Beate Chelette is the Growth Architect and Founder of The Women’s Code and provides visionaries and leaders with strategies that grow your authority so that they can scale their impact.

A first-generation immigrant who found herself $135,000 in debt as a single parent, Beate bootstrapped her passion for photography into a highly successful global business and eventually sold it to Bill Gates in a multimillion-dollar deal. She is amongst the “Top 100 Global Thought Leaders” by PeopleHum and “One of 50 Must-Follow Women Entrepreneurs” by HuffPost.

Recent clients include Amazon, Reckitt (the maker of Lysol), Chevron, Merck, Johnson & Johnson, the Women’s Legislative Caucus of California Cal State University Dominguez Hills, Shelter Inc., Mental Health First Aid and thousands of small businesses.

Beate is the author of the #1 International Award-Winning Amazon Bestseller “Happy Woman Happy World – How to Go from Overwhelmed to Awesome”–a book that corporate trainer and best-selling author Brian Tracy calls “a handbook for every woman who wants health, success and a fulfilling career.”

Key Moments

[04:49] Stock photography business born from industry setbacks.

[06:45] Stolen business plan leads to $1,000,000 deal.

[10:18] Success requires commitment, hard work, and study.

[13:44] Successful entrepreneurs are driven by helping others.

[18:02] Acknowledge mistakes, get outside perspectives for success.

[20:07] Check out Business Growth Architect Show podcast.

Find Beate Online

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beatechelette/?hl=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beate.chelette

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beatechelette

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BeateChelette

Website: https://beatechelette.com/

Podcast: https://BusinessGrowthArchitectShow.com

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Also, if you’re getting value from the show and want to buy me a coffee, go to the show notes to get the link to get me a coffee to keep me awake, while I work on bringing you more great episodes to your ears. →  https://gmwd.us/buy-me-a-coffee

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Transcript provide by CastMagic.io

Seth [00:00:00]:

Entrepreneur’s Enigma is a podcast for the ups and downs of entrepreneurship, so the wins and the fails that we all face being entrepreneurs, how we learn from adversity. Every week, I talk to a different entrepreneur with a story to tell. I’m Seth Goldstein. Come with me on the journey. This is Entrepreneur’s Enigma. Let’s get started. Hey, everybody. Welcome to another edition Entrepreneurs Enigma podcast, I am, as always, your host, Seth.

Seth [00:00:37]:

Today, I have Beate Chelette. She is a growth architect. When I think of architect, I think Matrix, with the architect and how you grow and you know, she is a former journalist. She has a passion for photography. She is the founder of of the Woman’s Code and pro and provides visionaries and leaders with strategies that Grow your authority so that they can scale their impact. And she actually sold a Very successful global business to Bill Gates. That’s pretty cool. That’s pretty cool.

Seth [00:01:11]:

That’s pretty neat. And she’s an international award winning bestseller, on Amazon of Happy Woman, Happy World, which I do agree with. I agree with that. I’m very strong believer in happy wife, happy life as well, so let’s bring let’s bring her in here. How’s it going?

Beate [00:01:30]:

It is going very well. Thank you so much for having me, Seth. I’m looking forward to this.

Seth [00:01:34]:

Yes. So how this all get started? You’re originally from I think you said you’re from Munich. Right?

Beate [00:01:40]:

Yes. I’m originally from Munich. Oh my god. Yeah. You did.

Seth [00:01:43]:

That’s nice. Great. You’re originally from Munich. So it’s in the best beer in the world.

Beate [00:01:47]:

And pretzels. Don’t you be leaving out my pretzels?

Seth [00:01:50]:

Yeah. But I’m from Philly, so I can

Beate [00:01:53]:

Okay. Fine. You got the Fine.

Seth [00:01:55]:

We’ll do that one alone. But still, Munich has good pretzels, but the beer is fantastic. Liederhosen, all that good stuff.

Beate [00:02:02]:

I still have a pair, believe it or not.

Seth [00:02:04]:

Oh, you got it. It’s your bet you heard it.

Beate [00:02:06]:

Oh, 100%. Yes. Absolutely.

Seth [00:02:08]:

If anything, it makes a good Halloween costume.

Beate [00:02:11]:

To the embarrassment back then to the embarrassment of my daughter who couldn’t believe I was going like that, but I did, and everybody loved it but her.

Seth [00:02:18]:

Oh, I’m sure. You’re supposed to you’re supposed to torment your kids.

Beate [00:02:21]:

That’s exactly right, Ken. Like, they’re not embarrassed by you. You haven’t done a good job.

Seth [00:02:25]:

Exactly. I’m very good at my 11 year old. I’m very good at embarrassing him. So you came over to United States As a single parent and you bootstrapped your photography business, which is kinda cool. Because, I mean, being a parent in general is tough. Now you immigrate immigrate immigrated. 1 of 1 of those. Immigrated immigrated to the United States, single parent.

Seth [00:02:47]:

You have 1 kid at a time. Right?

Beate [00:02:48]:

Well, I actually immigrated by myself. So I was I was in my early twenties. I Had then fallen in love with an American man and got married and then had my child here. And the Only issue that this man had, he was perfect with 2 minor flaws. He was an alcoholic and a pathological liar.

Seth [00:03:08]:

Oh, those are bad. Those are bad.

Beate [00:03:09]:

It’s a it’s a really tar terrible combination. So by the time I figured it out, I was a single parent after a massive recession Uh-huh. Having to figure out how I’m gonna how I’m gonna Make money, run my business, and then it was laid off.

Seth [00:03:22]:

Oh, no.

Beate [00:03:23]:

Yeah. So the whole 9 yards.

Seth [00:03:25]:

It’s not like it’s not like Doing this on your own, when you have a little one at home, it’s like it’s more than stressful, to say the least, trying to make ends meet. So how does all get so how does this all get started?

Beate [00:03:38]:

It, literally started like that. I was unemployable. It was a massive recession. There were fires, floods, riots, then the big earthquake came. And I

Seth [00:03:50]:

They all piled on. Yeah.

Beate [00:03:52]:

I mean, it it literally was just piling on, and so I had to figure out how I was gonna make it on my own. And I had Been a photographer representative and a producer for still photography, so I very quickly had clients like Levi’s, Wrangler, BMW, Mercedes Benz, and a lot of European companies that came to Los Angeles to produce when it was too cold to shoot in Europe.

Seth [00:04:16]:

It gets a little cold there or at least it used to.

Beate [00:04:19]:

No. It is still it’s still So it’s

Seth [00:04:21]:

cold there out there?

Beate [00:04:22]:

Yeah. You can shoot in the winter, a photo shoot for summer We’re somewhat close in because there’s no foliage on the on the tree. So That’s true.

Seth [00:04:31]:

It kinda gives it away. Yeah.

Beate [00:04:32]:

Yes. Yeah. So that gives it away. And that’s how it how it all all started.

Seth [00:04:37]:

We’re gonna take a quick break, hear from our sponsors, and get right back to the show. Oh, that’s wild. And then long long long and behold, you sold the business to Bill Gates. How did that happen?

Beate [00:04:49]:

Yeah. So, the stock photography business Started after I lost the artist representation in the production business. And I lost the photography business due to a lawsuit With a very bad employee who got too close to a key vendor that started their own business without me. Oh, no. The I lost the Production business in September 11th. So within 24 hours, I lost a half $1,000,000 in income that had been had been booked, And it was irrevocably gone. So I had to come up with something really quickly, Seth, to figure out how I’m gonna

Seth [00:05:23]:

You’re gonna hustle.

Beate [00:05:25]:

I’m gonna hustle. Yes.

Seth [00:05:26]:

My goodness.

Beate [00:05:27]:

And that’s how the stock photography business was born, but I had no money. The lawsuit settled. It was settled for, you know, literally 0. I mean, once I had paid my debt, I had Nothing. And then I had to start all over again. And then I built this thing as fast as I could, but I was a $135,000 in debt. And then I thought that I was going To probably not going to make it. I’m flying to Germany.

Beate [00:05:50]:

I, you know, try to drum up my business. My dad has a stroke. My father had to have a

Seth [00:05:55]:

stroke. Keeps going.

Beate [00:05:56]:

It just kept going, Seth, and going and going. And then my dad had pancreatic cancer, though. So

Seth [00:06:04]:

he does.

Beate [00:06:06]:

While I’m at the funeral, the phone rings, and it’s my office in Los Angeles telling me that we are losing the house.

Seth [00:06:11]:

Oh, Oh my god.

Beate [00:06:16]:

And that was one of these defining moments that we often hear about in entrepreneurial stories where somebody said, well, how’d you make it through it? Well, I Kinda just had to surrender, and I had to say, well, I’ve done everything I could. I let it go. I come back. I get a letter from the White House, from the president of the United States.

Seth [00:06:34]:

Okay. Good news?

Beate [00:06:35]:

Yeah. Well, the president sends his best wishes. So Wonderful. Yeah. Well, for whatever that’s worth. But what it did do, it put me in touch with a small business administration.

Seth [00:06:45]:

Oh.

Beate [00:06:45]:

And they, went and took my business plan, and they helped me to make the business plan better. And then found me a bank that was restructuring My $135,000 in debt into a 10 year fixed loan that freed up my line of credit, that Brought me to break even 3 months later. That’s how close it was, 3 months between bankruptcy and break even. And then 18 18 months later, I’m the world leader in my category. That’s how the Bill Gates company comes and says, can you can you tell us how you do it? And I said, no. They said, well, what do you want? I said, you want it, you buy it. I said, fine. How much? I said, 1,000,000.

Beate [00:07:22]:

They said, fine.

Seth [00:07:24]:

That’s lovely. Was to talk talk about a turnaround story. Jeez.

Beate [00:07:29]:

Yes. Major turnaround story.

Seth [00:07:30]:

Month turnarounds well, I have 3 months turnarounds, sir. But, like, from bankruptcy to, like, Solvency. You know? You know solvency. Is that the right word? To be insolvent. Yeah. It’s the right word. Yeah. Yeah.

Seth [00:07:40]:

Oh my god. And you’re numb for the where?

Beate [00:07:45]:

I will I will tell you that this is definitely a story of resilience and

Seth [00:07:51]:

Mhmm.

Beate [00:07:51]:

Perseverance and not Giving up, but I I always have this ruling thought that I think if it’s possible, it must be possible for me.

Seth [00:07:59]:

Yeah.

Beate [00:07:59]:

If it’s possible for me, then my question isn’t can I, but How can I? And that that puts me into action, and that makes it so much better.

Seth [00:08:06]:

Because figuring out the how and the why and all that and figuring out, like, Alright. Here’s the steps I need to do to get to this point.

Beate [00:08:13]:

1 100%.

Seth [00:08:14]:

You’re just gonna jump at it and say, I’m gonna go at it. You’re gonna figure out your steps and get to the point where you can actually succeed. And and now you’re a best selling author. You have you know, you’ve worked for amazing brands.

Beate [00:08:30]:

I do.

Seth [00:08:31]:

I’m I’m sure you’re not embarrassing your daughter as much anymore.

Beate [00:08:35]:

No. No. No. No. No. My daughter now is 31. She’s A mom on her own now, and

Seth [00:08:40]:

she I appreciate what you went through.

Beate [00:08:42]:

Well, I mean, now then she’s has has to figure out how she’s gonna make money with A newborn that needs to be with her 247 Yeah. I think there’s a different appreciation of how difficult this really is when you It’s tough. When you when you when you try to figure this out on your own.

Seth [00:09:00]:

I can’t I I can’t even imagine. Like, it’s Just and it’s not now you look back on it, and it’s a story. It’s a story of resilience. And and to your credit, you’re now you’re still an entrepreneur. A lot of people say, forget this. I gotta get a job. I gotta go flip burgers. I gotta go do something else just to get started, and they throw the towel in.

Beate [00:09:25]:

You Well Yeah. The the question always is is, in in spirituality or in mindset, if you really study the universal laws of success of what that actually is Mhmm. You’ll you’ll recognize that the Ruling thought is you have to make a decision. It doesn’t say you need to make a wish. It doesn’t say you need to Evaluate opportunities. It says you make a decision. Because once you make a decision, then you Have a commitment that you made to yourself to actually execute on that decision. So if people say, well, this time I’m gonna get fit, That’s a wish

Seth [00:10:08]:

Mhmm.

Beate [00:10:09]:

Or that’s a decision. Mhmm. The wish goes, I don’t feel like it. I’ll go tomorrow, and I’ll do arms and legs.

Seth [00:10:17]:

Mhmm.

Beate [00:10:18]:

The commitment is, rain or shine, I’m going, I made that commitment. And that’s what people misunderstand about success is that success isn’t a, let’s just see how it goes. It is a commitment. And then once you make the commitment, you find people that that are doing successfully what it is that you want to do, And you study them and you find out what is it that they do. Are they running ads? All the big marketers right now that are that are killing it and making 1,000,000 of dollars are all running ads. Mhmm. So if that’s your goal, you are going to have to run ads. So you’re gonna have to figure it out how to run ads.

Seth [00:10:57]:

Yeah.

Beate [00:10:58]:

If you are looking for a business model of somebody who is Not running ads, but has a a successful group program because they’re speaking, and that’s how they find their people, Then you need to emulate that, and then you need to travel a lot and start speaking a lot so that you can you can Reverse engineer that model for you.

Seth [00:11:20]:

And it’s scary to take that step too. Like, Royce, you had to spend the money to make the money, which is such a cliche, but it is.

Beate [00:11:26]:

It is a 100%.

Seth [00:11:28]:

It’s such a cliche, and and it’s terrifying. Thank you for a guy who’s been doing a doing his business for 16 years now. You know, Realizing that, like, look, that conference is where I need to go. Well, holy crap. A conference is $1,000.

Beate [00:11:41]:

You know? At least plus the travel, plus the hotel.

Seth [00:11:44]:

Exactly. And And then

Beate [00:11:45]:

you You’re like, you you’re in every time you go. You’re it’s it’s $3. The flight, the hotel conference admission, the food, the beverages, the Hanging at the bar, talking to everybody.

Seth [00:11:55]:

Exactly. It adds up. You’re blanking, like, holy crap. I went to a conference. This was this was back in August for WordPress, And it was literally a $50 ticket because it’s it’s, subsidized by the the organization. They subsidize so everyone can come. That’s great. Still, I had to get down to the DC from Philadelphia, had to get a hotel for a few days, had to eat out a few times, like, oh my god.

Seth [00:12:19]:

I was I was in a $50 ticket in $2,000.

Beate [00:12:24]:

At at at least at least. That’s just, you know, that’s just the way it goes. So I think you have to be very clear about that as you go in. Every strategy costs money. Ads cost money. Speaking cost money. Traveling costs money. Being in your office and having, you know, time

Seth [00:12:43]:

don’t cost money.

Beate [00:12:44]:

That that that that that make phone calls cost money. So you Computer You’re not gonna get promoted. It’s just a question, what are you going to pick? And I think a lot of times, Seth, business owners, entrepreneurs, Founders go, well, I’m I’m I’m gonna keep doing what I’m doing until it works, and then I’m gonna do the other thing. The problem is if you Keep doing what you’re already doing. You’re just doing more of that same thing unless you you have to change 1 1 variable. Like, 1 plus 1 is always 2.

Seth [00:13:13]:

Yeah.

Beate [00:13:13]:

So if you do 1 by 1, 1 times 1, or 1 divided by 1 Yeah. Or 1 plus 2, Then something changes. But if you always do 1 plus 1, it will always remain the same. And this is this this entrepreneurial insanity we talk about a lot. It’s like, well, you’re You’re doing the same thing. What do you expect? A miracle?

Seth [00:13:33]:

Yeah. And the miracles are hard to come by. Exactly. So What is the best thing in your mind being an entrepreneur versus going to the corporate world? I think, screw this. I’m gonna go corporate.

Beate [00:13:44]:

I think that You have to have a fire inside where there is something that you feel you need to do that Is helping other people in some sort or shape or form. I found that the most successful entrepreneurs are people That are really driven by this unseen force that will that that that pushes them so hard That they cannot but do this. Typically, my friend Jeff Hayes did a a television series around it and wrote a book called The brain. And I’m very, thrilled that I’m featured in this, in this series that is about to be published. And in the entrepreneurial brain, he says that you need to think about this from the perspective that the entrepreneurial brain, the data shows, It has similar traits to somebody, you know, to a drug addict or a or or or or somebody who is Mentally not quite there because

Seth [00:14:48]:

I love it.

Beate [00:14:48]:

Or like a serial like a serial killer or something. It shows it It shows similarity. And and why? Because it refuses to accept rules as facts. So the entrepreneurial brain looks for the bend or break rules, which is what makes them innovate because we are creating status quo in school.

Seth [00:15:10]:

Yeah. I love how you can I love how you can well, the book and you compare it to being mentally unstable? Because I think you kinda have to be a little mentally

Beate [00:15:19]:

to the unstable to wanting to do this. Yes. Thank you. Yeah. Why would

Seth [00:15:22]:

you like, why would you wanna do like like, why would you wanna be on your own or have a even worse, have people below you. You’ve now in charge of not only your own family, you’re in charge of your work family and their families. I mean, you kinda have to have a little bit of nuts in you to do it, but but there’s something about it. I mean, I know from a fact that something about it, like, doing what you want when you want is incredible.

Beate [00:15:48]:

Yeah. I I I I agree, but but it It is like a drug because once you do it, you just can’t stop. So, yes, I I do think that there is something in the brain, and it’s only 4%.

Seth [00:15:59]:

I

Beate [00:16:00]:

know. Representive people who have that.

Seth [00:16:01]:

So what’s what’s the scariest thing about being an entrepreneur? What has kept you up at night?

Beate [00:16:07]:

I think the scariest thing about entrepreneurship is that everything always changes, and then you you wonder if you’re gonna figure out the thing fast enough to make the money or to make the impact. Because a lot of times, by the time we get there, the market’s already changed. And when you look at this from a COVID perspective, Before COVID, I was doing a lot of speaking about women entrepreneurship and women leadership. Yeah. It was a huge thing, You know, equality, gender equality, equal pay. And then COVID came and this and it literally just the the topic got wiped out. Wiped out. Yeah.

Seth [00:16:41]:

And

Beate [00:16:41]:

then this backlash started with the Me Too movement where then a lot of men couldn’t wait to put their Finger back at women, and now look at what we are what’s happening to women’s rights all over the world. It’s worse than it’s ever been. I mean, we’ve gone back to before the sixties with some of the

Seth [00:16:58]:

I know. It’s it was a 3 it was a 3 year pandemic did that. I mean, it didn’t directly do it, but, I mean, inadvertently did it. Like, it’s It’s insane the way things are

Beate [00:17:06]:

No. It’s not inadvertently at all. It is it is a group of people that are waiting for an opportunity in a moment where They can push out an ideology, and it it it keeps going in this wave. I have fought this fight. I cannot even tell you how many times I’ve I’ve I’ve I’ve been in this and it seems to never end. And there comes a point where you say, look, I fought this for so long. If this next generation doesn’t understand understand the pattern of how this works. I can’t help you.

Beate [00:17:37]:

I cannot fight this for you. You’re gonna have to fight for yourself at some point.

Seth [00:17:41]:

Yeah. It it’s it’s scary and it’s it’s just not just that. It’s a lot of things have changed because of the pandemic. And People had a chance to kind of noodle around and figure out how they’re gonna subjugate people or how they’re gonna advance people, and all that stuff. So on a more positive note, what is the most important thing to carry with you all the time?

Beate [00:18:02]:

I think it is a awareness that not all your decisions are going to be great decisions. That you are going to screw up. You are going to cover up what you don’t know. You’re gonna tend to know something you don’t know because that’s what we have to do. But there comes a point where you really have to get people that are better at some things than you are, And you have to listen, especially to controversial viewpoints of what you think it is. Because if If otherwise, you run the danger of creating a Phantom avatar, a Phantom product for a Phantom clientele, And you want to be hitting a good product market fit. So it is your idea. It’ll always be your idea, but you want to get outside influences In to tell you the truth.

Seth [00:18:53]:

Yeah. It’s great. I think I think a lot of people that’s underrated and people don’t realize that you gotta think about that.

Beate [00:19:01]:

Mhmm. Yeah. I mean, I had a a high ticket sales guy I hired, and the guy Just made my blood boil.

Seth [00:19:10]:

Oh, no.

Beate [00:19:11]:

It was so it was so, temperamental. Let’s put it this way.

Seth [00:19:16]:

Yeah.

Beate [00:19:17]:

And Ultimately, looking back from what happened at the beginning of the year and where we are right now, I think it’s probably the best thing that ever happened because he I I couldn’t stand it. It made me so upset that it then forced me to look at all the stuff that I was doing or not doing and rip all the band aids off. And then I really saw what happening. And as a result of it, we made a lot of changes and we are now starting to see results, coming in That are very, very promising, but that sometimes you have to do. Don’t defend your opinion that you’re right. That’s not what entrepreneurship is about. Defend defend being right when the market tells you that you’re right.

Seth [00:19:58]:

Have proof that you’re right, then just throw it out there. Yeah. Prove it. Damn it. Prove it. Exactly. So best place to find you online. If you would like

Beate [00:20:07]:

to hang out. 1? Yeah. Hang out with me. Go check out my podcast. It’s called the Business Growth Architect Show. Or if you heard something where you go, I need to speak to Could Beatev please mention this show? Go to uncoverysession.com, so we can give you priority treatment while we are here. Please make sure that wherever you pick up the entrepreneur’s enigma that you go there now, give Seth a 5 star review, and Make an actual comment, and here’s why the comment is so critical. Yeah.

Beate [00:20:38]:

Yes. Because the comment tells the algorithm there’s engagement. Even if it’s a green heart, that means you listen The entire episode Yeah. That will help this message to get out in front of us.

Seth [00:20:48]:

Absolutely. The funny thing is I rank 59 in entrepreneurship in Kenya. So I’m very proud of that stat.

Beate [00:20:55]:

He has a shout out to all the Kenyan list listening to this.

Seth [00:20:58]:

Yes. Thank you. Thank you so much. So and then it also finds you on you you have what is your social media of choice? LinkedIn?

Beate [00:21:04]:

My social media I’m literally on all of social media. You find me either under Beata Gillette or The Growth Architect. Drop into my DM. Reach out. Just always make sure you mention the show so I know where you’re coming from.

Seth [00:21:15]:

Exactly. Not coming out of the blue. Exactly. Well, Beate, this has been so much fun. I’m so glad we finally got to connect again, and we’ll see everyone next time. That was a great show. If you’re enjoying Entrepreneur’s Enigma, please view us in the podcast directory of your choice. Every review helps other podcast listeners find our show.

Seth [00:21:38]:

If you’re looking for other podcasts in the marketing space, look no further than The Marketing Podcast Network at marketingpodcasts .net. Goldstein hopes you have enjoyed this episode.