The One Thing That Drives My OBM Journey (And Why It Matters for You)

What if I told you that the secret to building a thriving OBM business isn’t about systems, sales, or strategy? That the one thing that truly determines your success has nothing to do with client management and everything to do with how you design your life?

In this episode of The OBM Show, I’m pulling back the curtain on the one thing that has guided me through every stage of my OBM journey: freedom. The ability to work on my terms, take care of my family, and build a business that supports my life—not the other way around.

If you’ve ever found yourself overworking, undervaluing your time, or saying yes to clients who don’t align with your vision, this episode will help you reframe success, set new standards, and take back control of your business.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

✔️ The one mindset shift that changed everything for me
 ✔️ How to create a business that works for you (instead of the other way around)
✔️ Why overworking and undercharging are keeping you stuck
✔️ The exact questions to ask yourself to realign your OBM business with your life
 

Thanks for tuning in to The OBM Show — your go-to podcast for Online Business Managers and entrepreneurs who want to scale strategically and sustainably.

If this episode resonated with you, be sure to follow the show and leave a review. It helps more aspiring and established Online Business Managers find this content and grow their businesses with confidence.

✨ Ready to take the next step?

Grab your free OBM Starter Kit → obmschool.com/starter
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Learn about becoming a CPD-certified Accredited Online Business Manager → obmaccreditation.com

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Until next time—keep building the business behind the business.

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
Welcome back, friends, to the OBM Show.
Now, you know I love talkingabout systems and structuring
your business and scalingservice support professional
businesses the right way.
But the truth is, is that beforeyou can build a business as a
freelancer, as an onlinebusiness manager, you need to
know why you're building it inthe first place.

(00:22):
And I don't just mean makingmoney or working from home.
I mean, why are you really here?
What What's driving you?
So for me, my why became crystalclear when I moved from Canada
to Israel and I'm living in anew country and I remember

(00:42):
sitting in a cafe with myhusband and I was completely
overwhelmed and I was cryinginto my coffee wondering if I
had made the biggest mistake ofmy life because the truth was I
really couldn't find work.
I had uprooted everything.
my life, my budding career, mycomfort zone.

(01:04):
And I'm in this new country withno job security, no real
professional network, and noidea how I was going to make it
work.
And in that moment, sitting inthat cafe, feeling lost, scared,
and unsure of how I was going toreally support myself and how I

(01:24):
was going to make this all work.
And I just had this overwhelmingfeeling.
I think because I was sort of inbetween a rock and a hard space
or really feeling like I wassort of pressed up against the
wall.
And I made a decision then thatI was going to go for it.
I wasn't going to rely on anyoneelse for my income.

(01:45):
I was going to build somethingfor myself because I wanted
control over my life.
I wanted the control and thefreedom to work from anywhere.
And I wanted to create somethingthat would support me no matter
And ultimately, I did.
But here's what I learned alongthe way.

(02:06):
And what I can say in retrospectis that freedom doesn't just
happen.
You have to create it.
You have to own it.
And that's what today's episodeis all about.
It's really about uncoveringyour true why.
And how you can use that why asthe ammunition to build an OBM

(02:27):
business that actually supportsthe life that you want, okay?
And I love this because this is,I talk a lot about business by
design and this is exactly it.
So today we're going to reallydive into how you can uncover
your true why and how it isreally there to drive your
decisions in your OBM business,how you can align your business

(02:49):
with your personal values toreally create success and a
unique business for yourself andultimately how all of this will
come together to start.
helping you build a business bydesign that will give you the
life that you actually want tolive.
So let's dive in.
Now, I want you to take amoment, sit here, close your

(03:11):
eyes.
If you are walking or driving asyou're listening to this
podcast, don't do that.
But if you are sittingcomfortably, I want you to just
close your eyes.
And if you are in the midst ofgetting your freelance business
started, or maybe you've alreadykicked off and you are bumping
and grinding, I want you to justtake a moment and ask yourself

(03:31):
why did you start this journeywas it because you wanted maybe
more time with your family wasit because you were tired
working for somebody else'sdream or maybe it was because
you were ready to create a lifeon your own terms whatever it is
think about that for one secondnow for me I My wife started in

(03:57):
that cafe in Israel.
I was feeling completely lost.
I was very much in love and Iwas really going to do
everything in my power to makeit work.
Now, this wasn't about themoney, although I obviously
needed to make money to surviveand support myself.
But more than that, I wanted tobuild something that would give

(04:21):
me choices and The choice to setmy own schedule.
The choice to work with clients.
I actually wanted to support.
The choice to create a businessthat could move with me no
matter where I lived, and thisis truly the magic of the world
we live in today, is thatbusiness really is global and

(04:43):
international.
And I can say wholeheartedlythat in my more than a decade of
being an online businessmanager, I have really worked
with and scaled and built a teamthat I'm really proud of that
gives me choices.
And I didn't just want this formyself, okay?

(05:03):
I wanted this for every serviceprofessional out there who was
tired of being stuck in a cycleof overwork and
underappreciation.
So when you are thinking toyourself, why did you start this
journey?
I want you to ask yourself, whatkeeps you going, okay?
When clients feel overwhelming,when sales feel slow, when When

(05:25):
that imposter syndrome, which Italked about in an earlier
episode of this podcast, whatkeeps you pushing forward?
Now, if it's just about makingmoney, that is not going to
sustain you.
You need something different,something deeper, something that
truly matters to you.
And, you know, I learned thisway back when that whole notion

(05:47):
of, you know, Money can't buyyou happiness, okay?
But the truth is, is that youmight be making a great salary
at your corporate job.
It's not going to be enoughnecessarily to keep you happy,
right?
If you are a thrill seeker, ifyou are a freedom seeker, if you
are a meaning seeker, it's notgoing to be enough, okay?

(06:08):
So making money is a part of it,but it's definitely not the
whole thing.
You need something deeper.
You need something that trulymatters to you.
So I want to take this one stepfurther, okay?
Because your business isn't justabout you.
And I know that you know that.
And I know that it really isabout being a heart of service

(06:32):
individual.
So likely you are very wellaware of this.
But I want you to really, reallythink about connecting your why,
why you are building thisbusiness, that meaning to who
you serve, Because the best OBMsthat I know, the ones who build
long-term success, aren't justchasing clients, they're

(06:54):
choosing to work with the rightpeople.
Clients who align with theirvalues, clients who respect
their boundaries, clients whomake the work fulfilling.
So I want you to ask yourself,who do you want to serve?
Do you want to help overwhelmedentrepreneurs streamline their
businesses?
Do you want to supportimpact-driven CEOs who are

(07:15):
changing the world?
Do you want to work withcreatives, maybe coaches in the
transformation space?
For me, I work with onlinebusiness managers and service
providers who want more thanjust a paycheck.
I support people who want tobuild their business that aligns
them to live their lives ontheir terms.

(07:36):
And here's why this matters.
when you align your businesswith your values you attract the
right clients if you valuefreedom you'll attract clients
who respect your time if youvalue structure you'll attract
clients who want organization.
If you value leadership, you'llattract clients who are ready to

(07:56):
delegate.
So maybe instead of trying to beeverything to everyone, focus on
who you actually want to workwith.
Because when you do that, yourbusiness stops feeling like a
grind and starts feeling likenow.
I want to quickly interrupt ourepisode to let you guys know
that today we have kicked offday one of OBM week.

(08:21):
Now you can learn more all aboutthis live event that we run.
a few times a year over atobmschool.com forward slash
obm-week.
But what we actually do on dayone is we really dive into this
notion of why and how it reallyconnects to your ideal client

(08:42):
and who that ideal client is.
So if this is resonating withyou, and if you are like, I get
this, Sarah, I get that I needto really be clear about why I
am starting this business sothat I can effectively make it
work for myself and it has to berooted in more than just making
money, then you definitely needto join us for OBM week.

(09:02):
So RSVP replays will beavailable and I know that you
are going to love this.
Now let's look ahead.
What does success look like foryou personally?
Okay, so is it about takingFridays off?
Is it about working three days aweek?
Is it about working around yourcorporate nine to five as you

(09:24):
make the transition.
Is it about being fully presentwith your kids instead of
answering emails at the dinnertable?
Is it about having the financialsecurity to travel, invest, or
take time off without stress?
Or maybe it's about workingremotely and being nomadic.
Now, for me, success has lookedvery different over the last

(09:48):
more than a decade of being aservice support professional.
But for me, it looks like wakingup without an alarm, practice
practicing yoga, and reallybeing available to take care of
my mom who lives with us forhalf the year.
just being there, being in thatsandwich generation, you know,

(10:08):
being able to sort of manage myresponsibilities as a mom, as a
daughter, but also reallyprotecting my own personal time
of being able to practice yogaand walk my dog and be in nature
and all of that good stuff.
So when you start to think aboutwhat that is, perfect business

(10:30):
looks like.
Sometimes you don't always knowwhat it's going to look like,
but it's probably somethingrelated to a feeling that you
have.
Now, I actually learned thisthrough my meditation with Joe
Dispenza.
Now, I wasn't actuallymeditating with him in the
flesh, but I had been listeningto one of his meditations, and

(10:52):
he talks a lot about Futureimagining what your life is
going to be like because youknow what the feeling is.
So I invite you again here, ifyou're not driving, if you're
not walking, to close your eyesand just take a second and try
to imagine what that feeling isgoing to feel like.

(11:12):
So if you can't really visualizewhat that future you is going to
look like, at the very least,you're going to know what that
feeling of future you is goingto feel like.
So maybe you feel calm.
Maybe you find this happy,centered place for you that
really feels right and reallyfeels good.

(11:34):
So I invite you to just sort offeel into that feeling of what
I'm going to feel like when Ihave a full roster of clients.
I am managing this incredibleonline business management
business.
I have clients who I loveworking with.
I am scaling my team.

(11:55):
I have people that are reportingto me.
And I want you to just reallygive yourself some time to
imagine what that feeling is ifyou can't really put it into
words.
And this is such a powerfulexercise because the biggest,
again, the biggest mistake thatI see OBMs make is that they

(12:15):
build their business withoutknowing what success actually
looks like for them.
So I want you to think aboutwhat it looks like for you.
Is it about working with highlevel clients who truly value
your expertise?
Is it about hitting six figureswithout working 60 hour weeks?
Is it about building a small butmighty team that supports you,

(12:38):
right?
So again, you need to know whatsuccess actually looks like for
you.
Because when you're aware ofthis, or when you're actually
when you're not aware of this,right, you might take on too
many clients.
You might say yes to projectsthat are misaligned.
You might work long hours justto prove yourself and suddenly

(13:00):
you'll wake up one day andrealize that, oh no, you have
created another job instead of abusiness.
And I see this happen and itbreaks my heart and that is not
freedom.
So I want you to be brutallyhonest with yourself, okay?
Be brutally honest with yourselfand think about it.

(13:21):
What kind of business are youcreating?
Because once you define that,and if you can't really define
it in words, at least you canreally define what that feeling
is like, right?
You can start making decisionsthat actually get you there,
right?
Okay, now if there's one thingthat I want you to take away

(13:42):
from this episode, it's that youget to design your OBM business
the way you want.
And if you're ready to take thenext steps in building a
business that truly supportsyour freedom, join us for OBM
Week.
It starts today.
This is a free event we run justa few times a year where we dive
deep into the system'sstrategies and mindset shifts

(14:05):
you need to build a thriving OBMbusiness.
now if you can't make this onedon't worry we have more obm
weeks in store and amazing freeresources at obmschool.com
forward slash resources but ifyou can join us head on over to
obmschool.com forward slash obmdash week and rsvp to get access

(14:28):
to get the replays to join uslive because at the end of the
day it's not just about buildingbusinesses it's about building
lives we love if this episoderesonated with you.
Make sure you subscribe to theOBM Show so you never miss an
episode.
And if you're loving the show,leave a review.
It helps more people build abusiness and life by design.

(14:48):
I'll see you next time.