Andrea Swinson - OBM + Business Strategist

"Everything is figureoutable" - this is one of my *favourite* mantras, and thank you to Marie Forleo for making up such a delicious word. ❤️

Looking at issues with a problem-solving lens means that you never stay stuck or dwelling on mistakes/unfortunate happenings for too long.

Heck, I even use it with my kiddos to help cultivate a growth mindset and build their resilience. 💪

Next time you make a mistake, hit a snag in your plan, something unfortunate pops up, or you find yourself in less-than-ideal circumstances, I encourage you to:
✔️ take a few deep breaths
✔️ repeat this mantra
✔️ begin brainstorming where to go next

Because things happen out of our control, but they are also figureoutable.

Hello, friend! I’m Andrea. 👋🏼

I’ve been in the online business world since 2015. I’ve done a bit of everything, and started with creating and running successful niche jewelry and accessories businesses. My experience ranges from self-taught metalsmithing, to purchasing (and selling!) wholesale, to working with manufacturers.

I am a Certified Online Business Manager®, which means that I have training and expertise in team management, project management, operations, systems and strategy. Reverse engineering goals is totally my jam.

I’ve been running online businesses for 7 years and counting, so I 100% understand both your wild successes and your deepest pain points. I love taking your Big Dreams and breaking them down into the nitty gritty steps to implement to make your vision a reality.

Basically, I help fellow heart-centered, purpose-driven online business owners scale, simplify, and build the life of their dreams.

I’m a Canadian mom of two boys, a wife to a sometimes-too-logical engineer husband, and dog mama to a yellow lab who thinks she is a human. I love my coffee iced, my books read way past my bedtime, and my walks in nature with my fam.

My random fact is that I’ve been an extra in a Bollywood film, while travelling in India back in 2010. Now your turn - tell me a unique fact about you!

“You are never too old to start over. Every day is a chance to make changes to create the life we want.” - Karin Waddell

✨repost from

“No risk, no magic” ✨

The magic always lies outside our comfort zone.

I’m pretty pumped to be where I am today, working with awesomesauce business owners. I get to be the integrator to your visionary - putting my natural operations/strategic/team loving brain to use - allowing you to get out of the weeds of your business to step into your zone of genius.

But my road here was not straightforward. It included:
✨ two university degrees
✨ working as an elementary teacher
✨ working at a university
✨ founding a few different product based businesses
✨ self publishing a children’s book

If I were a Friends meme, I’d definitely be the “PIVOT!” one. 🛋

But each pivot, large or small, led me to where I am today. And for my colourful, meandering journey, I am truly grateful. ❤️

📸:

So, you’ve sat down with yourself/your coach/your family and had a tough conversation about your workload and current bandwidth.

You love what you do and the people you serve but you are overwhelmed, tired and find yourself wearing too many hats.

Friend, it may be time to outsource and bring an OBM to your team!
(This can mean via a monthly retainer or with a focused 1:1 VIP Day.)

But how do you know if you’re ready?

Here are a few signs it is time to reach out for some support:

🧠 Your business lives in your head

SOPs (standard operating procedures) are written instructions that explain, step-by-step, how to do something. They are essential when delegating work, scaling, or even eventually selling a business. You’d love to get all your business details out of your head, organized and documented, but are not sure where to even begin.

🗺️ You need a strategic, implementable plan

You have Big Dreams but no plan of how to make them a reality. The revenue is coming in, but you are not sure where you are going next. You might feel like you’ve stalled, or you’re throwing spaghetti at the wall, or you are going in a thousand directions at once. You’d love to get organized with strategy and long-term planning to stay focused on the needle movers.

😳 You’re overwhelmed and you need to hire but you feel stuck

Sales are cha-ching-ing, but you are feeling overwhelmed with doing All The Things. You know you need to hire, but you don’t have time to organize your thoughts, figure out what SOPs you need in place, write and post a job description, and actually hire.

📈 You are not tracking metrics

You might be vaguely aware of your revenue, social engagement, email opens, and web stats, but you are not actually consistently tracking them. “What gets measured gets managed”, and right now you are not really sure what is really working in your business to drive revenue and leads since you are not measuring anything consistently.

If you are ready to take things to the next level and get yourself freed up from the day-to-day, send me a message and let's talk about if an "Instant OBM" VIP Day or retainer service is a good fit for you!

https://www.andreaswinson.com/work-with-me

I am a certified OBM - but what the heck does that mean?

Basically, OBMs (or online business managers) are higher level virtual support professionals who make sure that the right things get done at the right time, by the right people, in the right way. Sort of like a virtual business BFF.

We typically help with:
✔️ team management
✔️ project management
✔️ strategic planning
✔️ metrics management
✔️ systems + processes

We basically act as the Integrator, or right hand, of the CEO/ visionary.

If you are a 6- or 7-figure online business who is feeling overwhelmed, please reach out and we can chat how I can help you get back in your zone of genius. I offer both retainer and VIP days, depending on what is the right choice for you. ✨

Tell me your mom is an entrepreneur without telling me she is. 😂

I found these sketches my seven-year-old son did last night. I think he’s really nailing his USP and marketing message.

Our kids are watching what we do! I used to feel bad when my business stuff leaked into my family stuff, but now I know that I can purposely model good boundaries, how to set priorities, and show my kids that they can blaze their own path!

Do you have kids? Are they showing *gasp* entrepreneurial tendencies?

This is where my business journey began: just a gal with a torch. 🔥

Back in 2015, I decided to harness the power of YouTube and taught myself metalsmithing. You’ll be relieved to hear I still have my eyebrows (well, except for everything I plucked back in the 90s). 😬

I fell in love with jewelry as a means to tell a story. I fell in love with connecting to others online, building a community, and making sales while I slept (not going to lie).

Since then I’ve built a few different businesses on Etsy and Shopify, with over 10,000 (mostly organic!) Etsy sales. I’ve done handmade, working with manufactures and purchasing wholesale.

Do you feel stuck and overwhelmed with your online business? I’m looking for a few people who are looking for help with their Etsy or Shopify store - either getting them up and running OR optimizing them to make them shine. If that’s you, send me a message to chat about how I can help you get started (or unstuck!) in under a week!