After five years in the making, Holly Keech decided to start her business, Busy Boss Communications in April of 2020. Holly helps small business owners, entrepreneurs, and “busy bosses” simplify and improve their social media marketing and online presence, through targeted audits, strategy building, content creation, coaching, and more.

After the birth of her daughter, Holly realized that her full-time job in corporate finance would not support her need to be available to her daughter.  This was the tipping point that motivated her to launch her business.

I spent 5 years thinking about starting my business. Maybe if I did it sooner, it might not have been the right time but I am so glad that I finally did start it.

More often than not, Holly finds herself drawn to working with women in business because she finds that many are afraid of putting themselves out there. Her aim is to help them grow their business and communicate their offer, without being constantly busy and overwhelmed.  Throughout the course of her own business growth she has learned the importance of having a good work/life balance for her family, which she can now share with other entrepreneurs. 

It is in my innate nature to want to help people and saying “no” goes against my fibre of being.  I have overcome this by shifting my mindset and slowing down.  I know that I cannot be everything to everyone and am working on being okay with saying “no” and not taking on too much.

Joining the peer mentoring program at WeBC was a game-changer for Holly and her business. She quickly saw the value as it showed her that she wasn’t alone in her business struggles. She gained confidence as a business owner and was able to share her knowledge with others in the group.

We often downplay our natural skills and abilities. The things that I am good at may not come easy to other people. It was the peer group that helped me realize this and gave me the opportunity to help more entrepreneurs with my skills.  After all, you don’t know what you don’t know.

Holly believes the key to success in business isn’t about having the perfect logo or design. Surrounding yourself with others in your industry and in business will benefit your business far better.

Holly will continue to surround herself with the right people to help her grow her business and support others to grow their businesses.

Mentee Q&A

Q. What is the biggest challenge in your business you have overcome?

I struggled not being able to say “no, I don’t do that”. I didn’t respect my own boundaries and was in a scarcity mindset. I was worried that if I said no, there may not be another contract in the future. 

Sometimes I still find it hard to say no, and have to remind myself of my work/life balance goals – at one point I was so swamped with work that I even had to hang a sticky note on my computer monitor that said “no more clients!” to remind me not to take on any more work until things slowed down a bit more.

Q. If you were to start your business all over again, what would you do differently?

I spent too many years wanting to start my business instead of just doing it. I would not have spent so much time worrying about the “little” things like my logo and business cards and wanting them to be perfect.

Q. Based on what you have learned, what advice do you have for other Women Entrepreneurs?

Get support from others that you can rely on and that are willing to support you. Surround yourself with others in the industry.   

Like the saying goes “network is your net worth.”

Where to Find Busy Boss Communications

BusyBoss.ca