Meet Mariana Norton, Speaker and Digital Marketing Specialist
LinkedIn has recently become my favourite place to connect with like-minded Mom Entrepreneurs, Bloggers, Authors, Speakers and Digital Marketers. I’ve been making the most amazing connections on LinkedIn. Mariana Norton is one of them, which is why she’s our latest Featured Mompreneur. #MarianaNortonSpeaker #DigitalMarketingSpecialist
What do you do for a living?
Customers are the roots that feed the growth of a business and determine whether a business will flourish or fail. I am a strategist who consults with businesses to attract, engage, sell and nurture their customers.
I have developed a framework called the Customer Conversation Architecture™. It bridges the gap between the people who don’t know your company exists and repeat customers who give glowing reviews and refer new clients to you
If you wear many hats in business, which of these do you love most?
My consultant hat is one of my favourites and brings me most of my income. I love my speaker hat the most though. Teaching and presenting people with new ideas is exciting.
When did you take the decision to become an Entrepreneur?
My kids are both teenagers now and a few years ago I wanted to start working again, but our schedule didn’t allow for a regular 9-to-5 job.
Why did you take the decision to become an Entrepreneur?
I jumped back into the entrepreneurial ring for the flexibility and freedom to manage my time, plus the ability to still be “Mom” to my kids.
What prompted you to start your own business?
I started out doing freelance work as a writer but found that too many businesses were confused by the digital landscape. I love puzzles, so piecing together the right solution to help a business go from where they are to where they want to be, was a natural move for me.
Is this your first entrepreneurial pursuit?
No. My first entrepreneurial venture was helping a local teenager deliver newspapers when I was about 4 years old in exchange for chocolate. Working for chocolate was a pretty sweet deal.
How did you come up with the idea?
If organically grew from what I saw my clients were struggling with and where I felt I could have the greatest impact.
What has been the greatest challenge for you to overcome in your career?
Me. Getting out of my own way. I think that most of us create our own roadblocks to success.
What has been the number one highlight of Motherhood for you?
I can’t pick just one. How many highlight reels only have one moment on them?!
What has been the greatest challenge for you to overcome as a Mother?
The greatest challenge has been releasing guilt. I’ve told other women who are about to become mothers that until you are a mother, you can’t imagine your capacity for love, worry and guilt. I remind myself that I’m always doing the best I can at every moment.
Has it been tricky balancing work and home life?
No. Just kidding. Of course, it’s tricky. The truth is that there will be days that you have the balance you crave and others when you feel like you’ve lost it.
Where do you work most days?
I work from URBN Cowork during the week and try not to work on the weekend. It’s a coworking space and has been a gamechanger for me.
As a Mompreneur, having a space to focus on work away from home has helped me a lot with work-life balance.
How many days per week do you work, on average?
My goal is 5 but with juggling family activities it’s sometimes 6.
Do you feel you have already created your best work?
No. I like to work as though the best is yet to come. Keep learning and striving to do better.
What advice would you give someone just starting out as an Entrepreneur?
Give yourself time, space and the resources to find your groove. Growth happens slowly over time for most entrepreneurs so try not to put a lot of pressure on yourself in the beginning.
Is there anything you know now, that you wish you knew when you started out as an Entrepreneur?
Take time to celebrate the small wins. Learn from and let go of failures quickly.
Is there anything you know now, that you wish you knew when you first became a Mom?
In spite of your best intentions and efforts, things aren’t always going to go smoothly. Love and snuggle them as much as you can when they’re little because they grow so quickly.
Is there anything you feel you missed out on by becoming an Entrepreneur?
Paid vacation and sick days.
Who has been enormously helpful to you?
My tribe. Whether online or in-person, having a group of like-minded people you can check in with on a regular basis is very important. It helps me realize I’m not the only one struggling and having a pool of expertise to draw from is invaluable.
If there was anything I could help you with, what it would it be?
There isn’t anything coming to mind at the moment. Is there anything I could help you with?
If I were to give you a referral, who would I be looking for?
I work with small businesses and entrepreneurs who have a clear understanding of who they serve.
Are you a Mompreneur who’s clear on who you serve? Would you like help to attract and engage new customers? Then you may be interested in finding out more about Mariana’s Customer Conversation Architecture™.
Read more here:
https://mariananorton.com/about-me/
Connect with Mariana Norton on:
Hi there, Lauren.
What a great looking site, and I really enjoyed reading your interview with Mariana Norton.
She certainly seems to know what she wants, and how to go about getting her wishes fulfilled. I think it’s great that there are people, even though they have so many other things to see to, like family, they still manage to find time to do other things which are important to them.
Being an entrepreneur is not easy by far, and Mariana doesn’t hide the fact that it’s difficult, especially with having other commitments, but with determination, she’s come a long way and has made it.
Many thanks for this great article…I think it’s brilliant, and it also serves as an example to would-be entrepreneurs not to give up.
James
Hi James
Thanks a mill for your thoughtful comments. I agree, being an Entrepreneur is difficult for anyone and everyone. Rewarding… but difficult. Never, ever give up. Success may just be around the corner or just over the next hill.
Here’s to Your Success, Lauren
Hi James,
You’re right about entrepreneurship not being an “easy” road, but that doesn’t mean the road isn’t riddled with rewards.
I’ve found that things get really tough right before a breakthrough. I hope that I can inspire other mom and dad entrepreneurs to keep going.
What an inspiring woman, Mariana Norton, is. It takes a lot of courage to start your own business and then working from home is not easy. It really is a balancing act keeping clients happy as well as running a home and keeping the family happy. How wonderful to read of her success in doing both.
Working away, but still running your own business, makes it a lot easier to have a cut-off time for working.
When your office is at home it is a lot harder to know when to stop as there are so many things requiring your attention.
The way the questions were put and answered shows how skilled Lauren is at drawing out the person she is interviewing.
Well done.
Thanks for your awesome comment and compliments, Mom.
You are so correct, it can be really hard to stop working when you work at home and it’s also hard to not see everything as work… paid work, housework, childminding… they all start to fall into the category of WORK. Sometimes I forget to take off my work hat and relax into playing with my little guy. When I do I realise what a pleasure and a privilege it is to be home with him.
Hi Jill,
Yes, working from home is challenging. Even when you close the door the laundry, and other household tasks are waiting on the other side.
I feel very lucky to have access to a coworking space, although sometimes that means the laundry piles up.
Hi and what an inspiring post. I have a great wife who juggles a part time job and looking after the kids as I work full time. So anything that helps moms catch a break and improve their lives is totally backed by me. Thank you so much for creating this article. And what an amazing determined woman your do a review on in this article too. I’ll be sure to show this site to my wife. Thanks Kenny
Thanks so much for giving a Dad’s perspective, Kenny. Sounds like you are a really supportive husband, appreciate you passing this info on to your wife.
I’m glad you enjoyed the article.
Having a supportive partner makes a huge difference to any entrepreneur. It’s wonderful to have a partner that encourages and celebrates with you along the journey.
I like reading about mompreneurs because you know they exist on a whole new level when it comes to doing the entrepreneur thing. They have kids to feed and take care of, we know for certain that there kids come before them and anyone else. Mompreneurs are excellent people to follow the foot steps of because they literally mean business.
Even in nature you don’t want to get between a mother and her kids. Thank you for the cool interview with Marianna Norton.
P.s. I’m a entrepreneur too and I love to learn and post stuff online. What kind of plug-in are you using on your site to stop people from highlighting or copying text? Is that a feature setting specific for the website theme you are using or is it a plugin? It’s brilliant and I want to use it too
Haha, what a cool comment, the one about not getting between a mother and her kids. Thanks for your respect, understanding and admiration of Mompreneurs.
The Plugin I use is WP Content Copy Protection. It’s working like a charm.
I’m glad you enjoyed the interview. You’re absolutely right about us momma bears, we can be stronger than we can imagine when we need to be.
Hello Lauren,
Obviously Mariana is a great source of inspiration in your path as an entrepreneur. Be a bussinesswoman often involves navigating in unknown waters, without protection. Evidently for what you express you are an enterprising person, without forgetting that you are also a mother. Your perseverance will make you reach a very good port. Successes!!
Claudio
Absolutely Claudio. Every one of the Moms I’ve interviewed at Inspiring Mompreneurs have been hugely inspiring. Thanks for your encouragement and enthusiasm.
Thank you for your kind words Claudio. Wishing you success as well.
I love the concept of mompreneurs, and the Q and A section is absolutely mesmerizing. One thing that stood out more-so tan others is the comment about why the decision was made to become a mompreneur. I too have kids at home and my work schedule does not match their needs. Both my wife and I work odd hours, sometimes starting at 330 in the morning. The freelance aspect mentioned is extremely appealing, as it will allow more time at home with the family – but the ‘digital landscape’ you mention is a hinder. As mentioned “growth happens over time”- I hope my wife and I have the alloted time to become our own entrepreneurs and get more time at home with the kids before they grow up too fast!
Thanks a million for your fabulous comment. Shoo, sounds like you and your wife are incredibly hard workers. Which is why I think you absolutely will become Entrepreneurs in time. Yes, freelancing can be a great way to supplement your income while you’re building your online empire. I’ve seen people become Freelancers or Virtual Assistants and replace their full time income very quickly.
Do it, but plan it. Figure out what you want to do as “freelance” and test the waters while you still have a steady income coming in. It helps take away some of the pressure and allows you to grow as you’re ready to do so.
Wishing you and your wife all the best!
I love reading stories about people that have the drive and motivation to visualize what they want and then just get out there and work for it and get it! She really sounds like she has a clear, focused, organized head on those shoulders! I have a great respect for anyone that builds their own company up from their own vision to make it reality. Kudos to her! Thanks for the great interview.
Aw, Thanks Lynne. So happy you enjoyed this interview so much. And I agree, I also take my hat off to Mariana. She is such an inspiration.
Thanks Lynne. I’m glad you enjoyed the interview.