IAM482- Business and Mindset Strategist Helps Virtual Assistants Scale

Intro 0:02

Do you want to learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales and grow your business from successful entrepreneurs, startups, and CEOs without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. Gresham Harkless values your time and is ready to share with you precisely the information you're in search of. This is the I AM CEO Podcast.

Gresham Harkless 0:29

Hello, this is Gresh from the I AM CEO podcast and I have a very special guest on the show today at Amy Demone of amydemone.com. Amy, it's awesome to have you on the show.

Amy Demone 0:37

Thanks so much for having me.

Gresham Harkless 0:39

No problem super excited to have you on and what I want to do is just read a little bit more about Amy so you can hear about all the awesome things that she's doing. Amy is a business and mindset strategist for virtual assistants and other done for you service providers who want to scale their 5k income months and to create a successful and sustainable online business. Amy's areas of expertise are vast, having experience in marketing plans, sales funnels, webinars, customer service, membership websites, and so much more. Today, she works with virtual assistants with their marketing getting more clients while working with her one VIP client as her chief marketing officer for her real estate investing coaching business. Amy, are you ready to speak to the I AM CEO Community?

Amy Demone 1:15

Sure.

Gresham Harkless 1:16

Awesome. Let's do it. So I wanted to kick everything off and just hear a little bit more on what got you started your CEO story? What led you to start your business?

Amy Demone 1:23

Yeah. I feel like for virtual assistants, I have a very similar story. I didn't start out trying to figure out or trying to become a virtual assistant. I was working on a contract for like a month. During that contract, I got injured, and I couldn't work. Four years ago, I Googled how to make money online and then I found an article that led me to Upwork, the rest is history really. So here I am.

Gresham Harkless 1:50

Nice, absolutely love that. Google is amazing thing when it works correctly, right.

Amy Demone 1:55

Yeah, exactly.

Gresham Harkless 1:57

I know there's so many people that are probably trying to figure out in much of the same way, as you said, most virtual assistants got started trying to figure out exactly like what they can do to generate full time revenue, a full time income or potentially even part time income and being able to find something like virtual assistants is a great way to do that.

Amy Demone 2:11

Yeah, exactly. I believe I Googled how to make money online, because I was like, there's ways to do this and I need to figure it out.

Gresham Harkless 2:16

Exactly . I wanted to drill down a little bit deeper, because I know you work with virtual assistants, and you do so much more. Could you take us through exactly what you do for your clients and some of the different ways that you work with them.

Amy Demone 2:26

Yeah, absolutely. I have a few courses for my virtual assistant clients. So the ones that are actually becoming virtual assistants, or in the process of scaling or wherever they are in their journey. I have three courses for them. Some are live, some are evergreen depends on where you are in the process, really. What I do, and what my specialty is, is Mindset and Marketing together because I believe, as any good marketer would. Marketing really is just understanding people and mindset and understanding people very important combination. So the trifecta, or the combination of all that it's given me the opportunity to really dig deep in this niche. Because not only do I understand the psychology and all of that stuff, but I've also built a successful virtual assistant business as well and I continue to do so. So I do have one, I call her the VIP client as in like she's the only one I work for. I really like doing both because I find that because I'm in the industry, still I'm able to update my curriculum as I move through the months and the years that end up are going to turn into decades kind of thing. So it's fun. I love it. It's just crazy busy all the time.

Gresham Harkless 3:38

Yeah, I can definitely imagine that. I love that you kind of touched on the fact that I think sometimes when people start creating courses, and they start creating content or coaching programmes, things like that, that they'll they won't work in that industry anymore. But I appreciate you for being able to do that. Because I don't know if you find this or not, that you still are kind of dialled into a lot of the changes, the updates, things are happening, probably even different technologies that other virtual assistants still need to know about.

Amy Demone 4:02

Exactly. For me, my client, she's in the multiple six figures realm. So she's implementing high earner strategies and not only am I able to be there and learning it being on the front line of making it happen but I'm also not only am I able to use it for my own business, I'm also able to then teach that to my virtual assistant clients as well.

Gresham Harkless 4:25

Absolutely, yeah, that makes so much sense. I know definitely, you know, one of the ways it's not necessarily new, but it's definitely blowing up is podcast and I know you have a podcast as well too. So people that want to listen, and it might even be listening in listening to this. What kind of things do you kind of cover and talk about in the show?

Amy Demone 4:39

In my show, so that great question. I have been in the process of trying to find my voice so I've had the show for almost two years now. I guess think I launched it launched in January of 2018 If I recall but anyways, I really have no idea but I was really trying to find my voice and try to find like what experts I like talking to and also defining my niche of who I'm trying to attract into my community. Because there are not too many I mean, there seems like a lot, but there's not as many virtual assistant coaches, as there are business coaches or social media manager coaches. So for me, I wanted to be able to stand out because it tends to be a little bit crowded by working Home Moms, which is cool. That's awesome. But I'm not working home mom, unless you count my dog, which most people don't.

Gresham Harkless 5:25

I do.

Amy Demone 5:26

I don't really either, it's totally different. But for me, so I was able, I've repositioned myself, so I'm trying to attract a more like a young, vibrant millennial, Gen Z or Zed, because I'm Canadian. So what I've done is I've repositioned my podcast going into the new year to be more in not only like the struggles and unique perspectives of a younger population, building a business, especially going into 2020. But also stuff that in mindset information that sometimes people that are a little bit older, they need, they're already learned, or it's not as in dire need of learning at the present time. Because you know, as we were growing, and my 20s was I'm, I'm 29 now, so my 20s was crazy, right? If you're cool and ambitious enough to really try to grow a business at that age, like you're gonna become an among a whole lot of mindset stuff. I'm repositioning to help that audience because I experienced a lot of turmoil and I know, just with the increase of social media and how stimulated we are, it's just going to keep going that way. So that's what I've done. That was a really long explanation. In short, I talk to young, younger entrepreneurs about the trials and tribulations and strategies of building a business.

Gresham Harkless 6:43

Nice. Well, I definitely appreciate that. That's a great explanation because, I mean, I think there's so much there too and I think just because a lot of times, even when I started my business when I was actually 26, there's a lot of changes that happen at that moment and a lot of changes you go through. I think that I appreciate you talking about finding your voice, because I think a lot of times when you start something you have to have you believe or there's this belief that you have to have it all figured out. There's an evolutionary process to that, whether it be a podcast, whether it be the business itself, you have that opportunity and space to kind of pivot or change or revisit something or double down on something else. There's that process that goes with running a business that I think you have to have to be successful just because so many things change.

Amy Demone 7:24

Yeah, exactly. It's really interesting growing a business when you're younger, before you've gone into marriage, and kids and all that stuff because your identity is like whoa, right? Like so when you build that business, that identity becomes a part of you and helped shape who you become. So it's a little extra challenge, then a few of our more mature counterparts are experiencing. I like to be able to fill that gap and I also like believe I'm like a super old soul. I probably shouldn't be the ones helping these kids cuz I'm like, Guys, just stop drinking and you'll be fine. But yeah, it's great. I really like it. As you said, it's, it's it's a trip.

Gresham Harkless 8:04

Yeah, absolutely. It's definitely part of the process. It's funny that you say that I was just having this conversation with someone. I was just saying that, I understand. I ran some LinkedIn statistic years ago that said most people that start businesses as even though it was feeling like everybody young was starting businesses, it was like 35 to 40 or something like that. As I went through the business, as you talked about all the changes in life and things that are evolving, I kind of understand why because typically, things might be a little bit more stable than or at least you you just don't care enough. At that moment you just got to do whatever we're going to do.

Amy Demone 8:34

Yeah, exactly. Absolutely. That's the perfect way of explaining it to you. There's little bit more stability when you're older, at least mentally to I believe, yeah, so it's fun. I really like when I think back because I was 26 to when I started my business nice. I remember being like, or now I'm like, Oh man, like I was only 26 I'm only 29 like I'm so much further ahead than so many people but sometimes I forget that because of everything going on online.

Gresham Harkless 9:02

Yeah, and definitely especially if you're driven you know that type A or no more talking about myself and anybody else then you're never really ever gonna get to where you want to be and just if you accept that then that helps a little bit as far as I'm not you know driving yourself crazy.

Amy Demone 9:14

You're so kind I'm like I don't accept that I'm very type a very driven, I get where I want to be, don't you worry.

Gresham Harkless 9:21

Exactly. I don't want to put that audio, so definitely not happy to hear I'm not the only one. Now I wanted to ask you for what I call your secret sauce and it could be for you or your organisation but what do you feel kind of sets you apart and makes you unique?

Amy Demone 9:34

I want to say two things. I know that are for my organisation actually, let me say for my current organisation, I'm just like my tagline like not on purpose. It's just like I'm here to help. I believe in giving so much value like when you buy something from me and it's like a 197 product like you get almost full access to me like voice messages , I don't really fall into the the way that the coaching industry and the course creator industry is evolving right now. I think we're giving them not as much and expecting much more. I think it should be, well, I don't think it should be the other way around. But I think that we need to continue to like pile value on expecially, because it's just so oversaturated. There's a lot of great stuff like, don't get me wrong I also create this type of content, but it's pretty shallow, right? You don't want to give everything away but when you're in the back end, like you can get deeper, you can get more in a personalised state. Because even though I talk about mindset, I truly believe that the stuff that I teach helps everyone in a generalised sense, the barriers or things that will prevent these people from actually going through with the action or in the course or becoming the person they want to be is all based on their own environment and their own circumstances and their own experiences. I recognise that, and I just want to help people, like I truly just want to help people like become the best life they can so they're happy, because I truly believe that that in itself will change the world.

Gresham Harkless 10:58

Yeah, absolutely. I'm a real big believer in energy. A lot of times when you put that out there, when you provide tremendous amount of value, it also comes back to you tenfold and a lot of cases, but maybe not the exact same way or from the exact same person, but it definitely does come back energetically. I'm a big believer in that. So I definitely appreciate that perspective and that definition. I wanted to switch gears a little bit and I want to ask you for what I call a CEO hack. So this could be like an apple book, or a habit that you have. What's something that makes you more effective and efficient?

Amy Demone 11:25

Let's do this. Habits are my favourite thing. I always feel bad because I know what I'm about to say it's gonna sound so unattainable for so many people, but I promise you, it's not. I wake up at 5am and it's changed my life, and like healthy and meditating visualisation, all those success habit and it's just changed everything.

Gresham Harkless 11:43

I appreciate those hacks. Now I want to ask you for what I call a CEO nugget. So this is a word of wisdom, or a piece of advice. Or if you can happen to a time machine, what would you tell your younger self?

Amy Demone 11:54

It's gonna take time, and you're gonna really want it way earlier than you're ready to get it in, especially if you want a higher level of success. Anything that you are building, if you're building it strong, from a solid foundation, it's gonna take time, and if it happens in an unbelievable short period of time, it's probably not meant to be.

Gresham Harkless 12:16

Yeah, I definitely appreciate that. I think there's a saying I guess, anything worth having or anything that a value takes time. Just as you said, if it is that easy, or if it doesn't take some of that blood, sweat and tears so to speak, then sometimes they may not necessarily be exactly what you want, or may not be a value. A lot of times those hardest things that we have to go through are usually setting us up for the big rewards that we're looking for.

Amy Demone 12:38

Exactly.

Gresham Harkless 12:40

Awesome. Now I wanted to ask you my absolute favourite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO and we're hoping to have different, quote-unquote, CEOs on the show. So Amy, what does being a CEO mean to you?

Amy Demone 12:53

I think it means stepping into the next level of your own life in a way that you need to take ownership of everything that you have done up until this point in time. You need to learn from every experience in a way that either helps you get further away or closer to your goal and then you just need to make sure that you're able to really lead in that sense and empower others to do the same.

Gresham Harkless 13:23

Absolutely, yeah. That leadership aspect is huge. Being able to kind of be at one with yourself and one with the decisions that you make and have that ownership as you said, but also not forgetting that a lot of times, when we are going through and sometimes chasing our dreams and chasing our visions for our lives, we're also leading other people without us sometimes even remembering that or knowing that. That creates like that energy we kind of talked about before and starts to give people permission as well to to be able to kind of chase their dream and want to go after it.

Amy Demone 13:49

Exactly 100% and I love that you talked about energy, I'm super into law of attraction and the karma and all that stuff. It's really true. Once you understand, like, Hold wholeheartedly, and it's in your heart, you're like, oh, man, these people were right and people will you'll get there, but it might take some time.

Gresham Harkless 14:07

Exactly. Yeah, you have to respect that process as you as you said and I think that that can be sometimes a frustrating thing. At the same time, it just as we said like the reward the treasure at the end of the rainbow, so to speak is exactly what we were trying to look for.

Amy Demone 14:21

Exactly.

Gresham Harkless 14:22

Awesome. Well, thank you so much, Amy for your time and that awesome definition. I wanted to do is pass you the mic so to speak, just to see if there's anything additional you can let our readers and listeners know and then of course, how best they can get ahold of us, subscribe to the podcast and find out about all the awesome things you're working on.

Amy Demone 14:37

Yeah, absolutely. I'll say where I'm at. I'm Amy Demone, it's pretty much all over the place. However, I also masquerade as the brand virtually free. One of those two, you're probably finding me I'm most active on Instagram Amy.demone, but you can find me pretty much on every single solitary site. So if you want to check on my podcasts, it's called the becoming virtually free podcast. It's on all the channels because I use anchor recommended by Gary Vee. I think if there's anything else, well hit subscribe, you'll be able to see my podcast, or listen to my podcast. All I just want to leave you guys with is that this adventure is crazy and you're going to come out the other side not recognising the person looking at in the mirror. It's going to be so exciting and I really just encourage you to actually appreciate each and every single thing that you accomplish, because I didn't do that for the first three and a half years of my business and it felt super overwhelming. I didn't know I was doing this and as soon as I started to give myself gratitude on the huge journey and everything I had accomplished, my business started to grow like crazy and the rest is history.

Gresham Harkless 15:56

Absolutely, I love it and that definitely that reminder of appreciating what you have having that gratitude mindset and that appreciation for everything we have helps for things to start to multiply even more. Just as you said, you start to see so much more of those opportunities and great things that we've been able to accomplish. We will definitely have the links and information as well in the show notes so that everybody could follow up with you, connect with you on Instagram and go to your website and subscribe to the podcast. Thank you so much again, Amy, and I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

Extro 16:22

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co I AM CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes Google Play and everywhere you listen to podcasts, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a five-star rating grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.