Sometimes the career you end up building starts with a problem you never planned on having to solve.
On this episode of the Twin City Tales Podcast, Wymond Wong sits down with Beth Riegger, founder of Fairy Godmother of Tech, to talk about entrepreneurship, reinvention, websites, networking, technology, artificial intelligence, and everything she learned while building a business of her own.
Beth grew up primarily in Moose Lake, Minnesota, where her parents owned a hardware store. Long before she became an entrepreneur herself, she was already getting a front-row look at small-business ownership and the work that happens behind the scenes.
Her own career would take her through sales, mortgages, and eventually ownership of a spa.
Then came a difficult partnership breakup.
The experience forced Beth into a new chapter, and one of the problems she needed to solve was her website. Instead of waiting for somebody else to figure it out, Beth started learning how to do it herself.
She watched videos, took courses, followed people online, experimented, made mistakes, and kept learning.
Eventually, other business owners began asking her for help.
What started as figuring out her own technology problems became Fairy Godmother of Tech, a business built around making websites and technology easier for entrepreneurs to understand and use.
Wymond and Beth talk about the lessons she learned from her "business divorce," choosing business partners, building a company without a traditional mentor, and the unexpected loneliness that can come from entrepreneurship.
Beth also shares why networking became so important to her and how involvement in BNI gave her something beyond referrals: relationships, connection, leadership opportunities, and a community of other business owners.
Then they get into websites.
Beth explains why a website should do more than simply look good. It should help explain what you do, guide potential clients toward taking action, and essentially work for the business around the clock.
They discuss her VIP Website in a Day, why some traditional website projects drag on for months, and what business owners should be asking before spending thousands of dollars on WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, hosting, SEO, plugins, or another complete redesign.
The conversation also turns toward artificial intelligence and the changing way entrepreneurs work.
Beth talks about using Claude to evaluate goals and new ideas, even allowing AI to challenge her when she may be getting distracted by another entrepreneurial "bright shiny object."
Can AI become an accountability partner? Where should business owners embrace technology, and where does the human element still matter most?
Wymond and Beth also explore learning outside of traditional education, reinventing yourself after setbacks, entrepreneurship later in life, and whether someone who has spent decades building things can ever truly retire.
From growing up around a family hardware business in Moose Lake to becoming the Fairy Godmother of Tech, Beth's story is a reminder that sometimes the thing you are forced to learn becomes the thing you were meant to teach someone else.
CONNECT WITH BETH RIEGGER
Fairy Godmother of Tech:
https://fairygodmotheroftech.com/
ABOUT TWIN CITY TALES
Twin City Tales is hosted by Wymond Wong and features conversations with the people behind the stories.
From entrepreneurs and community leaders to creators, business owners, athletes, entertainers, and people who have simply lived an interesting life, Twin City Tales goes beyond what someone does to discover how they became who they are.
Remember, you can't go wrong with Wymond Wong on your Twin City Tales Podcast.
POWERED BY TWIN CITY HEATING, AIR & ELECTRIC
Twin City Tales is proudly powered by Twin City Heating, Air & Electric.
https://www.twincityheatingandair.com/
