No matter what are the obstacles, never give up on your dream!

Every year, we honor the achievements of our clients and their contributions to the local economy at our annual Celebrating Success event. This year we will be celebrating our 15 year anniversary from when we were initially created to improve the technology digital divide in our community to now evolved to help business owners better understand how to run a successful business.  Leading to our big commemoration we have been interviewing a client to highlight their success story each week, 15 in total.

Miranda Melendez is owner of I AM READY SWIM, LLC . Her company offers safe aquatic fun in Austin. She teaches swim lessons for all ages, and provides lifeguards and gate guards for events and neighborhood pools. I Am Ready Swim, LLC plays a huge part in making sure the pools stay nice and enjoyable for all residents.

Below is a Question & Answer we recently had with Miranda Melendez.

Q: How has your career added value to your life? To the community around you?

A: My career has added value to my life by giving me time and freedom to do what I want. The best part is I am busting my butt day and night with the rewarding feeling its for my OWN business. I love that we have impacted so many lives with safe swimming and have prevented so many drowning incidents. We sponsor most of our HOA pools. We give back by throwing Splash bashes for the residents at our pools to give the neighborhood something free and fun to do at the pools with the kids. I also go to local elementary schools and teach about water safety to the kids for their gym classes.

Q: How long have you been working with EGBI and how have they helped you?

A: I have been working with EGBI for about 2 years now. EGBI has helped me in so many ways. They have taught me how to manage my books and actually understand what I am doing. They have believed in me and helped me when not too many people would due to my age. They have also helped me understand how to negotiate contracts with my business partners and expand my business.

Q: What would you like everyone to know about you or your business?

A: I would like everyone to know that I am a strong believer in prayer and vision boards. I have watched my business grow from just me to 45 employees in 2 years. It has been so humbling to see my hard work finally start to show and I am grateful for every client and staff member I have come across.

Q: What accomplishment are you most proud of?

A: The accomplishment I am most proud of is making the newspaper for my senior project. I had recently lost my mom my senior of high school and decided to honor her by hosting a 5k walk for American Diabetes Association as my senior project for graduation. I ended being the first one to raise the most money for the foundation being a high school student in Texas.

Q: Tell us a fun fact about yourself

A: I am also a hairdresser and I love doing hair and making people feel good about themselves. I grew up in a salon so its kind of ingrained in me. I run the swim business in the summer and do hair in the off season. I love to hustle and stay busy.

Miranda Melendez is the 13th of the 15 clients we have shared stories about each week leading up to our 15 year celebration. Please continue to follow us to read more about the businesses we serve. If you would like to further support these businesses, consider using the products and services of our alumni. To do so, visit our CLIENT BUSINESS DIRECTORY.

Celebrating Success Luncheon is a few weeks away on September 6th, 2019. Be sure to reserve your spot as you will not want to miss! If you are interested in attending, reserving a table, or sponsoring our annual event, please contact Monica Peña at monica@egbi.org and 512-928-2594 . More information about the event HERE.