Carolyn Hagler had an abrupt realization one day when she went to the dentist. She needed a crown which would cost her $1200 — and had no way of covering it.
“I gotta somehow figure it out,” Carolyn said.
She resolved to think creatively and “outside of the box” to make a living, or at least more money on the side. Tuning in to her artistic side, Carolyn decided to launch a music contracting business.
This is one of the many projects and business that Carolyn has created over the years — the beginning of her becoming a successful entrepreneur.
Cellist, realtor and Airbnb superhost. These are all titles that Carolyn holds, but what’s most important to note is the dedication behind those titles. Carolyn has juggled up to five different projects and business at a time and is still able to fully invest 110 percent in each.
Carolyn has a knack for strategically planning out her business ventures to align with her busy life while also finding ways to improve them all the time. Her “I can do that better” mindset has led to her create unique experiences for her businesses and projects. She focuses on making a positive impact on her clients and prides herself on going “above and beyond” her competitors.
Cello
Since the 4th grade, Carolyn wanted to become a professional cellist. She had tunnel-vision when it came to music, and never considered any other talents she might have.
But life had a different plan for her – one that still included the cello but did not have her playing in the San Francisco Symphony as she dreamed. She realized that she would only make hundreds of dollars per year if she committed her career to music which would eventually not be enough to sustain a family.
Motivated by her displeasure in the way that music businesses were run, Carolyn founded Barton Strings, a music contracting business, initially made up of a string quartet that played mostly weddings. It soon became a premier musician group through her organization and acquisition of talented musicians. This would be her life for the next ten years.
Now, Carolyn still finds time for her lifelong passion by being a tenured musician in the Austin Symphony.
Real Estate
Carolyn, however, was still searching for ways to make a little extra money. After using real estate agents, she realized that they weren’t doing enough to help their clients, and knew she could do better. She became a realtor.
Eventually, Carolyn sold her music business and focused full-time on real estate. To differentiate herself from her competition, Carolyn focused on her own neighborhood and on what her clients needed to make them happy. By prioritizing her clients’ happiness, she excelled in this referral-based business.
Airbnb
This strong focus on looking out for her clients’ needs pushed her to become an Airbnb host. She scoped out the other Airbnb properties in the area and asked herself her now go-to questions:
“What are they doing that I can do better? What can I do that’s over and above what my competition does?”
Carolyn added an extension to her house that would become her Airbnb apartment. Knowing that her success as a host hinged on receiving five-star reviews, Carolyn focused on how she could make her property stand out against the competition, even if it meant making a little less money if it made her guests happy.
In her property, Carolyn said she makes sure it is clean and beautiful and even lays out some snacks to welcome her guests.
“Whatever to make them feel at home,” Carolyn said.
Future
Amidst all of these events in her life, Carolyn still thinks about future necessities. A thought that has been prevalent recently is that of her retirement fund.
Combining her passion for cello and, again, discovering a need in the industry, she is almost ready to launch her new business: online adult cello lessons. She saw this opportunity for adults who wanted to try something new or continue what they had learned as children, now that they had more time for themselves.
Carolyn said older people can be embarrassed when learning to play a new instrument — they see all these young people and can get intimidated or not feel confident in themselves and their abilities. Carolyn’s business takes away these fears.
“[This is] part two of life,” Carolyn said, “people don’t want rejection.”
She wants to create an online space where her students can feel safe pursuing this hobby. They do not even have to leave the comfort of their home to play or practice. Along with this, she takes a community-based approach to her business where players can interact with one another. She wants her students to know that they are not alone.
This business model provides Carolyn with a steady, long-term income after she retires which her other pursuits do not.
This is not to say that she does not want to continue expanding her businesses. She rents out bedrooms in her son’s university housing on the side and wants to go back home to California and see if she could set up another Airbnb property there.
Entrepreneur
Carolyn said she considers herself an entrepreneur mainly because her friends view her in that light. Although her entrepreneurial endeavors can be hard to balance, she does say she does not like the regular nine-to-five model. By creating and owning her business, she gets to set her schedule and has complete control over her life.
Although balancing her schedule, her husband’s schedule and her kid’s schedule can get a bit chaotic sometimes, Carolyn loves the flexibility and freedom she gains from owning her own businesses.
It is safe to say that Carolyn will not have trouble paying for a crown in the future.
By Anna Blakley and Kris Gerdts
