From Teacher to CEO: Building a BCBA Business from the Ground Up!

Young Boss with Isabelle Guarino

This week’s guest’s journey began with a passion for education and children. Lauren So brings a fresh perspective to entrepreneurship in this week’s episode. Growing up with parents who owned private schools, Lauren was inspired to pursue a career working with children, particularly those with special needs. After three years of teaching, she took her mother’s advice and dove into the world of behavior analysis, becoming a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA). It was in this field that Lauren saw an overwhelming demand, leading her to start her own business from the ground up.

With just $5,000 in her business account (money she claims to never had to use), Lauren faced the challenges of entrepreneurship head-on. From navigating insurance billing and credentialing to figuring out marketing all on her own (a fault she admits in the episode), she built her business one step at a time. Her marketing strategy? A simple Canva account and a slow start with only three calls. But with persistence, she grew her business, eventually hiring employees—a major milestone that brought new responsibilities and challenges like managing turnover and different work styles.

Lauren also shares her journey of balancing motherhood and being a boss. As a mom of three and an entrepreneur, she talks candidly about the need for organization and calmness to keep things running smoothly, both at home and in the business. Letting go of control and trusting her team became key to her success, allowing her to focus on the bigger picture while her employees handled day-to-day tasks.

In this episode, we also talk about the bigger challenges Lauren faces in her field, from the gatekeeping of information and the often misunderstood public perception of behavior analysis. She dives into the importance of sharing knowledge within the industry and advocating for better representation of behavioral disabilities in the media.

If you’re looking for tips on how to balance motherhood with entrepreneurship or how to grow a business from the ground up, Lauren shares her key advice: become an expert, understand the weight of being a boss, and start building your dream while you’re young enough to chase it.

Thanks for listening to another episode of Young Boss with your host Isabelle Guarino. Be sure to like, share and follow on Instagram and TikTok.

And remember, youth is your power.

Subscribe to Young Boss with Isabelle Guarino wherever you get your podcasts, and be sure to like, share and follow on Instagram and TikTok.
And remember, youth is your power.