We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Alli McAuley. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Alli below.

Alright, Alli thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

Like many people, I started my career working 9 to 5 in an office cubicle.

The job was designing packaging — that was the cool part. The problem was that it was for a cat litter company. Not only that but because I was half of the company’s marketing department, I also had to travel to pet trade shows to demonstrate how “crystal pearls” eliminate odor to groups of people passing by. (The memory alone makes me feel icky all over again!)

I thought hating your job was the norm. After all, as a kid, I watched adults complain about work during dinner and spend Sunday evenings dreading the looming week ahead.

Although this was my experience, I’m so grateful that my parents raised me to believe that I could do anything. I wanted to be excited about my work and to do something I’m passionate about every day while making a difference. So I took the leap to start my own business and created my own dream job.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I truly believe that everyone should be able to do the work they love in order to serve people they love to work with…where they want and when they want. And after meeting so many business owners that are overwhelmed, struggling, and lost not knowing where to start and what to do next, I knew I could help.

In everything I do, my goal is to empower entrepreneurs to elevate their brands so that they quickly and confidently connect with their dream clients and make more money online. My easy-to-follow programs & templates, personalized strategy & consulting, and custom design & development are all geared to help those who are stuck to do just that.

I like to keep things simple and use a step-by-step approach to make it easy for you to proudly show up with a strategic brand you love and one that stands out to your audience.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

Being a perfectionist is a great quality to have when you’re a designer. But when it comes to creating a new offer or a new course, I’ve really had to learn to embrace the phrase, “done is better than perfect.”

I used to wait until everything was flawless before putting it out into the world. Over time though I’ve learned to start getting feedback (good or bad) as soon as possible in order to implement and make necessary changes as I build. It’s much more efficient and ultimately results in a better product — one that’s more aligned with what your audience needs and wants.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Like many others, during the Great Recession in 2009, I was laid off and decided it was time for me to go out on my own.

I had been living in the city and decided to move to the country to start my business. I thought, “This will be easy. Everything can be done online these days, surely getting clients will be a piece of cake.”

What actually happened was that I found myself struggling to get the clients I wanted and instead, I had to say “yes” to any project that came my way. I felt incredibly stuck and had no clue what to do and I was absolutely exhausted from all the time I was wasting.

I knew I wanted to have my own business, but NOT like this. The reason I started my own business was for freedom and flexibility and so far, that had not been my experience at all!

So, I started thinking, “I’ve got to get serious. I’m going to push pause, go back to the beginning, and set my business up with a proper foundation this time.” This time, I started with the end goal in mind and worked backward.

While rebuilding my own business I learned exactly how to get started quickly, but strategically, to ensure that I’m attracting the RIGHT clients and am set up to grow successfully moving forward. This is the process I now take my own clients and students through!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://dowelldesignstudio.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dowelldesignstudio
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dowelldesignstudio
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allimcauley/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@alli.mcauley

Image Credits
@workplaybranding