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

Hi Mattie, thanks for joining us today. How do you think about vacations as a business owner? Do you take them and if so, how? If you don’t, why not?

For many years I didn’t get to take vacations for just our family. I was in the taxi service business for the Amish in Ohio. So when they would go on vacation I got to see so many places because I was their transportation. And was getting paid for it. I thought I was doing good and those were my vacations.

After quitting that line of work and moving out of state, I was invited to take a vacation of my own without any kind of work involved. I even went without my kids. I was so burned out and tired, I just needed to get away where I could relax. I had jam made ahead of time and my daughter took care of shipping it out if needed while I was gone. What I have found is sometimes you need to get away to gain perspective.

The week after I got back I was able to take steps in my business that gained so much growth. I was able to do something to move us forward in business that scared me before my vacation.

Take time for self care! Your productivity will show you how much you need to take time for yourself. If you are not growing and feeling like its impossible, take a breather and walk away for a few days and relax. Do something that will recharge your batteries. Your business and your future self will benefit tremendously.

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 back background and context?

Growing up on a farm as the youngest of ten in an Amish family. I was never a stranger to hard work. Not saying I always wanted to work. I was just like any other kid who may not be the most motivated to get things done. In my family it didn’t matter if we wanted to work or not, we didn’t get a choice.

I was taught the bible says if you don’t work you don’t eat. After leaving home at age 18, I didn’t have my birth certificate or social security number I had to figure out how to get those so I could get a job.
Many people stepped up and helped me by paying me cash to babysit or do house cleaning to give me time to get those documents. I also had to learn how to make my own decisions. To that point in my life I had always been told what to do. I didn’t need to make decisions on what school to go to or what car to buy. Those decisions were made for me.

It took me years to figure out who I wanted to be. My first job was furniture manufacturing. It was a steep learning curve.
In 2006 I realized I was going to be a mom, I was in an abusive relationship and tried to leave, When I went into labor I was alone and had to call 911 to get to the hospital. No family support. My friend Amy came and sat with me throughout the 20 hrs. of labor. After my daughter was born and I was able to go home, postpardem depression hit pretty hard. All I could do was cry.

After taking 5 weeks off work I went back to work and worked as hard as I could taking every shift I could to provide for us. I allowed my X to talk me back into his life off and on for a few years.

in 2009 we were living together and I was expecting my second child, when i very clearly saw a vision that if I stayed in that relationship I could lose both my kids.

I moved out on my own, but he wouldn’t leave me alone. I left the state to get away. I drove across the country with what would fit in my car and my toddler to MT. I saw I needed help and I had family in MT. that was able to help.
After getting to MT. I wasn’t able to get a job because of the pregnancy so I started baking pies, breads, cinnamon rolls and sold them at a camp ground to provide what I could for ourselves. My sister and her family helped me with the baking.

On Sept. 1 2010, I had my second daughter. After that I was able to get a job as a cashier at the local grocery store. A past customer came in looking for a spicy jelly and the store didn’t have what he was looking for. He looked at me saying ( you need to make a jalapeno raspberry jelly) I started making it and would give it to him for approval after many tries and tweaks to the recipe he gave me the thumbs up.
The next 3 years that recipe got blue ribbon at the local county fair. I started making other variations of flavors and thus started a jam business.

I had two little kids and didn’t get to spend much time with them. I decided to quit because I didn’t want to miss out on their life. For 8 years I did taxi work for the Amish in Ohio. In 2022 I met Ken Price through a business course I was a part of. When he heard the story of how the jam started he encouraged me restart.

My gift is putting flavors together that people love. Even through it all Gods grace has been sufficient . In 2023 we moved to Colorado Springs to establish the business here. I needed to be in a place where I could grow. I have found a great business networking community who have been supper supportive and helpful.

What set us apart is our love for supporting people and creating connections.

What I am most proud of is how God always brought the right people into my life at the right time to get me where I am today. So grateful for that. While I am great at making jam recipes that people love, our goal is to start a Mattie’s home for women who are pregnant and may not feel like they can be a mom for whatever reason. To give them options and feel loved and supported through whatever decision they make.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

The best source is word of mouth. When I hear a story of how someone had some of the jam and then told a friend or family and they end up ordering because of it. It makes my heart sing. I talk to people every day and its always rewarding to have those people reach out to me to get jam/jelly and then to hear a testimony of what they liked about the jam they tried.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Growing up I was taught to stay in the background. I was never comfortable in the background because it’s not what I was put here for. I had to learn I was put here to lead and I am ok with that.

Growing up in an Amish community, women are taught to stay in the background because that is where we belong. I had to learn to put myself out there because it is who I am.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://mattiesjamsjellies.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/millmattie/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mattie.miller3
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MattieMiller780

Image Credits

https://imageryenlightened.com/?fbclid=IwY2xjawG0xOtleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHZI4wjza89tI1cFDshfncP7w4SYSN_Gd_Zdvs13Tjh3dmvQaeDmnMBnpyQ_aem_lL_cstr4sQ89uYkGGkjxDw

https://www.youtube.com/@imageryenlightened-telling6215