Meet Teresa Willis | Mobile Notary Signing Agent

We had the good fortune of connecting with Teresa Willis and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Teresa, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Starting my own business was driven from quite a few things, but I guess the main drive is from my experience in corporate America. I was raised to strive for a “good job” with a “good company” and to work my way to a “good paying position” by being a long-standing employee. My grandfather worked a blue collar until he couldn’t any more. I have uncles in blue collar positions with their corporate companies since 1979 because what they were taught worked for them. I can’t say the same. I find Corporate America kind of stifling to a degree. Your growth and potential are set upon what someone else thinks of you, but with your own business you are able to operate according to what you think of yourself and allows for your growth to be determined upon how and who you service directly, not so much on who’s position you threaten. Being an entrepreneur allows you to eventually receive full return for what you sacrifice and put into it. With that being said, I am still in corporate America, and starting my business was ignited by needing to pad finances. That’s what actually pushed me to pull the trigger.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am a dual professional- I still have a corporate 9-5 as an A/R specialist, as I operate as a full time mobile notary service. I ventured into operating my own business by just trying to supplement my income. This began to grow more than I set out for it to be, so it became more than a side job. The challenge that I faced with this is that I’m not too good of a quitter, so I haven’t found it easy to walk away from 20 years of my corporate profession, or to minimize my notary services. So I put in a lot of time on the corporate clock while being an entrepreneur. I went into running a mobile notary business on a small level, again just to supplement some income. I had no idea the varieties it had to offer. I was such a convenience to my clients it became hard to offer less. Of course there were many challenges, the biggest was balancing time. I am a wife, mother, daughter, and grandmother too, so my family has had to sacrifice probably more than I have. I am grateful that they all really support me the way that they do. I struggled with time management the most, and this contributed to much stress and anxiety. If I was going to stay in both positions I had to make some different decisions. I had to better manage my time. Focusing on time management strengthened my business. I found that you can actually do more business when you don’t overload your schedule.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I absolutely love that our city is on the water! We would have to visit the water on the best weather permitting day in Cleveland during the visit. We would have to visit the Cleveland Museum of Art and maybe the Botanical Garden as well. We would take a ride through the Boulevard and I would likely take a cruise through the areas I grew up in. We would have to find a production at the Cleveland Playhouse to enjoy and visit Beachwood and South Park malls for some shopping. We would hit up happy hour at Pier W maybe a few times. Angelo’s Pizza and Cilantro Taqueria, both in Lakewood. Since I don’t mind hanging at home we would have to make a trip or two to Whole Foods and Lucky’s Supermarket for some home cooked meals.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My business shout out goes to The Notary Coach! This community really offers so much support and information to take my notary business to further heights. I’ve networked and connected with other organizations over the years, and I have not had a group that offers the support that I’ve had being connected to this community. My biggest shout out my family: my husband, our children and grandkids. There is no point without your “Why.” The sacrifice we endure together just so they can support my success and happiness is so humbling. I could not have a better “Why.”

Other: All currently under re-construction