Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jen Buzza. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Jen, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about your team building process? How did you recruit and train your team and knowing what you know now would you have done anything differently?

In order to start a business, I always need at least one other person there to bounce ideas off of and to be held accountable. I’m a big fan of hiring through communities, meaning hiring off of strong references and referrals. I’ve had the pleasure of starting several businesses. The last two I started with a team so I could quickly get out of the seats I don’t belong in.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your background and context?

For most of my life, I’ve been fascinated by one question: How do we help people become more themselves instead of less?

That question has guided my work as an entrepreneur, advisor, mentor, educator, and community builder for more than two decades. I grew up around entrepreneurship, became an entrepreneur myself, and eventually found myself mentoring thousands of business owners, nonprofit leaders, and growth-minded professionals. Along the way, I noticed something interesting: most business advice focuses on fixing people, pushing harder, or becoming someone else. My experience has led me in a different direction.

I believe growth happens when people work with who they are, not against it.

Today, I help entrepreneurs, leaders, and organizations build businesses and cultures that align with their unique strengths, values, and vision. Through my companies, WorkElevation and WorkSitter, as well as my speaking, mentoring, and training programs, I help people solve challenges around scaling, leadership, productivity, team development, culture creation, and personal growth. My work ranges from helping entrepreneurs leverage virtual assistants and build scalable businesses to helping leadership teams create cultures where people genuinely want to contribute, grow, and stay.

One of the frameworks I’m most passionate about is the Brilliant You Method. At its core, it’s built on a simple idea: before you can build a brilliant team, business, or life, you need to understand yourself. The work begins with discovering your values, identifying your unique brilliance, accepting yourself without judgment, and then designing your business and life around who you actually are. From there, that self-awareness extends outward into leadership, team culture, client relationships, and community.
What sets me apart is that I don’t believe entrepreneurship should require people to sacrifice themselves to succeed. I don’t subscribe to the “hustle harder” narrative. I believe entrepreneurship can evolve into something more human, more fulfilling, and more sustainable. I often say that entrepreneurship is ultimately a vehicle for personal growth. Your business becomes one of the greatest opportunities you’ll ever have to discover who you are, develop your gifts, and contribute them to the world.

I’m also deeply committed to community. One of my core beliefs is that we are better together. Growth is not a solo journey. The strongest businesses, teams, and communities are built through connection, trust, shared brilliance, and a genuine commitment to helping each other grow. That’s why culture, relationships, and belonging play such a significant role in my work. Whether I’m working with a founder, a leadership team, or an entire organization, I’m always looking for ways to help people thrive together, not just individually.
Professionally, I’m proud to have mentored more than 9,000 businesses, served as a California Ambassador for Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses, worked with entrepreneurs and nonprofit leaders across industries, and helped countless people create businesses that support the life they want rather than consume it. But honestly, what I’m most proud of isn’t a title, award, or milestone. It’s hearing someone say, “I finally feel like I can be myself and succeed.” Those moments matter most to me.

If there’s one thing I want people to know about me and my work, it’s this: there is no wrong way to be you.

I believe every person has unique gifts, strengths, perspectives, and brilliance. My role isn’t to tell people who they should become. It’s to help them uncover who they already are and build a business, career, team, and life that honors that truth.

I like to think of entrepreneurship as one of humanity’s greatest creative acts. When people are given permission to be themselves, grow relentlessly, seek shared brilliance, and build around their strengths, incredible things happen—not only for their businesses but for their lives.

That’s the work that excites me every day. Helping people grow into themselves, create meaningful impact, and build businesses that feel as good on the inside as they look on the outside.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

One of the biggest lessons I’ve had to unlearn is the idea that everyone should fit into the same box.

Like many people, I grew up in a system that rewarded conformity. School teaches us to sit still, learn the same way, move at the same pace, and be measured against the same standards. The underlying message is often that success comes from fitting the model.

As I became an entrepreneur, mentor, and advisor, I started noticing that the people creating the most value in the world were often the ones who didn’t fit the box at all. They thought differently. They worked differently. They communicated differently. Their strengths didn’t always align with conventional expectations.

That realization changed how I viewed leadership, business, and personal growth. Instead of asking, “How do I become what I’m supposed to be?” I started asking, “How do I become more of who I already am?”

Today, that belief sits at the center of my work. I believe every person has their own brilliance, strengths, and way of contributing. The goal isn’t to force people into a standard model of success. It’s to help them discover what makes them uniquely valuable and build from there.

In my experience, businesses grow faster, teams perform better, and people are happier when they stop trying to fit the box and start building around their strengths.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

I’ve always been a big believer in what is called the “client-funded startup.”

Rather than spending months or years building something in isolation and hoping people would buy it, I’ve often taken the opposite approach. When I have a new service, program, or offering that I want to bring to market, I find a small group of early clients who are willing to go on the journey with me.

I’m very transparent about it. I tell them, “This is a beta. You’re getting early access. You’ll have direct input into shaping it. In exchange, you’ll receive a reduced rate.”

What I’ve found is that many clients love being part of the creation process. They get access to innovative solutions before anyone else, and I get invaluable feedback that helps me build something that actually solves real problems.

The revenue from those early clients becomes the capital that funds the growth and refinement of the business. Instead of relying on outside investors, loans, or large amounts of personal capital, the business grows because clients are receiving value from day one.

This approach has taught me an important entrepreneurial lesson: don’t wait until something is perfect to put it into the world. Build with people, not for people. Some of the best products, services, and programs I’ve ever created were shaped by early clients who helped me refine the idea along the way.

In many ways, my clients have been my greatest investors—not just financially, but through their trust, feedback, and willingness to grow alongside me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.worksitter.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/worksitter/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferbuzza/
• Other: https://workelevation.com/