We recently connected with Dr. Christi Monk and have shared our conversation below.

Dr. Christi, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We love asking folks what they would do differently if they were starting today – how they would speed up the process, etc. We’d love to hear how you would set everything up if you were to start from step 1 today

I started my entrepreneurial journey in 2015 once I completed my doctoral degree in 2014. Beyond my college education, I invested in a coaching program for the first time that cost $9,000. The program talked about identifying my target audience, creating an avatar for who I wanted to serve, identifying my ideal client pain points, and so on. Because I am an overthinker, I kept investing in more programs because I thought there was this magic formula or one person that could help me fully launch my business to work for myself. But, of course, we always hear that phrase, “You can make six figures in six months.”

Well, that wasn’t entirely true. Most coaches were teaching the same information through my entrepreneurial journey but putting a different spin on it. Although there is merit to identifying your target audience, there is more outstanding merit in building your business on a solid foundation. I mean that you should understand how to properly structure a company before you even consider who you will market. One of the gaps that I learned later on in my journey to entrepreneurship was that no one was teaching people how to build a business and sustain it.

I got certified as a Woman-Owned Business in 2017 but did not fully understand what that meant either.
While I understood there were advantages to being certified as a Woman-Owned Business, I did not fully understand the wealth of information available through the certification (at no cost). If I had known then what I know now, I would have taken more advantage of the certification.

By doing so, I would not have invested in the many coaches that I did. The money I invested in some of the coaching programs could have funded my business. It would have also allowed me to hire the necessary team members such as a bookkeeper and a CPA. Now don’t get me wrong, I believe that you need coaches in your life for various reasons and seasons. However, I also think building and sustaining a business needs to be in place first before you do that. It all goes back to developing your business plan. Not to mention, I learned all of this because of the IRS issues I encountered. It is essential to do the research thoroughly because people will only speak to you from their knowledge. It is crucial to remove the anxiousness and emotion when deciding to become an entrepreneur the right way.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

My strategy for building my audience on social media was hiring a marketing specialist. I was fortunate that one of my line sisters (Delta Sigma Theta) mastered this skill. It was an added plus that she already knew my brand and could direct me. There were times that I did not want to listen to her, but I learned to trust her expertise. My advice for anyone who wants to build their social media presence is to decide what you want to share and why. I also learned that consistency is the key. It would be best if you worked on your brand awareness first. One thing I would caution anyone about is not to get caught up in the likes and follows. I believe if you make the “likes” and “follows” your main focus, you can crash and burn quickly because the engagement may not always be there. But that doesn’t mean that people aren’t watching you.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

When I think about resilience and my journey, I believe my financial issues with IRS are the one moment I have been resilient. I share that because few people consider the tax implications involved in starting and maintaining a business when you have more than one W-2 income in addition to having a business. I learned my income was one number and not separate. I had to look at the gaps in my accounting process to understand better what I was doing wrong. Yes, I tried doing my taxes myself. After having my business for over six years, I finally hired a bookkeeper I met through the mastermind cohorts hosted through the WBENC (Woman-Owned Business Certification) program. I was sitting in a virtual room for six weeks with women who are already where I aspire to be, as uplifting and intimidating as it was at the same time. But had I not been in the room with other women who have thriving businesses, I would still have holes in my accounting process. I learned through my financial issues to seek the necessary help even if I was embarrassed. Again, you don’t know what you don’t know. However, the silver lining is that there are others out there willing to help you get on the right path.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.christimonk.com
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• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drchristimonk/