S03 E07 - Matt Inglot on running an agency, finding the right clients, and starting over

Today's guest is Matt Inglot. Matt is a husband, web agency owner, and podcast host. He runs Freelance Transformation and helps other freelancers find higher-paying jobs while also showing them how to reduce the amount of time they work.

Though Matt had always dreamed of building and running a successful web agency, it wasn't an easy or clear path. He initially started freelancing as a web developer and then built up an agency, only to discover he didn't want a big business with all of its complexities after all - he wanted the freedom of something smaller.

Though it caused him quite a bit of stress, that realization ultimately led to a lot of personal growth because it forced him to really look at his business and figure out what was working and what wasn't.

After some soul searching, Matt realized he was okay with being a solo business owner and found a way of working that gave him creative satisfaction and the ability to support his family.

As most freelancers know, being able to simply take a vacation and not be ruled by clients and email is a pretty big deal. It was on his first real vacation, in fact, that he prosed to his wife. This kind of self-care is a regular part of how Matt now operates his business.

Based out of Calgary, Alberta, Matt continues to run his web development agency with a focus on strategy and the ability to maintain the freedom for which he has worked so hard.

[click_to_tweet tweet="There were little nagging voices telling me, wait a minute, this is stressing you out, but I was ignoring all that in exchange for the dream of having a big business and a lot of money." quote="There were little nagging voices telling me, wait a minute, this is stressing you out, but I was ignoring all that in exchange for the dream of having a big business and a lot of money." theme="style3"]

In this episode Matt talks about:

• How he went from freelancing to pay his rent, to having a full team of developers and an office (and back again).
• When he realized that the work he dreamed of doing wasn't actually the work he wanted to do.
• How reinventing his business was mostly about figuring out the right clients to work with.

Main Takeaways

• Listen to your intuition when something doesn't feel right. It's usually a good indication that you need to course correct.
• It's never too late to fix what's not working. You just have to be willing to take a step back and figure out what those things are.
• Figuring out who the right clients are for your services is a big key to having a successful business.
• Building the business you want is different for everyone. It doesn't need to be big or complex to be successful.

Important Mentions in this Episode

• Freelance Transformation
• Freelance Transformation Podcast