Talk With Olena

In this episode of Talk to Olena, I sit down with Angelica Potes, an RCIC based in Kitchener, Ontario, who’s been running her business while raising her baby daughter.

We talk honestly about what it’s like to grow a firm from scratch, how it feels to be isolated in the early years, and the power of community and support.

We also dive into:

✨ Taking action instead of overthinking
✨ Building your business around your strengths
✨ Why accountability and consistency matter more than motivation
✨ Trusting yourself even when things feel messy

00:00 – Intro & Angelica’s story

02:00 – Running a business with a newborn

04:00 – Overcoming isolation in the early years

08:00 – The mindset shift that changed everything

11:30 – Angelica’s superpower: effortless collaboration

14:00 – Taking action vs. overthinking

18:30 – Why community and accountability matter 

21:30 – Her best advice to her past self

👇 Let’s connect:

📍 Chat with me on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-weber/

📌 Apply to work with me: https://bit.ly/4sa18ls 

Talk to Olena is an unfiltered podcast for RCICs and immigration lawyers who are building their business. I’ve been a business owner for 12 years, and I’ve been through it all: from having no clients and hustling non-stop to having too many clients and burning out.

I’ve gone through hiring and firing, struggled with team management, faced operational challenges in case processing, struggled with how to serve clients well without losing myself.

Being an entrepreneur is hard, but being an immigration practitioner and CEO at the same time is even harder.

So in this podcast, I’m sharing all of it in a very real and unfiltered way.

👇 Let’s connect:

📍 Chat with me on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-weber/

📌 Apply to work with me: https://bit.ly/4sa18ls 

Talk to Olena is an unfiltered podcast for RCICs and immigration lawyers who are building their business.

I’ve been a business owner for 12 years, and I’ve been through it all: From having no clients and hustling non-stop to get business to having too many clients and burning out.

I’ve navigated hiring and firing, struggled with team management, faced operational challenges in case processing, wrestled with how to serve clients well without losing myself.

Being an entrepreneur is hard.
Being an immigration practitioner and CEO at the same time - even harder.

So in this podcast, I’m sharing all of it in a very real, unfiltered way.

👇 Let’s connect:

📍 Chat with me on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-weber/

📌 Apply to work with me: https://bit.ly/4sa18ls 

Talk to Olena is an unfiltered podcast for RCICs and immigration lawyers who are building their business.

I’ve been a business owner for 12 years, and I’ve been through it all: From having no clients and hustling non-stop to get business to having too many clients and burning out.

I’ve navigated hiring and firing, struggled with team management, faced operational challenges in case processing, wrestled with how to serve clients well without losing myself.

Being an entrepreneur is hard.
Being an immigration practitioner and CEO at the same time - even harder.

So in this podcast, I’m sharing all of it in a very real, unfiltered way.

👇 Let’s connect:

📍 Chat with me on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-weber/

📌 Apply to work with me: https://bit.ly/4sa18ls 

Talk to Olena is an unfiltered podcast for RCICs and immigration lawyers who are building their business.

I’ve been a business owner for 12 years, and I’ve been through it all: From having no clients and hustling non-stop to get business to having too many clients and burning out.

I’ve navigated hiring and firing, struggled with team management, faced operational challenges in case processing, wrestled with how to serve clients well without losing myself.

Being an entrepreneur is hard.
Being an immigration practitioner and CEO at the same time - even harder.

So in this podcast, I’m sharing all of it in a very real, unfiltered way.

👇 Let’s connect:

📍 Chat with me on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-weber/

📌 Apply to work with me: https://bit.ly/4sa18ls 

Talk to Olena is an unfiltered podcast for RCICs and immigration lawyers who are building their business.

I’ve been a business owner for 12 years, and I’ve been through it all: From having no clients and hustling non-stop to get business to having too many clients and burning out.

I’ve navigated hiring and firing, struggled with team management, faced operational challenges in case processing, wrestled with how to serve clients well without losing myself.

Being an entrepreneur is hard.
Being an immigration practitioner and CEO at the same time - even harder. So in this podcast, I’m sharing all of it in a very real, unfiltered way.

👇 Let’s connect:

📍 Chat with me on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-weber/

📌 Apply to work with me: https://bit.ly/4sa18ls 

Matthew McDonald is my guest in this podcast episode. We talk about Matthew’s love for relocation and travel, and how he runs his immigration firm from Argentina. We also open up about the emotional aspects of the RCIC profession, how to create deep and meaningful relationships with your clients, and how to respect boundaries in the client/RCIC relationship.

Check out Matthew’s LinkedIn page here:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewmcdonaldlinkedin

📍 Chat with me on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-weber/

📌 Apply to work with me: https://bit.ly/4sa18ls 

Maria Alfaro is my guest in this podcast episode. We talk about Maria’s business experience as the owner of English for Canada School as well as her work as a copywriter for several RCICs.

Tune in to hear our discussion on SEO, Google Ads, posting blogs on the website, and pivoting the business during challenging times.

Some of Maria’s courses that I usually recommend to my clients:

Complete CLB 9 CELPIP Course (which includes 2 paid practice tests worth $40): 

https://courses.englishforcanada.com/courses/CELPIP?ref=d1ef56 (https://courses.englishforcanada.com/courses/CELPIP?ref=d1ef56&coupon=weber50)&coupon=weber50 (https://courses.englishforcanada.com/courses/CELPIP?ref=d1ef56&coupon=weber50)

CELPIP Speaking & Writing Course. It doesn't include the practice tests: 

https://courses.englishforcanada.com/courses/CELPIPSolution?ref=d1ef56&coupon=weber10

You can connect with Maria here:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariacalfaro

📍 Chat with me on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-weber/

📌 Apply to work with me: https://bit.ly/4sa18ls 

Today's guest is Oleg Schindler, RCIC, Chair of the Association of Ukrainian Canadian Immigration Consultants and my very good friend. One thing that surprises me the most is how busy Oleg is with all the different projects and businesses! Oleg runs several immigration practices and also has a company that provides marketing services to RCICs. He really makes the most of the 24 hours in a day!

You can check out Oleg’s marketing services for RCICs here: https://schindlerconsulting.me

📍 Chat with me on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-weber/

📌 Apply to work with me: https://bit.ly/4sa18ls 

In this video, we chat with Howard Brown about his career path from working in a Visa Application Center to starting his RCIC career. Howard shares his experience balancing a full-time job while running an immigration business and gives his thoughts on future trends in the immigration industry.

📍 Chat with me on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-weber/

📌 Apply to work with me: https://bit.ly/4sa18ls