Overwhelming. Frustrating. Mind Boggling. Is that how you feel when you think about everything you need to know, to get your business online? The School was created to teach women in business – just like you – All of these tech skills And give you the control you want, without the headaches…
From Aweber to WordPress, the sheer number of new tech tools to have to learn is a huge hurdle to overcome – and it’s one which puts many business owners off bringing their business online.
Why We Started the School
We’ve heard numerous horror stories before of…
- People being charged hundreds for the most basic of web hosting services – when really, unless you need specialist hosting (which is worth paying for), it should cost no more than $5 (c. £3) per month with my preferred hosting company.
- People being charged thousands for the development of a custom WordPress themes - which often do no more than a $30 premium theme.
- People being charged hundreds for the most basic of support tasks, like £150 to simply upload a new WordPress theme (no customisation or anything, just upload it) – which takes literally 1-2 minutes.
- People hiring web development firms who charge the earth (and usually upfront) but are then nowhere to be found when you need follow-up support – which is why empowerment and putting you in control is at the forefront of our mission here.
The Truth
The shocking truth is that when you know how to do some of this stuff yourself, you know that…
- You can get your own website up and running for less than $100.
- You can run your entire business online for under $100 per month (for *everything*).
As a female co-founder – and someone who has taught myself all the tech skills I need over the past few years and worked on hundreds of clients’ websites and online businesses – I know how daunting it can be to figure out all the tools you need to get your business online.
Firstly I want you to know that, with the right support, you can do it. Secondly, it doesn’t have to be expensive…
Rather than investing in having someone do it all for you, investing in skilling up yourself means you not only leverage the money you invest, you also feel empowered and in control, instead of giving this away to someone else (and paying for it).
There are very few resources dedicated to teaching women the skills they need to get online, in a supportive, easy-to-access environment – this is where Startup Training School comes in…
Note: If you’re a man, you’re most welcome to join the school too. We’re inclusive, not exclusive.
Our Mission
The mission of the school is simple: To enable and empower at least 1,000 more women in business to get their businesses online each and every year.
We aim to achieve this by providing access to the right kinds of learning materials and environments which enable you to skill up, at your own pace, on your own schedule, where it’s convenient and easy for you – which means:
- You don’t need child care because you can learn from the comfort of your own home.
- You can squeeze in a few minutes of learning at a time because of the format of our quick, focused tutorials.
- You can learn new tools & skills at your own pace because we’ve prioritized them for you making it easy to focus on what matters most and making what little time you have really & truly count.
- You get the most value out of your investment because the skills you’ll learn can be applied to any and all your projects, now and in the future.
Investing in your own education will empower you to bring your business to life online without having to hire in expensive support, for each and every new idea. An investment in yourself is one of the BEST investments you can make.
Who Are We?
We are wife-and-husband team, Lea & Jonathan Woodward. Since 2006, we’ve been running our businesses almost 100% online.
Alongside working on our own portfolio of successful websites, we ran a web design & development business full-time between 2006 and 2011 and have trained numerous clients in the online tools we now teach here at the school…
Lea Woodward
Hi! I’m Lea and I’m the driving force behind the school. I’m ridiculously passionate about empowering more women to take control of online technology because I know how powerful it can be.
It is what has enabled us to become Location Independent, run our businesses from anywhere and build a global audience of customers, clients, colleagues and friends.
Since launching my business online in 2006, I’ve taught myself all the technical skills I need to start, run, manage and grow my online ventures – and one of my core strengths is helping break down the processes needed to effectively use these tools and then teach them to others.
You can find out more about me, my businesses and my approach to life (and business) on my personal site – or why not say “Hi!” on Twitter or join the fun on Facebook?
Jonathan Woodward
Jonathan is the creative half. He is an experienced graphic designer for print and web (with 14+ years of experience) and a wildlife illustrator, specialising in cut paper collage.
He is used to working for and with women and being told what to do – all of his bosses have been women!! – which makes him great support for the school. All the graphics you see on the site are by Jonathan and while he didn’t design the site, he kept a close eye on it 