How Starting a Community Changed My Business…and My Life
Struggling entrepreneur builds 881,000-member Facebook community transforming business approach.
07/06/2025
Struggling entrepreneur builds 881,000-member Facebook community transforming business approach.
Community Power:
Together we rise stronger than competing alone.
I was almost ready to give up.
In 2016, after trying every strategy in the book to grow my business—from live events to courses—I was still struggling to make money. I was exhausted, discouraged, and wondering what I was doing wrong.
One day, while pondering what I would do next, an idea struck me. What if I started a Facebook group for women entrepreneurs where we could help one another? There was no launch and no real strategy—I just thought a Facebook group would be a great way to connect with the other local women entrepreneurs in the area.
I honestly thought a few thousand at most might join. Little did I know that my small group would grow to over 881,000 members worldwide and become the largest and most engaged women entrepreneurs’ Facebook community on the platform.
And since then, this is what I have learned.
Community is the most powerful component you can add to your business. Before my group became the mega-successful group it is today, I was running in all different directions, looking for a “formula” for success. Launch after launch, countless events, and one-on-one coaching left me feeling frustrated and desperate to find something that would finally work.
But the truth was the other strategies I tried lacked one crucial element: community. I wasn’t connecting and I wasn’t collaborating. I was trying to figure out how to be successful all on my own. And that’s where so many women who are starting businesses get it wrong.
We want to stand out and be seen, but we forget to stand together. We are taught by other coaches and “gurus” to “dominate” an industry instead of serving other women in a community.
The lesson I missed was this.
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Your business won’t grow by itself—it grows through people, the connections you make, and the relationships you build. My business suddenly took off once I shifted my focus from promotion to collaboration and connection.
Instead of trying to compete with other women for visibility, I built a platform for other women to promote their own businesses and be seen. That platform—Women Helping Women Entrepreneurs—exploded because it gave women something they craved—a safe place to collaborate, get help, and also share their businesses.
What I realized is that in order to grow our brands, businesses, and visibility, we need to stop competing with one another and build supportive communities where women can truly help one another. When I took a step back and allowed the members of my community to shine, my Facebook Group took off.
It was then that I decided to quit one-on-one coaching and shift my business model. So I created the Stand Out Online Membership Program to allow women to borrow my audience of over 1 million entrepreneurs.
I built the exact platform I needed. And as more and more women joined Women Helping Women, I saw something incredible happen—the women were growing their businesses and making money, building connections and friendships, and now had a safe space to ask questions, share concerns, and get genuine help from other women.
The lesson?
Together, we are stronger.
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"If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together."
- African Proverb
Community Power:
Together we rise stronger than competing alone.
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Here’s what I’ve learned from growing a global community and helping women entrepreneurs:
- Start with service: Focus on creating a space for others to connect. You’ll be amazed at what happens when you stop talking to your audience in the “guru” role—and start allowing members to lead the conversations.
- Borrow other people’s audiences: You don’t need to build everything yourself. Tap into other peoples’ already built audiences in your niche. Join like-minded Facebook groups and share your knowledge. You will quickly be perceived as an expert and authority when you give high value away for free and gain instant reach.
- Build real relationships: It’s not about how many likes and comments you get—it’s about real connection. People do business with the people they “know, like, and trust.” Have conversations and express genuine interest in others.
- Share the struggle: Share what isn’t working and become vulnerable. Let them see that you are not perfect. When you let down your guard and be your authentic self, people will be drawn to you.
- Remember “collaboration over competition”: Support your fellow women entrepreneurs. There is more than enough business for everyone. When one woman wins, we all win.
Pour your gifts into other women and celebrate their success. When women help women without fear of competition, magic happens. And we all rise together.
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Yes, you can provide text passages or key points from the book so that I can use them in the analysis. If this is not possible, then you can simply provide a
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