Suzi Istvan: Growing a Design Agency and Spending Money on People (GPP04)


Suzi Istvan on the Get Paid Podcast

Suzi Istvan’s design business brought in big bucks in 2014, but her take-home pay was far from six-figures. A year of big growth means big investments, but the strategic way she spends her money has set her up with a business she always dreamed of running (and that’s bringing in some serious revenue).

In this episode you’ll hear:

— How Suzi identifies and then deals with debilitating burn-out.

— One of the ways I “keep it interesting” in my marriage.

— The secret deal Suzi’s husband may or may not have made with the devil.

— A breakdown of the retainer services Splendidly Curious provides, and what may cause their prices to vary.

— How much the business made in 2014 and what Suzi’s own cut of that was by the end of the year.

— Why Suzi and her team aren’t actually working for the people who are paying them month-to-month. (Sounds like a scam but it’s not!)

— Why she felt it was important to hire a lawyer on retainer before bringing in any designers to actually make money for the business.

— The “backwards” way that Suzi went about preparing her business to hire its first designer.

— Why it took longer than it should have for that first designer to start “paying for herself.”

— The make-up of the Splendidly Curious team: who they are and what they do.

— Why charging for packages instead of for hours worked protects both her business and its clients.

Mentioned in this episode:

Connect with Suzi on the ol’ social networks:

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Thanks for listening! Time to go get yourself paid. :)