Today's guest, joining us today on the Join Up Dots entrepreneur podcast interview is a lady who connected with the show through the contact form, and so eloquently did she pitch herself I just had to have her on the show. As she said "I believe I would be a great fit for your show, as I am a business owner who is open and honest about both the struggles and the excitement of this entrepreneurial journey. I've worked for Fortune 500 companies, and started several different types of online businesses. Here's my story…. -I graduated in 2010 from The University of Michigan with a degree in business and after graduating from college, I rose through the ranks of PepsiCo, managing marketing campaigns for some of the largest brands in the world, working alongside celebrities, and working with partners such as The Golden Globes, The Grammy's, and the NFL. During my time at PepsiCo, I tried to launch a side hustle selling branded sports bras to collegiate athletic teams...this failed - so I quit Pepsi to launch my first successful business: The Dessert Place. This was a revived family business, in which I turned my mother's famous bakery (which had closed in 1996) into an e-commerce platform. - I realized I didn't actually like baking and my heart wasn't fully into this business. So I built an online course teaching parents how to navigate college admissions with their kids. I love getting to help families with this journey, and love chatting about colleges and visiting college campuses. Based on the podcasts I'd listened to and the courses I'd bought, I thought that creating a sales funnel for my online course would be a walk in the park and I'd be an overnight success. I was wrong! This business has been a challenge, but I'm slowly and steadily building it up and loving the challenges. In just a few weeks, I'll be packing up my life and moving to Bali where I'll be living/working/traveling around Southeast Asia for an indefinite amount of time (one way ticket booked!). The last 3 years of entrepreneurship have, without a doubt, been the most challenging years of my life. The hardest part of entrepreneurship has been the mindset, which I never expected. I have spent every spare moment of time reading more self development books than I can count, and binge listening to podcasts for countless hours. I love that Join Up Dots shares real stories, including the failures, the fears, and the mindset struggles that come along with the entrepreneurial life. Binge listening to this podcast (and the stories of others who have gone before me) is the reason that I've had the confidence to keep persevering, and I'd love to give back and help others who are on the same path. Well if that doesn't excite my listeners as much as it did me then I dont know what will. So when the idea for the college business came to her did she think "Nah, that must have been done before...i'll find something else." And does she now consider herself and success or simply just getting going? Well let's find out as we bring onto the show to start joining up dots with the one and only Marisa Meddin. Show Highlights During the entrepreneur podcast show we had deep hitting conversations with Marisa Meddin around subjects such as: Why a lucrative business is not always a good business. No matter how much you think its about the money it never truly is. Marisa shares the first steps she took to get to make her campus business get off the ground. Powerful simplicity at its best. We discuss how having a life where vacations can blend into real life brings about an amazing lifestyle which is available to all. And lastly Why building a business is 90% mental and 10% technical. You have to get out of your own head to be able to achieve what you want.