#218 - Do you need a Business Strategist? Meet mine, with Michelle Broadbent
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Running a business can so often feel like hiking up a steep mountain alone, carrying the weight of every decision on your shoulders. It's exhilarating, but it's also isolating. Having someone to share the load with - someone who can offer perspective when you're too close to see clearly - can make all the difference.
For the past six years, that person for me has been Michelle Broadbent, my business strategist. She's not a consultant who swoops in for a project and disappears. She's been with me through every pivot, every challenge, and every evolution of this business. I genuinely can't imagine where I'd be without her guidance.
What truly defines Michelle is her passion for seeing women succeed in business. She's a sounding board, a safe pair of hands, a voice of reason and a motivating force. Michelle shows women that it's possible to have a sustainable business that works for them - one that provides freedom, time and space to enjoy what matters most, in both business and life.
The Reality Check I Needed
When I launched six and a half years ago as "Tracey Mylecharane Solicitor," I thought I could be everything to everyone. I quickly learned that wasn't sustainable - or smart.
Michelle taught me something crucial: saying no isn't something to feel guilty about. You don't have to fight every battle. Instead, focus your energy on the ones where you can make the most impact. That shift in mindset has been transformative, allowing me to serve my clients better and scale my business strategically.
Her support goes beyond typical business advice. She's helped me niche strategically, cut through the noise when I'm overwhelmed and stay focused on long-term vision rather than getting distracted by every shiny opportunity that comes along.
The Whole-Person Approach
What sets Michelle apart is her whole-person perspective. She doesn't just look at revenue targets and growth metrics - she considers the full spectrum of my life.
I remember when my daughter was six months old and I was struggling to balance work with being present for her. Michelle helped me realise that it's okay to not work every waking moment, that being present matters just as much as being productive. She's consistently steered me away from impulsive decisions that don't align with my long-term vision, helping me see what I can't when I'm too deep in the weeds.
Having someone to bounce ideas off who truly knows your business and your goals is invaluable. Michelle's ability to bring clarity when I'm overwhelmed or overexcited is genuinely a superpower.
Strategic Planning That Actually Works
Both Michelle and I are planners by nature, but her input has elevated my strategic planning to another level. She offers various planning sessions (both one-on-one and in groups) that cater to different business needs.
Her group planning sessions create a space where businesswomen can share wisdom and support each other, which speaks to Michelle's passion for empowering others beyond just her individual clients.
The Ripple Effect
Surrounding myself with the right people has been crucial to my business journey. Michelle hasn't just shared her wisdom - she's empowered me to pay it forward.
When I went through our brand evolution to TM Legal Atelier, the support and encouragement I received from past clients and peers was overwhelming. It proved that when you build relationships on a foundation of respect and honesty, those connections remain strong and supportive.
Should You Work With a Strategist?
If you're wondering whether you need someone like Michelle in your corner, ask yourself: Are you making decisions in isolation? Do you have someone who knows your business well enough to challenge your thinking? Can you bounce ideas off someone who understands both your vision and your limitations?
Whether you choose a coach, a strategist or something in between, what matters is having that trusted partner who knows you, supports your vision and challenges you to be the best version of yourself.
The journey of business ownership is winding and unpredictable. Having the right people beside you makes all the difference between struggling alone and thriving with support.
If Michelle's approach resonates with you, find her details below and make sure to reach out to her. And if you know someone who might benefit from this kind of strategic support, share this with them. Sometimes the best gift you can give a fellow business owner is showing them they don't have to do it alone.
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[00:00:48] Tracey: Hello everyone. Welcome back to the Rise Up in Business Podcast. In the last episode of the podcast, I shared with you the journey behind our brand evolution to TM Legal Atelier, and I shared with you why the journey was so important because that brand evolution, or rebrand as it's commonly referred to now, was very much a product of the brand catching up to where the business already was.
[00:01:00] Because the business evolved organically over years, it was time for the brand to catch up, and now we have a beautiful brand that perfectly represents who we are and who we serve. I promised in that episode that I would share with you in some coming episodes of the podcast, some of the really important people that have been pivotal to my journey in business and in today's episode, I'm joined by my business strategist, Michelle Broadbent. Michelle and I have been working together now for six years, and Michelle has been pivotal in my journey. She's a pillar of support. She's my two IC whenever I need it. She's my voice of reason. She's so many things, and she's been a constant on the journey, and the journey's had many ups and downs as we can all relate to.
[00:02:00] But Michelle is somebody special and she really knows me and she knows how to cut through the noise, cut to the chase, drill down on what needs to be achieved, what needs to be done, and she works with so many business owners, many clients of mine. I will refer to her if it's a good fit.
She works with so many business owners in the same way. The reason I'm bringing Michelle on is to showcase for you a little bit about how Michelle works and to share with you more about my story and the journey and how we got here and there's lots of little nuggets of gold in this conversation that I think anybody in business will be able to resonate with one way or another.
So as always with these episodes, take what resonates, leave what doesn't. I hope you get value out of this. I really think that you will. This is such a beautiful relationship that I have with Michelle and I value her so much, and I'm so happy to be having this really open and honest conversation with her on the podcast. Hope you enjoy. I'll be back in here with you at the end.
[00:03:00] Michelle. Hello. Welcome back to the podcast. I'm so happy to have you here.
Michelle: Thank you for having me back again. I think, what are we at? Is this my third or fourth time
[00:03:14] Tracey: Oh my goodness. It is third or fourth. I don't know which one it is.
[00:03:17] Michelle: I feel like we, I feel like it's an annual event.
[00:03:21] Tracey: As it should be.
[00:03:23] Michelle: Absolutely. Yes.
[00:03:25] Tracey: I am so pleased that we're having this conversation for so many reasons, but most of all, I wanna start with the fact that we have been working together for just on six years. I thought it was five, but we've just worked out it's six and I often talk about you to clients and people that ask because you've been my business strategist for that long. And wouldn't be right here where I am if it wasn't for the work that we do together.
[00:04:00] I wanna shine a light on this in today's episode because since we launched our brand evolution in the beginning of October, so many beautiful people have reached out to ask me, Tracey, who do you work with?
Who got you here? Who helped you with this rebrand and or brand evolution and all the things. The thing is, and let's talk about this, it wasn't just the three or four month project about the new brand and the logo and all of the magic that Heidi did with Nicole. It's about the journey, and I really feel like the brand, the beautiful brand evolution was just a catch up because the business was already there, and that's been a journey of so many years and you can't do it alone. My gosh. You can't do it alone.
[00:05:00] So, because so many people have asked me, and I have connected you with some of the clients who have asked if I think they're going to be a good fit and vice versa, I just wanted to share a little bit about our journey here and how far the business has come working with you six years ago. So I launched the business six and a half years ago, and then we connected fairly shortly after that. And I was back at my first iteration. It was Tracey Mylechrane Solicitor.
[00:05:11] Michelle: Yeah.
[00:05:11] Tracey: We hadn't even gone to TM Solicitor then. It was still my full name. So that's like really easy to spell and say. So that was a really good idea that I had, but back then I was just trying to be all things to all people and help everyone. Is that where everyone starts? Do you see so many people starting there?
[00:05:29] Michelle: A hundred percent, Trace. I mean, first of all, just like, thank you. This is incredibly generous of you to, I guess present me in this light. And I do wanna say to the listener that okay. Yes, I have been by your side through this journey, but you have made all of this happen. Like this is all you. [
00:06:00]And something that I absolutely know right from the get go of working with you is that you know your own mind. And in this wild world of business that we all work in, it is so easy to get pulled along the path of someone else's, you know, five steps to success or this is how you're gonna make a a hundred thousand dollars in your first five months of business or whatever.
And something that I have absolutely loved and know and I think anyone that knows you, knows that you are someone who you know your own mind and you are open to input, but ultimately, you know that the buck stops with you and that you've got that accountability within yourself to make stuff happen.
[00:07:00] So you are here because of all the hard work that you have done. A, building your business, but also how incredibly service orientated you are with your clients and that's why you are here now. But coming back to the early days, just like everyone, it's like, oh wow, you know, I've got my business and I've got my website and my email address and you know, a couple of clients to get me going.
And then it's so easy. And I think we all find ourselves in this space where it's like, you just say yes to everyone. It's like, Ooh, someone wants me, someone wants my help, and I'm gonna say yes. And then we figure out pretty quickly, and I think you are someone who did figure it out relatively quickly, that we can't be all things to all people and still be kind of standing upright at the end of the day.
[00:07:45] Tracey: That's so true. Thank you for saying that. Bless your heart. You're so kind. That's right. And I think it feels like, I mean, you've worked with hundreds of women in business. I have too.
[00:08:00]And it feels like there's such a common theme here of of the business owners who are soul led and heart led and wanna do all the things and help all the people, at some point it becomes inevitable, either because of fatigue or burnout, or because of passion or drive, or a renewed sense of focus or confidence, wanting to niche in to get more specific who you want to be serving because we all wanna be all things to all people, but we can't be. And it takes a special sort of someone to be able to point that out. We talk about it here because we've been through it and we've been through it together in my business, but to business owners that are perhaps not as far along on their journey, it's scary to say, oh, you, you should think about niching. Who do you really wanna help? You are spreading yourself too thin, because you might not get another client, or you might not get another matter, or, oh my goodness. There's also a fear element attached to it. Do you see that with who you support?
[00:08:54] Michelle: Oh my gosh. Yeah. Yeah. All the time. And I think that is something that it doesn't go away. Every single level you go up, it's like it reignites that fear, that, you know, oh my God, I'm taking a risk. Is, you know, taking the business in this direction or specializing in this area, and it could be something that is, as you acknowledged, a decision that we make ourselves.
Or it could be a decision that is made for us through circumstance and I, you know, when I was thinking about when we first started working together, uh, so we, you know, that was back in 2019 and then we all know what happened in 2020 and what that did to businesses and that need for people to, you know, we use that word that's been used to death, pivot.
[00:10:00] But I think that is just almost like a bit of a default setting now. It's that evolution and, being willing to change and make changes and whether it's niching down, specializing, it could be broadening, it could be changing. I mean, you know, because I've been doing this for almost 10 years now, I'm with women in their second businesses. I'm with women now who are like, completely changed. You know, I've got a client at the moment, she was, she was an emergency, like an ICU nurse. She's now a tax accountant. Like people are allowed to change and we should change. Like, you know, we're not a concrete pylon.
We are human, but it is scary. There is absolutely no doubt about it, but that's why we need to surround ourselves with great people who are going to provide us with insights, expertise, wisdom, their learnings. We're not meant to just walk this path all by ourselves.
[00:10:51] Tracey: I love that you've said it that way. It's almost like a permission slip. I still feel like that with you. Running things past, you say, oh, I just wanna sense check this with you. I just need, internally, it feelslike a permission slip and it's important to have that. If you recognize that, that that's what you need, it's important to have it.
[00:11:00] So I know that there will be listeners who feel like they need to have that too. I just wanna share this. When we would, for the very first time, we've niched a few times in this business now. It's all been organic. It's been very organic. It hasn't been something that I've had to sit down and go, right, I need to niche, and where do I, it just hasn't been like that.
But for me, and I wanna share this openly because I am sure there'll be other people that feel the same, there was a lot of guilt initially attached to niching and saying no to some clients for some matters. And I struggled with that earlier on so much. And you'd said to me, Trace, don't feel guilty. Let that go because there is someone out there for them. And that was felt really light. That felt really, huh. Okay. So I don't need to carry the weight of having to help all of these people because if I say no and no being a full sentence is something else that we've talked about a lot over the years.
[00:12:00] But if I say no, there are other people out there, and it's really important to know that. There are so many things that go round in our head where we can be our own worst enemy and hold ourselves back.
Having someone like you in my corner to say, stop that. Reframe it and think about it this way has been so, so important. Is that something that comes up a lot too, where people do have that sense of guilt? Because there's so many directions and so many ideas we have, but there's guilt attached to it because we feel that we should.
[00:12:31] Michelle: Yeah, absolutely. I think being in service to other people, there is that feeling that we need to serve them forever and ever and ever. And in, in many cases, you know, in many business models it makes sense to hold people, you know, I look at dentists and those sorts of like practitioners where it's like, you know, you sort of don't want to be pimping yourself out to a different dentist every six months.
[00:13:00] But, with other services in business, it's natural for things to have a conclusion. And as we grow and evolve, as business owners, different people will come into our lives. And that's whether it's people coming into to our lives as clients, but also service providers and that kind of thing. It's natural for us all to grow and evolve. That's what we are meant to do. We look at our kids and, and how they grow and evolve, like, we are still doing that as grownups. So, but I know it is really difficult and I can, I'm speaking from personal experience as well as holding space for clients who are experiencing this stuff as well, because particularly if they're part of our origin story. If it's that first client, those legacy clients, those that work, that was what got us to our first financial milestone or that first invoice that we sent or whatever it was.
[00:14:00] Or perhaps, you know, when our business started, it was built on one-to-one, and then we, you know, in order to grow and scale, we shift to a one to many model or whatever that is.
But I think it is common, and if you are feeling it, it is normal. It means you are human and not a robot. But it's also that reassurance to know that it is safe. If, obviously all done in a nice and professional way, we don't want to be ghosting people and doesn't mean that you have to turn into an asshole.
You can do it in a lovely professional manner, but it's normal and the natural cycle of business to move on. But what I love is people that perhaps I've moved on from or have moved on from me. It's that, like people always want the best for you and it's when you share things like a rebrand or like an award win or those good news stories and the messages that you get from people that maybe you worked with two years ago, and it's like, wow, like look at you go, this is amazing. And if you've done right by people, they will always be happy [00:15:00] for you. So yeah.
[00:15:01] Tracey: Oh, and I think that's such a lovely way to say it too. And it was like I was saying something to my 11-year-old recently, people come in and out of your life as and when they're supposed to. It doesn't have to end badly. So, yes, I know you were friends with that particular person in pre-K and you used to do all these things, but he now does this and you now do this, and that's okay.
It doesn't mean you're not friends anymore, and maybe later you'll reconnect on something else. We don't have to end things badly. We don't have to say no in an aggressive, nasty way. We can explain it. I'm actually, we've evolved and, and that's not a service we're offering and sometimes, and I take joy in doing this when I can, we can connect or make a recommendation.
Let's consider this person or, or let me introduce you to this person. So it can feel really wholesome and good as well. It doesn't have to be negative Nancy.
[00:15:47] Michelle: Not at all. And it's paying it forward as well. Like you think like, because there's always someone who is willing to do the stuff that we don't necessarily want to do as business owners. And that could be a new business that's starting, that's where you were five, six years ago and you know, is ready to take that work on.
And vice versa. There could be someone that is a few runs up the ladder to us that's like actually, that's not serving me anymore, but it's still a service that is required, so I'm gonna pass it back down. So I just think I have a saying that there is enough room on the dance floor for all of us, and there is. There absolutely is.
[00:16:28] Tracey: I love that. I love how you always put a, a reframe on things. One of your many superpowers is cutting through the noise, getting straight to the point, and being really direct. And there have been so many times on this journey where I've said to you, oh, I've got this great idea. I'm gonna do this, this, and this. And initially you were so reserved. Are you really? Huh? Let's go step back on that and, and, and unpack that. And you take me on this journey for me to realize myself that in fact, no, that's not aligned.
[00:17:00] I really don't wanna do that. It's not a good idea. You've saved me for myself many times. We now have a relationship where I can say to you, oh, I'm gonna do this.
It's great. And you're say, no, you are not. And then we unpack it from there, which is just so valuable and priceless. And you know how much I value that. Having that peace of mind, second mind, whatever it might be is so important. And people have asked me recently, who's your coach? Tell me who your coach is to get you to the rebrand.
It's just not about that. I don't work with a coach and I've said I don't work with a coach, but I work with a strategist. But this is not just on a project by project. This has been long term. Having somebody else, particularly when we're, we're solopreneurs, right? We're the boss. We run the business.
[00:18:00] We might have a team and we have other people, but thinking on that CEO level, that strategic thinking level, having somebody who knows you, who knows the vision, who can understand the way you think and work to be able to draw on and come in and say, right, here's all the things. Let's do this. And for someone to say, actually no, let's not, but let's unpack it.
And you end up somewhere completely different. That's almost like a second CEO. It's almost like you're 2IC. That's very much our relationship and, and where we've gotten to. It's not just me, you know, having all these fabulous ideas that aren't particularly so fabulous once you've unpacked them.
Is this a lot of what you do with other clients too, coming in at that level to help because you know them so well and you know that in fact, they need to be not saved from themselves, but you know what I mean?
[00:18:35] Michelle: Yeah, look, I do. It is how I work with my clients. Obviously we have known each other for a really long time, but I have ways and means of getting to know people very, very quickly and getting under the skin of their business. So I am like a business partner, but without the financial investment, sadly, this is not Shark Tank.
[00:19:00] Michelle does not have bottomless pockets of cash. It's like I am invested in their success and that is how I approach everything. So, know, as I said earlier on in the conversation, this is not Michelle's five steps to success. The way that I work with people is incredibly personalized, and it's based on so many factors, but the driving force is what success looks like for the individual and for some people that's building, seven figure revenue business with team and product suites and all the bells and whistles. And then for other people it's, I want to build a business so that I can take Fridays off to spend with my 4-year-old, like, you know, and everything in between. So that is very much the approach I take is that personalized approach that factors in what success looks like for them.
[00:20:00] And then I use all the tools in my arsenal to make sure that they get there in the most pain-free way possible because I do not, and never have bought into that hustle myth. I don't believe that building a business needs to be so much harder than working for somebody else, or burning ourselves into the ground. And I know that it's possible and there's not enough examples out there for women to see truly not the glossy Instagram version. You know, here I am in my active wear at five o'clock meditating, drinking green smoothie, all that sort of stuff. I mean, we talked about this, you know, at the beginning of the call, whose morning actually looks like that, like most of us are screaming our heads off at our children. Workout goes out the window. You know, we're ready to kill everyone by 8:45, and then we have to click into business mode like that is our reality.
[00:21:00] So more people need to talk about it, and that's what I'm here for. It's like, I know that things look like they should be like this, but this is what they can be like, and it doesn't have to be so hard.
[00:21:08] Tracey: It's been a big part of our work together over the years as well. And I was just about to mention that you have a winning week, my winning week, and I've got various iterations of it, which you gave me permission a long time ago to update that. Every school holidays, every term, it's gonna look different. So it's almost like this, oh, I'm actually not failing because I need to change it. It's actually a good thing. It's supposed to, you're supposed to change it. That's been so important for me. I've actually, it's right there, stuck up on the, with Blu Tack on the back of the door, and it's the next iteration.
There's a whole person approach here. And I remember one of our calls, this is two moves ago, we were in two houses ago, and Grace was probably six months old sitting at my feet and I was saying to you, oh my Gosh, I can't get time to do it. And, and I'm really frustrated and I keep getting interrupted. And the way you diffused all of that and just changed my perspective and you've just said, she just wants to be with you. Don't try and work when she's there.
[00:22:00] I was like, huh? Do you mean I don't have to be working every moment that I'm awake? You go, no. She was six months old.
[00:22:07] Michelle: Gosh, that's really wild. But it was
[00:22:09] Tracey: Yeah, it really is. And there's so much to it. The business journey is as a whole person. So I love that you said that there's no Michelle's five step magic formula, and I love that you meet people where they're at and you treat them as the whole person and you look at the picture holistically and support in a way the business owner needs. And that looks so different for everybody. And I love that. And this is why I wanted to share this episode because when I tried to explain it in one sentence to one client in particular who reached out, I had to get on a call and say, well, this is what I do with Michelle.
Here's Michelle's website. And she's just rang me back and said, I need Michelle in my life. Can you please intro me? It's really hard to explain in one sentence all of the things, which is why we now have this episode, and I can share that.
[00:23:00] But there's just so much to it and so many angles to come at it because it's a journey and it's not just a logo and it's not just a name change and a pretty colour palette.It's a journey and so much goes into it, and having that support along the way is crucial, I think for anybody. You don't have to work with a coach. You can work with a coach if you want to. That's my solution or my, my need has been a strategist, and that's been you. Let's talk about planning, because I'm a planner.
I'm a big planner. You are a big planner and you support so many business owners with planning, you do it several different ways. Can you share a bit about that?
[00:23:38] Michelle: Yeah, so this is like my peak time of year right now, because everyone's getting prepared for the year ahead. So I work one-on-one with my clients to get them set for the year ahead. And again, that happens when it works best for their business. So some people love doing it like early, early, early.
[00:24:00] And I'm looking at you, Tracey Mylechrane, you are always someone who likes to get a jumpstart on the year. Other people are like, I just need to get through the year and we are gonna do it in January. So I offer strategic planning sessions. I actually offer them all year round, but this is the time of year when I'm at my busiest and getting people booked in to get it done before the end of the year. But then what I also offer is like a group planning situation as well, because for some people, particularly those who are in the earlier stages of business, investing in one-to-one support is not always an option. So I have an option where you can come and have like a group experience, and the bonus of that is that you don't just get Michelle for the day.
You also get the wisdom and the insights of the other women in the room. And that is something that I absolutely love is connecting great women to other great women and giving them opportunities to learn from one another and to support each other.
[00:25:00] And everyone kind of walks away from those experiences yes, with their plan, but also with that, you know, like we talked about before, those insights into what it's like in other businesses and go, oh God, it's not just me, is it that's, you know, screaming at my children before I head out the door in the morning and, and that sort of stuff.
So, there's the one-to-one support, but then I also have group support as well. And then to take that even further is that I also run accountability circles. So that is like an opportunity for business women to connect with one another. But in a more structured, longer term format.
[00:25:40] Tracey: And that's also accountability circles also for women, regardless of how long they've been in business or where they are on their journey. That's quite broad.
[00:25:49] Michelle: Yeah, it is broad. I have to say these women are through that startup stage though. The women that are in these circles are right in the thick of it and we've got women that have been in [00:26:00] business for two years all the way through to 22 years and everything in between and everyone's kind of mixed in together to learn from and support one another in equal measure.
[00:26:10] Tracey: I love that. Michelle, Thank you so much for coming on and just allowing me to share you with my listeners and some context into my journey. Your role in that, your pivotal role in that. The brand evolution or rebrand as I probably is a bit of a rebrand. I sort of thought of it as a brand evolution, but it's actually been recognized as being a hell of a lot bigger than I thought it was.
So rebrand or, or whatever it might be. But it's about the journey and as I say, on here so often, who you surround yourself with in business matters and case in point right here. So I know that this is going to have loads of nuggets of gold for listeners. So thank you so much for your time. I'm so grateful.
[00:26:50] Michelle: Thank you for your time, Tracey, for having me, and also for being such a vital part of my business and I support you, but you [00:27:00] support me right back. So I am very, very grateful and lucky to have you in my corner. So thank you.
[00:27:07] Tracey: Bless. Thank you. Isn't it refreshing having somebody you can talk to so honestly about business and all the things that come with that as a whole person. The kids, the fitness or the self-care that's non-existent or whatever the challenge might be, and having somebody be able to say to you, do you really think that's a good idea or have you thought about this?
Or what about that? Or, Hmm, let's unpack that. There's real value in that. And when you are a solopreneur or whatever we like to call ourselves these days, but when we are running our own show, we often don't have that 2IC, or as I've referred to in the episode, that second CEO Mind that you can draw on and just bounce with. And sometimes that can be just what's needed. And certainly for me, there've been many times over the years where I've rang Michelle in a flux at times or in excitement at other times.
[00:28:00] And I've really needed somebody to be able to use as a sounding board to sense check things and to be able to get clarity on the way forward. And as you can tell, Michelle's been instrumental in that and I love working with her. I value her so much, and I'm so pleased to have been able to share that episode with you. So I hope you enjoyed it. If you resonated with anything that Michelle has shared, please feel free to go and check out her website or her social media.
We have included all the details in the show notes. If you have a business friend or somebody that you think is on the business journey who would really value listening to this episode or having a little bit of Michelle in their life, please feel free to forward this episode on because that would be so very much appreciated.
As always, thanks for joining me. I'll catch you next time.
[00:29:00]
LINKS:
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Website: https://michellebroadbent.com.au
Instagram: @michbroadbent
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellebroadbent
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