You know those movies that start in the middle of the action and the main character stops the scene and says… I bet You’re wonder how we ended up here?

That is like this story…

Right now…

I am in a middle of an adventure where I am chasing a runaway train 🚂 with no idea of where it is going or what is going to happen next…

Before we get to that we have to go back…

A long long time ago… Halloween 2019

I decided to start an Etsy shop for some completely random and forgotten reason… I mean I didn’t even shop on Etsy or have a clue what it actually was or how I was going to conquer this platform… but on that day I listed my first item for sale and little did I know… my whole world was about to be turned upside down.

4 days later…

My eldest son, injured himself requiring multiple surgical procedures, therapy and lots of help.

I had a coaching business at that time, that was doing ok but faced with a major emotional crisis it was near impossible to show up the way that was needed…

Then came the bushfires followed by COVID-19 🦠

After 3 major blows…My coaching business was over! I had no clients, no money and no real hope that it would work again.

Oh and that Etsy business…

It was dismal. I had done the research, listed products that I thought would sell (they were selling for other people), learned SEO and so much more but nothing seemed to work. I had a few sales here and there but the cha-chinos were few and very far between.

I felt useless, stupid and confused. I had failed again and had no idea how I was going to make money to survive.

Then lockdown happened. I had been training for this my whole life! Suddenly able to spend hours and hours working because 90% of mum duties were cancelled! My inner workaholic came out to play.

Sitting on a bean bag on the floor of my son's room with my laptop on my legs, Working 18 hours a day, I rebranded the Etsy shop, changed out most of my listing, taught myself how to use illustrator, photoshop and Canva to do what I needed to do…

totally focused on a hunch that I could make this work! There was no other option because getting a real job was just not going to happen!

My boys would often ask me…

Is all this work worth it? I mean I was working for less than $1 an hour at that stage. I replied Yes it will be.

Then on April 1st 2020, 6 months after I listed my first item… I hit 100 sales.

It was then…

The Etsy shop took on a life of its own…

There was not roadmap… no guide to show me exactly what to do… there was helpful knowledge but nothing that was directly connected to MY business. I was just making it up as I went!

Flash forward 13 months to May 7th 2021, my eldest son’s 23rd birthday…

That random idea of an Etsy shop hit 10,000 sales!

From a single digital product to a company with over 2000 templates in 18 months and I am still pinching myself to make sure it is not a dream.

Which brings us to where we started this story…

In the middle of this crazy adventure Chasing that runaway train!

Because while I love hearing my phone go cha-Ching… ok let’s face it… it never gets old…

What drives me is the difference I get to make along the way…

The people I am helping on their adventure to build their empires… one side hustle, one small business, one product, one sale at a time.

The people that now have hope and confidence that their dream can actually come true.

So as I continue to figure all this stuff out and embracing the unknown in my real life ”choose your own adventure” story, I invite you to join in because together this wild ride will be so much more fun!

Meet Amanda Amanda “Brainstorm” Robins is the go-to Creative Marketing Designer on a mission to help ambitious business owners create pretty, purposeful and profitable brands  that stand out above the crowd.   Through Ambition On ICE, Amanda has build the place where Pretty meets Purpose. Not only does she design beautiful marketing and branding designs, it also has the purpose and power to engage customers, build brand recognition, and create more sales.   Happy to openly share her years of adventure and knowledge going from teen mother to successful creative marketing designer, influencer, eBay power seller, top 1% Etsy Seller, certified marketer, 6-time international best-selling Amazon author, business owner, entrepreneur, trainer, speaker, loving mother and superhero, Amanda is able to answer marketing questions with the reassurance that the advice given is backed by actual experience.   If you are ready to fulfil your ambitious business dreams and create a brand worth celebrating, NOW IS THE TIME!   ...let the adventure begin!