Recently I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing Emma Isaacs, CEO at Business Chicks, at the first 9 to Thrive Business Chicks Expo.
Emma is a seriously impressive woman. Not just in what she has achieved and continues to achieve, or the fact that she is so incredibly friendly and approachable, but in how she handles it all. There were some really powerful take-aways for me from this interview, and hopefully there will be for you too. Enjoy and please have your say in the comments below!
Celina: I’m here with female entrepreneur extraordinaire Emma Isaacs, CEO at Business Chicks at the first 9 to Thrive Business Chicks Expo. Thank you so much for joining me Emma, it’s fantastic to speak with you.
Emma: Such a pleasure, thanks for having me.
Celina: I have to ask what everyone’s wondering, you run this massively successful business which you have launched globally in July, Business Chicks has just launhed its first expo and you do all of this on top of being a mother to four children, how do you do it?
Emma: That is the million-dollar question. Truthfully I’m very blessed to have a base of people around me both in my business and my home, so that plays a huge part in getting the kids to school on time or hosting over 3000 people over two days at an expo.
With my parenting, I don’t stress out about anything. I’m very calm, so that always helps. I don’t worry about too many things or over-parent.
I’ve been able to get Business Chicks to a point where I have a phenomenal team around me, and in order to be able to launch in the USA in July this year, which was a real test for us to see whether the model would work and whether our team could sustain that growth, and so far it’s doing really well. We’ve been blown away by the support and how the model has been received.
It comes back to planning everything, I’m a huge multi-tasker, I have great people around me, and I don’t sweat the small stuff and be prepared to change your plans when you have to, nothing really tends to faze me. I think it’s important to bring a level of calmness to your parenting and to your business as well. The lessons are there for both sides.
Celina: Do you have any other tips for women trying to juggle all of these things; business, children, relationships…
Emma: If I ever get five minutes I am sure I could write a book about it, there isn’t a one size fit for business, children, relationships so you really have to find what works best for you.
Celina: That would be a best-seller!
Emma: Some things that work for me are to outsource everything, I literally do not go to the supermarket, maybe once a year, so I get the groceries delivered online. I’ve got a PA in my business, and I have a nanny at home. I completely understand that’s not available to every woman but if a business can’t sustain an assistant, maybe it’s time to think whether its a feasible and sustainable business, because you really should be able to get your business to a point where you can feel that support so that you can go out and do the things that you’re best at doing.
I had an early start to entrepreneurship; I started my first business when I was eighteen years old, so you know I’ve had some time to build some financial foundations and also to get good people around me, it has been my recipe to success so far.
Celina: So do you think women can have it all?
Emma: Absolutely I do! I think we can have it all, just not at once. I think you have to define, and redefine and keep redefining what the meaning of having it all is. For me it’s just about having a great growing business and a great family. I’m only trying to do two things really well. At the moment I don’t really exercise, I don’t languish in reading lots of books and socialising but I really believe you can do at least two things really, really well.
Celina: What would you say has been the biggest challenge in your life?
Emma: There are multiple challenges; every single day as an entrepreneur throws you a new challenge. I think what you need to have as an entrepreneur and business person is the ability to build great resilience, to get up more times that you fall over, and that’s with everything. Hearing that self talk, hearing that mindset “I’m doing it, I’m getting it done, I’m doing well”, being kind to yourself is so important.
As for personal challenges, my daughter was very sick a couple of years ago so that was certainly the biggest personal challenge that we’ve had so far. I really honestly believe you have to be optimistic, you have to be able to wake up every single day, turn the corners of your mouth up and just do your best.
Celina: You do seem like a very optimistic person.
Emma: I am, but I work on it. It does come naturally but I work on it every single day. Happiness is a choice, you have to wake up every day and choose happiness.
Celina: What would you say is the biggest lesson you’ve learnt in business?
Emma: The biggest lesson I’ve learnt in business is to re-invent yourself, so you can have an idea, and you can head straight into that idea, but always have the flexibility to be able to pivot or to iterate your business model. We’ve had five or six different models over the ten years of being in business. We don’t have an ego around that, we try stuff and when we make mistakes, we finesse and massage the strategies, but it’s really all about having a go, being willing to be flexible and changing your model, and keeping an open mind.
Celina: What do you think is the greatest challenge that women face in this day and age?
Emma: I think we’re in a really exciting and scary time for women. We’re in a time when roles are being redefined, we’re asking to chip away at the social structure that says that men are breadwinners and that women need to take care of the lion’s share of the domestic responsibilities. I really do believe we’re seeing a shift, I’m really encouraged by the young men coming through who are supporting their girlfriends and wives and to be able to step into the roles that we have to, so I think it’s an exciting time, and there is huge opportunity for women at the moment.
Celina: Thank you so much Emma, I really appreciate you speaking with us, and sharing some of your wisdom with us. Enjoy 9 to Thrive!
Emma: Thank you for the opportunity, appreciate it Celina.
I’m so grateful to Emma for sharing her wisdom with us all, she is an inspiration to many!
Emma Isaacs, CEO, Business Chicks
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Celina x