5 things we wish we'd known

Our story began way back in 2008 when we both worked for a PR agency.

Agency life taught us many things (that's one for another day) and while the days were long, it turns out so was our friendship.

Flash forward 15 years and the wearing of many hats as we worked our way up the corporate comms career ladder, including adding the title of Mum, before we jumped shop to cofound our own agency.

What comes with wearing all the hats? A bucket load of wisdom to share with you, so here are five things we wished we’d known when we started our business:

1. Get yourself a good (ideally, great) accountant

It was while Laura was working from her husband’s hospital room having chemo that we discovered we were months late in registering for VAT.

It was a total oversight and the icky conversations we had to have with our clients (thankfully all VAT-paying corporates) if we could backdate their VAT invoices was a massive, unnecessary stress, not to mention a time and energy drain we simply didn’t have capacity to handle.

Thankfully, our clients were really understanding and we got sorted, but not an ideal situation given what we were already dealing with beyond the business.

Since then, we’ve employed the incredible all-female team at Lagom Finance who take all the financial management pressure off our hands, keep us on track and are always there to answer any questions. Peace of mind worth paying for, especially as you grow.

2. Surround yourself with those who share your values

It’s amazing how surrounding yourself with likeminded people can help lift you up. For us, it was finding other creative working mamas, people who share the same values and frustrations, which showed us anything is possible.

Having a supportive network to guide and advise you, cheer you along provoke a different way of thinking when you need it, is invaluable. Lean on them and don’t be afraid to ask for help.

3. Never stop learning

Over the past four years we rediscovered our love of learning and have consumed more books, videos, podcasts and course content than when we were at university (or so it feels), and oh, does it feel good.

Our depth of knowledge, new ideas and curiosity as been reignited and now the challenge is to stay focused rather than constantly create something new. Thankfully we get to pour all this wisdom into the work we do with clients and create new things with them. The value of discovering a teacher, a course, a book or podcast that really speaks to you can be business and life changing.

We’re all about NET (no extra time) - you’ll often find Laura listening to audio book while trail running and Becca with a podcast series on while she buzzes around in her electric Mini - so if you’re short on time, find a way to learn while you’re doing another task and make it even more valuable.

4. Make it fun (and don’t take it personally)

Surrendering to the events which unfold are all part of the story. If we knew then what we know now, we wouldn’t have taken things to heart as much as we did or held on for the ‘oh we love it!’ emails that almost never came from the corporates (despite them continuing to book us).

Speaking to people is so much better than sending an email. We love the invention of voice notes.

5. Focus on your strengths

We know we’re really lucky that we have each other. Rather than being on this crazy ride alone. It’s often the first thing that people say when they meet us or see how we work. We now focus on our individual strengths and human design rather than trying to do all the things.

It’s so much more than words.

No matter how you work with us it’s so much more than words. We come part of your team sharing golden nuggets of business wisdom with you. If you want us on your team. Here’s how you can work with us.

Laura + Becca