Angela Greaser, co-founder of Stand for the And, shares how an unexpected change in life plans led her from pursuing international missions to building a thriving online business. In this episode, she talks about designing a business around your values, raising entrepreneurial kids, and why success starts with knowing the life you want to create.
Check Out These Highlights:
What if building a successful business wasn't about working harder, but about building one that actually supports the life you want?
In this episode, Toby sits down with Angela Greaser, co-founder of Stand for the And, to explore the unexpected path that led her into entrepreneurship. Angela reflects on growing up with a heart for teaching and international missions, preparing to move to Africa before her husband's health challenges changed the course of their lives. Instead of seeing that closed door as the end of the story, she embraced a new one that eventually led to helping entrepreneurs build sustainable businesses.
Angela shares what it's really like running multiple businesses with her husband while partnering with her best friend, Melissa, and raising two homeschooled children who have grown up immersed in entrepreneurship. Their conversation explores how intentionally involving their children in the family business has given them a completely different perspective on work, responsibility, and what's possible for their future.
Toby and Angela also dive into one of the core philosophies behind Stand for the And: "backwards mapping." Rather than starting with a business idea and hoping it works, Angela explains how entrepreneurs can begin with the life and income they want, then build an offer and business model that intentionally supports those goals.
Whether you're just starting your business or reevaluating the one you've built, this episode offers practical wisdom and an encouraging reminder that your path doesn't have to look like anyone else's, and sometimes the biggest pivots lead to the most meaningful opportunities.
About Angela Greaser:
Angela Greaser is the co-founder of Stand for the And, where she helps entrepreneurs build businesses that create meaningful impact while supporting the lives they want to live. Through coaching, systems, and the Sold Out Offer System, she teaches business owners how to simplify their strategy, build sustainable offers, and grow with intention.
Connect with Angela:
🌐 Website: https://standfortheand.com/
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-greaser-954b4ab6/
🎁 Free Resource: https://standfortheand.com/soldout
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About Me: https://tobymyles.com/about/
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My guest today is Angela Greaser, business strategist, coach, and co-founder of Stand for the And. In this conversation, Angela shares how what looked like a straightforward career in education took an unexpected turn after becoming a mom. A chance conversation while standing in line at Walmart sparked an opportunity she never saw coming, eventually leading her into entrepreneurship and the work she does today. We talk about following unexpected opportunities, building a business that supports the life you actually want, and why some of the biggest turning points begin with an ordinary moment you almost missed.
Toby Myles: Hey, Angela. Welcome to the podcast.
Angela Greaser: Oh, thank you so much for having me. It's been a long time coming.
Toby Myles: I know. I know. I was like, "We have to do this." I was so c- excited for it, and life, life, business, all the things, um, which is just this, the way it goes. But we roll- It is ... with it.
Angela Greaser: We do.
Toby Myles: And we're good, and we made it.
Um, and I'm excited for this conversation. So I usually kick things off by sharing how we know each other, because for some reason I find that interesting. I don't know if anyone else thinks it's interesting. I think it's- I think it's interesting ... I think it's interesting, right? Yeah. So I think I first, um- met you.
I'm doing air quotes, people f- that are listening, you can't see, through Melissa. Yeah, for sure. Um, I've known Melissa, like, a bazillion years. I think she said, like, 100 years in, like, dog years or something like that. Yes. But a long time. And, um, I've attended, um, uh, webinars and workshops that you guys have done for many years.
And then last year I finally said, "You know what? It's time for me to join the Impact Incubator," and I've gotten to know you better. And it's made so much difference in my business, in how I see things, and clarity and, and just the community itself. So- Yeah ... um, so we're new-ish friends, but I feel like I've known you for a longer time than I actually have.
Angela Greaser: Yeah. Yeah, for sure. And, and you were definitely on... I, I don't know if w- I've ever told you this or Melissa ever told you, but when we started our business- Mm-hmm ... of Stand For The And, and we started Impact Incubator, you were on our dream client list.
Toby Myles: Aw.
Angela Greaser: We listed everybody who were like, "Who have we interacted with?
Who have we known, and who do we think we could help?" And you had been on our list. And when you finally joined, we were like, "Oh my gosh, we finally-" Finally. "... got to work with Toby." 'Cause we just adore you, and you're so good at what you do, and it's just, it's-
Toby Myles: Oh, thank you ...
Angela Greaser: such a... It's so fun and such an honor to help you make it bigger and more profitable and-
Toby Myles: Yeah
Angela Greaser: more fun.
Toby Myles: All the things. Thank you. All the things. I did not know that, so thank you for sharing
Angela Greaser: that. Yes, you were on the list.
Toby Myles: Oh, I was on the list. Um, so I would love for you to take me back to either, like, a very specific moment in time, or maybe it was, like, a cluster of moments that you feel really, like, put you on the path that you're on right now.
Angela Greaser: Yeah. Yeah. Um, I'm gonna go back to pre-online business because that's really- Okay ... it's really where it all began for me. Um, I, definitely growing up and, and through college and getting married, was on, like, the traditional American path of you graduate high school, you go to college, you get a degree, you get a job, and then you're there until you die, right?
Yes. That's just, like, that's kind of what we were told to do. Mm-hmm. That that's, that's the right thing and the safe thing to do. You get your health insurance. You walk this path that, that was laid out before you in the very traditional Western American way. Um, and I was... I had a degree in education. I was a classroom teacher, and then I ended up being a director of a early childhood center.
Um, and it was so fulfilling, and I absolutely loved it. And there, you know, some years into doing that, um, my husband and I got pregnant, and we were having our first baby, and I was like, "This is the best," because my school had... We had about 250 kids. It was infants all the way up through sixth grade, so a huge range.
Oh, wow.
Toby Myles: Okay.
Angela Greaser: Yeah. Yeah, so, so we had the whole gamut. Um, and it was a pr- a private school. Um, but I was like, "This is the best. I can take my baby to work with me." Mm-hmm. Like, "This is gonna be so great." Well, when you are there 60 hours a week, you don't see your baby very much. Mm. Your baby's in the other room.
Right. And it sounded great, and, and I got to nurse, and there were so many great perks about it. And I was working so hard, and I was so depleted, but again, like, I was a good kid. Like, I follow... I was a rule follower. And so I'm like, "Okay, this is just what we do. We just get really tired." Mm-hmm. "And we work a lot for not a lot of money, and we're just happy with what we have," which is absolutely fine, and never had any thought in my mind of doing anything different.
Um, and I was on my way home from a long day at the school, had Ellie with me. My, my first child, had Ellie with me. Had to stop at Walmart to get some things, and as the lines are at Walmart, they were kind of very, very, very long. Mm-hmm. And so I'm standing in this long line, and this woman turns around, and we're talking about the weather and just small talk, cute baby, all of, you know, the, the typical small talk.
And she starts telling me about this law firm she works at, and she said, "You know, we, we just switched to these digital filing system, and I'm so stressed out, and I don't know what I'm doing, and, like, this is so far beyond my skill set." And I was like, "Oh, yeah. You know, we just did that at our school last year."
Mm-hmm. "So, like, if you need help just let me know. Like, I'm happy to, happy to help if I can." And she's like, "Oh my gosh, amazing. What's your hourly rate?"
Toby Myles: Oh.
Angela Greaser: And I was like
Toby Myles: I don't know. What?
Angela Greaser: So I'm, like, super playing it cool- Mm-hmm ... which is not my MO. I am not a play it cool kind of girl. But I, in that moment, I played it cool.
Uh-huh. And, like, I took my, um, my salary, 'cause I hadn't even thought in hourly in so long, 'cause it's education and you just work forever. Yeah. Um, and so I quickly, like, did math in my head, and then I increased it a little bit.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Angela Greaser: And I, I said this number, and she was like, "Amazing. Can you start tomorrow?"
Toby Myles: Oh.
Angela Greaser: And I was like, "Yes, I can."
Toby Myles: Of
Angela Greaser: course
Toby Myles: I can. "
Angela Greaser: Here's my Gmail account." Yeah. "Email me." Um, and she did. Like, she went back and- Oh, my goodness ... and I got home and I was like, "I think I just started a business." And Dan was like, "What are you talking about?" And, and it just ended up in this amazing serendipity of taking the skills that I had learned in education, but also in education administration you're, you're everything.
You have to learn marketing and sales and customer service and graphic design and in addition to all of the traditional educational skills that you have in that field. Right. Um, and I ended up just kind of getting client after client just from... A- and really just from operational type things. Mm-hmm. Um, and it j- it got to the point where I could leave my job and do this while my husband was still in his, um...
He was in corporate HR, and he was doing his thing, and so I could stay home and be with Ellie- Mm-hmm ... um, and also run this business, which came from being in line at Walmart. So that, that's kind of my origin story of, of how, how it all started.
Toby Myles: That's amazing. So w- when you switched, because it sounded like you knew, like, education was gonna be your path, were there any, like- weird feelings about like, "Oh, this is what I was meant to do, but now I'm leaving behind what I went to college for to do something totally different."
W- did you have to reconcile any of those feelings at all?
Angela Greaser: I didn't. Because it was one of those things that I had a new purpose. Mm-hmm. And my purpose was really, I really wanted to be a present mom, and I was really excited about this new phase of life because, um, you know, Dan and I for years, we had no intention of having children.
Toby Myles: Mm.
Angela Greaser: And we are just like, "We are so happy being the fun aunt and uncle." Yeah. "And we'll, you know, we- but we don't need to take your kids home. Like, we're good." Right. It, it was, it was that, and we loved kids, and obviously I was in education. Mm-hmm. But I never felt that, um, that real drive or calling to be a, a parent myself.
Mm-hmm. And it wasn't until, um, it was actually Dan's mom passed away, um, from cancer, and as she was getting towards the end of her life, Dan and I were having these conversations of like, "Oh my gosh, what is life for?" Yeah. "And what's left when..." You know, all of these deep things, and we, we prayed about it and we really were like, "Is this, i- are we called to be parents?"
Because we just had a very firm belief of like we're not having kids 'cause we're supposed to. We're not just doing it- Yeah ... 'cause that's what married people do or that's what couples do. Um, and we really felt that on our heart that yeah, like this is, this is right for us. Mm-hmm. And so when we had our first, I was all about like whatever I need to do to be a present parent, and it, it was a...
Even, even education, how I ended up in education, it was never l- I didn't grow up thinking, "I'm gonna be a teacher." Mm-hmm. It was just kind of my, um, uh, i- it was a tangible way for me to help. Mm-hmm. And I, it, it just kind of, I just kind of fell into education. Mm-hmm. Where, uh, it wasn't like this lifelong passion of like, "I'm gonna be a teacher."
Mm-hmm. Yeah. Because even that, like through my path in education, I was in the classroom and that, but I was also in an administration, so I didn't necessarily feel too much of that separation of like, "Ah, I'm abandoning my passion-" Yeah ... "so I can be a stay-at-home mom." It, it was like, "This is a new passion and I'm gonna use my skills in a new way."
Toby Myles: Yeah, yeah. I love that. So, um, so you mentioned like pre-internet, pre-online, like- Yeah ... how do, like nowadays it's hard enough to learn all the things you need to learn- Yeah ... to start a business, right? Mm-hmm. I was just having a conversation today, earlier today with Ramona Baker. You know Ramona. Yay. I
Angela Greaser: love her.
Toby Myles: And we were talking about how, um, you know- Um, she finds that especially in her line of work, working in the arts, that, like, some people just wanna do the thing that they love. They don't wanna do all the thi- all the business-y- Yeah ... kinda things, right? Mm-hmm. Um, especially artists. Yeah. And so, but I'm curious, like, how did you, um, like what did you rely on back, back in the day to learn- Yeah
those skills?
Angela Greaser: Grit. Being stubborn, and also I think the core belief that I knew I could figure it out. Mm-hmm. It was just the... If there's, if there's a program, somebody made this program, so I can figure it out. Darn it, I'm gonna get this Excel thing. I'm gonna figure out- Yeah. ... this spreadsheet. You know, it was...
There weren't y- all the YouTube tutorials and- Yeah ... all of the blog post. Like, n- all of that was n- not around. So it was really- Mm ... f- uh, just having the confidence to say yes and figuring it out along the way. You know- Yeah ... I had never worked in a law firm before. I, I, I, I didn't know anything about law firms' digital filing systems or, or what that would mean.
Mm-hmm. But I knew... And, and I didn't offer to help because I thought she was gonna pay me or that it would become what it is now. Yeah. But it was a, just an unshakable belief that I can figure this out. There is a solution. There's not some magical gatekeeper that is gonna show me what I need to do this. I- if somebody else can do it, so can I.
Sure. And that... A- and I, I wish there would've been... I probably would've moved faster if there was more resources back then. Mm-hmm. But, um, yeah, you just kinda figure it out.
Toby Myles: You figure it out. Yeah. It's so funny because sometimes that is the life of an entrepreneur, especially in the early days as... I was, um, I went to school for graphic design and worked for a design firm in Washington, DC for about two years before, at the ripe old age of 20-something, 23 or whatever, I decided, "Oh, I can do this on my own.
I don't need to work for somebody else." And so I went off and freelanced for the next 16 years. Um, and I said yes to things that I had no idea how I was gonna figure out how to do them, and stressed about them- Yeah ... because it's like, "Oh, my God. Why did I say yes to this?"
Angela Greaser: Oh, yeah. I had plenty of those moments, for sure.
For sure.
Toby Myles: So, okay, so you start this business. Mm-hmm. Um, and then did that lead to you seeking more clients, or was that kind of like... Did that become, like, a full-time thing on its own with that one client? It definitely wasn't. Oh, it wasn't. Okay.
Angela Greaser: Yeah, it was not. No, no. It was very small, and I don't even think I still worked with them when I left, um- Mm-hmm
Education. But what ended up happening, it, I think it's just a, a true testament to the power of networking and, and always women creating opportunities for other women. You know, my, um... When I was in education, I was... Before I was a director at the school I was at, I was an assistant director for another school, and the woman there, um, who was the director, Stephanie Palmer, became my mentor in every sense of the word.
Okay. In education, in administration, in life, in- In spirituality. Like, uh, she was just such an amazing friend and, uh, a mentor to me in so many ways. And when I started going out on my own, it was around the same time that her daughter started going out on her own. Okay. Her husband is, um, an incredible coach and entrepreneur, had been.
He was like... He's like an OG of- Oh, yeah ... like, the coaching industry. Mm-hmm. Um, Jim Palmer. And he, um- He had hired their daughter to do, like, some VA work.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Angela Greaser: And what she had ended up finding was she literally started, a- again, being, wanting to be a stay-at-home mom and wanting to, you know, have that work/life balance, she took what she was doing for her dad, and she ended up founding the first ever podcast booking agency.
Toby Myles: Oh,
Angela Greaser: wow. And it, before, like, when podcasting was just becoming a thing- Mm-hmm ... she was like, "Okay, I think I can make something of this." Yeah. And now it's like this eight-figure amazing business that she's- Oh, my goodness ... still doing to this day. But at, in its very infancy when she was first making that transition-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm
Angela Greaser: her mom was like, "Hey, Jessica, you gotta meet my friend Angela." "Who, she's my..." Like, and we just, they introduced us, and I ended up doing podcast booking for her as she was just starting this. Mm-hmm. And then that, I really stepped into doing more, um, director of marketing type things for Interview Connections.
Mm-hmm. Um, and it just evolved from there, where that was really my first step into the whole, like, online business economy. Yeah. Which is so, it's like a whole new world. Even- Yeah ... even now, people don't understand this entirely different economy that exists with online business. Yeah. Um, and she was amazing because not only did she take a chance and say, "Yes, come book some podcasts with me," Mm-hmm
she create, she opened the doors for me to try new things, 'cause she valued that, hey, say yes and figure it out as we go.
Toby Myles: Yep. Yep.
Angela Greaser: Um, and we're still, you know, good friends to this day. We're in touch, you know, consistently. Her business is thriving, and I, I owe so much to n- to the introduction to the online world to her, to really- Mm-hmm
opening the door to, to, to allow me to, to try my skills in a new, in a new way.
Toby Myles: Yeah. Yeah, for sure. One of my, um, guests last year, also a friend of mine, A- Amy Foley, um, who started as a VA and then turned it into this whole company where they hired, you know, people, and she had a partner and everything like that.
But she talks about something similar, where she, um, her, one of her kids I think, like, had a really bad break. Um, like broke his leg in two places. I'm probably, like, butchering the story. But essentially, she was able to, um, work from home for a period of time because sh- he, she had to be home with him. He was, like, in a- Yeah
huge cast and whatever. Um, and she loved working from home. You know, she realized how productive she was, and this was, like, before working from home was even a thing.
Angela Greaser: Yeah.
Toby Myles: And, um, when the time, time period was up, whatever it was, six weeks or whatever, um, she asked her boss if she could keep working from home.
He was like, "Absolutely not." And she's like, "Well, I need to find a way to work from home." Yeah. Like, she realized how much she loved it and how productive she was. Um, and so she ended up creating a whole business, um, where she employed other VAs, just out of that one experience. So I think it's, th- that's what I love about these stories, is that- You, you just never know, and if you're not sure but you think you can do it, then just say yes.
Yeah. Like, what's the worst that can happen, right?
Angela Greaser: Yep, yep, absolutely. Because you always have a plan B. You know, you operate- Mm-hmm ... out of integrity, and, and we are spoiled for resources right now in our world. Yeah. And, you know, it- the worst comes to worst, you need to subcontract out a task, and you cut into your profits, you know, for, for- Yeah
a job that you took on, or you can't finish something in time, so you bring on help. Like, it- it's not... There... It was so different for me going from education, a- and specifically in early childhood, where you literally have people's lives in your hands.
Toby Myles: Right.
Angela Greaser: Like, you, you can't mess up. Like, there's certain- Yeah
mistakes you just can't make because you're caring for actual little human beings- Yeah, right ... who can't care for themselves. So you can't just mess up. Mm-hmm. And so when I moved over to online business, I was like, oh my gosh, the stakes are so low.
Toby Myles: Yes, nobody's gonna die.
Angela Greaser: If I publish something with the wrong graphic, even if it's horrible, even if I mess up- Mm-hmm
a campaign-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Angela Greaser: I can, I can make amends for that. I can fix that. It... I can- Yeah ... um, I, I can make it... I, I can apologize and take ownership and, and make reparations for that. It's not where, like, that's not actual brain surgery where you have- Sure ... somebody's li- life in your hands. Exactly. So the s- the, the stakes are high, and it's not like I didn't take it seriously.
I... If you know me, I take everything very seriously. Yeah. Yes. And I show up for everybody. Mm-hmm. Um, but it, it, it just, the, the, the stakes are so different and, and I think the fear of those mistakes is what keeps a lot of people from saying yes- Mm-hmm ... and figuring it out along the way, because what if I make a mistake?
Then, then you made a mistake. Yeah. Congratulations. Yeah. Like, it, we learn and we move on.
Toby Myles: Right. Absolutely. I mean, I think it's not if you're gonna make a mistake, it's you, you are going to make mistakes. You are. And that's, that is, it's actually a good thing. It's how you learn. Yeah. Right?
Angela Greaser: Absolutely.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Right.
Angela Greaser: Yep.
Toby Myles: So, okay. So then what were the next few years? I, I, I don't... Like, I'm terrible at math. I admire- ... that you did all that math in your head standing in line in Walmart. I never would've done that. Um, but from that, from that point, from those early stages- Yeah ... um, and then, you know, first understanding, like, oh, there's this whole other thing that I can do online.
Angela Greaser: Yeah.
Toby Myles: What was, what happened from there to- Mm-hmm ... when you met Melissa? Because I don't even know if I know how you met Melissa.
Angela Greaser: Well, well, let me tell you about that story, because, um, there, there's, there's a lot of steps in between- Mm-hmm ... where, um, you know, I started doing this thing and, and really more of a freelance feel, like using my Gmail, like w- getting a lot of jobs, but not necessarily having a company.
Mm-hmm. Um, and, and I loved it. It was great. And, um, we ended up in, we had just had our second baby. Mm-hmm. And I was still freelancing. Dan was still doing his corporate HR stuff, and he was doing a lot of, like, contracting where he would go, you know, do a contract at one location and then accept a contract at another.
Um, and he was at a point where he was, like, in between contracts, about to accept another one, and it was one night where we were all... Kids were finally in bed, and we're sitting on the floor in our living room and talking about this new contract, and I'm like, "Oh, hey, can you help me with this?" Because all the time, all...
Uh, my background was not- corporate HR. He has a business degree. He's got a master's degree. He has lots of experience. Mm-hmm. Um, and I ended up, uh, a- as things progressed, I ended up in, um, a lot of those operations type tasks, um, where it was, like, growth minded operations, like a lot of marketing and launching and things like that, but definitely grounded in, like, director operations contracts- Gotcha
that I would take on. Mm-hmm. Um, and so he's helping me again, and we look at each other, and like at the same moment we're like, "Why aren't we doing this together?"
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Angela Greaser: Because I'm reaching capacity at my work. I'm finding so much traction, and why don't we at least try this? And if it doesn't work out- Mm-hmm
then you can grab another contract or, you know, whatever. Yeah. And so that night we named the business, made a website, made our packages- ... and the next day we suddenly had a business. And it was, it has not slowed down since we started it. Wow.
Toby Myles: S- what year was that then?
Angela Greaser: That, well, my daughter just turned nine.
Okay. Um, so it's been eight years.
Toby Myles: Wow.
Angela Greaser: It's been eight year, uh, yeah, it'll be nine years, um, in I think it was December that- Mm-hmm ... 'cause she was born in May, and then by December, that was when we were looking at, like, "Why don't we try this together?"
Toby Myles: Yeah,
Angela Greaser: yeah. Um, and it's still going strong, and we're, uh, not everybody can work with their partner, but we, uh, we're, we're just best friends.
Yeah. And we're, we're able to make that separation between, like, "Hey, that's not a good idea," or, "Hey, you need to redo that," with- Mm-hmm ... you know, it's, we're not taking it personally, so it's, it's worked. Sure. And it's worked long term.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Angela Greaser: Um, and then as we were doing, you know, we've got that business going where, um, it's all the ops, and we do right now
We used to do a lot of retainer work where we were managing operations for businesses. Mm-hmm. And now we, we still do a couple, um, but we primarily have, um, we'll basically do assessments where we'll go in, if there's a business that's in transition, a business who is trying to make a, um, a leap to another revenue stage, we'll go in, do a full assessment of their team, their, their offers, their, um, their tech stack, um, their, their, um, like HR compliance, like contractors versus employees, and, and all that.
Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. And we will do a huge in depth assessment and then write up a plan for them to the, to implement it. Gotcha. So that, that's kind of what that business is doing.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Angela Greaser: And all in the magical mix of that, um, I met Melissa in a Facebook group for moms. Oh, my gosh. For moms who are business owners, and there was a, um, one of the other women in the group, um, and this was This was, I bet, about 10 years ago.
Mm-hmm. Um, one of the other women in that Facebook group, um, said, "Hey, who wants to do, like, a peer-led mastermind?" And it ended up being me, Melissa, and two other amazing women.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Angela Greaser: And in the course of that, Melissa was having her second baby. Mm-hmm. And then, um, she needed somebody to run her business. She needed us to run Complement, so Dan and I ran Complement so she could have her babies.
Oh
Toby Myles: my gosh,
Angela Greaser: okay. Um, and we just had this deep connection and this deep friendship. Mm-hmm. And we started, you know, as she progressed in, in what she was offering after, um, she was phasing out some different elements of Complement. Mm-hmm. She was doing a lot of curriculum development. I was doing a lot of launching.
And so I would be like, "Oh my gosh, Melissa, this client needs to hire you because their program really needs work." Yeah. "So will you come in?" And then she would be like, "Oh my gosh, Ang, these people need help with their launching." "Will you come over and help me here?" And so we ended up tossing clients back and forth.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Angela Greaser: We started a podcast together. Mm-hmm. Which is, is, you know, uh, it's doing its thing on the internet. It still lives there. We haven't recorded in years, but it's still there. Yeah. Um, and we really... A- again, we found ourselves just in one of those informal conversations saying, "Why is there such a gap in the market?
Why are there so many-" Mm ... of these big name internet gurus making millions, but their programs actually aren't very good?"
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Angela Greaser: And then you've got these kind of unsung heroes who have incredible programs and incredible depth of knowledge, but they're, they don't have that marketing piece, um, or the audience growth piece to really put everything together.
And we were like, "We stand for the and. We believe you can make really good money and make a really good impact while you're doing it, and still be a fully present partner, and parent, and member of your community, and, and wherever you wanna be as a, as a human being." Um, and that, and then we just were like, "All right, let's try it."
Yeah. And so we have made this bi-coastal business work. Mm-hmm. We're going on five years, um, which is pretty darn amazing to me. Yeah. And it's... We're, we're absolutely loving it.
Toby Myles: Yeah. And it's, having experienced it myself, it's, um, it's different than any, any other program. I mean, it really... You guys do... You walk the talk, or talk the wa- wh- whatever it is.
Walk the talk. Yeah. You, you do things with integrity. Um, and like you just said, like you understand that people have lives, right? And so businesses have to fit into our lives and so that we can live our lives the way that we want to. Absolutely. Whatever that looks like. And everybody, you know, has different things going on, um, all different, you know, stages of their lives.
Yeah. And so their, everybody's business looks different, but, but what you teach, um, basically works for any- Anybody, any business. Yeah, yeah.
Angela Greaser: Yeah. It, it really does. We, we have a running joke that we're like, "Give us an industry that we can't help." Yeah. Like, you come to us with your crazy niche, like we have had construction people, s- y- basketball coaches, doctors, lawyers, s- people who sew, people who write.
It doesn't matter, because we teach, um... It's not a plug and play, like if you just have this one funnel- Yeah ... you're gonna make a million dollars. I don't believe in that. Mm-hmm. I think it could make a million dollars for some people in some markets with some audiences, but it's, you can't promise that one very specific solution is gonna work for everybody.
So we have core frameworks and core principles that we teach through instructional design, what both of us know from education, and Melissa was a teacher trainer and would write teacher trainings for a long time, and she spent so much of her life studying how adults learn and how they can synthesize information where it's actually gonna make a difference and not just be one other training that they're gonna sit through.
Yeah. So we... A- and that really, what people don't always stop to think is that if people are learning, then you are also inspiring people into action, which is exactly what sales and marketing is. Mm-hmm. So finding that intersection between instructional design and sales and marketing has really been our sweet spot, because it is, it's not about, oh my gosh, AI is here, or like a, uh...
We've, we've all, all of us, you, me, Melissa, we've, we've been around the internet streets and we've seen every trend- We've seen it all. Mm-hmm ... come and go.
Toby Myles: Yep.
Angela Greaser: But a- and great, like ride the trends when they work, but you have- Yeah ... to have that core, um, that, that really core framework that you can ground yourself in in your business so you always know how to adapt to- Mm-hmm
no matter what trend or market shift is coming.
Toby Myles: Sure, yeah. And also too, to that point, yes, you have the, um, the milestones and all the trainings- Yeah ... and all that, but the thing to me that, um, I noticed right away was you say often, like- We're, we're doing these same things for our business, so- Oh, yeah
watch what we do. Like- Yeah ... you d- you do what we do, right?
Angela Greaser: Yes. Yeah, exactly. And, or don't. Like, if we learn a lesson- Or don't ... and we're like, "Ooh, this tool is not it"- Yes. Mm-hmm ... or, you know, whatever, we're, we are never ones to be like, "Everyone, come. We have figured it all out." Yeah. "Come learn from us." That's not it at all.
Mm-hmm. And, and we, uh... But we also, we stay in the game. Like, we are, we're doing our own launches. We are constantly doing client launches. We s- we didn't want to also be the type of business that pulled back from our one-on-one work. We wanted to have private clients, and we wanted to have our coaching clients because- Mm-hmm
we want to be relevant. We wanna be in the game. We don't wanna be teaching you something that we're like, "Hey, this worked four years ago." Yeah. The world is a very different place than it was- Yes ... four years ago. Four years ago. Mm-hmm. The internet and, and the market is very different, so we wanna stay on top of things by having not just intellectual knowledge of what's going on- Mm-hmm
but by keeping our hands in, in the business.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm. Yeah, and also taking the advice that you give to others. Um, I think you guys sent an email recently, maybe last week or the week before, about something you were going to launch, and then you decided no, it wasn't- Oh, yeah. Mm-hmm ... the right time, and I think that's so important, too, right?
Yeah. It's like, not just, like, full steam ahead with every idea that pops into our head. Yeah. Thank, thank goodness, because as entrepreneurs- I mean, I'm, I'm a manifestor-generator, so- Yeah ... I have, like, probably 100 ideas a day.
Angela Greaser: Yes. Yeah.
Toby Myles: And but, you know, not every idea, it- now is not the right time for every idea.
Yeah. Right?
Angela Greaser: Absolutely. A- and it's the, the whole philosophy that a good idea can be not the right idea for right now, and it doesn't mean that it's not a good idea, and it doesn't mean that- Yeah ... we don't have value, you know, that that doesn't have value, and that's why we have our... It, it, it's a cute little name, but we have our idea garden- Mm-hmm
that we take our ideas that are good ideas, but we're not gonna act on them yet, and we give them a place of- Yep ... respect and a place- Yes ... that we can go back to, and not this self-deprecating, "Oh my gosh, it was a horrible idea, and what was I thinking?" It's like, no, it just wasn't, wasn't the right idea for right now- Yeah
for whatever reason. And, and I think that that also goes back to that, um, skill that we have to develop as entrepreneurs, which is to have that emotional distance from our identity- Mm-hmm ... and our business, which is... which might be why I had no problem hopping from education- Yeah ... over, over into this because I've always had that, you know, what I do is not who I am- Mm-hmm
philosophy. I know who I am. Yeah. And so if my idea doesn't work out or if I need to shift or if Melissa has a better idea than I do, I, uh, you know, I... We're, we have very clear goals, and we have a very, um, grounded picture about what this business is for, and it's to- Mm-hmm ... create impact on the people that we are working with, and it's to create income for our families.
That's it. We're not trying- Yeah ... to be celebrities. We're not trying to be right. We're not trying to be the most clever. But we know- Yeah ... what we know. We know how to help people, and that's really important because it could be... I mean, never in a million years would I think I'd have not one business partner, but w- two business partners, one with my husband and one- Mm-hmm
with the woman who's become my best friend. Like, it just doesn't... That, that's not advice that I would say, "This is the way to go."
Toby Myles: Yes.
Angela Greaser: You know? So- Yeah ... like, it, it's, it's a very rare and a very special thing.
Toby Myles: Yeah, yeah. And yet I think that it works probably because of what you just said, you know? It's not about you being right- No
or always having, you know, it has to be my way or the highway, right? It's h- about having that respect for, you know, both your husband as a business partner and Melissa as a business partner. I, going way back to when I was graphic designer, um, my first husband was my business partner, and he was an illustrator.
So it actually made things easy because I, I had... You know, I specialized in the graphic design. He specialized in illustration. He did some writing. Sometimes we collaborated, but most of the time we had separate clients, right? Yeah. So we didn't have that, um, you know, where we had to collaborate too many times.
A few times we did. Sure. But, you know, it's, it can, uh, like you said, it can be tricky having a business with your-
Angela Greaser: Yeah ...
Toby Myles: with your spouse. And, and-
Angela Greaser: It, it absolutely can ...
Toby Myles: in our case, you know, we didn't stay married, and so it was then hard to keep the business together after that. Yeah. So that was unfortunate.
Yeah. Um, but we, but, but it is also s- clear, you know, his clients he took, and I took mine. Um, and so, um, I'm just curious, like, your kids have always known you to be an entrepreneur.
Angela Greaser: Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Toby Myles: T- what do they... Are they aware that, like, not everybody, not everybody's parents get to work from home?
Angela Greaser: Oh, yeah. Yeah.
We, we, we drilled that into their head. Because we, uh, especially my, w- really both of them, but especially my youngest, has literally known nothing but this. Has never known anything... Like, Ellie, Ellie remembers when Dan was still out at corporate. She doesn't remember, you know, going to that school, but, like, she remembers when Dan would go to other clients and, and- Mm-hmm
not be home with us. Um, and it's been so interesting because we, we have kind of tr- taught them the polar opposite of what we were taught, which is- Yeah ... do school this way, get this job, and do this thing. Mm-hmm. Where they have such a more expansive view of life and what the- Yeah ... world can be. And, you know, we homeschool both of our kids.
Mm-hmm. And, and not, not, we did not set out to do that. Um, that's a whole nother story. That could be a whole nother-
Toby Myles: We'll do that part two.
Angela Greaser: We'll, we'll do part two, because that's a whole, a crazy story, but it works because they, like, they know our clients. They, they know... They have so... I've never seen kids with more personal responsibility.
Mm-hmm. Where they know, like, they can't be... It's summertime, they don't have their schoolwork to do, they can't be wreaking havoc around the house and going crazy. They've gotta do their job. They have their responsibilities, so we- Mm-hmm ... can do our job. Yeah. And it's not this, um, like segmented everybody has their thing and we're all off doing their, our things.
It's like we're this- Mm-hmm ... we're this family unit where everybody takes responsibility for the house, and for our animals, and for our education, and for our income. Everybody has a part in it. Yeah. So it, it, there's not, like, the traditional, "Well, you do the dishes," and, "You go mow the lawn." Like, we all just do what needs to be done, and it's been- Yeah
such a unintentional benefit of this- Yeah ... life that we've lived that's so not the didactic, "Do this, do this, do this." It's been this really cool thing to see how our family has evolved.
Toby Myles: Yeah, I love that. I, um, my kids when they were little, you know, both me and my ex-husband worked from home, 'cause we shared a business together, and so they didn't understand that s- other, other kids, like their friends' parents, went to, like, offices sometimes.
Yeah. And I've told this story before on the podcast. I remember taking them to a doctor's appointment once in, um, like one of those medical buildings, and they were like, "What is... Where... What is this? Is this the movie theater?" And it's like, "No, it's not the movie theater." So, you know, it was, they, they were older when they actually realized- how lucky they were to have- Yeah
you know, have us home. And we did occasionally have to have babysitters come to the house if there was something- Sure ... you know, we both had to focus on something. But, um- Yeah ... but I'm always curious to, to know from, like, a kid's perspective, you know Um, first of all, what do they, you know, understand about it, but also, like, what would they tell people?
Like, what would they tell their friends what, th- what mom and dad do for a living? Yeah. Are they able to articulate, you know, specifically what you do, or it's just... Yes. They
Angela Greaser: could do, they could do a pitch for all of our businesses. Okay, good. They really could. They, they are that involved, where they will, um, my husband has a whole nother business that he's starting because he can and because it's fun.
Mm-hmm. Um, but, like, they love giving their opinion on the branding, and, like- ... Ellie, Ellie is 12, and she'll go into Canva, and she'll be like, "Mom, what do you think about this ad?" "And wouldn't this be great, like, if we had the..." Uh, c- we have chickens, and she loves chickens, so she'll make these, like, ads. Mm-hmm.
And she's like, "Wouldn't it be funny if this chicken was saying this, and then everybody would buy this program?" And I'm like- ... "You're right. Everybody would." So they actually... We have a- we've been super intentional about teaching them what we do and how we do it, and just this week they were, um, I was doing, like, tech support for a client who had, like, a live webinar, so, um, I had the webinar up, and they're, you know, around doing things, and they're like, "Wow."
"She's so smart." Dana Del Valle, too. Um- Oh, yeah. "She's so smart." Yeah. "This is so cool." I was like, "Yeah, these, these women are pretty smart. They're pretty great." And so it's been, it's been, again, just a different mindset of, like, instead of segmenting, like, you focus on schoolwork. It's like, no. Mm-hmm. Learn about business, and learn about graphic design.
Yeah. And it's been, it's been really cool to see. But yes, if you ask them, they could, they could give you names of our clients. They could ... They could pitch the business. They could probably sell you on some services. Like, they're, they're super into it.
Toby Myles: That's amazing. Yeah. I think that at their age, they don't even realize the gift that they have been given, right?
They will one day, I think, when they, you know, go off into the world and do whatever they're gonna do, and- Yeah ... see that not everybody got to grow up like that with those- Yeah ... influences. I think that's super cool. So then speaking of kids, like you said, you, you weren't somebody that always wanted to be a teacher.
Do you remember, like, being a little girl, and, you know, getting that question, like, "What do you wanna be when you grow up?"
Angela Greaser: Yeah, yeah, for sure, and, and I still have it in my heart, too. I wanted to move to Africa, and I wanted to help orphans, and from second grade through... That's literally why I got an education degree, um, because I wanted to move to Africa and teach in schools, and- Wow
help people over there. That was the only thing I ever wanted to do. Um, I got to do it all through college and a little bit after, and my husband and I actually had jobs, um, before. Really? Yeah, um, and then, uh, he fell into some health issues, and so we weren't able to go. Like, we were, we were literally preparing- Mm-hmm
to move overseas, um, and he had some pretty severe health issues and needed a bunch of surgeries. Um, and it, we were just like, "All right, that door is closing right now, and we're gonna- Mm-hmm ... see what's next." So just kind of holding everything open-handed. But that's kind of, uh, never in a million years would I thought I'd be doing this.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Angela Greaser: Yeah. You know? And it's amazing how just your path unfolds if you just keep trusting and you keep walking forward. Yeah. You just never know what, what cool things are gonna happen.
Toby Myles: Absolutely. I, when I left my corporate job in 2019 to start my business, I remember my boss saying, "Oh, I love how you keep reinventing yourself."
And it was so, such a surprising comment to me because I never thought of it that way. Yeah. I always just thought like I'm just doing the next right thing or the next thing that I wanna do, but it always felt connected to everything before it in some way. There was always some linkage, you know? For sure.
And I was just following the next right thing. Like, no, I w- this is something that I wanna do. I've always wanted to do this, and so I'm just gonna do it. So I guess on the outside looking in it's reinventing yourself, but to me it was just like, yeah, I just, this is something I wanna do. I'm gonna just do it.
Angela Greaser: I love that. That's so interesting.
Toby Myles: Yeah. I thought it was interesting too. So, um, for, um, our listeners, if somebody is out there listening to this conversation, um, hearing about your journey and maybe thinking about starting a business, um, and just kind of wondering like what to do first. I mean, there's so many more resources now, but sometimes like too many resources.
Like-
Angela Greaser: Yeah ...
Toby Myles: what, what, um, advice would you give that person?
Angela Greaser: Yeah. I, I think my biggest piece of advice is to backwards map everything. Before you put your heart and soul and time and money into an idea that's probably a good idea- Mm ... make sure it's the right idea first. Because if you have a really great idea for a new pencil- And you need to make $10,000 a month in order to pay your rent and to pay for your, you know, your life, you're gonna have to sell a lot of those pencils.
Yeah. That might be the best pencils that have ever been invented, but the... it's gonna take a lot to- Mm-hmm ... to make what you need. So starting with where you want to go, and then using all of your skills and all of your ideas to then fill that need. So you're not just building towards a what if or a maybe this will work.
You're building towards, okay, my first goal is I'm gonna pay my mortgage every month with this business. Yeah. And so you backwards map that amount of how many, you know, hours of your service you would have to sell or products or whatever that is. So you're always grounded in not just what you're doing, but why you're doing it.
I think that, I... honestly, is the number one mistake I think people make when they're looking at starting a business or even- Mm-hmm ... starting anything new.
Toby Myles: Yeah. Yeah, for sure. And I think you can get far down the road before you realize something is not-
Angela Greaser: Yeah ...
Toby Myles: viable.
Angela Greaser: Yeah, for sure.
Toby Myles: Yeah. Oh my gosh, that's such great advice.
So, um, I would love for you to share where people can find you online, on social media, um, and connect with you.
Angela Greaser: Yeah. Um, you can go to standfortheand.com. You will find, um, Melissa and I there. Um, email is hello@standfortheand.com. If you go right to that homepage, uh, you'll see a really awesome, um, masterclass that you can start with.
It's called the Sold Out Offer System. That kind of will help you get a feel for what we do and how we do it, and how you can take your ideas, backwards map them, and create a system that actually supports your life and generates the revenue while helping a lot of people in the process. Mm-hmm. So, um, our social handles are there.
Um, Angela Greaser on, uh, all the platforms or Stand For The And. Um, and I'm hope to connect with you.
Toby Myles: Yes. Oh my God, this has been amazing. I'm glad we finally found the time to do this.
Angela Greaser: We cut it close. We, man,
Toby Myles: we ... We, we sh- we for sure did. Oh, yeah. And then we'll, we'll circle back to that part two when, uh, um
Angela Greaser: When you're on your homeschooling series-
Toby Myles: When you're on... Right. Yes ... or your education series. Exactly.
Angela Greaser: Invite me back and I'll talk about-
Toby Myles: We might. ...
Angela Greaser: craziness.
Toby Myles: All right. Thank you so much. Oh, well, thank you. This has been great.
Angela Greaser: Yes.