We were lucky to catch up with Stephanie Fritts recently and have shared our conversation below.

Stephanie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you come up with the idea for your business?

After being laid off from my remote position as an executive assistant, I did a quick internet search for “freelance executive assistant” and a local business called Admin Boutique was at the top of the results. I applied for a position and the founder reached out to me and said I was overqualified (they hired college students to run errands for local executives), that she was looking to sell the company, and asked if I knew anyone who might be interested. Um YES, me! It really opened my eyes to the possibilities of business ownership. Ultimately I didn’t buy the company, but I did manage the business for a short time which allowed me to gain more insight into how a business like this operates. In March of 2018, I started Exec Wranglers as a virtual assistant services company, but it wasn’t until I joined a community of women entrepreneurs called Ellivate Alliance (https://ellivatealliance.com/) in April of 2019 that I really learned how to scale and grow my business. Joining Ellivate was like getting an MBA, but a thousand times more affordable and far less time-consuming! I honestly don’t know where I would be without the ongoing support of this amazing network of women entrepreneurs.

When I look back at my life, I realize that I always wanted to be an entrepreneur, and I dabbled (and struggled, then “failed“) in various network marketing companies starting in the early 90s. I’m a firm believer that every experience, whether positive or challenging (especially the challenging), shapes who you are and prepares you for the future. And overcoming the challenges creates resilience which is crucial in being an entrepreneur. When I started Exec Wranglers, I realized why those other business ventures had failed – because selling those products was not my true passion! Wrangling administrivia for impactful leaders and helping them succeed IS my passion, and I knew I could be successful with Exec Wranglers – I just didn’t know how. For the first 18 months or so prior to joining Ellivate, I was flailing around, picking up clients that were one-off projects or just not the right fit.

Stephanie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Over 20 years ago, I began working as an executive assistant for Silicon Valley companies like McKinsey & Company, Google, Facebook, and Sony. I quickly realized that my work in eliminating executives’ administrative worries directly contributed to their success. After moving to the Austin, Texas area, I was afforded the opportunity to work remotely – and I was hooked. Suddenly I was able to have the work-life harmony that was elusive in Silicon Valley. Seeing the opportunity to bring this virtual support to small business owners, I founded Exec Wranglers to help entrepreneurs scale their businesses and free up their precious time, allowing them to work in their “zone of genius” and find their own work-life harmony.

We work with entrepreneurs and executives who are making a difference in the world – either through their business offerings and/or their support of one or more charitable organizations. We call them Impactful Leaders. We free up these Impactful Leaders from their day-to-day operations, allowing them to focus on their “zone of genius”. By facilitating their growth and enabling them to make an even bigger social impact, we are creating a ripple effect of goodwill and humanity in the world.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

Our best source of new clients has been networking, word of mouth & referrals! There are so many great virtual networking opportunities and fun in-person networking opportunities now that the pandemic is largely behind us. Some virtual networking opportunities I’ve used are LunchClub (https://lunchclub.com/?invite_code=stephaniel21), joining educational/coaching communities like Ellivate Alliance, Happy Neighborhood Project (https://happyneighborhoodproject.com/networking) sponsoring virtual conferences like Running Remote and doing LinkedIn outreach to people I worked with/for previously. Fun fact: one of the executives I supported in the early 2000s is now a client due to my reaching out to him on LinkedIn! Did it happen the day we connected? NOPE! Six months later, he was in a position where he needed our services – but he wouldn’t have thought of Exec Wranglers had I not reached out to catch up with him.

Networking is not about going for the immediate sale or finding people who will buy your services or product; it’s about building relationships (cliche, but true!), finding synergies, and finding referral partnerships. My advice is to give (referrals, resources) more than you take when networking. We are just starting to do social media “marketing” in 2023, but there’s no substitution for a prospective client who already trusts you because they were referred by someone they trust.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

We support businesses making a difference in the world – we only take on clients making a positive impact through their business offerings and/or the support of one or more charitable organizations. Our Wranglers (Virtual Assistants) take on the work weighing down our clients, freeing them up to grow and scale their businesses to do even more good, thus creating a ripple effect of goodwill. We believe this makes the work that the Wranglers do more fulfilling. Additionally, we assist our clients in focusing on their zone of genius and invite our Wranglers to do the same. If handed something outside their wheelhouse, they are encouraged to collaborate with another Wrangler to accomplish that task or project.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.execwranglers.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/execwranglers/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/execwranglers/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/execwranglers/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxzC8iyZyWSD2YHHjU53Oyg
• Other: https://linktr.ee/execwranglers