Inspirational Woman: Lisa Johnson | Business Strategist

I’m a mother of 9-year-old twins who grew up in a council estate in Lincolnshire. I left school at 16 due to being bullied badly and began work as an apprentice office junior.

Climbing my way up the corporate ladder I ended up as a risk analyst in the banking industry and then left when I had to go back to work after having twins. I knew that it wasn’t sustainable so started my first business at the age of 36.

I now run my own business as a strategist helping others to make money online through courses and memberships and we have a £4m a year revenue.

Did you ever sit down and plan your career?

Absolutely not. I remember going in to see a career counsellor at school and just not having a clue what I wanted to do! Now I plan everything, but back then it feels so early to know what you want your life to look like.

Have you faced any challenges along the way?

So many but I believe that adversity can fuel your success. I’ve failed in countless ways in business but I learn every time and so it makes me and my business stronger. I’ve had to work out how to juggle being the breadwinner with having young twins, how to cope with huge growth in my business (we went from £30k in debt to £4m a year in just 4 years) and how to deal with the nastiness online that comes with fast success.

What has been your biggest achievement to date?

During the pandemic I launched a course that made £2.5m in a week but more than that, it helped over 1,200 people learn how to make money during such a difficult time. I still have people that write to me daily telling me that the course was their lifeline in such a difficult time.

What one thing do you believe has been a major factor in you achieving success?

I think the biggest thing has been my integrity. There’s a lot of rubbish in the online industry; a lot of false promises and sleazy marketing tactics but I decided to do things in a different way. I turn people away from buying from me if I think they’ll get better results from a competitor, and I try to always be honest and transparent. That alone sets me apart from people in my industry.

I’m also not afraid to take big risks, which I think helps in any business.

How do you feel about mentoring? Have you mentored anyone or are you someone’s mentee?

I’ve mentored a few people in the past and I think it’s great. You can learn a lot from mentoring others as you see the issues they face now and it can change all the time.

There is a stigma/stereotype that women are bad with finances – what can we do to change these perspectives?

I think the first thing we need to do is stop telling ourselves we are. I thought I was too. So much of it comes from what we see and experience growing up. One thing that needs to change is the stigma around talking about money. Honestly, a group of women will talk about very intimate details about what they got up to the night before with a new boyfriend but gasp if you ask them how much they earn. The more we start talking about money, the better things will be.

If you could give one piece of advice to your younger self what would it be?

To think bigger. We often aspire to be what we see but I didn’t see a lot of success when I was young. I wish I’d realised just how much is out there for us if we believe in ourselves enough.

What is your next challenge and what are you hoping to achieve in the future?

I’ve just signed a book deal with a huge publisher so my next challenge is finishing my book to be able to impact even more people to start changing their lives.

You can find out more about Lisa on her website: www.lisajohnson.com