On Your Terms®

We all want to create and share content respectfully and properly online. But sometimes it’s hard to know where to draw the line between inspiration and imitation. Let’s go over some of the basics of copyright law, what it is, what content falls under that category, and how you can use other peoples’ content, legally. I also discuss the fair use exception, what it is, and what content falls under...

Instagram Reels: You either love ‘em or you hate ‘em – or sometimes a bit of both all at once. If you listen to all the people out there, you’re bound to hear both sides of it, that Reels are a waste of time and also the only way to grow your business. Let’s cut through the noise and figure out how you can create content that actually moves the needle while using your valuable time effectively. In...

Online businesses aren’t immune to the laws, regulations, and rules that traditional brick-and-mortar businesses have to follow – despite what some “armchair legal experts” may have told you in a Facebook group chat. On top of that, there are some rules that apply specifically to online businesses and the ways that they grow. In order to make sure you are legally protected in ALL aspects of your b...

Self-talk plays a huge role in our lives, especially for anyone who’s putting themselves out on the wire in a public forum like social media. Today, we’re talking with Katie Horwitch, a New York City-based writer, speaker, mindset coach, and the founder of WANT (Women Against Negative Talk), a platform and podcast that offers tips, tools, motivation, and inspiration to help people move forward in...

Let’s take a trip back in time to when I first started my online business. What was the marketing landscaping looking like and what was going on in the online business world at that time? I’ll dig into the details in the episode, but I can tell you one thing for sure: things are so different today! I’m going to share what was working when I started my business, what’s no longer working, the market...

Wouldn’t you love to create a marketing strategy that sells your product on autopilot and amplifies your impact in a BIG way? It’s not as far-fetched as you might think! You can market a product that sells itself, all the while building a snowball effect without having to burn yourself out on social media every day or reinventing the wheel every time you want to make a sale. The universe doesn’t m...

I’ve experienced both success and failure when it comes to starting a business. I’m not ashamed to admit it because knowing what works and what doesn’t puts me in a powerful position to give advice on what differentiates the two. For me, one of the things I focused on in a different way that helped lead to my business’s success was the product. I have eight ways you can create a product that’s goi...

This week, we’re kicking off the first in a three-part series to help you make the transition from a startup business owner to soldout and scaling. We’re going to start things off with the basics: how do you find high-quality, paying customers – wherever you are in your business. We take a look at what some of the biggest companies are doing and scale them down to fit your business, finding a uniq...

I am in the early stages of writing my own book, and it is quite an adventure. I have put off writing this for so long because of all the worries I had around what had to be in place before I could write. When I started looking into where to start, I got one piece of advice: “Start by talking to Richelle Fredson.” We made a connection, and now she’s my writing coach and consultant on this project....

Being legally protected is going to help you build your business. With legal protection, you can be more comfortable and confident with putting yourself out there. In this episode we’ll talk about why your website needs legal defense and the three pieces of legal protection you absolutely need to go pro. I’ll share exactly what you need on your website, where to put it, and how it works to keep yo...

My goal is to make sure that you aren’t personally on the hook for whatever happens in your business – whether that’s getting sued, owing money, or something else entirely. That means you have to register your business properly so that you, yourself, are protected. It’s not as complicated as people make it out to be, so let’s make it easy for you to keep your assets covered! In this episode, you’l...

Story time: I always knew I wanted to be an attorney, but there was one event that really set off my interest. In college I got involved in a bad housing situation and couldn’t find a way out of my lease. I asked nicely, and I was denied. So I reviewed my lease, did some research, and found a hole in the tenant law that they missed. I brought it to their attention and ended up being let go of my l...

Are you super overwhelmed with legal advice? Have you taken in way too much information and can't figure out where to start? I will go over the three steps you need to take to protect and grow your online business if you haven't done much yet. We keep it simple – just exactly what you need to know to get started. If you haven't taken any action to protect yourself and your business legally, start...

If you approach your business with a fixed mindset, you won’t be able to pivot when you need to. It’s inevitable that you’re going to have to make changes in your business at some point, and if you’re too rigid in your thinking you aren’t going to recognize those opportunities quickly enough. Whether it’s reacting to personal life events or if something in your business is no longer working, you n...

Today, we’re talking about issues that are a real PITA (that stands for pain in the…). The worst of these problems can come from your paying clients. Whether you have all of the best legal protections in place or none at all, trouble clients can always find ways to end up causing legal headaches. I’m going to share how to identify warning signs early so that you can see problems coming, when to cu...

The online world can be a messy place for legal advice. I’m going to discuss some of the biggest and most dangerous legal myths I’ve seen, such as LLCs versus sole proprietorships, using free contracts when starting out, whether it’s true that the online world is a Wild West, and whether you really need an LLC or business insurance – or both. In this episode, you'll hear… 02:21 - The dangers of fo...

Let’s get personal. I’m sure there are people out there who are going through a lot right now – I’m one of them! In fact, the last three years have been the hardest of my life. Despite that, I’ve managed to grow my business immensely. It hasn’t been easy, but I’ve made it happen. So how did I do it? You’re going to hear all about what happened to me when I left being an attorney, how I used that e...

Scope of practice is one of the most requested topics in my community, and in my DMs, so we’re going to get down and dirty, talking about what you are, and are not, legally allowed to do as a coach. First of all, you need to understand exactly what scope of practice is and which scope of practice covers what you do. This is where this episode starts. But there’s so much misinformation out there wh...

There can be so much pressure to engage with people offering the same professional services that you do online – especially when you’re starting out. I’m here to tell you that “community over competition” is BS. Don’t listen to it. That doesn’t mean you can’t be polite and friendly with other people doing what you do, but at the end of the day, they’re not your clients and they’re never going to b...

Hey, I'm Sam Vander Wielen, an attorney turned multi-seven-figure entrepreneur and the host of On Your Terms®, a podcast all about helping you legally protect your online business and learn the marketing strategies that will actually help you grow it. I understand how overwhelming legal protection can be, and I'm here to help break down the legal stuff that you need to know in a no-fear, no-fluff,...