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Today’s post is about how Jen dropped out of business school and started her own 7 Figure Online business. This is a topic near and dear to her heart because this is how she started her Zazzle journey.
So, this post is all about the lessons she learned from this experience and to shed light on what it’s like to change your path and alter your future.
This episode is filled with realistic hindsight, which could be useful for you if you’re looking for a unique perspective to help guide you along your own online business journey.
In high school, Jen had no idea what she truly wanted to do. Although, she did know she wanted to be creative in some capacity. She decided to go into business because she thought she’d want to open her own business one day.
She was pre-accepted into the Ivy School of Business. This is a well-renowned school for business in Canada, and she was set to get her MBA.
In this program, you have to do a few initial years towards your general degree, then move towards the next phase, which is earning your MBA.
In the first two years, Jen really struggled. She wasn’t able to keep up with her grades the way she did in high school. She found she had trouble focusing and was nervous and overwhelmed, riddled with anxiety. In short, it wasn’t a good experience for her.
This was a turning point for her as she was trying to decipher her path. She knew she wanted to be in the world of business, but she didn’t feel aligned with the path she was on.
In fact, it was the first time she ever felt she couldn’t accomplish something within the academic system. She actually failed her first class and exam.
She had the thought “oh my gosh, what’s coming next?” After she completed her second year, she made the decision to drop out and not return.
Her parents were supportive of this, as they knew if she continued along the path she was on, she would likely continue suffering and feeling unhappy.
In the meantime, Elke had provided her information about Zazzle and how it was a viable online platform to make money. During university, she was using it as a hobby and side hustle for spending money.
After dropping out of school, she took the opportunity to expand her Zazzle business. Coincidentally this is about the time that Elke really started to zero in on how she could really make money on the platform and was developing her five strategies on Zazzle.
Elke’s help and guidance allowed Jen to truly make something out of her Zazzle business. It wasn’t just a hobby anymore, it was instead a method of getting the things she wanted to do – like traveling the world.
Everyone has a different why and Jen’s why, at this time, was to travel and explore. This fueled her to create her online business on Zazzle. Plus, her business school experience did allow her some useful knowledge that she was able to use to further her efforts.
What was important for her was that she really wanted to create an online business that works for her. She didn’t want to follow the status quo and normal path toward her goals.
The way she processed information and learned was different from the way they taught in business school, which is something her experience taught her.
She found that she needed to have hands-on experience and the chance to deal with problems firsthand in order to learn and implement things in an effective way.
Having her own business on Zazzle allowed her to learn the way that worked for her. From there, she implemented Elke’s strategies in her own Zazzle store, creating her own case study so to speak for her business.
With the responsibility on her shoulders, she was really forced to learn and grow and took her business to a 7 figure online business.
When Jen first dropped out of school, she was scared to break away from the path that everyone else was pursuing. She felt like she would never get a “real job” because she was labeled a university dropout. Even those words have a stigma to them.
But in today’s world, there are so many ways for people to run a business without a formal education. There are opportunities for people like Jen who university isn’t a right fit for.
This doesn’t go to say that anyone who decides against a university education won’t have to be dedicated to starting their own business. Even doing things on your own terms requires hard work!
But Jen wanted to share that the ride she’s been on over the past 14 years has been amazing. Her happiness, her freedoms, and confidence is off the charts thanks to the path she ended up pursuing. She’s been able to make money online and teach others how to do it, too.
Hopefully, her experience inspires others to take the path that feels most aligned for them, just like she did. Becoming an adult doesn’t have to be boring or predictable – everyone is entitled to make decisions for themselves in a way that feels best for them.
Even when you’re doing something that may not be the most “accepted” change by the public, it doesn’t mean that it’s not the right path for you. You need to accept what you know to be true in your heart, and then you can forge your way forward.
Now, Jen and Elke teach people how to run a successful business. They’re mentors to people and coaching people gives them a huge amount of fulfillment. No matter where you are in your life journey, you can make a change.
As a parent, Elke always wanted to make money through creativity. However, for her generation, that wasn’t really a feasible option. Online businesses were not a thing at the time, and her parents pushed her to use her smarts to pursue a different path.
This was a difficult decision for her, which she always knew. Doing what others told her to do wasn’t ideal, which is why she didn’t want to do that for her own daughter when Jen was considering taking an alternate path.
Since the online space is always changing, it could be easy to wonder if you’re doing the right thing by breaking the mold and pursuing a new path. After all, it can be intimidating to try something new.
For Elke, she’s so glad that she tried her hand at an online business. She loves having a business that’s limitless in terms of growth and potential. Running a Zazzle business has also allowed her to really challenge herself.
Don’t just base your own desires and experiences off of Jen’s and Elke’s journeys, though. You have to think of what you really want and what will light you up. Just make sure, though, that whatever path you pursue is being followed thoughtfully to help set yourself up for success.
Elke now has a business where she makes $100k each year off of her storefront working four or five hours a month. She loves being in a position of control with her business, and she’s so happy she changed the path she was on 14 years ago.
Jen did share that she needed to stop working online for a time – about four years – during her online business journey. The great thing is that she had set her store up well and continued to make money over the course of those years even though she wasn’t actively working on her storefront.
She’d had fears about whether she would be able to generate money that allowed her to do things like buy a car, rent an apartment, or buy a home. She’s also worked with clients that were worried about making money to put food on the table or buy clothes to wear. It was that common fear of, “what’s next?”
But now, she’s broken through those fears and she feels good about her Zazzle business and has been able to replace those fears with owning her own career path, making decisions for herself, and having amazing freedoms and possibilities.
She doesn’t even know what those fears feel like anymore. She’s done the work and took what she envisioned and brought it to life.
Sometimes when we’re stuck in that place of fear, we feel like we can’t change anything. But it’s okay to make a different decision and find an alternate solution.
No one should feel guilt and shame from others or from themselves about their decisions for their own happiness and desires. Jen and Elke have talked to so many creatives who have the same story: someone has told them they can’t make money being creative. But they’ve broken through those stigmas and made their dreams come true.
The decision is yours, but hopefully, Jen and Elke’s stories allow you to make a more informed and inspired choice for your own business and life.
Thank you so much for reading!
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Official Website: https://jenandelkeclarke.com/
Jen’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/msjenclarke/
Elke’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elkeclarke/
The Profit by Design Academy® Coaching Program https://elkeclarke.com/startandscale/
The Creative CEO Mastermind™️ https://elkeclarke.com/creative-ceo-mastermind/
Creative and Ambitious Entrepreneur FB Group https://www.facebook.com/ElkeClarkeZazzleExpert
Jen and Elke Clarke are a mother-daughter duo that empowers women entrepreneurs to make money online. Through courses and coaching, Jen and Elke help women (and men) become successful creative entrepreneurs on Zazzle and e-commerce. Combined Jen and Elke have sold over 15 million dollars-worth of products, and earned over $1.5 million combined through their businesses on Zazzle. Jen and Elke have influenced and transformed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people worldwide with their free content, paid and private coaching.
They are international, award-winning authors. Click the links to purchase their books through Amazon: Earn Around The World and Create Online and Grow Rich.
Jen and Elke Clarke have been featured in Yahoo Finance as TOP 5 e-commerce coaches.
If you want to see how Zazzle can change your life, gain more free time, work from anywhere, and have uncapped income potential — join now.
