Melissa Lin is the founder of the Fierce Business Babe brand, which offers coaching services to aspiring women entrepreneurs who want to break through in the online marketplace and leave their drab 9 to 5 lives behind. She also hosts a podcast.
At Fierce Business Babe, Melissa Lin offers coaching with the Fierce Business Academy. The Academy is a 90-day program that trains women who want to start a successful and thriving online business but who need someone to push them forward and give them the proper tools they need to succeed. At Fierce Business Academy, Melissa will show aspiring women entrepreneurs that launching a bustling online business could actually be simple and fun.
Melissa Lin also offers coaching at the Fierce Fitness Business Academy. This program is designed for fitness trainers who want to branch out to the online sphere. For 12 weeks, these trainers will get proper training and coaching from an experienced online business woman. With Melissa’s coaching, these trainers will know what they need to do to grow their health and fitness business “fast to $5k months” so that they can finally live the life they deserve.
After getting out of her own 2.5-year business slump, Melissa Lin wants to teach other female business owners what to do to reach the same success she has enjoyed.
Check out more interviews with other fierce women in business here.
Jerome Knyszewski: What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?
Melissa Lin: Inside of our programs/services, we’re always sharing and showing how we can all become Fierce CEOs. There are certain qualities of a Fierce Business Owner that we attract in both our clients and team members and want to share with women that they can do the same. We strive to be Fiercely Inspirational, we empower others to see the possibility that we already see in them. We inspire them to step outside of their comfort zones. We strive to be Fiercely Powerful, we help our clients stand their ground and create boundaries in their businesses. We strive to be Fiercely Authentic, we show that while talking the talk, we get to also walk the walk. We live a life of integrity and teach our clients the same through our programs. We strive to be Fiercely Profitable, we help our clients generate both profits in their businesses and profitable experiences with others by adding loads of value each day. Inside our products and services, we strive to create a community of entrepreneurs that embody this so that we can all together, do better and be better in the world.
Jerome Knyszewski: Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
Melissa Lin: To avoid “burn out”, I suggest adding these into your life and business: boundaries, play, and preparation. Over the last few years, I’ve created boundaries in my business to prevent me from reaching “burn out” such as creating business hours, boundaries with clients, turning off all social media notifications, and removing all business tools from my personal phone and only allowing them on my laptop. I’ve added play into my daily routine such as an afternoon walk, date night, bike ride, massage, etc. to make sure that I’m always filling my own cup. I’m always prepping ahead so that we don’t fall behind. We’re always working 2–3 months ahead on our launches, podcast episodes, video content so that if we need to take some time off, we don’t fall behind.
Jerome Knyszewski: None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
Melissa Lin: My boyfriend, Ryen has been the biggest supporter and partner in crime throughout my business journey. He was one of the few that pushed me to follow my dreams and is always challenging me to step outside of my comfort zone. When I first considered leaving my 9–5 to pursue my business full time, he was the one that challenged my limiting beliefs and pushed me to go for it. When something feels hard, he reminds me that everything is going to work out exactly how it’s supposed to, that there’s nothing to worry about. Without him constantly challenging me, I can say that I wouldn’t be here today. I’d probably still be in my 9–5, wishing, dreaming, and hoping.
Jerome Knyszewski: Ok thank you for all that. Now let’s shift to the main focus of this interview. Delegating effectively is a challenge for many leaders. Let’s put first things first. Can you help articulate to our readers a few reasons why delegating is such an important skill for a leader or a business owner to develop?
Melissa Lin: During my first few years as a CEO, I truly felt that I was the best one-woman show. I thought I could do it better, I felt that it would take longer to train somebody else, I felt that it would be impossible to bring somebody in to help. My business was my baby, I needed full control! It wasn’t until I had hit full burnout that I realized all of those beliefs were false — in order to continue to scale and create a bigger impact, I couldn’t do it alone. Delegating is a critical skill for a leader and business owner for many reasons, such as: it’s critical for your own growth, it empowers your team, and gives you time as the CEO to stay in your zone of genius.
Jerome Knyszewski: Can you help articulate a few of the reasons why delegating is such a challenge for so many people?
Melissa Lin: I see many business owners take a ride on the delegation rollercoaster loop. What happens is, a business owner will typically hire their first team member, such as a Virtual Assistant, to take over Administration Tasks. The business owner will delegate a few tasks but when that new team member doesn’t meet expectations to the task, business owners tend to take over and redo all of the work, leaving them to ask themselves why they hired in the first place, and eventually fire, until they burn out and hire again, going right back into the same loop and eventually firing.
Jerome Knyszewski: In your opinion, what pivots need to be made, either in perspective or in work habits, to help alleviate some of the challenges you mentioned?
Melissa Lin: To avoid the delegation rollercoaster and delegate powerfully, as the business owner you get to set clear expectations, guidelines, examples, instructions, Standard Operating Procedures, video trainings, and feedback. Choose the right person for the job and explain the vision behind the task or project and their key role in this growth. Delegate the responsibility and authority so they feel empowered to make decisions. Empower and trust your team to take on these tasks that you’re delegating so that you can spend your time in your zone of genius.
Jerome Knyszewski: Thank you for all of that. We are nearly done. You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
Melissa Lin: If I could start one movement, it would be a movement around self-worth and valuing yourself. What I believe to be true is that lack of self-worth is one of the biggest causes of hardships in our lives. I saw it in myself growing up, I see it in new entrepreneurs, I see it everywhere.
Jerome Knyszewski: How can our readers further follow you online?
Melissa Lin: I can be found all over social media, here are the direct links to my website, Instagram, free Facebook group community, and Podcast with weekly episodes!
Jerome Knyszewski: This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent with this!
