The Hello Bar is a simple web toolbar that engages users and communicates a call to action.

Who is Natalie and Why Are You Here?

Being in business for yourself is one of the most amazing experiences. It challenges you in every way possible.

It’s like being on the most exhilarating roller coaster ride of your life. What’s more, it pushes you personally beyond belief. It stretches your boundaries and makes you realise you’re capable of far more than you ever thought.

It is also about freedom.

Freedom of choice, to travel the world, living the lifestyle you want and running your business from anywhere!

And that’s how I live my life. I’m Natalie Sisson and I like to call myself a suitcase entrepreneur. For the last 6 years I’ve been living out of a suitcase in various countries around the world. Two years ago I turned this lifestyle in THIS business you see here.

I help you find creative ways to run your business from anywhere using online tools, social media and outsourcing. I travel the world running my business from planes, trains, boats and cafes while literally living out of a suitcase.

Sounds ideal right? Well it is. I worked hard to achieve my ideal lifestyle and I totally love it. I feel like the luckiest person on earth.

There’s not a day that goes by when I don’t tell people what I do and hear them say “I really want to be what you’re doing. Travelling the world, doing what you want, and running a business from anywhere”.

My answers is always “Well you can do this too. You just have to choose to want a life where freedom and adventure are the most important things to you.”

The long and short of it is freedom is everything I live for.

I’d far rather spend my time outdoors, on an adventure, than being cooped up in an office cubicle, working on something unimportant for somebody else.

This is my office

But that’s exactly what I did for almost 10 years. I’ve worked for some major companies in some very high level positions over the years. I worked in New Zealand, England and Canada. And don’t get me wrong I treasure many of those moments and the lessons I learned – because they taught me what kind of business I wanted and how I wanted to run it.

I’ve had some excellent managers and CEOs that I’ve worked under, but in general I’ve been fortunate to have jobs where I was heading up some new division or project managing major brands, products or services with my own autonomy.

That said there’s nothing worse than working for other people, who pay you by the hour, to conform to their rules, their budgets, their strategies and their lack of vision.

It makes you die a little inside every single time you go against your own judgement and follow what they say. It makes you feel a little less alive as you give into company policy even though you know it won’t work.

All those endless and pointless, time wasting meetings. All the hierarchy, politics and internal debate on things that just don’t matter.

What matters is living a life with purpose, one where you make an impact in other peoples’ lives and leave a legacy behind you that you’re proud of!

And let me tell you, you won’t achieve that sitting in a cubicle from 9-5 working for someone else.

That said you might not achieve that if you run your own business if you don’t focus on what really matters. Too many people start a business thinking they’ll have more time on their hands, doing what they want.

They end up working more hours than ever, paying themselves less than in their job, and feeling like their treading water in the deep end.

Going into business for yourself is one of the most challenging things you’ll ever do. But my god is it worth it!

If you who want to make money doing what you love and using your skills and talent and turn that into and do that from anywhere in the world then what are you waiting for?

There has never been a better time than now to live this lifestyle thanks to the myriad of amazing online tools available to us as well as social media and ‘worldsourcing’  - it’s totally achievable.

I’m here to help you realize that business CAN BE FUN and you can do it from anywhere in the world if you really want to. Open your mind, jump on board and join me on my journey to awesomeville.

In this short video I share the secrets of the Suitcase Entrepreneur Lifestyle and mindset you need to have the life you want and the business success you deserve.

My Mission:

To blow the top off history and create a movement where women court bolder dreams and turn them into reality by starting their own 6 figure online businesses. A world where women want to shape and change the way in which we do business. Watch out world.

Men you are also very welcome here. To find out my background story and the reason behind my female focus, read on below under `The Official Story’.

Are you in the right place?

This blog is not for the conventional, for those who are risk adverse and for those who don’t like change. It’s for:

  • Entrepreneurs who want to streamline their business and implement systems
  • Business owners who want to work ON their business not in it
  • Creatives who want to understand how to use online marketing to grow their business
  • Busy people who want to become more productive and successful
  • Smart and savvy people who understand how powerful Social Media is for any business
  • People who want to have a thriving business and their ultimate lifestyle

If that’s you, then welcome onboard!

You’ll find insight, intelligence and a healthy dose of inspiration to help you achieve all the above and more:.

Make sure you check out:

  • The sexy Biz Shop to see what programs and resources I’ve designed especially for you
  • The Kick Ass Tools section to see the great online tools I personally use and recommended for you
  • Visit the Resources section for essential website, must read books and brilliant blogs

Here are the three main ways I can work with you to live the life you’ve always wanted:

Business Design Coaching

Work with me exclusively to turn your passions, talents and skills into a viable online business that you can take with you anywhere. I specialise in helping you find clarity and an action plan to build your online business, brand story, revenue streams and client base from 0 to 6 figures. I take on a limited number of new clients each month so head here to see if we’re a right fit for each other.

Social Media Coaching

I’ve built my business on social media so I’m a huge advocate for how you can use it to grow yours too. I refer to social media as my marketing, sales and customer service department rolled into one. It’s also an incredible place to connect with amazing people and find an abundance of opportunities. From setting up profiles through to strategic campaigns and calculating your return on investment, I work with individuals and businesses to define their path to social media success.

I also offer up my 6 week Sculpted Social Media Program that covers all you need to know to get started in using the Top 5 Social Media Tools for business with workout guides and how to videos.

Plus you can join the Social Media Club – a monthly accountability and mastermind club where I offer up the latest tips, tricks, how-to and strategies to apply to your business.

Using Online Tools To Build Systems and Freedom

My best selling BYOB guide is a great place to start. Build Your Online Business is the definitive guide to creating your ideal lifestyle business.  I spill the beans on how I’ve built my portable, six-figure online business and take you behind the scenes to give you all the knowledge I have about how to make money from your skills and talents by starting or improving your online business.

Another favourite is my Ultimate Toolkit for Evolutionary Entrepreneurs – both a guide and a premium site that showcases the best of the best free and paid tools to save you time and money. These are the tools I use to streamline my business to save some serious time and money.

The Official Story:

I like to call myself the Suitcase Entrepreneur because since 2006, when I left my hometown New Zealand, I’ve been traveling the world and living out of my suitcase.

Who is Natalie Sisson
This is me. Natalie Sisson.

My friends call me an adventurer (others use the word nutter) because I have a motto of living life to the fullest.

I’m a passionate Integrated Marketer with over 10 years of corporate experience in marketing, communications, brand and product management for some major companies in New Zealand, England and Canada across the widest variety of industries.

I’m a lover and early adopter of online tools with a 5+ year addiction to social media. I’m addicted to Ultimate Frisbee – yes I chase a plastic disc around a field and I hope to never stop!

Throw into the mix modeling, TV presenting, Moto-x racing, tennis, netball, triathlons, sailing, and you get the kind of person I am. A multi-faceted multi-passionate woman intent on changing my world, and yours for the better. I love learning and then passing on that knowledge here. I heart entrepreneurship, and especially the rise of women.

How My Journey Began:

In late 2009, I was a cofounder of a cool tech company and I found that there was a significant lack of women entrepreneurs and CEOs, especially in technology. Now don’t get me wrong, I think men are great and I’ve learned a lot from their expertise. But I also knew that women approach business differently, and have certain strengths and qualities that I wanted to emulate, know more about and interact with.

It seemed like having a platform from which to connect with them and interview them was a no-brainer. So I created my wonderful blog WomanzWorld to chart my journey as an entrepreneur and to learn from other amazing women entrepreneurs. I love the entrepreneurship world, and no matter how challenging it might be, I know it’s the only way for me.

Natalie Sisson Suitcase Entrepreneur on Suitcase
My entire life fits in this red suitcase & green laptop bag.

Fast forward to April 2010 and I decided to take what had become an overriding passion in my life, and turn it into a business. In December of that year, I rebranded to The Suitcase Entrepreneur to better fit the niche I’m focused on – those wanting freedom in business and adventure in life.

My Claims to Fame:

I’ve grown The Suitcase Entrepreneur into a thriving online community of thousands of women (and lots of happy customers) thanks to my tools, coaching and blog about starting and running a business whilst on the go. Besides here, you can find my words of wisdom and features about me in Forbes, Under30CEO, Young Entrepreneur, The Huffington Post and many more. I’ve been featured live on eBay Radio and several podcasts. I’m a mentor for the Visa Business Network, and a Young Entrepreneur Council member.

  • 2004: Became a Body Sculpting Champion and competed at Nationals.

Natalie Sisson Body Sculpting

  • 2007: Smashed a World Record for Dragon Boating across the English Channel with the Sisterhood.

The Sisterhood Dragon Boating Challenge

  • 2008: Placed 6th in Women’s at the Ultimate Frisbee World Championships representing New Zealand.

I’m currently cycling from Nairobi to Capetown (March til May doing half of Tour d’Afrique biking challenge and and covering just under 6,000km. I’ve raised well over $10,000 for Women Win the process. Find out about this journey here!

 

What’s the buzz all about?

For some reason people like the idea of creating freedom in business and adventure in life. That’s why you can see all the places the Suitcase Entrepreneur movement has been featured in the press and the big names I’m fortunate to contribute as a result of this blog here.

Forbes Woman Contributor Natalie SissonI’m a proud contributor to Forbes Work in Progress and you’ll find my most popular articles on entrepreneurship, online tools, social media and more there on a regular basis.

Natalie Sisson Visa Business Network mentorAs a result of this blog and my passion for helping entrepreneurs with social media I’m now a Visa Business Network Mentor for helping your business get found online using location based services like Foursquare.

Nike Women Founder Member Natalie Sisson

You can imagine my excitement when Nike Women approached me by saying “Natalie we’ve identified you as one of the Top 20 Women Bloggers and would love you to be part of our Nike Make Yourself Movement”. I was like. Well let me check my diary….ummm O frickin K! You can find my blogs around fitness, motivation, mindset and much more here on this blog and here on their blog .