It's Where I Am with Zandra Polard

Wesley Knight 0:00
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Zandra Polard 0:44
What a fabulous morning. This is Zandra Pollard. The show is, it's where I am. And what we do here is we focus on mental health and wellness. But today we're gonna talk about some financial planning. We're gonna talk about some business. Yes, so we have coach Amber j in the house. Welcome to the studio. You know, I've got some questions about business. You know, my father started a business maybe about a month ago, and we're new on the journey. You know, it's my it's not my business, it's his, but somehow it's still mine, because I'm doing a lot of the work. Yes, yeah, no, not to take away from you, Dad, I know you're doing a lot, but he does lean on me for, you know, support and advice. And, you know, the to do's, yeah, yeah. A lot of to do's, yeah. So, uh, he's on this business journey, and it's quite new for him, okay, and I was thinking, you would be great to have on the show to provide some guidance. Yes, yeah, because I don't know it all. I don't know very much. You're gonna learn. I'm just helping the best I can. Yes. So what is the most important thing you know? When you say, Hey, I have an idea. I'm gonna start a business. What should I do next? Well,

Speaker 1 2:18
first, thank you so much. Good morning. I'm so happy to be here. And when we talk about business, when I think about someone saying, Hey, I have this idea, the first thing I say is, do you have a plan? No, is it big money? And I think that is the biggest setup for failure that I see with business owners or with with entrepreneurs, I would say that have an amazing idea. They have this hobby or this thought, and they're like, hey, I want to go into business, but they don't have the business background. And so I really think that the best thing to start a business is having the foundation laid in, writing it out, getting clear about what it is that you want and what you need, especially new entrepreneurs, we never think about the money. We just think that we're going to get in business and make money, and then we fail tremendously because we don't realize or we don't have the capital, or we're using our own capital, and that's automatic setup for failure in business. So

Zandra Polard 3:24
you don't want to use your own money. No, okay, well, whose money are we using? We want to use other people's money. Okay? And how do we do that?

Speaker 1 3:31
Whether it's loans, it's through grants, through funding, different avenues of funding you want to try to get, I would say definitely, if you're going after loans like your personal credit and your business credit, which could take some time to set up, is in position. And those are things that I don't think we talk about, is our own credit in our own financial setups before we start a business. Okay, so those things are huge components when we start a business, because we'll go broke, spending our own money and not having no revenue coming in, because most businesses don't really actually make money for the three to first three to five years in business. Oh, wow, yeah. So you're gonna say a year, no, ooh, yeah, to actually see a return right on the investment, and depending on what the business is, what's the business? If you don't mind

Zandra Polard 4:22
sharing, um, it is shirts and hats. So it's led shirts and hats. Okay,

Speaker 1 4:28
so, I mean, that's a quick startup, so you may see some revenue pretty quickly, but again, you without a plan, and who is your audience, and who are you targeting? It's most likely everybody doesn't want an LED shirt, right, right? But then we think, Oh, we have this great idea. So I can sell it to anyone. And that's not normally, well,

Zandra Polard 4:48
I do know the target audience would be you. Okay, love the lights, right? Kids love lights. We

Speaker 1 4:54
think they love the lights. Girl, but see, this is why it's in. Important when starting a business, and the first part of it is writing the business plan is because you want to be you want to know for sure that the the target your who is your target audience, what do they desire? Because what we think may not be what they think. So it's important to do the research ahead of time to say, okay, yes, there are kids that like it, but they're between the ages of 13 and 16, and they are a certain demographic, and they live in a certain area, and they hang out with these people like we need to be so clear on our target audience that I know for sure every time I post that's gonna those are the people that are gonna gravitate towards my T shirts. Okay, so those are important factors in starting a business. Who is your audience? The target audience, knowing like you want to know your your target audience like they're the back of your hand. Who are they? Where are they at? Where do they shop at? How much money do they spend? What are they willing to spend on a t shirt with LED lights? Right? We may think, hey, I want to sell $50.60 right? You may say 60, some may say 15, when we might under price or overpriced, but if you haven't done that research, which is really what what you do in a business plan, it gives you those steps on researching those things, so that you're not just making a whole bunch of shirts and T shirts, and then you have a whole lot of inventory, and now you're sitting on money because you didn't do your due diligence ahead of time. Okay,

Zandra Polard 6:22
yeah, so get the business plan now. How do I do that? If I don't know how to do the business plan, I would contact someone like a coach, Coach, chamber. Jay,

Speaker 1 6:31
yes, you could definitely reach out to me, but there's so many things at our fingertips. AI is my best friend. Chat GPT, you can literally go in and say, Hey, chat. GBT create me a business plan for an LED T shirt who is my target audience, and it literally does it for you. How would it know all of that? Because you're gonna put that information in. Oh, better research. It will research it for you. Oh, yeah, I had no idea. So we need AI is like, I thought it just fixed, like, grammar? No, it fits. It creates business plans, it writes books, it does all kind of stuff. So we have so much technology at technology at our fingertips. Yes, coaching is definitely hire a coach, right? Because we keep you accountable. We help you with the strategy. We give you these ideas so you can know how to do the work. But starting there even Google. Hey, Google, I need a business plan. Give me an easy template, right? Just having some kind of foundation to know what direction to go in. And this business plan is for the individual. For you your business, yes, it's not like we're creating it and giving it to someone. Well, sometimes you can, right? Yeah, maybe, like the bank trying to get, if you're trying to get a loan, right? They want a banks, they want or any other funding, they'll ask, like, if you're trying to get grants or just any other funding, they're going to ask you for a business plan. So it's crucial to have one. And then also, your business plan is your blueprint to your next steps, right? It tells you what is my mission statement, what is the vision, what is the idea like? What are, what are we doing? What is the why? Right? I'm not making sales. I can go back to my blueprint and say, Okay, this is why I started the business. Let me get motivated again. Maybe I missed the step. So it's the it's the blueprint and the foundation of your business.

Zandra Polard 8:16
Wow. So you've been doing this type of work in the Las Vegas area for how long since

Speaker 1 8:20
2016 Wow. So, yeah, eight years now. Eight years. Yeah, okay, yeah. So, wow. So

Zandra Polard 8:27
what made you want to help other people create business plans?

Speaker 1 8:30
So it started with my own discovery, and I came into an entrepreneur. I was a I became a life coach. And I'm like, I help people all the time, right? But I knew the helping part. I didn't know the business part. And so through my own journey, I've came I remember someone was like, hey, we want to hire you, but I need your business plan. And I was, like, a business plan? What is that? So I quickly went and researched it, and went and met with some friends that had been I'm like, I need to make a business plan. Can you help me? Right? And then I'm trying to get this money. Yeah, I'm trying to get this money. I need a contract. And so it was so many things that I learned on my own that I didn't know. And so now I feel like I have the experience and the tools to say, Hey, these are the steps that I made or I missed that now I help you with so that you don't have to be set back a couple of years or miss opportunities because you're just not in position.

Zandra Polard 9:19
And that's not the only thing you do like So you started doing that, and then you whirlwind into fashion. Yes,

Speaker 1 9:25
yes. Would you look great? Thank you. Thank you. So fashion kind of has been something I've always done, and I realized, especially as business owners, that we forget that we need to look as good as our business looks, too. Yes, you don't want to be like that hairstylist that's looking a hot mess like I do hair, but not my own right, right? And so with that, what I do for my business owners or new entrepreneurs, I help them rebrand themselves. And so I'll go in and help you revamp your closet. Help you create a image for your your a wardrobe image for your brand. What do you want to look like? What does that entail? How can I make it simple for you so that you're always ready if you're going to show up to I had my own podcast this morning, and then now I'm ready for this one, so I know how to match and match my outfit, so I can look ready for the full day. So I teach those simple techniques to always be ready, because you may never know, somebody might want to give you some money, but you weren't in position, or you didn't look the parts I need you to be ready at all times. And as business owners, I think that a lot of times they forget, because they're running the business, that they also need to look like they're a

Zandra Polard 10:33
part of the business, which is a great thing because, you know, you're colasing, right? Yeah? Look what to do, yeah. You know, having that total package Absolutely. Yeah, so that's awesome, yeah, thank you. Which reminds me, first, sorry, let's go back, and I want you to tell me about the podcast you have. Yeah. Okay,

Speaker 1 10:51
so I have a podcast that airs live or in person every Thursday at noon at Nevada Partners at the West Side incubator. It's called key talk, and we talk about how to balance personal and professional lives while looking good and having hard conversations. So we have different topics. Every week, I give you keys to implement into your daily life so that you have a balanced life living in purpose.

Zandra Polard 11:15
All right, yeah. And they can go live, go live on you

Unknown Speaker 11:19
can see it live on social media, all platforms. Oh, okay,

Zandra Polard 11:21
I thought you meant live or in person, and they can go to Nevada Partners and sit there. Okay, yep, so they have the potential of being heard on on

Speaker 1 11:31
live. Yeah, on the show. Yep, I ask questions, I engage, and I'm always looking for a different, um, guest speaker to be on my show too, so I have to have you on the show. No, okay,

Zandra Polard 11:40
well, we'll see. We'll see. But I wanted to get into I thought of a friend which I would be honored, sorry I would be no thank you. But I thought of a friend who has a business and they were having a tough time, and that person who I did not know very well, and I will not mention their name, so don't worry, if you're listening, we're having some financial hardship, and they opened that conversation up to me. Okay? I thought it was inappropriate because I didn't know the person, but I gave my advice, okay? And my advice was, don't tell people you don't know. Yes, like you got lucky with me, but you don't want to let people know that you're not doing so great business wise. Yeah,

Speaker 1 12:30
I think. And this is a huge part and another reason why I'm big on the business plans, right? Because as you're developing your business, you also need to develop yourself, and this is why coaching is a huge component, right? Yeah, it is. It's not, it's It's because when people are trying to run a business, they lack a lot of personal development because they just want to run a business, right? I have idea. I want to make money, and it's a great idea, but they don't do the work to still grow as an individual and as a business person. And like you said, a lot of stuff is not is not taught to us. A lot of things you have to go finding. Some things you don't realize are not appropriate until someone teaches you. And so this is why it's important for shows like this and podcasts, so that you can learn the information. But more importantly, if you have a business, you should also be working on your personal development, right? Yeah, you should be investing in yourself. You should have a coach, like any person that says they have a business and they don't have a business coach, or they don't have a mentor. It scares me, because I'm like, Well, where are you getting your information from? How do you know how to do this? Right? Like you should be constantly pouring into yourself so that your business has new information on a constant basis. What is the new trends? What's important? Who? What do they need to know? What do they need to hear? Maybe I need to shift. But if you're stuck in a bubble, it's going to be really hard. And that's probably a huge right reason why, financially, they're in a negative because they don't have those tools.

Zandra Polard 13:58
Yes, wow. Yeah, yeah. So that was great. I want to make sure I mentioned that, because I just really knew that what he was, oh, I even said he that person was telling me, was not something that they should offer

Speaker 1 14:13
to other people, to other people, yeah, and it takes away them as an expert, right? Like, how can I trust you? But it sounds like that person felt safe with you. And that's another thing too. Is business people also need to have their safe circle that they vent to. Everyone is not a listening ear that wants to help you.

Zandra Polard 14:30
And then, you know, by being in the mental health space, a lot of people are very comfortable

Unknown Speaker 14:35
with you. Open people up, though,

Zandra Polard 14:38
yeah, sometimes I'm trapped. It's like, Oh, damn, I gotta listen to this person for like, 10 more minutes.

Speaker 1 14:43
You have a natural gift to do that, yeah? Well, you

Zandra Polard 14:47
know, I try to be patient, yeah? And, well, I've learned to be patient, yeah. And I have an understanding that people need to release,

Speaker 1 14:56
yeah, yeah, yeah. But I think that. People need to invest in themselves. It's time, like a lot of people are trying to do this solo, and I really especially being in a mental health component, like, see a therapist, yeah, do the work. Yeah, it's not gonna life

Zandra Polard 15:13
would help though, as well, because a lot of times people think mental health, mental illness, yes, right? And that's

Speaker 1 15:19
not the case, right? I'm big. I have a therapist. I have a coach. Like, it's important, you need a coach. Coaches in therapy, work hand in hand. A lot of times as I'm coaching people, things will come up. Why do I have these hindrances? Why is there blockages? I can help you identify them, but you may need to process them with your therapist, because I don't diagnose or anything like that, but I can help you identify them, and then I also help you give you the tools to keep moving forward. So a lot of times, people coaching is more about focus future, focus on how to get to the next step. And to me, I think therapy deals with some of the the pre, the past, or things that you can process through, but not necessarily how to move you forward. So we work hand in hand. Okay, that makes total sense to you, yeah.

Zandra Polard 16:05
How do you advise a person who has procrastination? I'll talk to people and it's like, why haven't you done the next step? Why are you still here? You know what I mean. Like, when are you gonna pick up that leg and put that foot down forward.

Speaker 1 16:23
A lot of times it's they're stuck, right? Yeah, because they haven't done the work right. And this is a huge indicator for me. When I'm talking to business owners and they're like, I can't I'm out of ceiling, I feel like I'm stuck. Okay, let's go back. What are you not doing right? What habits have you not released? What? Where is your mindset when you've done some personal work like those things are, to me, indicators procrastination is either fear or not knowing, right? A lot of times, we don't know what the next step is. Why you need to hire a coach so we can help you create that next step. But a lot of times, those are the reason why people procrastinate. They just don't know how, or they're fearful of it, okay? And they keep them stuck, yeah. So

Zandra Polard 17:06
what are some things I know you had a workshop last week, right? How did that go? It was really good explain to us what the workshop was and how you helped other people, yeah. So I have

Speaker 1 17:16
a vision board event quarterly, and we did the new year vision board. And it was really about strat, creating a strategy, a plan. What is your goals for the next 90 days? Let's create some smart goals so we can have some action steps. It was phenomenal. It created a we created vision boards so you have something visual to see. You have a plan, and now you know how to execute. Here is what you do for these next 90 days and the steps to take forward, and it was an amazing event. Thank you for asking. Oh

Zandra Polard 17:43
yeah for sure, because I'm sure you have to have like groups and then see how people are progressing, and then tailor and become more individualized for those who are actually doing the work.

Speaker 1 17:55
Yes, yeah, absolutely. So yeah, that's why, and I have these workshops, is because, yeah, it's good to have the group things and get around other people, but also being able to do the one on ones. But I think some the group helps you kind of open up and like, Oh, this is what coaching is about, and this is what it looks like. And like, I said, it's an experience, because I give you the steps on not just, we're not just here making a pretty board with some ideas. We're going to actually give you the steps to take to then here's what you do in these next 90 days, if you execute these, this is what happened if you're stuck. Let's coach now, was it just you, or is there a team, or it's just me? Okay? Yes. And then how many people usually come? I usually have no more than 15 people, because I wanted to be intimate, but I still open it up a little bit, and we had about 12 to 15 people this last group,

Zandra Polard 18:43
okay, and then when is the next one? You said that they were quarterly? Yes,

Speaker 1 18:50
probably April. April. Yeah, okay, I don't have a date yet, but April, definitely.

Zandra Polard 18:55
Okay, yeah. Well, you're more than welcome to give me the information, and I will share the love. Thank you. Yeah, information, it's

Speaker 1 19:02
so powerful too, because in group settings, you get to see that you're not the only person stuck. And I think sometimes procrastination also comes from that as like, Man, I'm failing. And it's like, No, everyone is dealing with something like, let's work through this and let and also let you know you're not alone in this process. Just some people are moving ahead because they're willing to face it head on, and they realize they're not alone and they needed help. So it's okay not to know, but we can't stay there. Okay,

Zandra Polard 19:31
yeah, all right, so what other businesses are you involved in? So you have the life coaching. You help entrepreneurs. You have the fashion thing, yeah, what other businesses do you have? I

Speaker 1 19:45
have a book. I'm an author, yeah, okay, I'm also, where's my book? I should I did not bring you. Okay, okay, name the book that I don't it's called the key. You are the master key, and it's 10 keys on health. Help you overcome. Okay, yeah, so I definitely have to bring you book I didn't

Zandra Polard 20:05
even think about, and I get many of books.

Unknown Speaker 20:10
It's on Amazon, though. You can order it on Amazon. Okay,

Zandra Polard 20:13
so you can access it on Amazon out there if you're listening the key, the

Unknown Speaker 20:18
key, you are the master key.

Zandra Polard 20:20
You are the master key. Great name. Thank you. So how do people follow you?

Speaker 1 20:25
So I'm on all social media platforms as coach Amber J, you can also go on my website and do a discovery call. It's a free 30 minute discovery call to see if we are a good fit for one another, if coaching may be an avenue for you. And you can do that on coach Amber j.com

Zandra Polard 20:41
Okay, so you refer people out if you are not going to work. Yes, absolutely. Okay. So there's a lot of people like you out here. There

Speaker 1 20:48
is, there's quite a few coaches here, especially here in Las Vegas, that I've connected to, and if we don't work out, it's I always refer people and vice versa, because our personalities, like we have to be a match, because when we are in a relationship, as a coach, we go together, so we got to like each other, right? Yeah, so, and then

Zandra Polard 21:10
some people work better with male mentors, and yeah, some female Yeah. So

Speaker 1 21:14
to me, it's important. It's just definitely important that you have that support, and you got to step out of your bubble. If you really want to see yourself grow in this next year, you got to do something different,

Zandra Polard 21:27
right? Yeah, I saw this post on social media, and there was a line. There were two lines. One said people wanting change, and the other said, people wanting to change. Those are two different things, yes,

Speaker 1 21:46
major and even the word play. I This is a big thing that I teach my clients, is language, right? The power of words, right? Like I hear people say, Oh, I'm trying, and I'm always like, trying is lying? You're either gonna do it or you're not, right? But even just that word, like, I'm trying to do something, it does something with your psyche, right? It's like you have to make a decision. I'm getting this done, period, trying

Zandra Polard 22:12
is a tool for failure. Yes, I like that. I like that. Yeah. So I used to say trying a lot too. And every once in a while it will slip out, yeah, but I'll fix it,

Speaker 1 22:22
yes, yes, and that's a big thing too, is becoming self aware, I think a lot of times too, is we're just unaware.

Zandra Polard 22:29
True, very true. Yeah. So, so before I let you go, give us all your social media platforms again, how we can contact you any information you want us to know?

Speaker 1 22:43
Yes, so again, thank you for having me on the show. I am Coach Amber J. You can find me on all platforms, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and my website, at coach Amber J and coach Amber j.com and if you're here and you're like, I need a wardrobe makeover. I'm ready to put in this work. I'm ready to invest in myself. Reach out. You don't have to do this alone. There are people here willing to help you, and you don't like I said, I'm here to hold your hand. You don't have to do this alone, and now is the time. No better time than do it now. And there is no investment worth making better than in yourself. All right.

Zandra Polard 23:22
Well, let's do this in 2025 I want to thank everyone for tuning in today. It is a beautiful day. Take advantage of it. Love it. Love yourself. Thank you for tuning in. I'm Sandra Pollard here every Saturday at 7:30am now please take a listen to Natalie Cole this will be one.