What I love about Morecambe Bay Wills!
Running my own business? I had never even thought this was possible. It took a terrible tragedy for me to look at my life and career, and come up with the idea of working for myself. Now, almost 5 years later I can honestly say it’s one of the best decisions I ever made! Here’s why!
Why I started
Many of you will know that I started Morecambe Bay Wills after my husband of 23 years, died from Pancreatic Cancer in August 2018.
I realised that there would be many others in the same situation as we had been. Jim hadn’t had the chance to update his Will. We had struggled without Powers of Attorney when he was too ill to make decisions or take actions. Then I had a really difficult time with Inheritance Tax and Probate – long, complicated forms and lots of learning as I went along!
I realised that even though I was pretty sharp, this was a draining and emotional process. So, I decided to retrain to allow me to learn more and helps others who may be in that situation. Or, even better, prevent them from being in the same situation as I had been. And that whilst I was doing this, I would also try to do some good in our community.
The days of making money for corporate shareholders were gone, and the start of a new career that would help others and our community were beginning!
Morecambe Bay Wills – from then until now
In March 2019, I launched Morecambe Bay Wills and was now running my own business! I always knew if I was going to do this it could be emotional for me, so I started slowly. After training I reached out to potential clients via a local women’s business group. And I started to get customers! They liked my story and my ethics and after making their own documents, recommended me to their friends too.
By the end of 2019 I knew this was absolutely the right decision for me. Although it did bring lots of emotions to the surface, I realised how much good it was doing for my clients, and for me! It allowed me to face my own situation and get the satisfaction that I knew what I was doing was really helping others too.
Since then, we’ve grown a lot! And how!
We’ve now have a team of six! Estate Planners Andrea and Jane, and Paula, Georgia and Sue who all look after the administration for us and our clients. We have moved into offices and that’s made us more efficient and allowed clients a choice of where they’d like to see us. We’ve won awards! Quite a few of them! But more importantly, we have done so much to help others in our community – from visits to community groups, sponsoring love events and raising well over £16,000 for charity.
So what do I love about running my own business?
Someone asked me this recently.
Firstly, I thought about the negatives – it’s scary!
You leave the comfort of being an employee – with the guaranteed benefits like holiday pay, pensions, sick pay etc. You’re out on your own! You need to learn so much – and become a mini expert in so many new things like accounting, marketing, data protection, legalities. It’s stressful – cashflow, clients, leads, sales, responsibility!
But if you surround yourself with other business owners, you make amazing connections who are there to help. They can connect you with people who are there to help and support you. Networking, delegation and outsourcing is the key!
But the question is – what do I love about it?
Firstly, I am incredibly honoured to be running my own business. It was a big step – into the unknown. Many business owners know their craft, or their subject. I only knew a little about the law, but what drove me (and still does!) was a passion to help others. And that’s the best thing about running Morecambe Bay Wills.
Every week we get calls from people who need help. They have questions. They are unsure. And, given the fact we are talking about death and illness, they are scared too! Being able to chat to them is a privilege. We know that we, as a team, can make this easier for them.
I love the excitement – no matter how much you plan you can’t plan everything! We may get an unexpected call. And we all have to jump into action to help someone who isn’t well for example. Or we may have a quiet few days, but we know tomorrow the phone will ringing off the hook!. Opportunities arise – we are looking at two right now! – to do more things, or different things.
I am excited that we are employing local people – yes, it’s a big burden and sometimes can add stress when you have to think about the next payroll. But the fact that we are giving back to our community in this way makes me really proud.
I enjoy the fact that the team is continually learning. Every week brings a new scenario we’ve not dealt with before. The Estate Planners have to undertake Continual Professional Development and some structural learning. But the Administration team also learn. They come up with new ways to make us more efficient. Or they sit in on client meetings, so they have a deep understanding. And when we get a new idea, we are all excited!
I am delighted that we’ve just introduced a profit share scheme. I have committed to the team that they will share 50% of our profits each year. We are all sharing in our success.
I love that we go out into our community to spread awareness. Andrea visits lots of businesses for “lunch and learn” type sessions to help them understand why you need a Will or a Power of Attorney. Jane visits community groups to chat with people who really need our services. And I do a bit of both – because I love going out and meeting new people! We are passionate about making sure that everyone knows that making a Will or POA is the kindest thing you can do for your loved ones.
Oh and I love the flexibility! I can spread my work across the week to suit myself … taking care of personal things when I need to. And in the last couple of years, when both parents and my in-laws have been ill and needed help, that meant I was there to assist when needed.
And what makes me most proud?
Morecambe Bay Wills does good. That’s the bottom line.
We are here to support our community and spread the word. The team focus on helping people get the most important documents in place – in an affordable way. We make it happen, and we make it easy. And we love seeing them get that peace of mind.
The fact that we raise money for some really amazing charities is wonderful. I never set up the business to make lots of money, but we are supporting local people and ploughing our profits back into wonderful causes.
But the thing that makes me most proud of running my own business is that I turned something awful into something really amazing. And I know that Jim would be proud too.
If you would like our fabulous team to help with your own important documents, in a kind and caring way, please contact us on 01524 571032. Or complete the Information Request form on our website here.