Introvert Turned Biz Coach Earning $10k/Month (with Mia Brox)

Mia 0:01
Welcome to the Launch Your Blog Biz podcast. I’m your host, Lauren McManus. I used to be a full time tax accountant and CPA with a whole lot of limiting beliefs and “I can’ts” whenever I thought about starting my own business. Fast forward a few months, and I quit my job after starting and growing my first blog to six figures in just a year. This is my space to share and yours to listen and grow about how to build and scale your own blogging business and design a life on your terms. Let’s get started.

Lauren 0:35
Hey, y’all. Welcome back to the podcast. I hope you’re having a great day. Today I have another special guest for you, I have Mia Brox from SheDreamsAllDay.com. And in Mia’s words, she is a dreamer turned doer, an introvert and a business coach. Welcome to the show. Mia.

Mia 0:56
Hey, Lauren, thank you so much for having me.

Lauren 0:59
So you know y’all, in Mia’s bio that she sent me she says that she encourages introverts to step up, own their superpower, and become quietly confident online. She also says that the introvert hangover is sold separately and I absoutley love that line. I’ve definitely had one of those since the pandemic ended and I’m still trying to figure out really how to bring back my extroverted side out again. But that’s a whole different topic of discussion, although to be honest, I am curious. And I’m now going out of order of how I wanted to start this episode.

Lauren 1:33
But Mia, have you seen or heard of a difference in any of your clients pre and post pandemic? Because I know that I definitely cling to hibernation like a bear these days and I really never been that way until now. I feel like some of it’s age related, but I feel like the pandemic has to be a big player, you know, in there as well? Have you seen that at all?

Mia 1:52
For sure. I mean, the whole introvert hangover, it’s a thing both during the pandemic and after, to be honest. I mean, for me, as an introvert, I always have to deal with this introvert hangover and never really goes away, even if there is a pandemic or not. But I have definitely seen an increase in people feeling more overwhelmed, more socially drained, coming out of this pandemic, especially as it relates to their businesses, showing up online, and all of that. So yeah, definitely an increase in the amount of introvert hangovers, I can totally relate to that as well.

Lauren 2:35
Yeah, for sure. It’s like there’s just so much more social energy, or so much more energy required to be social these days. You know, I hope that at some point, it’s going to level out and we’re just all still kind of adjusting to the world back to normal and it’s not totally back to normal, especially in Europe, where you and I live. Y’all, Mia is from Sweden, which is awesome and it’s cool to interview her because we’re on the same timezone. Because I’m in Germany.

Mia 3:00
I’m actually from Norway, but I do live in Sweden. So I just wanted to make that little. It’s yeah, the two countries are similar, but they are different. Yeah.

Lauren 3:12
So y’all, Mia originally found us through our courses, she’s actually taken all of our courses. And I know she’s had some mad success with Pinterest, but I want to back up a little bit. Mia, can you share with us a little bit more about your business, but also, how and why you started it?

Mia 3:28
Sure. So, I mean, for me, I have always been in the music industry, I’ve always been creative and I’ve been a songwriter basically all of my life. I always knew that I was meant to be creative, meant to live, you know, the freedom lifestyle. This really came clear to me when I was offered a job to work within the music industry, with a boss and all of that, and that really wasn’t the way that I wanted to live my life. So I realized that I need something else, I need something for me, I need to pursue the extraordinary life and I don’t want to live just ordinary life, right.

Mia 4:07
So I actually started my blog pretty much on a whim. But I was on Pinterest, I was looking for ways to, I didn’t really know what I was searching for. But then all of these pins came up with the title, “How to start a blog, how to start a business” and I started reading all of these income reports. I think I read one of your income reports and I ended up in your world and signing up for your courses. And my life just changed.

Mia 4:34
Like I found that thing that I wanted to pursue. Yeah, so I started my blog in 2018 I didn’t really know what I was getting into. I didn’t really know that I was starting a business although that came clear to me after having taken your courses, but I just wanted something for me, a creative outlet so to speak. The possibility that it could turn into a full time job was the dream, when that came clear to me when that was, in fact possible. And so I just started blogging, I started blogging about literally everything, which, you know, in hindsight was probably not the best way, but it was a way for me to figure out what I actually wanted to do.

Mia 5:18
So I started writing about personal development and mindset, and all of that. And I have pivoted my niche a couple of times since I started, so now I empower introverts like me, who are looking to do amazing things in the world and have a voice of their own. Despite, you know, our quiet voices, we can do amazing things on the internet. Sounds kind of creepy, but that is what my whole messaging is. It’s about, you know, quiet, people can do amazing things.

Lauren 5:51
Wow, that’s so amazing. I feel like there’s definitely a huge market for that. And again, I consider myself an extroverted person, or at least I was pre pandemic, but that doesn’t really spill over into my creative side, or, you know, at least how I was with my business when I first started. Because as many of the people in my audience know, I was a CPA before I did this. So I was the type a person that didn’t think I had a creative bone in my body and when Alex first introduced this idea, to me, I was like, No, you know, like, he had to start it.

Lauren 6:25
He had to kind of put himself out there, and I only really dove in, you know, slowly through helping him when I was comfortable, because I just wasn’t comfortable in that area. I know that there are so many people out there that have these dreams of doing things like this, and they look at other people. And I know because I felt that way too, I would look at these successful people and just think, you know, well, they’re just cut out for this thing, they’re just good on camera, or they were just born to do this, but I couldn’t do that, right. So I love that you’re kind of breaking down that barrier for people. That’s really awesome.

Mia 6:58
And I just want to say that I started my blog in complete secret, there was no name, there was no face on the blog, I didn’t want anyone to find out what I was doing online. And it was all a mindset thing. And I kept thinking, What if people find me? What if people Google me? What if, you know, my co workers find this blog? So I’ve had, you know, a limiting belief of my own since starting and it’s, I have been on that journey that I see a lot of my clients, a lot of my students are right now, they’re really struggling to put themselves out there.

Mia 7:33
And it is a process, right? Gaining this online confidence, it takes time, but I want to be there for them and be an example of what is possible if you do show up for your dreams and if you do have that courage to shine online, right? So I started my blog in complete secret, and only recently started using my full name, which is I mean, a month ago. So it has taken me a long time to really step into what I’ve created online, essentially. But a year into blogging, I did start showing my face and my name, but it was only a month ago that I fully stepped into the CEO or you know, of what I was creating online of She Dreams All Day.

Mia 8:21
So it’s been a journey and it’s not easy when you’re starting out. So I want to be there for the people who who need that support and that guidance in the beginning.

Lauren 8:30
Wow, that is so crazy that you just only a month ago released your last name and I can relate to that because with the first blog that Alex and I created, it was very much a lot about us. But then after that blog failed, we pivoted hard and the other direction and we also I guess started out in secret, you could say. Because we were getting a lot of traffic from Pinterest but our names and our faces were not on that blog anywhere.

Lauren 8:55
And it took us several months and only really that we kind of realized over time A) we were getting more comfortable with it as people were liking the blog but B) people don’t buy products from people that they don’t know. You kind of have to step into that role at some point if you want to really connect with people and sell products and whatnot. Mia, I hope you don’t mind me sharing this with the audience but you now make over $10,000 a month with your blog, is that right?

Mia 9:22
Yep, that’s right it’s crazy.

Lauren 9:24
Wow, wow. Y’all, I can say that when Mia hopped on zoom you know we had the cameras on at first just to say hi and now she pops on and she has like her headphones on in front of this like professional microphone and I’m like “Oh my gosh!”, because the last time I interviewed Mia for a testimonial for our Pinterest course, was probably a couple years ago now, maybe. It was just really cool seeing you in this professional space now, you know, it’s awesome. Well congrats on your success, Mia!

Lauren 9:54
I next want to pivot a little bit into maybe traffic. I know you’ve had success with Pinterest but you also told me, you’ve started YouTube recently, too. So tell me a little bit more about what has been working for you, what’s maybe working for you now. I know I see you on Instagram a lot, so what’s your traffic scene look like.

Mia 10:13
So of course, in the beginning, I got most of my traffic from Pinterest. After taking your course, Pinterest Traffic Avalanche, I got a million pageviews to my blog, which was amazing. But with putting myself out there more and showing my face and really sharing more of my story, I realized that my audience wanted to see me. As you said, your audience, they want to hear from you, they want to see you, they want to be able to connect with you. I saw that I was getting so much more results when I showed up, when you know, the girl behind the blog became the girl on the blog.

Mia 10:49
And I had my photo there and I was daring to show up more. So with that, I thought to myself, “Okay, how can I show up more for my audience?” And YouTube seemed like the natural next step. And that was a big one for me. I am, believe it or not, very camera shy, put a camera in front of me and I squirm. It is not my favorite thing at all. So starting a YouTube channel was a challenge for me, it was really outside my comfort zone. But again, I want to be an example of what could be possible if we just dare to show up, dare to keep going and try new things.

Mia 11:28
And so I did, I bought a camera, I sat down, I filmed my first video about three times, and I uploaded it. And I’ve uploaded a video not every single week, but consistently since I started my YouTube channel, and I now have close to 3000 subscribers. And I only started it last year. So it’s shown me that you know, that connection with your audience, when they can see you, when they can hear you and learn from you in a new way, is really powerful. And that is how I was able to scale to $10,000 months, by showing up more and being visible, and showing up on my Instagram Stories, even though in the beginning, I would re record them like 1000 times.

Mia 12:13
But the more you do things, the easier it does get it. It is that whole confidence competence loop. So yeah.

Lauren 12:22
Wow. Yeah, I relate to that. 110% Because as I often say, here on the podcast and other places, I also hate being on video. And you’re right, saying that it makes you squirm is a really great way to phrase that because it’s like, I’ll be so like confident feeling and cool, right? And then the camera goes on andI just, I blank, like I immediately kind of get a bit shaky. It’s just, it’s the weirdest thing, because it’s like, even when I’m just recording episodes to talk to my students I feel very comfortable. But the moment that camera goes on, it’s just different, and I know, it definitely does get a lot easier every time that you do it.

Lauren 13:02
And the same for me was with the podcast. I had those thoughts too, that, you know, “I don’t want to start a podcast, I don’t want to do this, I don’t want to put myself out there that way.” And my audience wanted me too. So what am I going to say, “You should start a podcast to grow your business. But I’m not going to do that to do mine, because it makes me feel uncomfortable.” We do need to be the ones that set the examples and also be honest about our feelings about these things along our journey. And I can tell y’all listening right now that Mia and I have both stumbled over multiple sentences many times so far in this episode that will be edited out.

Lauren 13:39
It still happens and there’s still all those mistakes and whatnot, but you just keep moving forward, and know that you’re on the right path. So well, that’s awesome, Mia, I’m so happy for you and so excited that you’re able to kind of share this, especially in the beginning stages, with with my audience, because I know that so many of them relate. That’s great. Well, let’s transition a little bit next into talking about money a little bit more, what has been your money journey? I know you do coaching, and I want to hear about that, especially because it’s something that Alex and I, don’t do, and don’t have any plans to do but I want to hear more about, how you make your money with your business.

Mia 14:20
So first of all, I started out with affiliate marketing, and then I was getting a lot of traffic. I was approved by media vine, so I was able to put ads on my site, and then my journey with monetization continued into me creating my first ebook, and then that naturally turned into me creating my first course. So I created two courses and then all of a sudden, this year, I decided that I wanted to start business coaching. Honestly, this was not something that I saw myself doing especially as an introvert, talking to a bunch of people on Zoom every single day.

Mia 15:05
I did not think that that was a path that I was going to go down. But honestly, going deep with one person, having that one on one conversation, planning out their dream business, it’s honestly been so fulfilling so far. I only just launched my coaching program like a month ago, and the work that I’m doing with these women is just so fulfilling to me, it is such a joy. And it is definitely something that I’m going to continue to pursue going forward, but my big love lies in creating online courses. So I do have a couple more courses in the pipeline as well.

Lauren 15:46
That’s awesome. Yeah, of course, I also love online courses, because we sell so many of them. But I love what you said there about how deep you can really reach one person because, it’s like with things like online courses, you can reach a lot more people. But it’s really mostly up to that person who takes the course what they’re going to do with that information. You can try to make it as easy as possible, and try to connect with them as much as you can to reach them and help them get their results. But it really ultimately rests on their shoulders, 100%.

Lauren 16:18
But when you’re able to do the coaching, you’re able to maybe help one person or 10 people or whatever, fewer people, I guess then through courses, but maybe make way more of a difference, right. And I’m sure that being able to actually speak to those people, and see and feel those results that they’re getting is probably just so powerful. I know, the first video testimonial that Alex and I got from one of our weight loss clients, we had helped her lose, I don’t know 30 or 40 pounds or 50 pounds, I forget what it was now.

Lauren 16:52
But she was crying on the video that she sent us. Alex and I the first time we watched it immediately started crying, it was just this gut reaction, both of us as we’re watching it, just start pouring tears, because it was just so moving. Obviously, when you sell online courses, you get to talk to people through testimonials and stuff, and you hear about the results, and you know, but I imagine it’s just so much more powerful when you’re actually working hands on with those people. So that’s amazing. That’s really, really exciting to hear.

Mia 17:23
Yeah, and when you can see, you know, the the impact that you’re making, as a coach, when you see their reaction, when you see that they’re making progress, it really, really is, like you say, super rewarding. Also the fact that I am working with people who are more shy or more quiet and likely have more limiting beliefs to work through, so that’s also a really big part of the work that I do is to work on that mindset. Having those one on one sessions with them really helps with the mindset, part of it all as well.

Lauren 17:58
Well, that’s awesome. You know, one of the things I want to ask you next is what’s next for you? You’ve already said that you have online courses in the pipeline, and I suppose you’re going to be doing some coaching as well, I’m sure like a premium product there. I know, you’re just still kind of getting into YouTube and growing that and that takes, 100% of the time, of course for now. But I gotta say, Mia, you would have an amazing podcast, if you ever decide to go that route.

Lauren 18:28
You have the voice for it, you have a very soft and comforting voice, but you also just have so much to talk about in the mindset space and all the intovert stuff. I would listen to that, because I know I have this big introvert side that I’m always trying to like claw out of myself. So if you ever think about it, I think it would be amazing.

Mia 18:50
You know, it’s so funny you say that because it is actually on the agenda for 2022. I am starting a podcast. It is in the plans.

Lauren 18:59
Yes!

Mia 19:00
Which I’m very excited about. Thank you so much for your sweet words about my voice, I don’t know if I agree, but it it is definitely something that I want to try out now that I’ve tried, YouTube and blogging. So it only makes sense that maybe try out the podcasting world as well, and for me, I love listening to podcasts. I really connect with podcasts. And as an introvert, I don’t have to put on any makeup, I can do it in my PJs. It’s gonna be a really comfortable way to create content. So I am very excited to start that podcast in January, I think. But we’ll see.

Lauren 19:35
Yeah, I’m in yoga pants right now. And it’s really great.

Mia 19:39
I’m in my PJ pants.

Lauren 19:40
Yeah, it’s great. And you know, you can make it what you want to make it. I know Alex wanted me to produce an episode every week and I was like, you know, I just cannot commit to that right now in my life. Maybe soon I will get up to the point where releasing a podcast episode each week. I want to be able to show up for my audience as much as they need me but I also knew that this was a big journey for me and I didn’t want to bite off more than I can chew. I love that about, podcasting and YouTubing is that you can really just make things your own, there’s some things you need to do to make sure that your content is long enough and that your channel will grow, but you can make it pretty uniquely you. That’s what I love about these, these methods of communication and traffic.

Mia 20:24
Yeah, I’m nodding my head right now, because I don’t want to interrupt you.

Lauren 20:29
Well, that’s awesome. So so many exciting things coming from you, Mia, and I can’t wait to hear them. Also I’m sure that my audience is probably feeling the same way, where can our listeners find you?

Mia 20:44
You can find me at Mia Brox on YouTube and Instagram and then my website and blog is SheDreamsAllDay.com.

Lauren 20:52
Awesome. Y’all all of those links are also going to be in the show notes and whatnot for this episode, so make sure that you check that out. Thank you so much for being on the show today Mia, this has been one of my favorite episodes to record, seriously.

Mia 21:07
Oh, so glad this is actually my first podcast episode ever. So thank you for having me!

Lauren 21:12
Oh my gosh, wow! You shouldve said that at the beginning. That’s so exciting, well, I’m so honored. You did so well for that to be your first one. I remember my first one, I was nervous, and I talked probably way too much and way too fast. And who am I kidding? I still do that. But anyway, that’s awesome, you did awesome, and thank you so much for being here.

Mia 21:33
Thank you for having me.

Lauren 21:35
All right, y’all. I will see you next time.

Lauren 21:39
Thanks for listening to the Launch Your Blog Biz podcast. Don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss future episodes. And please share the love by leaving us a review if you love this episode. If you want to learn more about how you can launch and grow your own blogging business, make sure to check out our website at CreateandGo.com