MASTER WEDDING PLANNER™ Shelby Tuck-Horton, MWP™, Exquisite Expressions and Events, Inc., Mitchellville, Md.FAMILY:  My husband and I have a blended family with one son and two daughters.EDUCATION: I have an associate's degree in arts in business management from Northern Virginia Community College in Springfield and an associate's degree in arts in marketing from Prince Georges Community College in Largo, Md. GETTING STARTED: I never dreamed of being a wedding planner. I was content as a management analyst for the federal government. However, one of my friends asked me to be her maid of honor, and I accepted. Since my friend didn’t enjoy the work of the wedding, I took over the tasks and let her enjoy being the bride-to-be. Her wedding was perfect, and she told everyone that it was because of me. Because of her glowing testimonial, I had people approach me about doing their wedding. I learned as much as I could about weddings while maintaining my full-time job and continued to help couples plan their dream weddings. After a few years of freelancing, I realized that I loved wedding planning way more than I did my government position. In 1991, I left my job and started my business without any regrets. ON THE ABC: I joined because of the education and training but soon learned the enormous benefit of networking and the support of members.BUSINESS GOALS: To continue to grow my company by offering more coaching, teaching, and mentorship programs for planners and women entrepreneurs.BUSINESS CHANGES IN THE PAST FIVE YEARS: Though we still offer packages for prospective clients who prefer them, we actually create more custom proposals.ON EVALUATING SUCCESS: For years, I measured my success on the amount of money that I made in a year. Now, I am more holistic in my business and personal goal setting and measurement of success. I set realistic goals—understanding the why of creating them—and work towards achieving those goals. I feel successful when I am working towards a goal and very successful when I achieve it. And I celebrate every time I achieve a goal!ONE BUSINESS MISTAKE: Because I did not have a mentor when I first started my business, I made many, many mistakes. However, I think my biggest mistake was in trying to grow my business without any help. As an entrepreneur, you wear many hats and as a wedding planner, you wear just as many—and wearing all of those hats without help often leads to a severe case of burnout. It took me a while to find the right person to work with, but when I did, it made a tremendous difference in my life and the growth of my company. MENTORS: When I started my business, I did not have a mentor because I could not find one willing to help. Along the way, there were other wedding professionals who helped me as needed. However, today my mentors are my business coaches who help me stay focused on achieving my goals and hold me accountable while supporting me in my success.INSPIRATION: Decorating magazines, travel, and most importantly, my clients.MARKETING STRATEGY: Because we receive approximately 75 percent of our business from referrals, our marketing strategy is to continue to nurture those relationships that refer business to us and to build new relationships through networking. We also continue to keep a presence in a couple of local wedding planning magazines and online wedding blogs.IDEAL CLIENT: My ideal client is a professional who respects my experience, skills, and abilities, and trusts me to do the job for which I was hired. We mutually respect one another, which creates an ideal working relationship during the planning process. This ideal client generously pays me for my time and services. FAVORITE BUSINESS BOOK: I love to read, so I have read many business books but I have really enjoyed Sacred Success: A Course in Financial Miracles by Barbara Stanny. Stanny teaches women how to achieve financial success through easy and understandable principles.READING NOW: I am currently reading Trust: Mastering the 4 Essential Trusts: Trust in God, Trust in Yourself, Trust in Others, Trust in Life by Iyanla VanzantINSPIRATIONAL BOOK: I was inspired by Brené Brown’s book, Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent and Lead.FREE TIME: I am an amateur photographer and love taking photos of nature. Butterflies, bees, flowers, and trees are all my models.ADVICE: Let your authentic self shine through in all that you do. It’s so easy to get caught up in social media “compare-i-tis” and lose sight of your own brilliance and genius. Focus on you, and strive for your best in all that you do.GIVING BACK: I teach a wedding-planning business course at the community college. For years, I have coached and mentored other wedding planners.LITTLE KNOWN FACT: I am a Certified Life and Business Coach and love, love, love helping others reach their goals in business and life.