When Marie Forleo was a kid, she went home one day and was worried about not finding her mom. The house was completely quiet. The radio that her mom would usually have on full-blast 24/7 was nowhere to be heard. She felt nervous. Thoughts ran through her head about what may have happened to her mother. She walked around the house and continued to search.

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Then she found a woman crouched by the kitchen, examining several parts of an electronic device on the table. Her mother’s radio got busted, and she tore it apart to try and fix it on her own.

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Growing up as a child, Marie Forleo learned from her mom that you can do anything you want. She always had her hands busy doing tilework, fixing the roof leak, mending stuff around the house, or cutting discount coupons. Her mom grew up with alcoholic parents and vowed to herself that she would raise herself out of poverty. She learned how to save money out of necessity.

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Marie asked her mom. 

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How do you know how to do all these things?

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“Nothing in life is that complicated. You can do whatever you set your mind to if you just roll up your sleeves, get in there, and do it. Well, everything is figureoutable.”

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Those words stuck with her for as long as she could remember.

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Everything is Figureoutable

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Fast forward to 2019, Marie Forleo published her book Everything is Figureoutable which rose to #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and has been translated into several other languages. She is also the host of the award-winning show MarieTV engaging over 52 million viewers and 12 million downloads for her podcast.

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She also continues to live through those words as her mantra in life. Everything is Figureoutable.

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But life wasn’t exactly easy despite having that focus throughout her life. She landed a job at the New York Stock Exchange as a trading assistant after she graduated from the university. It was certainly not common for women to be in that industry. And during that time she was there, she was attracting negative attention and found her day-to-day work stressful and limiting her capabilities.

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Her father advised her, “You have to quit your job, and find something that you love.” 

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Skipping Vogue for Building her own Business

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She moved on to work at a magazine company where she joined the ad and editorial teams. She was able to enjoy the company of people she worked with but she couldn’t see herself growing in the company.

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She then came across an article about being a life coach. At that time, it was uncommon and almost unheard of. But it piqued her curiosity and she wanted to learn more about it. 

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She signed up for a three-year coaching program at a coach university and kept her day job at the magazine. She eventually leaped and quit her job despite being offered a promotion to work for Vogue. She worked as a bartender at night, taking different odd jobs while slowly building her coaching business.

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At that time, she was very driven but also insecure about her age of 23 when she was starting. She thought, why would anyone take advice from someone in her 20s?

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So she masked her age through photos, haircuts, and makeup to look as professional as she could. She produced content the best as she could and started to gain some traction and coached her clients over the phone. 

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She collected names and addresses through a yellow legal pad for potential clients and created a newsletter. This happened in the 2000s when email newsletters weren’t common yet as it is now. She sent them weekly tips to help others have a better life and made sure she was providing valuable tips every time.

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She was eventually invited to Oprah’s Emmy award-winning TV show and was noted by Oprah as a thought leader for the next generation. Her company was also picked up as one of Inc.’s 500 fastest-growing companies. She has also mentored young business owners at the Richard Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship.

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Marie Forleo’s coaching business had slow organic growth and gained more exposure over time. As of writing, she’s had over 100,000 students and also continues to provide free educational and inspiring content through her podcast, her show, and her blog. From a one-woman show, she has now built an online empire helping one business owner at a time. 

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Just like Marie Forleo, she sought out ways to study and grow her business in this evolving economy. Finding a community that supports you through your journey can help you accelerate whether it's for your business, content creation, or investing.

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Get access to a FREE masterclass to help you grow your business NOW.

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