In this episode, I interview Lucy Nelson, the Founder, Director, and CEO at 2xN Limited, a healthcare marketing, and business development agency. Lucy is also the Founder and Personal Trainer at The Life Plan, where they provide customized fitness, nutrition, and wellness online. She is an expert at managing branding, strategy, and opportunity for clients looking to grow in their sector. Her strengths focus on managing overall brand direction and business growth, marketing, and development of private practices and clinics across London and the UK.  She is experienced with marketing, coordinating, and delivering events, and has a proven track record of delivering brand growth and business development. Lucy had worked in healthcare since she left university and she identified a need for the kind of services that 2xN offers, so at the end of 2017, she registered the company and started with a bang in 2018. She started out as the only full-time employee and achieved about £115,000 in revenue in year one. By the end of the second year, the revenue had doubled to £ 220,000 but faced a slump in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.  The business now has a full-time team of three with two people working part-time. Her advice for every small business owner is that they should fight their self-doubt and believe that their business can work. Lucy feels that the hardest thing in growing a small business is achieving balance and being able to delegate. The one thing she says she would tell herself on day one of starting out in business is, “Keep going. Hold on tight. There are some serious ups and downs but you’re going to love it all” Stay tuned to learn from Lucy’s business journey. This Cast Covers: Working on an agency basis as a marketing firm specifically for the healthcare industry. How she identified a need for the services that 2xN offers. Helping patients decipher the tons of healthcare information they get online and ensuring that doctors are accurately represented online. From medical sales representative to full-time small business owner who has been positively impacting the healthcare industry. Growing the business from one full-time employee (Herself) to the current three full-time and two part-time employees, and sustaining upwards of £ 200,000 in annual revenues. Surviving the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic to sustain growth into 2021. The success of a small business owner achieving financial growth and being able to work on their own schedule. Maintaining a high customer retention rate by focusing on relationship marketing and word of mouth. Funding the business with nothing but her laptop, time, and tireless hard work. The challenges of doing everything in her business and how she has worked hard on delegating to achieve some balance. Why every small business owner should overcome their self-doubt and believe in the potential of their business. The value of focusing on personality types when hiring new employees. Exercising every day to be able to switch off and unwind. Building the confidence to thrive in a male-dominated industry. Additional Resources: Lean In By Nell Scovell and Sheryl Sandberg Experts Podcast with Lauren Armes Desert Island Discs Music from https://filmmusic.io "Cold Funk" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com). License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/