Amira Irfan encourages aspiring entrepreneurs to have confidence in themselves and take bold steps. Her belief in her own abilities led her to create a successful online business, allowing her to leave her high-paying legal career.
In this interview, Amira discusses how she rapidly increased her business's revenue through digital products and expanded her income streams.
Amira’s business has grown to generate seven figures in revenue, and they continue to expand with new offerings each year to boost both revenue and profit.
Amira Irfan, a business lawyer, started A Self Guru to provide affordable legal solutions to entrepreneurs. After seeing her father's business face a costly lawsuit that could have been prevented with a simple contract, she was inspired to help others avoid similar pitfalls. Over the years, she's helped over 50,000 entrepreneurs protect their businesses. Her mission is to make legal protection accessible and affordable, regardless of business size or budget.
A Self Guru offers various legal templates, from website terms and conditions to client contracts, ensuring entrepreneurs have the legal protections they need to avoid issues. Additionally, Amira provides personalized legal services, including one-on-one consultations, contract reviews, LLC formation, and more.
Amira’s business generates income through five primary methods:
By diversifying her income streams, Amira has reduced risk and achieved long-term success.
After years of practicing as a business lawyer, Amira Irfan recognized a significant gap in accessible and affordable legal assistance for entrepreneurs. Her motivation to address this need was fueled by a personal experience—her father’s business faced a lawsuit, an ordeal that could have been avoided with the right legal protections in place. This incident solidified her resolve to make legal support easily available to others.
Amira began her entrepreneurial journey while still working full-time as a lawyer. She spent long days and weekends balancing both her job and her burgeoning blogging business. Despite the challenges, her passion for helping entrepreneurs overcome legal hurdles drove her forward. The side hustle soon blossomed into a full-time venture, allowing her to leave her 9-to-5 legal career and focus entirely on A Self Guru.
Throughout her legal career, Amira witnessed the struggles faced by small business owners who lacked access to affordable legal services. Many of these businesses were at risk simply due to inadequate legal protection. One of her main goals with A Self Guru was to bridge this gap by providing practical, cost-effective legal solutions. She firmly believed that every entrepreneur deserved the opportunity to safeguard their business without the burden of exorbitant legal fees.
Along with providing cost-effective services, A Self Guru also offered educational materials to help entrepreneurs understand their legal responsibilities. Through blog articles and free legal guides, Amira sought to equip business owners with the knowledge they need to confidently navigate the legal aspects of their businesses.
Amira officially launched her business in 2018 while maintaining her full-time role as a lawyer. Her evenings and weekends were dedicated to building A Self Guru, and although it required a great deal of effort and dedication, her passion and commitment to the idea kept her motivated.
To kick-start her business, Amira made an initial investment of $700 in a blogging course. With her limited time, she recognized the importance of investing in education and didn’t want to waste time figuring things out on her own. She also spent an additional $1,000 on setting up a professional website, acquiring the right business tools, and mastering marketing strategies. The funds for these investments came from her day job as a lawyer, and though the financial commitment was significant, she knew it was necessary for her business’s success.
Amira’s initial clients came from Facebook, where she began receiving numerous legal questions once people learned she was a business lawyer. Common queries included "how to create legal pages for a website," "what documents are necessary to safeguard a new online business," and "how to write a disclaimer." Realizing that many entrepreneurs lacked legal guidance, she recognized an opportunity to offer her expertise.
She started providing legal services and ready-made legal templates to individuals and businesses via Facebook groups, filling a critical gap in the market. This strategy quickly paid off as word spread, leading to client referrals. Today, her customers continue to serve as her strongest advocates, sharing their positive experiences with A Self Guru’s legal templates across various platforms.
Amira’s first year of business was both challenging and rewarding. She worked more than 16 hours a day, balancing her full-time job as a lawyer during the day and building her business by night and on weekends. There were no breaks or days off, but she understood the dedication required to get her business off the ground.
One of the key strategies that helped her manage time effectively was creating passive income through legal templates. Instead of engaging in time-consuming, one-on-one consultations to create legal documents, Amira decided to offer done-for-you legal templates that business owners could download instantly. These templates included crucial legal documents like privacy policies, disclaimers, terms and conditions for websites, and business contracts such as LLC operating agreements and affiliate agreements, all of which were bundled into the VIP legal package.
This passive income model allowed her to start making money within the first month of her business. By the end of the first year, Amira had generated over $200,000 in revenue, a milestone that validated her hard work and dedication.
Amira Irfan employed several strategies to grow her business. First, she focused on building a strong online presence through digital marketing channels such as SEO, email marketing, and content marketing. Social media also played a key role in connecting with potential clients and spreading awareness of her services.
Collaborations and partnerships were another effective tactic. By working with businesses in similar or complementary niches, Amira was able to expand her customer base and gain new clients. Her dedication to customer satisfaction was also instrumental in growing the business. By prioritizing exceptional service, she was able to retain loyal customers and attract referrals, which helped the business maintain a consistent 5-star rating for over six years.
Amira also embraced continuous learning, staying open to new skills and techniques that kept her competitive in an ever-evolving market. Lastly, diversification proved to be crucial in her growth strategy. Beyond legal templates, Amira expanded her offerings to include coaching and personalized legal services, allowing her to reach a broader audience and increase her revenue streams.
Amira’s team consists of five remote freelancers. This includes two customer support virtual assistants, one social media manager, and two blog post writers, all of whom contribute to the success of A Self Guru.
Looking ahead, Amira plans to continue innovating and adapting her offerings to meet the changing needs of entrepreneurs. She aims to expand into areas such as live coaching, workshops, and seminars on legal and business-related topics. Another focus is on developing niche-specific legal templates based on popular demand. Every template in her store was created in response to customer requests, and she plans to continue accommodating those needs. For example, she currently offers templates tailored to the needs of coaches, freelancers, podcasters, interior designers, and bloggers.
In essence, Amira’s vision for the future revolves around continuous growth, product expansion, and meeting the evolving demands of her entrepreneurial clientele.
Amira’s turning point came when she made $78,000 in a single month from her online business. This financial success gave her the confidence to leave her 9-to-5 job and fully commit to her business. Although the decision to transition from a side hustle to full-time entrepreneurship was daunting, it proved to be one of the best decisions she ever made.
For Amira, the moment she knew her business had reached a significant level of success was when she hit the $78,000 milestone in one month. Before that, she was juggling both her full-time job and her side hustle, often feeling burnt out. However, reaching such impressive revenue growth marked the beginning of a new chapter in her entrepreneurial journey.
The most valuable lesson Amira learned while growing her business was to always prioritize customer satisfaction. By making this a top priority, A Self Guru has maintained a 5-star rating for six consecutive years. Amira frequently receives positive feedback from clients in the form of "love notes," video testimonials, and written reviews, which she attributes to the excellent customer service her team provides.
Listening to her customers' needs has been key to her business's success. All of her legal templates were created in response to customer requests, helping her build strong relationships and foster trust and loyalty. By consistently improving her products and services based on client feedback, Amira has been able to create a company that resonates with her audience and stands the test of time.
One of the biggest challenges Amira Irfan encountered while building A Self Guru was maintaining a healthy work-life balance. Since she was running her online business alongside a full-time career as a lawyer, time management became a significant struggle. She often worked 16+ hour days, leading to neglect of her personal health and relationships. This intense workload caused burnout and impacted her productivity.
To overcome this, Amira had to develop better discipline and set clear boundaries. She created a structured schedule, designated specific working hours, and ensured she made time for breaks and self-care. Learning to say no and communicating her availability with family and colleagues was also crucial. Additionally, she realized the importance of delegating tasks. Though initially difficult for a self-proclaimed perfectionist, trusting others to handle responsibilities allowed Amira to focus on more critical aspects of her business while fostering growth in her team.
Amira’s core advice for aspiring entrepreneurs is to believe in themselves and take risks. Confidence in one's vision and perseverance are essential in navigating the challenges that come with starting a business. She emphasizes that growth often stems from stepping outside one’s comfort zone and taking calculated risks. Trying new things and embracing opportunities, even when they involve uncertainty, is key to entrepreneurial success.
Amira’s favorite quote is: “Every entrepreneur was once an amateur.” This simple yet powerful statement resonates with her journey from novice to successful business owner.
Amira stays inspired and informed by several resources. One of her favorite books is “The 4-Hour Workweek” by Tim Ferriss, which transformed her approach to work and productivity, helping her streamline her business operations. She also follows Marie Forleo’s blog and YouTube channel, finding valuable insights from Marie’s expertise as a business and life coach.