Episode 83 Transcript
Heather (00:06.923)
Emma, welcome to the show, how's it going?
The Queen (00:10.326)
Thank you so much for having me. I'm excited to be here.
Heather (00:14.267)
I'm really excited to learn more about you and everything that you're up to. And, um, guys, you just have to go over to the socials or YouTube just to see what we're both wearing. I'm not going to tell you anything else other than that. It's worth it.
The Queen (00:28.159)
I think it's worth it too. Cracked me up when I first saw you. I'm like, oh, that's funny.
Heather (00:32.627)
It's like we planned it. So, so Emma, I, I love to start the show with some amazing tips and then we're going to get into your journey and find out what you do and how you help people specifically. So tips first with you, you and your business, cause I know you're growing and you do a lot of amazing things and you just don't like finalists in an award and all sorts and books coming out next year and all of it. So you're busy. There's a lot going on. How do you personally handle.
moments of high growth and stress to stay a little bit more grounded and put together.
The Queen (01:06.874)
it's a great question and six years in, I don't know if I've always got all the answers, but I'm very high on setting myself a to-do list of three things a day and that's it. So that's my first tip because I think we all have these massive to-do lists and then we get disappointed when we don't achieve them. So I just set myself, I do a big to-do list at the start of the week and then I pick three things to tick off that to-do list each day and that works beautifully for me.
But I think more importantly, I meditate every morning. So I have meditated every morning for five years. It's half an hour of my day guided meditation. I might listen to two or three. And that sets me up beautifully to be really productive.
Heather (01:51.547)
Amazing. Okay. Love that. What else? Any other tips?
The Queen (01:53.003)
Yeah.
The Queen (01:57.098)
Well, I am one of those weird people who has a nap every day.
Heather (02:02.459)
It's not weird, it's great.
The Queen (02:04.006)
Isn't that weird? I don't know if it's like, Oh, I have a nap on the weekend, or I have a nap every single day. And it's so good for productivity, it allows your brain to process all the information that we've had. I do a lot of coaching. So by lunchtime, I've probably seen three people. And obviously, some of those sessions can be heavy. So we want to just like allow our brain just to get rid of all the processing that needs to be done.
Heather (02:08.815)
Excellent.
Heather (02:18.459)
Thanks a lot.
The Queen (02:27.886)
And so I think naps are really important. I think prioritizing self care when you have your own business, because if it's you and if you fall apart, then there's no business. So I think prioritizing self care and meditation and naps are my self care. Obviously I do exercise. I've got a little buddy who sits with me during the days. He's 13. And so he can't walk very fast. So we do 15 minute blocks during the day. Yeah, so I think prioritizing self care is...
Heather (02:39.513)
Yeah.
Heather (02:52.315)
Oh, I love it.
The Queen (02:57.086)
really important. I also think outsourcing what you don't, what doesn't give you joy works beautifully as well. I mean, you got to work out how you delegate and how you outsource, but the reality is six years in, I look after coaching relationships, do my content and everything else gets outsourced.
Heather (03:15.531)
Yeah, really, really cool. And we'll talk a little bit deeper into that because that'll be good conversation. So, um, specifically around the to-do list and picking three things a day, how do you possibly come up with three, only three things a day?
The Queen (03:20.812)
Yeah.
The Queen (03:29.67)
I know, well, that's why it's good to have a master to do list so that you really know. And so I plan the week ahead on the Friday afternoon, if that makes sense. So Friday afternoon, I sit down and look at my diary and I go, what are the things that I need to do in the next couple of weeks? I have a look at what's in my diary. If it's not in my diary, it doesn't get done. And what allocation I've got for those kinds of things. And then I'm like, okay, well, if I need to write a newsletter or I need to do podcasting or I need to whatever it is.
Heather (03:39.673)
Yeah.
The Queen (03:57.766)
I make sure that there's time in the diary for that. And I'm freshest in the morning. So if I sit down and the three things maybe five minute jobs, they may be hour long jobs. It really depends. So on a Monday morning, I do a bit of my social media. So that takes me half an hour. I know that job is always there. We're now into a bit of a rhythm after six years of quality content and I'm writing a lot and all of that kind of thing. So I find that that's easy.
but I think sometimes there are just things that you need to get done for your clients. And so for me, it's about clients always come first. So if I've got a long to-do list, I will pick the things that are client related first and get those done in the day because clients are normally waiting on that kind of stuff.
Heather (04:44.023)
Yeah, really, really nice. Okay, meditation. Do you have any apps, any books, anything that you recommend in that space?
The Queen (04:51.802)
Yes, I love Insight Timer. That's my go-to app. And on Insight Timer is a beautiful woman named Sarah Blondin. Oh my goodness. And she does beautiful meditations from three minutes through to 20 minutes and she has a series. So that's my tip. Insight Timer, Sarah Blondin. She's great. I'm also a big reader. So I try and read a book a week because I like to just, you know, have something different in my brain and half the time it's fiction, half the time it's nonfiction.
Heather (05:18.51)
Yeah.
Heather (05:22.107)
Nice. Kindle or actual hard copy?
The Queen (05:25.826)
Oh, I love hard copy. I love a hard copy book. I can't do the Kindle. I've tried, I can't do it. But I also have this issue with, I've got bookshelves that are exploding. So I have to like read it and then hand it on to someone else so it doesn't see my bookcase.
Heather (05:36.568)
Yep.
Heather (05:42.36)
Okay. And a little bit, a little bit about the outsourcing tip. So been in business for six years and in your journey of outsourcing, cause you were just saying that you've gotten good at quality content. I'm curious specifically around content. Which pieces do you do? What, which pieces do you outsource?
The Queen (06:00.374)
Oh, good question. I write our blogs, and then I hand them to our social media manager. And I obviously write my books, and I hand that to my social media manager. And we write about a blog a month. And we normally, I take two days out of my year in September, we do planning for the following year in that those two days, and then I take another couple of days to write all the content for the year.
So normally it's evergreen content. We will, depending on what's happening in the world at that time, we leave room for relevance, but we try and batch a lot of our work so that we can hand it off to our social media manager. And I have an amazing social media manager and she pulls it together, grabs the captions, grabs the photos, and then I just approve it. Like the system is beautiful.
Heather (06:51.363)
So you basically you create and then the editing and all the things from there are taken over with a final approval from you.
The Queen (07:00.434)
Yes, because I want my voice and tone. It's really important not to give up your voice and tone.
Heather (07:03.947)
I like, yeah, I'm glad you said that. Um, because I feel like the, yeah, contents is so important today and to, to get yourself out there and to build that life, like trust factor with people. And now with the advent of AI and all this stuff that's going on, people, people are just like, just get AI to do it. I even have a friend of mine who's testing deep fake videos. He's put in his voice and his, his video and everything. And he just gets it to create.
The Queen (07:30.751)
Oh my goodness.
Heather (07:33.371)
create the videos and I have this real thing, this like, it's not really 100% you though, and it sounds a bit cliche and a bit flat. So I like that you're, you're talking about your voice and I'm curious what your take is on that as a trend in general, using these tools versus the importance of maintaining your brand voice.
The Queen (07:52.878)
Yeah, I mean, I've looked at AI, I've looked at chat GPT, I think it has its place. I just am not sure it has its place in my content in if I want my tone of voice to come through. I don't think chat GPT, I don't think it's advanced enough to know what I'm thinking yet. I wish it was. So I think I think it's got its place. And I think especially for we run a few different programs, and it's a useful tool.
Heather (07:59.589)
Yes.
Heather (08:05.603)
Yes.
The Queen (08:22.202)
kick out the bones of a program, but then it still needs the Emma McQueen human element. So I would probably just use it as bones versus anything else. And I can see why people would use chatjpt, but I can also see that people have used chatjpt through their blogs when they've used it. And I'm just like, can you write something original, please?
Heather (08:27.468)
Yes.
Heather (08:42.974)
Yes!
It's so true. And I teach I share exactly what you've just said. I mean, it has a time and a place, but it is so important to maintain your voice and keep it and keep hold on to it really tight as well. Because that's why people do business with you, right?
The Queen (08:56.119)
Yeah.
The Queen (09:01.446)
Exactly, exactly. And I'm like a bit cheeky, a bit sassy and I mean, chat GPT, I'll pick that up.
Heather (09:07.731)
No, no, it tries. But, and just so you guys know too, when I saw you as Riverside FM is a podcast recording school, a tool, and I came in, it's a split screen. And so I can see Emma on the, on the right hand side for me. And it says the queen. That's how she put her name in. And I just had to share that because it's gold.
The Queen (09:29.457)
Do you know what? I didn't even mean to do that when we do our own part because I own a have a podcast called Tea with the Queen. It just popped up. I'm like, I'm not going to change it.
Heather (09:37.907)
Absolutely brilliant to you guys. So that gives, I just thought I'd share that because that's, that is who you are, you know, and that's, it's important to do that. So yeah.
The Queen (09:46.606)
It's great. It's great branding. And I had to have a conversation with my husband because it's my married name. And I'm like, babe, Emma McQueen, that's the name of me now. And if we get a divorce, I'm gonna have to keep the name just so that you're really clear on this because all my branding is around it. Well, hopefully we don't get a divorce. Hopefully that is true, just so that you know.
Heather (09:56.758)
Yeah.
Heather (10:08.422)
It's a good name. It's a really solid. It's good.
The Queen (10:11.378)
It's a great name. My daughter has an even better name. Her name is Evie McQueen. How good is that? That's like a rock star name.
Heather (10:16.411)
Gorgeous. I was thinking you sound like a rock star name, but that is too, yeah, for sure. Love it. Oh, so good. Okay, so I wanna change gears a little bit. I wanna now talk about Emma McQueen and what you do. So first of all, you said you have a podcast. What's the name of it one more time?
The Queen (10:22.64)
Yeah.
The Queen (10:35.446)
Tea with the Queen.
Heather (10:37.027)
Tea with the Queen. So you have a podcast, you have books. Let's take a step back prior to six years ago, which is when everything kinda came to fruition. What were you doing before the business?
The Queen (10:39.07)
Yes.
The Queen (10:52.618)
right question. So I spent about 20 years in corporate. And I also spent 12 years in a not for profit Australia's largest not for profit, which is World Vision Australia. So it was a I don't know, $365 million business. And yeah, they're huge. Yeah. And I loved my time there. I did everything in HR. So I kind of ended up at the HR director level there. And I also coach the executives at World Vision Australia. Yeah.
Heather (10:57.604)
Guess.
Heather (11:04.664)
Yeah.
Huge.
Heather (11:16.847)
Amazing.
Heather (11:20.919)
Amazing. Wow. Yeah. Really cool. Yeah. Good time.
The Queen (11:22.03)
I know it was it was the best job. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. I had a great job. I loved it. I absolutely loved it there. So yeah, that's kind of how I dipped my toe in the coaching waters. And also, I love helping people with their people issues. Because by the time they get to me, they're like, I don't know how to have this difficult conversation. That's easy. Just do this, this and this.
Heather (11:51.387)
I think it cut out momentarily. Are you back? Okay, good. All good, we'll edit that bit out. It cut out for me a little bit, so I don't know if it did it for the stream. So I'm gonna take a step back and I'm gonna, you were talking about how amazing your role was, and then it kind of cut from my end. So do you mind elaborating on that, Emma? So you were talking about, you did the HR and you were coaching the executives, and then what else?
The Queen (11:54.84)
I'm here.
The Queen (12:15.002)
Yeah, so I coach the executives, I love helping people deal with their people issues, which amazingly has translated into my own business as well. So what we know is business owners sometimes aren't always people focused.
and don't like to have difficult conversations and their businesses grow so quickly. So when they get to me, they're like, Emma, I don't know how to have this conversation. I'm like, I do, here's how we do it. Here's the script, here's what we need to do. So my clients really benefit from the fact that I've been in human resources for a long time and that I have coached lots of different people. And when I was coaching with World Vision, I was also, I'm also sit on three faculties, but one of my faculty roles is a women in leadership role. So they would put.
Heather (12:33.635)
Very true.
Heather (12:39.796)
Yeah.
The Queen (12:58.594)
35 women through a 12 month program and they would get me as their coach. So they would get four sessions with a coach. So I did that at the same time that I was working with World Vision. So there's a lot of coaching going on before I actually stepped into coaching for my own business.
Heather (13:13.399)
Yeah, you have a very good background, very trustworthy, extraordinarily credible, so wow. Now what do you do in the business that you have?
The Queen (13:25.686)
Well, so I didn't couldn't figure out a business name. So I just named it Emma McQueen Pty Ltd, because that's what you do. And I knew going into my business that I wanted my business model to be lean. I wanted it to be small and I wanted me to be doing the delivery. So over the years that's morphed a bit, but we kind of have a few different ways that people work with us. They can work with us one-on-one, which I love. I know everyone's going to group coaching. I know everyone's going to scale, but I really love the one-on-one.
Heather (13:30.956)
Yep.
The Queen (13:53.346)
bit of a dinosaur like that. So we take a few clients on. I know, but lots of people are like, why are you doing that? Why don't you just scale? I want to scale. I like, I like working with clients one on one to help them with tailored solutions. That's just who I am. Having said that, I also do run a signature program called thriving women, which is a Melbourne based program. And we do dinners and we do retreats and we do workshops and all those kinds of things for business owners.
Heather (13:54.964)
No!
The Queen (14:17.566)
And then we still dabble with corporates. We do a bit with corporates. We've fired the corporates that we don't want to work with. And we've just hang on to the corporates we do want to work with. Because part of going into your own business, you get to pick and choose who you play with, right?
Heather (14:17.817)
Nice.
Heather (14:31.447)
You do. And this is a common theme that comes up over and over and over again is first define your level of success. And it's okay to not want to scale and do the one too many. That's some of the happiest people I talked to are like, I love the one on ones. It's cool. I like it. And then secondly, be really clear on who you work with and it's okay to say no and fire people.
The Queen (14:54.754)
Totally, totally. I've had a few very difficult conversations. Ha ha ha.
Heather (14:58.531)
You'd be great at it though. And like, like you're saying your background, I mean, you'd be amazing at it. And I guess on that point, and we'll talk more about your business in a second, but I don't want to lose this point, is for people that want, need to have difficult conversations, whether it's with team or clients, what are a few tips that you actually have to have those difficult conversations?
The Queen (15:19.182)
I think it's, I think being honest is the first thing. But I think being honest with kindness is the second thing that I would say. I think there's no need to hurt someone or no need to really rip into them. It's like, let's just be honest. So when you're having, we're not having a conversation with a potential client and I just, the vibe's not there. You know, when you meet those people, you just, you're not vibing with them and you think, you know what, we drive each other nuts.
Heather (15:45.09)
Yeah.
The Queen (15:47.834)
I will say to them, I just don't know that we align. I feel like I'm more this, it looks like you're more that. What do you think about that? And then they kind of self-select out. If I have to have a difficult conversation, I normally say to them, look, this will feel awkward, but I've got something that I need to share with you. And then I go from there. I just think honesty is the best policy with kindness. Yeah, I think you need to be kind.
Heather (16:08.535)
Yeah. Thank you for sharing that. Yeah. I just had a feeling that some, some people just needed to hear that all of a sudden, cause we're, you know, there's a lot of, there's a lot of crazy things going on in business growth. So, um, okay. So talk to me a little bit more about your business and I'd love to hear a case story or study, um, just so I can be walked through how you work with somebody. And I know you have the thrive and you have one-on-ones. I'm happy for you to take this any way you want, but how would someone work with the amazing?
The Queen (16:20.603)
this so is.
Heather (16:38.283)
Emma McQueen.
The Queen (16:40.042)
Well, I'll tell you about Beck. Beck is a social media manager and she in 2000, my book released in 2020. It released at the same time as something called The C-Word. So that sucked a bit. So much so I had to just cancel my book launch which sucks. But anyway, so Beck had read my book. My book is called Go-Getter. I'll see if I can pull it off the shelf. Hang on. There we go. Right? Yeah.
Heather (16:44.879)
Yeah.
Heather (16:58.241)
Yeah.
Heather (17:04.76)
Yeah.
Heather (17:08.589)
No, I, yeah, I see it. Raise your mojo, shift your mindset and thrive. Love it.
The Queen (17:12.67)
Yeah, it's about the 12 myths we tell ourselves. For the blokes listening, it is for women, but I have had blokes read it who've said that they understand their wife so much more better now. So, you know, there you go. So that's been great feedback. But Bec came to me and she was part of a business partnership and it wasn't going so well. So...
Heather (17:24.492)
Interesting.
The Queen (17:31.274)
You know, whenever anyone comes to me and says I'm in a business partnership, just a little tiny piece of me dies because I know that that's not going to last very well. It sucks, but business partnerships are really hard work in and of themselves, right? Anyway, so she came to me and she's like, I need to, you know, we need to detangle this. So we did that. And at the time, I think she was probably, this is like 2020, so three years ago, she was earning about 35,000 revenue a year doing socials.
Heather (17:44.633)
Yeah.
The Queen (18:00.134)
And I said to her one day, and she said, I need to work with you. I've read your book. It's, it's me. I need to work with you. I need to work with you on a one. I said, okay, no worries. So we started working together. We worked on mindset. We worked on changing her pricing up. We worked on dropping hourly rates to packages because hourly just caps people. And so they, it's about output. It's not just about hourly.
And so we worked together and I said, how about we try for like $100,000? And she's like, I've just had a little bit of vomit in my mouth. I'm like, well, that's a good thing because it's enough scare in it, but I think it's achievable anyway. So she hit that within like six months. And I'm like, all right, now what's next? Anyway, so I think she, so we tripled her revenue in six months. And then three years later, she's tripled that revenue again. So she's doing amazing.
Heather (18:44.635)
Amazing.
The Queen (18:46.486)
And you know what, I'd love to claim it as the business coach, but I cannot. It's about someone doing the work on themselves. It's about checking out your mindset. It's about making sure that you've got good pricing strategies. It's like you've got good structure, you've got business development, you've got all the things that kind of go together. And I'm there cheerleading, kicking some butt occasionally, and holding people to account. And so that's kind of how we work. A lot of people come to me, I'm the results girl.
My clients will say to me, ''Emma, you're not for the faint hearted.'' Cause I am direct with love, but if you're not doing the work, I'll let you know that too. And so one of my filter questions is, I'm very results driven. If you're not results driven, we should not work together because we will drive each other insane. And so they have to be willing to get the results. Now, when I say the results, the results aren't mine, it's whatever they want to achieve. And then I work to that, but I don't want to buy into some results that they're not bought into.
Heather (19:20.545)
Yes.
Yeah, it's good.
The Queen (19:45.374)
And so a lot of my clients come to me and they would like more revenue and revenue is good, as we both know, but profit is better. Right? And one forgets about the profit thing. It's like, it's not what you make is what you take home. But anyway, there's still more education to do around that. Right? So a lot of people come to me and they'd like I'd like to make more revenue. I also know a lot of women that come to me that ask that question are undercharging. So we need to work on their pricing strategy pretty early on. Do you find do you find the same?
Heather (19:53.29)
Mm. Mm-hmm.
Heather (19:57.659)
Absolutely, yeah.
Heather (20:15.34)
Uh, quite a bit actually. And having previous conversations, uh, cannot talk today, previous conversations with people, um, pricing, understanding pricing, the value of pricing and not charging per hour is huge. And it's a huge thing specifically for women cross the board is, is what I hear and find. And I mean, I still, I'm, I always look at how I'm going to lift my prices and have better packages. And.
The Queen (20:33.663)
Yes.
Heather (20:42.659)
Every now and again, the old Heather like points at my little shoulder and goes, Hey, who are you? Who are you to charge that? So it's, oh, and I've gotten pretty good at it over the years, but, um, but, but yeah, there's, there's a lot of that going around. Um, how do you, how do you deal, I guess, address that or deal with pricing beliefs when you start to talk to somebody?
The Queen (20:49.774)
Woo! Flick hair away! Ha ha ha! Yeah.
The Queen (21:05.938)
Yeah, it's a really interesting question, isn't it? I think it's the whole money mindset thing. It's about what we grew up with, what narrative we have in our head, you know, our own lived experiences. So sometimes you have to untangle a bit of that. Otherwise, it's just like what a lot of clients will go, well, what's everyone else doing in the market? Well, who cares what everyone else is doing the market? What value are you offering? Right? And I will never ever, ever tell someone to drop their prices. What I will do is say,
Heather (21:20.388)
Yep.
Heather (21:26.479)
That's it. Yes.
The Queen (21:35.65)
keep the price, but add more value. How do you stack more value into that so that the client wins?
Heather (21:41.751)
Really, really smart. Okay, so when you work with somebody, do you have sort of a framework that you lead somebody through or is it just pulling out of your modalities and your tool belt that you've developed over the years? How do you, what's the process?
The Queen (21:55.458)
Great question. We have, normally people don't sign up with us until they have a conversation with me because there's a fit. If there's no fit, there's no point is my kind of mantra. And so when they start working with us, we will send them a questionnaire to fill out. That's about their goals and their dreams and what they wanna achieve with working with us. Most people work with us, most people sign up with us for 12 months. That's the minimum commitment, but they stay with us for four years on average.
Heather (22:04.259)
Yeah, of course.
The Queen (22:22.074)
And so yeah, because they get the results. So why would you leave if you're getting results, right? And yeah, and I also see people swapping coaches all the time and then complaining about not getting very far in the business. And I'm like, just stick with a coach because that's the consistency, right? So we get them to fill out a questionnaire. We also we love the Gallup
Heather (22:27.511)
Of course, that's a big testament to you. Yeah, keep going.
Heather (22:40.672)
Yeah, totally.
The Queen (22:45.462)
So we get them to do a Gallup strengths, I'm accredited and so we can unpack that. So, and then after those, so we do one session a month typically, but we are on call. We've got a cute little video messaging app called Marco Polo, have you heard of it? I love Marco Polo. I've just finished being their ambassador for two months which is so fun. Yeah, so we use Marco Polo so they can contact me at any point and go, hey, I forgot what we talked about or hey, I've just had this conversation, what do I need to do next?
Heather (22:58.348)
I have.
Heather (23:03.817)
Oh my gosh!
The Queen (23:15.062)
I'm holding up my hand as though that's the phone, but anyway, and, and so we have that and then every session after that, they get a form a couple of days before to say, what are we celebrating? What did you get done from last time? Also, what might you be avoiding? And what do we need to focus on in this session, just some simple questions. And that guides each of the discussions. But I always have in the back of my mind that original questionnaire. And before every session, I look through the questionnaire to make sure that we're focused.
Heather (23:33.654)
Yeah.
The Queen (23:43.794)
Sometimes they'll say to me after 12 months, I just don't know if we've got everything done. And I pull the questionnaire up and I go, look at what we've achieved. And they're like, amazing. I'm like, I know, I'm keeping track of it.
Heather (23:57.179)
Oh my God. But it's true. But seriously, most of us that are in business are not very good at celebrating or even looking at where we've come from. So it's important.
The Queen (23:58.536)
I'm sorry.
The Queen (24:09.058)
So important, even just the smallest thing, like business is tough.
Heather (24:13.211)
Oh my God, is it tough? I mean, I heard these really depressing stats the other day at, I'm a trainer for Metta and we were at with some of the members of parliament and local government and they were talking about the state of business in New South Wales, which is where I am. And how sad it is, like how many businesses start and then fail in the first year and then the second year and they had, they put all these stats and I was reading the board going, that's horrible.
The Queen (24:37.238)
know. And I've got another stat for you. This and this stat, this that makes me a bit sad, I actually created a program to try and deal with this stat. But 92% of businesses that are owned by women in Australia, turn over less than $100,000 a year.
Heather (24:48.236)
Yeah.
Heather (24:56.935)
92? Oh my god. You can't even like live on that in most cities.
The Queen (25:00.966)
Yep. This is a lot, isn't it? Exactly. I'm like, how does that even work with inflation and living costs and all these kinds of things? Anyway, my answer to anything like that is what can I practically do? So I created this program called Revenue Raiser, which amazingly raises revenue. And it's a six month program for women who are not startups, but they've made some sales, but they wanna hit $10,000 a month because I figure that's about 120.
Heather (25:19.66)
Okay.
The Queen (25:27.618)
that solves that issue and brings everyone up. So that's been well received, but the stat depressed me for quite some time. I'm like, wow. Also I'm privileged because I'm not in the 92%, right? So, you know, there's that as well, but it's also like, right, what can we do to help people be in the other side of the 92, like make that 92 go down to 50%.
Heather (25:29.236)
Yet. Good call. Yeah.
Heather (25:36.332)
Yeah.
Heather (25:41.005)
Yeah.
Heather (25:51.775)
It's a really courageous mission to have and something that through what you're telling me that you do is very achievable for your clients when they come to you. So,
The Queen (26:02.094)
Totally, totally doable if you're willing to put in the work, because that's the other thing. I had one of my, I've got a quite a new client. We've had two sessions and she, her biggest month before working with me was $15,000, which is great. After one session and working with me for one month, that went up to $60,000. Now,
Heather (26:22.604)
Oh my god.
The Queen (26:23.826)
And but that's not me. That's and I laughed because she said, Oh, my last coach would have claimed it. I'm not claiming it. But what I am claiming is when you sign up for a business coach, you're putting your money where your mouth is. And so there's something about the energetics of even signing up to a business coach that goes, I'm going to make this work because I have to pay for this business coach. And so you know, I think that there's something in your psych that says, Okay, I've signed up, got to make the money for it now.
Heather (26:50.295)
Okay, so think through all of your clients that have achieved amazing things on their own. What common personality traits characteristics do these people have? What have they done to do the work? What have they done specifically to get these results?
The Queen (26:56.514)
Mm-hmm.
The Queen (27:08.182)
Well, they've listened to their lovely business coach. Look, I think their personality, I don't know if you can see behind me, but that is a manifesto that I have there. And it's all about they're willing to try some new things. They're willing to fail fast. They're willing to go out of their comfort zone and into the growth zone. And very practically, they're willing to have conversations with people.
Heather (27:11.075)
That's a given. Yes. True though.
Heather (27:19.708)
I see it.
The Queen (27:36.922)
One of the number one issue women in business face, I don't know if men face it or not, but I would love your view on it, is lead generation and sales don't wanna do either of them. Hope it just lands in their lap.
The Queen (27:51.67)
Hahaha!
Heather (27:51.903)
I'd agree with you in a lot of ways. Yeah. And because that's what I do in my business is help lead generation for businesses. And yeah, men know where it's easy. Like they're just looking at the numbers and going, yeah, let's tweak that. Let's do that. Like it's just not even a thing, but yeah, there's a lot of women that, that immediately get blocked. Or what I find what's interesting is the procrastination thing comes in. So it's like, okay, we're ready. Let's go. We're going to
we're going to pull the, you know, pull the fake meta ads on the Google ads. We have the landing page, we have the offer, everything's ready. And then they're like, wait, I don't like that wording on the, on the landing page. And it starts to spiral back into different revisions in the past. Wait, wait, what about this? I find it a very common theme. So I would agree with you in a lot of ways, sadly, but truly.
The Queen (28:38.238)
So I think for me, it's about getting them comfortable with having those conversations. And we reframe sales into service when you work with me. So one of my clients came to me and she was, she was earning about $70,000 a year. I'm like, how much do you want to earn? Like, what do you want to earn? And she said, oh, I want to earn, I'd like to earn half a million. I'm like, okay, and how many years in two years? I'm like, okay, cool, easy done. She's like, just two things about me, Emma. I'm not motivated by money and I don't like sales. And I'm like, okay.
Heather (29:01.505)
Yeah.
Heather (29:06.613)
Uh oh.
The Queen (29:08.022)
Challenge accepted. But you'll do the work, right? She's like, yes, I'll do the work if I have clarity on the work. So we identified a target market, we put her pricing up two and a half years later, she hit 600,000. And that was by being in service, not being not being icky sales, and by doing the work, right. But you if you got to do that, you got to be clear about what it is that you're offering to the market. And I see people
Heather (29:24.123)
Totally. Yeah.
The Queen (29:32.118)
people don't buy from confusion. If you've got five different offers, people are like, I don't know what to buy and they thought they'd never buy. And so we get super clear on whatever the offers are. And then we go, right, who are we gonna reach out to for these offers and how will we do that? So my coaching is very practical, Heather. Like so practical sometimes I think, I'm sorry if I'm telling you how to suck eggs, but here's what we need to do step by step.
Heather (29:38.799)
Yes!
Heather (29:55.627)
No, it needs to be practical. Like there's so much fluff out there and under-qualified people teaching things that maybe shouldn't be taught.
The Queen (30:00.578)
so much. Yeah. And do you know what? Let's talk about that for a minute because there is, there's a lot of coaches out there. It makes me quite sad. I'm a snob with this I've realized I don't mean to be but I've trained at the Institute of coaching, executive coaching and leadership 15 years ago, right? And so I'm a snob when it comes to where my coaching accreditation has come from. And I've worked in business small and massive.
Heather (30:10.747)
I know.
The Queen (30:30.394)
And so I think you just need to make sure you check out the person's credentials so that you can get the results that you're looking for. And people will come to me and say, well, Emma, why should I choose you over someone else? And I'm like, well, I started with no cash, no clients and no idea. And in my first quarter, I had a narrative that said I couldn't sell. So I went out and sold and they're like, how'd that pan out for you? Well, I sold $250,000 worth of services in my first quarter. So I think I've got some skin in the game.
Heather (31:00.035)
Yeah. Yes. But and yes, credibility. Thank you for saying that because with the advent, I love the internet, obviously, and socials and all that. But people are being, they're not asking deep enough questions. A lot of people, not everyone, of course, but there's definitely some people that are not asking deep enough questions. And they're taking whatever they see online with like, yes, this is the holy grail. This is it. And so there's there is a concern with that. And I
I see it time and time again in my place as well, where people are burned so hard that they're jaded and they just don't think that simple marketing can work. And it's because they've trusted people with no track record. So I'm glad that you said that.
The Queen (31:41.37)
Yes. Yeah, look, I think it's a myth. And I think it's this thing that follows me around. And I have I go to networking things. I remember I went to a networking thing. This is probably six months ago, and I sat down and I was talking to this lawyer anyway, and she said, What do you do? I said, I'm a business coach. And she literally rolled her eyes at me Heather. And I said to, I said to her, um, do you realize that you did that out loud? Like, I just saw the eye roll. And she's like, Oh, anyway, I was like, I don't care. I am who I am. And I'm
Heather (31:47.328)
Yeah.
Heather (31:59.987)
I- Oh my god.
The Queen (32:11.346)
very good coach and I don't really need friends. But I was there to network but I just thought how freaking rude. So I said, oh, you know, did you realize, did I, I said, yeah. Anyway, I just ignored it and kind of moved on and we had dinner and whatever. Anyway, and then she just started asking me questions and I'm like, I could go into coaching mode but you didn't really love that so much. Anyway, so she said, oh, this is the problems in my business, I said, oh, okay. Yeah, and I said nothing. And then she said, what do you think? I said.
Heather (32:25.274)
Yeah.
The Queen (32:40.394)
Well, I think because you don't trust business coaches, you're probably not gonna like what I've got to say, but your revenue is terrible. There is no profit. Unless you do A, B and C, you're not gonna make any money. And she just looked at me and I thought, yeah, I do know my stuff. I don't even need to prove it to you. But I'm just like, don't roll your eyes at me, rude. So, but that's, I get that a lot. Yeah, I get that a lot. I'm so done with it. I'm like.
Heather (32:55.337)
Yeah.
Yeah, and so good on you for calling that out.
The Queen (33:05.526)
I know that there are business coaches out there going, work 10 hours, make a million dollars, la la, all that kind of crap. And I'm not like that. But in order for me to set myself apart, I have to go, actually, that's not me, but I also don't need to defend myself to you. And interestingly enough, a few months later, she's like, can we work together? I'm like, no. She's like, why? I'm like, well, you've rolled your eyes, la la. And she's like, oh, but I didn't know you then. I'm like, yeah, but that's just like.
Heather (33:12.747)
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Heather (33:23.652)
No.
The Queen (33:35.51)
human.
Heather (33:39.288)
That's who you are. Kindness is a big value of yours as well. So yeah. So good. So who do you work with? Who's your perfect customer?
The Queen (33:39.549)
Yeah.
The Queen (33:45.166)
Thanks for watching!
The Queen (33:53.622)
Yes. Good question. Well, because we've got a few different revenue streams, but I will tell you, my main customer, I don't work with startups. I don't work with product-based businesses necessarily. I don't certainly go away with startup product-based businesses. I will work with a product-based business, I've got some, but that's about mindset, confidence getting out there. It's not about the e-comm strategy and all that kind of stuff. That's just not my gig. So I'm pretty much...
service-based business, you've probably got two years in, two years or so in, and you are wanting to do things differently and stop charging the hourly rate, and you're probably wanting to get some good results and you're probably, dare I say, an overachiever if you're kind of working with me because we'll push pretty hard and we'll have fun. I mean, I don't take myself that seriously, but the work is serious, right? So there's that.
Heather (34:43.45)
Hehehe
Heather (34:49.787)
So...
The Queen (34:52.166)
And you don't have to be a woman. It's so interesting. I don't know if you looked at my website, but it's very pink. And someone said to me this morning, I'm caught up with my bookkeeper. And he said, you're doing so well, la la. I'm like, yeah, yeah. And he said, do you work with men? I'm like, I do. There's a whole secret club called the Emma Club. And he's like, no, I'm like, yep. He's like, so we can send some people to you. I'm like, if you like. So I do work with men. Again, same rules, no product, no startups, but.
Heather (34:57.731)
Yeah.
The Queen (35:20.402)
If you are wanting to get some results and you're willing to get out there and actually do the work, then you can come and join the Secret Squirrel Emocloth as a male. But I mainly work with women.
Heather (35:30.983)
Excellent. And you guys, a good business coach is very hard to find. So you have now, I, yes, it's, it is, it is hard to find because you, you have to know the track record and connect with the personality and get somebody that's going to hold you accountable. You know, like people that have big visions and big dreams need somebody that's going to be on them about it. So yeah, it's, it's good.
The Queen (35:36.723)
Is it? Is it?
The Queen (35:41.686)
Wow.
The Queen (35:54.506)
Yes. Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. Yeah, maybe. I just I know, I know a lot of business coaches. I don't know anyone that does business coaching quite like me. I'm quite I can. I hate detail. But I do like practical reality. So I'll do a 90 day plan for some of my clients and go here's the step by step thing that you need to do over the next 30 days. And you know, so I don't know many business coaches that do that or are so focused on the financials to move the dial, right?
Heather (36:04.94)
You're different. Yeah.
Heather (36:12.335)
That's it.
Heather (36:21.775)
No, and that's what I'm sensing from you. But that's so important. I mean, all the people I've interviewed to date, you know, financial literacy is like the number one thing that's gotten them to where they are. So I'm really I sense that in our conversation. And that's why I'm saying it's hard to find a good business coach when now they know you, our listeners know you Emma. So how do they reach out to you and get more information?
The Queen (36:32.011)
Yes.
The Queen (36:38.43)
Huh? Hi, I'm here.
The Queen (36:46.27)
Oh man, I'm everywhere. I'm Emma McQueen.com.au and I'm on Instagram EmmaRMcQueen. I'm on LinkedIn, Emma McQueen. Facebookers don't love, but I'm just there because you know, you have to be. So yeah, however, DM me, text me, whatever. Phone me, booking for a clarity call, you know, I'm around.
Heather (37:06.639)
Guys, do this if you have been wanting to get some clarity on your business and where you're headed next year in 2024. And you just know you keep being the little, what do they call it? You are the person that's blocking your success. So, you know, that, that one, that one, you know, and like you've been doing the same thing over and over and over again, you know, and you're ready to change.
The Queen (37:22.53)
Yeah, you're self-sabotaging normally. Yeah.
Heather (37:32.639)
I would highly recommend having a chat with Emma because she's amazing. We've had a great chat. I think you get to understand her personality and her vibe. And yeah, so please reach out. We'll have all the links in the show notes. As we start to wrap up, Emma, is there any last word of advice, words of advice or wisdom from you on people that are growing their businesses, not wanting to hustle long and get better results? What would you say to them?
The Queen (37:33.39)
change that.
The Queen (37:56.858)
I would say make sure you've got a plan mapped out and don't be impatient. You know, because growing a business can be hard and growing a business, what happens with growing a business is growing pains. I've got a few clients that are right in the smack bag in the middle of growing pains and I'm like, just let's be patient. Get the right people on board so that you can grow, so that you can do all the things. But it's about having a plan and always going back to that plan with some flex.
But having a plan is always super helpful. It also helps with overwhelm because if you stray from the plan, you jump into overwhelm and no one wants to be there. So having a plan is almost like having a roadmap, right? So that's what I would say.
Heather (38:34.411)
Yeah, perfect. Thank you so much for being here and having an amazing chat. And yeah, it's been a real pleasure. So guys, thank you as always for tuning in and listening in to the amazing business owners I bring your way and hopefully you'll reach out to Emma and do something with her because I think you guys will have a lot of fun. Thanks you guys.
The Queen (38:51.82)
Thank you, Heather.
