Inspirational Grandmother of Seventeen Sets Her Sights on Seminars

As a proud mother of six and grandmother of seventeen, 57 year old Jean Wilkinson has her hands full. Working a four day week as a NHS administrator, Jean and her husband of twenty five years make just enough money to make ends meet, with a few small luxuries. About four years ago, Jean started feeling there must be more to life than the 9-5 and began researching her options on the internet.

Having worked all her life as a PA and administrator, Jean began looking into freelance secretarial work and the idea of starting her own business was planted in her mind.

"Through my research, I thought to myself, 'there's a lot of money to be made out there on the internet', the question is -- how do I tap into it? The information is out there telling you 'what' to do; there just wasn't enough on 'how' to do it."

One day a sales letter came through the post from an American internet marketer, promising riches. At a turning point in her life, Jean took a look at the recommended website and liked what she saw. She began investing in sales and marketing books, spending every evening gathering more and more information about making that elusive extra few hundred pound a month from the internet.

Deciding she had little to lose, Jean signed up to the website and began focusing her mind on a business plan. Through attending a series of seminars and bootcamps, Jean began meeting likeminded people and sharing ideas. One day, she bumped into Nick James, a Reading based internet entrepreneur who had risen from a car park attendant to a wealthy, successful internet business guru in a few short years. She took a tour around his website, an online business club for UK entrepreneurs, (Nick-James.com), accepted a special offer of three months free membership, and has never looked back.

"On Nick's site, I found everything I needed in the initial stages of getting my business up and running. The articles, tools and information have knocked at least a year off my research as everything is relevant and together in one place. What's more, in the members discussion forum, I found a ready made support network of people in similar situations, sharing hints and tips they had gathered through their own experience. Finally, here was a site full of practical advice on 'how' to do things, from the most basic questions such as 'how do I build a website' through to more complex problems such as setting up auto responders and taking payments."

After initially considering writing and selling e-books, Jean sat down and thought hard about what she was best at.

"I've been organising conferences and seminars for more than fifteen years and decided to put my skills into practice."

Buoyed by her research and steep learning curve, Jean came up with the idea of putting on an exclusive conference about something she was keen to know more about: the building blocks of internet marketing, with space for no more than thirty people. The plan is to show people how to get started, with a series of talks from the professionals followed by workshops where the attendees can put their learning into practice. Calling on the experience of many of the members of Nick's site, including Nick himself agreeing to speak, Jean is currently pulling together the final plans.

"It's going to be a two day seminar in Birmingham, held at a hotel. There will be talks on getting your first website together, explaining the 'hows' behind construction and design, along with plenty of advice on how to choose your product and promote it," Jean notes.

To make things a bit different, and more fun, Jean has arranged a Friday night dinner, where everyone can meet before the seminar begins. Each table will have a unique theme and people swap places between meals, 'speed dining' rather than 'speed dating'. Jean works on the premise that creating an informal, relaxing environment will break the ice, encouraging people to learn more. She's currently hard at work on producing the marketing material for the conference, planned for late in the year.

"I want to communicate that 'I've been there'. A year ago I didn't have a clue how to go it alone in business .With the right attitude and careful planning, there's nothing stopping anyone from doing the same."

If all runs smoothly, Jean is anticipating making a £30,000 profit from her seminar, and quitting her job by the end of the year to manage her business full time. With an enviable list of speakers lined up, Jean has the blueprint in place and the people on board. As a supplement, she's currently working on creating a 'seminar expert in a box', distilling her expertise into a marketable product.

Though things are definitely looking up for Jean, it hasn't always been easy to keep up the drive and momentum required to get a business off the ground. She has a few hints and tips for people wanting to take a similar path, based on her experiences.

"Be careful, and take it one step at a time. You will be promised the world with every new business opportunity and there is money out there, but go into things with your eyes open and manage your expectations from the outset. Success doesn't happen over night, and it's easy to be sidetracked looking at the bigger picture. Don't try and do everything at once. Do your research; get your website and first product up and running before you start thinking about the second. And build your business gradually, as and when you have the money and time to invest."

"You have to be determined, and want to do it, to succeed. There will be many hurdles along the way which you need to prepare for and most importantly, find an online forum or discussion group full of likeminded people who are experiencing similar issues; their advice will be invaluable. Not only has the process of creating my business been full of discovery, but it's given me a newfound confidence and the hope of a better life."