Maryann Lombardi on Supporting Women and Non-Binary Individuals Turn Their Ideas Into Profit

Marion-Willis-5

Welcome, Maryann! Please share a brief introduction about yourself.

I am a business launch coach, author, feminist, single parent, and dog mom. I help women and non-binary individuals build wealth and independence by turning their expertise and personal experience into profitable businesses. I believe tacos should be their own food group, wine is best when it is Spanish and shared, and it is time for a power shift in business. Let’s turn your idea into profit. Check out my site.

What excites you about being an Entreprenista League member?

I’m excited about the opportunity to meaningfully connect with more female entrepreneurs, learn from and support each other, expand my visibility, and grow my business.

What made you take the leap to start your own business?

I had two businesses back in my 20’s, and I started those because I didn’t know how to get a job otherwise so I created one for myself. This time around, I knew I was going to jump way before I actually did. I wanted time freedom. I didn’t want to be beholden to the notifications on my phone. I didn’t want to ask permission for leave to live my life. But I picked the date to leave my executive gig after a phone call with my boss. During the call, my boss spent 3 minutes explaining to me why missing a call because I was in the bathroom was not an acceptable excuse.

So Maryann, what was your background prior to starting your own business?

I’ve spent the past 20+ years working with governments, institutions, and small businesses to build the policies, programs, and resources that help entrepreneurs thrive.

Did you always know you wanted to be a mamaprenista?

Yes. Even though I didn’t feel like the word entrepreneur represented me. When I was younger I always pictured the entrepreneur as some bro start-up dude who worked in tech. I didn’t see myself represented in the language of entrepreneurship. I still think that is a challenge.

As you launch a business, spreading the word is crucial. Take us back to when you first launched your business, what was your marketing strategy to get the word out?

My marketing strategy has been a robust, consistent social media campaign, heavy on video. Weekly live shows on all platforms and live show swaps with other entrepreneurs from complementary industries. With and active engagement, requests to connect and DM’s strategy to go with it. I am currently working on more visibility through writing and speaking opportunities.

Mamaprenistas face challenges every single day. What is the biggest challenge you have encountered along the way and?

The biggest challenge has been lead generation and sales. Part of the challenge has been about me discovering more directly who my target market is. The other part has been a mindset shift away from the kind of partnership building and community building that benefited my past work, to a new approach that benefit my business now.

Do you believe in work/life balance, Maryann? What are some of your best tips?

I believe that work/life balance is a lie. I have written quite a bit about this 😁. There is only life. The job of your work, your business, is to support the life you choose to live. Equal distribution is never possible. When we strive for work/life balance, we pit work and life against each other.  We are trying to find some equal distribution between the time you spend on your work and the time you spend on your life.  You find yourself bartering and rationing time and attention between the two. If you give more time to your work, you’re giving less time to your life. If you give more attention to your life, you’re giving less attention to your work.  One is always losing and the other is always winning and we are striving for some unattainable, highly subjective thing called balance. This creates an escalating drive toward balancing the growing responsibilities on both sides of the seesaw that just get more wobbly by the day This is forking stressful, a recipe for burnout, overwhelm, physical and mental health problems, and a sense of being underwater all the time. What we know as work-life balance today, originated as work-leisure balance. It encouraged workers to spend time on leisure activities outside of the hours they spend at the office. The problem with this for women and primary caregivers is that their work hours are not confined to the time they are in the office.  Women’s work is never done. They work their paid shift, their unpaid shift, the night shift, and every other shift. When it comes to tips, I have a video on this if you are interested.

What’s a piece of advice you can share that you wish you’d known when you first started your Entreprenista journey?

It takes time, so focus on the journey more than the destination. There is so much focus on winning fast and quick fixes but the truth is more simple. It takes time to grow a business. It takes commitment. It takes a willingness to put in the work, and try, and try again. It takes time.

What have you achieved recently that you’d like to celebrate with our community?

I have a chapter coming out in the fastest growing personal development book series – The Change book series. And my first article with Brainz Magazine came out last week

Maryann, what’s next for your business?

2023 is all about live launching my 90 day launch sprint group program and visibility. I’m hoping to grow my client base and leverage my writing into speaking opportunities. I’m also working on developing a micro-grant program and have some funders interested in that. My long-term plans merge my business launch curriculum with my ecosystem-building work with cities. More to follow on that.

 Learn more about the Entreprenista League and join today!

Share it!

Posted in
Tags

Leave a Comment





Katia Conte Honors Daughter’s Legacy with Childhood Cancer Nonprofit

Hi, Katia! Please share a brief introduction about yourself and your business: My name is Katia Conte, and I am the President/Co-Founder of the Daniela Conte Foundation. Our nonprofit organization is a beacon of hope for families battling pediatric cancer. Founded in 2020, our mission is deeply rooted in the memory of my daughter, Daniela,…

Kristen Chimack Provides Real-World Coaching for Success

Hi, Kristen! Please share a brief introduction about yourself and your business: Hi, I’m Kristen. After a 30-year stint in corporate America, culminating in a whirlwind four years leading the public relations department at a Fortune 40 organization, I decided it was time to hang up my corporate hat and chase my true passions. In…

How Dr. Sophia Yen is Transforming and Investing in Women’s Health with Pandia Health

“One in five women with menopause have considered dropping out of work, have foregone promotion. And we are just at the top of our game and to take us out at 50 is not okay. It’s about empowering women to be the best that we can possibly be.” When Dr. Sophia Yen co-founded Pandia Health,…

Amy Rees Celebrates Solidarity With Personality Plates

Hi, Amy! Please share a brief introduction about yourself and your business: Hi, I’m Amy. Women are at the heart of Personality Plates because I could not have gotten through my difficult divorces and heartbreak without my friends and chosen sisters. I couldn’t have raised my daughters as the strong, independent young ladies they are…

How Julia Haart Reinvented Her Life at 42 from Restrictive Upbringing to Fashion Leader

“Ignorance, people, is good! Jump in. Enjoy it. Ask the questions. Study. Learn. Be an eternal student. That’s how you succeed.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Julia Haart, the founder of +Body by Julia Haart, a body-positive, technologically advanced shapewear brand that aims to empower women to unapologetically express themselves and…

The Most Common Mistakes When Starting a Business—and How to Avoid Them

When you’re first starting a business, there’s so much you don’t know you don’t know—like how to price your offerings, market your business, or hire people to support you. Every entrepreneur learns along the way, so why not save yourself some time and money (and potentially even business heartbreak) by learning from the candid stories…

Logan Rae on Her Journey to Founding a Digital Marketing Agency

Hi, Logan. Please share a brief introduction about yourself and your business: I’m Logan Rae, I’m 29 years old and Founder & CEO of Argon Agency. Who are your customers? Mid-size businesses mostly in the behavioral healthcare field. What made you take the leap to start your own business? I had done entrepreneurship once before…

Jennifer Jank on Helping Entrepreneurs Reclaim Their Time and Energy

Hi, Jennifer! Please share a brief introduction about yourself and your business: Jennifer Jank (JJ) is a productivity consultant helping business owners make more profit in less time and with better systems. Her goal is to help entrepreneurs, especially women, reclaim their time, energy, and attention away from busyness and towards joy… without sacrificing profits.…

How to Make an Impact as a Podcast Guest with Patrice Poltzer

“We’re being bombarded all day with so much content and noise. “Please, please. I need your attention here, here, here.” You really have to learn to think about who’s listening. Really ask yourself, what is the takeaway for the person listening? Why does that matter? And if you can’t think of that, then you don’t…

Andrea TheoJohn Helps Clients Grow and Market Their Brands

Hi, Andrea! Please share a brief introduction about yourself and your business: Andrea TheoJohn, MBA is a marketing and branding professional with over 15 years of global and corporate experience. She’s managed over 70 brand professionals in 17 different countries, handled the branding and communications efforts for 160M Euro M&A ventures and now brings that…

How Laurel Mintz Is Empowering Diverse Leaders in Venture Capital

“We transitioned almost everyone out of the company and really flipped the entire company around. It was one of the most painful few months of my entire career, but also one of the most impactful. And if we had not done that, we probably wouldn’t still be standing today.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we…

Valeria Lasak’s Marketing Agency Focuses on Fashion, Beauty, and Personal Brands

Hi, Valeria! Please share a brief introduction about yourself and your business: Hi, I’m Valeria. Cofounder of MKT Besties and Nomad, a marketing agency focused on fashion, beauty, and personal brands, I’m also a community leader with the New Miami Girls community and host the street podcast ‘Who Is She Miami.’ This project is especially…

Leigh Burgess on Her Passion for Consulting, Coaching, and Curated Events

Hi, Leigh! Please share a brief introduction about yourself and your business: Leigh is a CEO & Founder and driven entrepreneur who is passionate about helping organizations and individuals achieve their fullest potential faster. By continuously stepping out of her comfort zone and pushing boundaries, Leigh has not only grown her own company into a…

How to Avoid Legal Challenges with Lauren Bercuson from Storylock Legal

“In the beginning, if you don’t have a team or a system or community around you, it’s very easy to feel lost. There are these amazing communities out there for amazing female founders that will really help guide and support you. So, the greatest lesson I learned pretty quickly was that you’re never alone. Or,…

The Secrets to Building a Community Led Business with Ingrid Read

“You really have to understand that, in order for you to scale, you have to learn how to do certain things and master them before you move on. If you don’t do that, then your audience is going to feel just as lost as you feel.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with…