well, you are a bit farther. You're a lot farther ahead than I am. Yeah. I just paid you a whole lot of money, so you must know a little something. Um, and this does make sense, so let's just try it, right? Like, let's try it. And I found that, like, I can push really hard and I can make any strategy successful.

[00:26:39] But it doesn't necessarily mean that I am in it. And whenever I did that, I found that I ended up in it because I'm like, I don't like this. Like I don't like this bit. I don't like this business. Like this is not the work I want to be doing And I've done that through literally every iteration of my business right where I'm like, okay Well, I'm putting this person on a pedestal and because they are farther ahead than me And I'm like taking their word [00:27:00] almost like, you know, their advice is gospel.

[00:27:02] I'm like, okay, let's be the way really checking

[00:27:06] Andrea Elibero: Yeah, because it was the way in a way like you were successful, you can do like you have the talent, you can do all the things, right. But I find it so fascinating that nobody in any of these programs stopped to really make sure that like, that you knew what your values were, your mission was what your vision is for your life for your business that like, what do you actually like what feels good for you.

[00:27:28] And this is what's missing. Because like you said, like, every strategy is successful, if you It can work for anybody, right? Like, but it's the one for you. It's the one that you feel aligned with. And I think it's so important that even though you have been successful multiple times in every iteration of your business, you've still kept changing it.

[00:27:47] And for good reason, you know, and like, like, this is like where I get on my soapbox and it makes me a little bit sad, you know, in a way that this is how people are coaching. But

[00:27:59] Diane Lam: I mean, I [00:28:00] literally, I feel like there's a difference now, right? Like maybe like you have gotten a little more savvy. Like I asked different questions, um, when I'm going to join a container or a program. Um, there's things I'm like, definitely looking out for. Um, now after I've gone through some iteration, I'm like, that wasn't, that wasn't a great experience.

[00:28:15] Um, but I'm glad I know now. Um, and so, and also like, I think that I wasn't necessarily ready. I needed to go through those experiences to learn what it is I really wanted and needed because every one of those experiences, let me. To like burn out. I'm like, I hate this. I want to burn it down and start over.

[00:28:32] I'm overworking. I'm doing everything. I don't want, because like I have to force the strategy forward because I don't really want to do it.

[00:28:38] Andrea Elibero: Hmm.

[00:28:39] That's such a good point, though. Right. Yeah. And it's such a good point that you're like, you know what? Like, yeah, all these things happen, but I had to go through them so I could learn what I actually do want and want to do. So, yeah. So thank you. That's a really good point.

[00:28:51] Diane Lam: Absolutely. There's sometimes you're just not ready to learn the lesson. And like, sometimes I like to learn the lesson the hard way.

[00:28:58] Andrea Elibero: That's how it sticks.[00:29:00] 

[00:29:00] Diane Lam: Exactly.

[00:29:01] Andrea Elibero: and over again, too. Bye.

[00:29:06] Diane Lam: about? There's a pattern here. I don't understand. Um, so I forget where we are now.

[00:29:12] Andrea Elibero: You were Okay. So doing the projects, and that's not, that's not it. Project based

[00:29:18] Diane Lam: So we're doing project fees and I was also burned out at that point. Cause like, I, I was always a little bit burned out. Like I left corporate burned out and I never really took a full on break and every iteration of my business, I was like forcing it. Like, I'm like, okay, they gave me the strategy.

[00:29:33] Like I'm willing to work hard. So I will grind away at the strategy and every. level, every pivot actually led me to another place of burnout, where I was really reactionary, where I'm like, All right, I don't like this. Let's start over. Let's start over. Let's find something else. Um, I think the last one, but the last the project based business was the one where I'm like, I don't, I don't want to do this again.

[00:29:54] Like, I don't want to keep building the thing to be unhappy, like a year or so later, [00:30:00] and like want to start over again. Maybe I should try something different. Maybe I should like look internally instead of externally. Um, I

[00:30:09] Andrea Elibero: a concept. Yeah.

[00:30:11] Diane Lam: at a place in my journey where like that was really sinking in where I'd heard it, but I hadn't really heard it until that moment where I'm like, Oh, I do know.

[00:30:19] I do know. Like we're in the past. I'm like, I have no idea. You tell me, tell me, tell me what to do. I'll do it. Um, and so like, I got to that point in my journey as a, probably from all the mess ups before that. And so that's kind of where I also wanted to move forward in a different way. And that took me to what, like, I want to say maybe it was 20, mid 2021, going into 20, was it 20?

[00:30:40] No, it was 20, going into 2022, where I had a different coach at that point. They were more, more values aligned. They were more about like, well, I can give you some suggestions, but what do you actually want to do? Like, what are you trying to accomplish here?

[00:30:52] Andrea Elibero: Right.

[00:30:53] Diane Lam: Um, And so that opened up the conversation around like, Oh, what is it I want to do?[00:31:00] 

[00:31:00] Um, and it like dredged up this memory actually, like where at the very, very onset of my business, there was somebody that ran, we ran in the same circles, everyone knew us and was like, Oh my God, you guys have to connect. You're going to like love each other. It's going to be so great. And when we did, we were just having a coffee chat and I was like, Oh, you're really great.

[00:31:21] I'm just chit chatting. I'm a chatter. And I told him, I was like, Oh, you know, I think I actually just want to like do coaching, like kind of like off the cuff, like chit chat. And I'm like, I think that's kind of the direction I want to go over the long run. And they really tore into me. They were very aggressive.

[00:31:36] They were like, you cannot be a coach. You are not certified. What you do is not coaching. Do not call it what it is not. And I was like, Oh, oh, okay. Well, I mean, I guess I was just talking and I'm a little bit ashamed because I was just throwing around words I have no idea about and this person is reacting very very aggressively to me Um, and like really like giving me a scolding about this [00:32:00] And that was like the thing that actually told me like, oh, I can't I can't do what i'm doing now And that made me shelve my idea.

[00:32:06] I'm like, okay Well, obviously we're done for you and all these agency models make sense because like I can't do like really You know coaching mentorship or advisory in that way, because this person like aggressively told me I couldn't do it. So I shelved the thing that I wanted, the business I really wanted for like almost four years.

[00:32:25] Andrea Elibero: Wow.

[00:32:26] Diane Lam: like that's wild. I didn't realize until I looked back where I was like, Oh, I really gave that person all of my power.

[00:32:32] Andrea Elibero: Yeah.

[00:32:33] Diane Lam: And the way that they talked to me, I'm like, we just had a coffee chat. Like it was one meeting like that to have that kind of reaction from someone from one meeting had nothing to do with me

[00:32:43] Andrea Elibero: Right.

[00:32:44] Diane Lam: But everything to do with whatever was going on with them and I didn't even like I didn't realize Like that moment like it was just like it didn't stick out until I was like, oh wow Okay, that that has been something i've been carrying around the back of my head for a long time

[00:32:57] Andrea Elibero: Wow. Can you imagine? I mean, [00:33:00] yes, but like, That like, I have no words for that. One that's insane, like behavior on their, on their end. I actually had, I had a guest who was in a coaching program who they coached service providers and they said, and they said in their coaching program, you can't be a coach.

[00:33:15] They told everybody in their program, but the reason was because they don't want the competition. You know, like, like, so there's some sort of scarcity, like, weird thing, like, happening there. And the same thing happened with that person. She carried that around. Oh, they told me I can't do this. It's not allowed.

[00:33:31] Says who? Says who? You know, like, like, that's, that's so fascinating to me. It's so fascinating.

[00:33:40] Diane Lam: And like I was like, okay, so Working through that and like oh, that's not my own stuff. That's when I really started to figure out like, okay Well, what is the thing that I actually? want to do? What are, like, what are the things that I'm trying to accomplish here, um, that led to, like, some soul searching and, like, another round of burnout?

[00:33:59] Um, and then it [00:34:00] actually brought me to the beginning of 2023, where I'm, like, I don't think I want to do any of the old, I think we should just wipe this lake clean, like, because at the time before, like, I would leave the door open

[00:34:10] Andrea Elibero: Mm hmm.

[00:34:11] Diane Lam: more done for me, because, like, I like money, what can I say, right?

[00:34:13] Andrea Elibero: I mean, yeah, we have to eat. We have to live. Right. Yeah. Yeah.

[00:34:17] Diane Lam: Pull me back in every single time.

[00:34:19] I was like, you know, I just need to stop this. I know myself and when that door is open. I will always go for the path of least resistance. And so I really turned all that off at the beginning of 2023 and I was like, okay, I'm going to do something totally different. I'm not going to take any more done for you one on ones.

[00:34:35] I'm really going to focus in on this and then I spent most of 2023. Like, I worked with a lot of consultants, um, to help me kind of uncover, like, what is, what are the values here? What kind of is the bedrock of this business? Um, what's the direction you want to go? What's viable, right? Because, like, the model that I kind of described earlier around, like, these systems intensives, like, making this kind of level of consulting available is not something that, um, [00:35:00] I've certainly, I've certainly never seen it.

[00:35:02] I didn't know a lot of people doing it. And that's also why I hired some consultants. I was like, well, like if there's a market, is there a market for this? Or do we have to create one? Like, what does that look like? Um, so having them help really like figure out like, what is the viability of this model?

[00:35:16] Who else might be doing stuff like this? Um, and I mean, we didn't find really any. Any real apples to apples comparison, um, which is good, but also challenging in its own way where like you're building your own, like you're building, you're building a brand new category. Right. And that can be really challenging in some ways.

[00:35:34] Cause there's a lot of education that needs to go on. There's a lot of like seeding, a lot of foundational, um, like, I think a lot of it messaging, positioning it. The differentiation is like, there's a lot of groundwork that needs to be done there.

[00:35:46] Andrea Elibero: So

[00:35:47] Diane Lam: kind of the structure that I went through.

[00:35:48] Andrea Elibero: yeah, I want to come back to that because the question before this was when you decided to shut the door completely and you're like, okay, I'm not going to get sucked in anymore. Like I'm done with this done for you. Like [00:36:00] I don't know what's happening next, but I'm not doing that. How did you stick to it?

[00:36:04] What did you do that gave you the conviction to, to not go back and say, I'll just take one. Because, you know, like, because there's money, because I have to eat, you know, whatever. How did you stick to

[00:36:15] Diane Lam: I literally burned it down. I gave my book away to, um, like I gave my book away to other people. I started to refer everything out and I'm very thankful that I had the financial resources to just be able to like, you know what, I'm not, I'm not going to take any more people at this point. Right. And that's, that's okay.

[00:36:31] Like, and I, I think that there's a lot of shame around money and. What our savings really are and then using our savings for these things. Like, I'm like, this is what I was saving for. Like, what, what, what was I saving for? It was for this, for this moment to be able to do this. Um, and so I had to work through that feeling of like guilt around like using my money.

[00:36:50] For that, um, to, like, live while the business was kind of, like, I was trying to figure out what the business was, um, and so, like, thankfully, that's what I, I have the resourcing to [00:37:00] be able to do, and I know that is a very great privilege, um, but that's really what pushed me through to, even to this point, right, where I'm, like, still rebuilding a lot of things.

[00:37:09] I'm like, wow, I have a lot of financial support and I'm grateful for that. Um, but that's really kind of what pushed me through knowing that I don't have to take this person if I don't want to, and I really don't want to. And I think I'd also gotten to the point where I'd burned out so many times that I'm like, I don't want to experience this again.

[00:37:29] Like, this is not a good place for me to be, like, mentally. Emotionally, like, physically, um, like, I mean, I have, what, how many times in rounds of work? I don't know, like, at least eight, nine, like.

[00:37:41] Andrea Elibero: lot. That's a lot.

[00:37:42] Diane Lam: So I'm like, I don't want to feel that way again. And I did feel that way again at the end of last year. Um, but that's okay.

[00:37:48] Right. Like now I'm very, I'm very aware of like my body signals, um, and what I am getting too tired and like letting go of that. Like it needs to be zero. I need to clear out all these things. I need to do all of these things in the day. I'm like, let's [00:38:00] just go a little bit more with the flow. Right. Um, so I think, yeah, nine, 10 rounds of burnout are like what I needed to learn the lesson and to really close that door fully.

[00:38:10] Right? Because like, I know, I've seen it happen multiple times where it's like a slippery slope. It's like, okay, well, just one client, just one client, then one becomes two, then three, then suddenly I have a full roster again. So I've seen it happen multiple times. And then I was like, okay, now I'm aware of my pattern.

[00:38:26] Now I can do something differently. And now I have the resourcing. And like I've worked through some of the shame and money guilt to be able to like show up in a different way. One

[00:38:36] Andrea Elibero: Okay, so now let's go back to the now this time, this time, now you have a whole new category that you've created. I imagine because you said you worked with a number of consultants and different things throughout this time. So you've had a lot of support, which is really smart because you're like, okay, I want to do this thing, but for real, so let's do it.

[00:38:57] So in terms of what were some of [00:39:00] the things that like, okay, now I do need a new audience, right? Like now I'm connecting with a different level of people who, and I do need to show up differently, and I need to explain this in all of this. So what were some of the things that you, some of the steps you took in order to lay the foundation to be able to grow this iteration of your business?

[00:39:18] Diane Lam: big step was like the testing, right? So they helped me develop a number of different models that could work, right? Where we ran the numbers, we crunched them. Like, here's like what the viability is. Here's kind of what like, here's what you could like the band ranges for charging. So I could see where the level of sustainability is, but I had to test them like it's all in theory.

[00:39:35] This all looks great. But I don't know, do I actually want to work in this way? Do I like this? Does this help the person? So that was one big step, was like, okay, I actually have to test a bunch of these things. Like, it was great, like, it was a great head start that they'd mapped out, and we'd, like, picked, I was like, okay, you have, like, six different varietals, like, I think these two or three are kind of the things that I think are going to work.

[00:39:53] I already kind of from the cut feel like might be the most progressive way to go forward. Um, we had to do a lot of [00:40:00] messaging changes that we're still doing to this day, right? So I had consultants who helped me kind of like make the initial cuts of the ideal clients, make the initial cuts of like what the messaging and positioning could be.

[00:40:09] But again, they're like, we still have to test it. And I found that like the initial testing was like, oh, there's a lot of. Positioning and messaging changes that need to happen like, oh, don't get it like it's not landing. Right? And I have some very, very, very good consultants working on it. And it's like, okay, like, we never know them.

[00:40:25] We can talk about things in terms of like, well, what the research is showing us, like, what we're seeing in the market. But until we're actually saying it, we still have to test the messaging. So the messaging was another place where like, okay, well, let's go through some iterations of testing. And again, I was lucky where it's like, okay, here's kind of the three different like avenues and the avatars and the messaging avenues that we're thinking.

[00:40:47] So like, let's start to incorporate all of these. And I find now being kind of on the back end of like, it wasn't one that landed. It was like a little bit of each one. That needed to be combined into like, like into a different [00:41:00] character. So that was another like, big testing journey. Um, where it required a lot of like, rebuilding.

[00:41:05] Like, okay, well like, our post needs to sound different now. Like our landing page To sound different, um, there was a visual rebrand component where after I'd gone through like the whole values Lay down once we'd kind of mapped out what the business model could potentially be I'm like I felt really strongly that I needed to have a visual rebrand Um because to really for me Mark the end of one chapter and the beginning of something brand new where everyone always saw kind of this one type of style and i'm like Yeah, you can build a business without it.

[00:41:35] Like I hear people saying like, Oh, do you really want to invest your money in a visual rebrand? But for me, it was really important to have a very clear, distinct end of one and a really clear, distinct start of another one visually. Right? Um, so that was another big project where we rebuilt everything from the ground up visually.

[00:41:52] Um, and then the, I guess the biggest piece was the change in audience was actually examining my current audience. I hired a sales coach who was like, the [00:42:00] first thing they told me was like, who's in your audience now you have all these eyeballs. Like, you have these people following you, you have this email list, like, who's there now?

[00:42:06] I'm like, oh, I have no idea.

[00:42:08] Andrea Elibero: Mm-Hmm.

[00:42:09] Diane Lam: really paying attention to it. While we were, like, in the bigger, different agency, we were working with higher level people. So, like, social media was more of, like, an afterthought. It was more of, like, oh, we have to do it to make sure if anyone Googles me, like, we're current, right?

[00:42:22] And so, it took a really, it took a lot of deep diving into, like, well, who is this audience? It took me showing up, actually, in social media, because I don't, so, because you know me in this age where, like, I actually show up personally, um, but not like until, what is it, maybe September of last year, I'd never shown up personally in my social media.

[00:42:41] It was always my team doing something, doing all the things, um, and so I've been doing it myself for almost a year now, like it'll be a year in September, so nine months, and that gave me a lot of good insight into the audience, the direction, the content that we needed to create, um, the, you know, The networking groups, [00:43:00] the communities I can tap into to really like to start to expand.

[00:43:04] Um, and I think audience building is probably one of the most. I don't want to say most challenging, but it's the one that takes the longest to bring online, um, to really get up and running. Because, yes, I can take messaging changes relatively quickly, and I can keep pushing it to my email list and see how many people unsubscribe at any given time, right?

[00:43:22] Um, to really take my iterations there. Um, social media and the audience there is a place where it just takes a little more time. So I've been doing it and really engaging thoughtfully and getting to know. People like you, people like, you know, other people. I was like, Oh, this person has been watching my, my posts for years.

[00:43:39] Who is this person? Like, have I ever said hello to them? Um, so things like that are things that I actively, actively work on now. And I think that's the biggest piece of the foundation in switching the audience is actually getting to know the people that I have now. I don't need to necessarily, like, you know, get a whole bunch of new eyeballs.

[00:43:57] Like, I need to understand, like, Who are the people [00:44:00] currently watching me? Are these the right people and are there things that I can do to start to shift it slowly? Because I mean, if I was in reactionary, I would just start a whole new account. Um, and that has challenges too. Right? Like, I feel like there's a big portion of my current audience that is probably the right audience.

[00:44:18] I just need to like connect and engage with them and kind of activate my platforms as myself instead of as this, like this business, it just kind of runs

[00:44:27] Andrea Elibero: Yeah. So, the thing is that I think that are so important that you're saying now in this, you know, after you started sort of stopped letting other people just tell you what to do, and you spent the time, you spent a lot of time getting to know yourself, getting to know what works for you, and then really building every piece of it really thoughtfully, and not being in this rush to just like, bring it forward, and just go, go, go, go, you know, so I think that that [00:45:00] one is going to, I know is going to result in sustainability and longevity and, and you're doing it in such a way that I think is really important to showcase and to let people know that this does take time.

[00:45:15] You know, once you get to the state, you can grow at your evidence, right? You can grow whatever business, but if you want to have an aligned business, one that you really love, you need to spend the time in the foundations

[00:45:27] Diane Lam: Yeah, it's,

[00:45:28] Andrea Elibero: all that there.

[00:45:29] Diane Lam: yeah, you can't just like, it doesn't magically become the business once you hit a certain revenue milestone. In fact, I will tell you from my own experience that it will often when I hit revenue milestones, I'm like, I really hate this. The only thing I like about this is the money. Like, that's the only thing I like about it.

[00:45:45] Like, if I'm being totally honest with myself in those moments, I was like, that's like, I literally dislike everything else I have to do during the day, but I don't mind when I check my bank account and I'm like, that's not enough to sustain any business. Like, let me tell you,

[00:45:58] Andrea Elibero: right, because why wouldn't you [00:46:00] just get a job at that point, because

[00:46:01] Diane Lam: Exactly. That's, that was like the thought that was in my head, like kind of when my last iteration, like, well, what do I do?

[00:46:07] Where am I going to go? Like, this was before I decided that I'm just going to like, stop and like really dig into the foundations where I was like, you know, if I wanted to just like make a lot of money, I wouldn't, I shouldn't just stay in corporate. I had, I would have a lot fewer headaches. Like if I did, right.

[00:46:21] Like, and that was the thought where I was like, but then I was like, I could never imagine like going back to the old suits being in the office and like. it's just like, oh no, oh no, it feels so abhorrent to me. Like, my body is physically rejecting it.

[00:46:35] Andrea Elibero: Do you still own any power suits?

[00:46:38] Diane Lam: I don't want, no, no, I don't like, I was like, I have a suit that I wore. Um, I have a suit that I wore in my last photo shoot, but it's like a hot pink satin,

[00:46:49] Andrea Elibero: Yes.

[00:46:51] Diane Lam: And then I have like another suit that's like lime green, wide leg pants, like super 80s Miami Vice shoulder pads. And I'm like, this is kind of cool. Like, [00:47:00] um, I, I, that I would never have worn that to the office in the past. I just wouldn't.

[00:47:04] Andrea Elibero: That's so funny. Love it. Yes, we love the lime green and the bright pink suit. So those are the ones we approve of. Okay. So this, I think I've already like highlighted so many things that I think are so important and so amazing and such good teachable moments and this whole, this whole interview. Is there any other thing, any sort of like Tip or scaling when you're going.

[00:47:28] Is there anything else that you want to highlight to kind of like wrap everything up?

[00:47:32] Diane Lam: I will say that I know that it's easy for me to say this cause I'm on the other side. Um, And if you're still building your business, you might be like, Oh, I don't know about that. Um, but to really focus in on what really feels good for you, because I know that I ignored that piece for myself for, I would say, probably most of my life, right?

[00:47:53] What, what I feel like is the right next step for me. Um, so to really hone in on that. Sooner than you [00:48:00] think, right? Because it never leads to a bad place, even if you're not sure, like, is this going to pay off? Um, and I wish, in retrospect, I'd paid more attention to, like, those gut feels. I'm like, I don't think this is the right place for me.

[00:48:13] But I still stayed in, like, certain programs for, like, two years, and I paid a whole lot of money for it. I'm like, I don't think that this is the right place for me, though. Um, and I think I would be in a very different place if I'd listened to those nudges and been able to, like, I said, like, you don't know.

[00:48:26] The thing that you're telling me sounds great, but like, I think I need something different. Um, and so, like, you know, I know that people might not feel like they can do that with a coach where they're like, it's like, it feels like a teacher. Alicia, when my teacher's talking to me, like, I gotta go do it.

[00:48:38] Like, I feel like a student again. Um, but I think that that is the place where I am now, and it feels like it really serves me to, like, No, no, no, I don't want to do that. I don't want to do it that way. Like let's find another way. Um, like that makes me feel a little more in control of my actual business and the direction that we're going.

[00:48:53] And it feels good to be able to be in control and in charge of my direction, my future, my [00:49:00] business, um, instead of just kind of being carried away. I'm like, Oh, I didn't end up where I wanted to be. Oh

[00:49:06] Andrea Elibero: Oh, how did that happen? Yeah, I'm gonna shamelessly plug myself because it's my podcast and I can do that. Because, because and I promise we didn't, we didn't plan this beforehand. But this is the exact thing that I want my clients to do, right? Like this is the thing that we work on is the developing the self trust and the intuition to be able to do that and not have to go through all of the things that you went through, you know, and to get to that place.

[00:49:31] So it is such an important place to build that because then it doesn't matter what you're doing in your business right there. Like, it doesn't matter because you know that like, you know that you can just change it. And you know that like, if you get this other intuitive hit, you'd be like, Oh, I have this feeling about something and then you're not scared to try it.

[00:49:48] You know, like, like, You are in charge and it's funny because I work with a messaging marketing coach and I was talking about something to do with like a recent launch and she's like, oh you could do this as a bonus [00:50:00] and I was like No, I'm kind of feeling this thing more, you know, and it feels good, right, to be able to say that and to be able to be confident and trust both yourself and the person that you're working with to be able to actually like speak up and work together collaboratively without being afraid of being like, like, yeah, like they're this teacher on a pedestal and you're down here.

[00:50:19] Okay, I'll do whatever you say, you know, so there's a difference in coaches.

[00:50:24] Diane Lam: Exactly. And I think I told you this when I first met you. I was like, where were you? Like four years ago, five

[00:50:28] Andrea Elibero: Yeah,

[00:50:29] Diane Lam: when I, like there was, it wasn't as available, or maybe I wasn't ready to see it.

[00:50:34] Andrea Elibero: yeah, I don't know.

[00:50:36] Diane Lam: that was what

[00:50:37] Andrea Elibero: I know, I think, no, but I do think you're right. I think that there's, or maybe because now this is what I do, so I'm connected with more people who believe the same things that I, that I believe, but it's hard when you're newer because who do you see online, the ones who are the biggest, the loudest voices, and it's not necessarily people who believe these things that are the loudest voices.

[00:50:58] So I think [00:51:00] it, it, I'm hoping to amplify that, let's just say too loud. It's too, like,

[00:51:04] Diane Lam: Or I'm here, I'm here for it's why I'm here today and I'm here to help you amplify it as well.

[00:51:08] Andrea Elibero: Hi, Ed. Thank you so much. Amplify away. Okay, so let everybody know how can they stay in touch with you. Uh, do you have any free gifts, like anything that you want to share? Please go ahead and

[00:51:21] Diane Lam: Uh, do I have, that's a really great question. I'm trying to think right now. So you guys can always tap into me on Instagram. I'm at dianelam. co so you can see what I get up to on a day to day basis. And I release a lot of free training and educational content on like how to build your systems in a simple way that really feels like aligned to you.

[00:51:38] Um, really putting yourself at the center of your business. Um, that's probably the best place to really tap in and stay in community. With me, and that's where you'll see where the next accelerator is going to open. Um, that's where you'll be able to keep tabs on pretty much everything that's happening.

[00:51:52] And I do release a new training every, every other month. Um, so you'll also get the invites there first. Um, when you like just land on my [00:52:00] Instagram account. So, so come hang out with me there. I think that'll be a fun place for us to hang out.

[00:52:03] Andrea Elibero: she's funny. Your Instagram stories are great. Very, uh, entertaining. Um, and also I do want to say to really point out that your programs are accessible. So, so I know that's one of your values and especially with systems and whatnot. So it's like anybody at any level can and it's never too early to get these systems in place.

[00:52:23] Diane Lam: Yes, exactly. Cause like we start with like, if you want a super high tech option, I'm happy to like outline what that option looks like for you. If you are tech averse and you want a low tech option, okay. Okay. That's 100 percent doable too. It's like you make the decision and there's a million ways to do it.

[00:52:37] So like, let's build your way. Um, it's kind of what my focus is on. So like, you know, I know people are like, Oh, it's so scary with all the tech, high tech, low tech, all the things in between. Let's just talk about it and make sure we map out what's right for you.

[00:52:48] Andrea Elibero: Amazing. Thank you so much. This went on very long, but I couldn't stop because everything was so good. It was so interesting. So thank you so much for being here and sharing all of that.

[00:52:58] Diane Lam: Thank you. Thank you.

[00:52:59] Andrea Elibero: [00:53:00] Thank you so much for joining us today. I really hope you found inspiration and insights from today's episode. You know, scaling your business intentionally and from the inside out is a transformational process, but I'm here to support you every step of the way. Head on over to dancingleafsolutions. com slash resources for free tools to help you do just that.

[00:53:25] And thank you again for being a part of the Soulpreneur Scaling Stories community, your presence and dedication to growth, inspiring me every day.