<figure><img src="https://i.insider.com/6aaab3d74a3706ac06f83bbaformat=jpeg" height="1062" width="1416" alt="Luba Patlakh Kaplun headshot"><figcaption>Luba Patlakh Kaplun founded her own company in search fo more revenue.<p class="copyright">Courtesy of Luba Patlakh Kaplun</p></figcaption></figure><ul class="summary-list"><li>Luba Patlakh Kaplun searched for a serious job that would appeal to her immigrant parents.</li><li>After working for someone, she founded her own company in hopes of generating more revenue.</li><li>Her company began to scale rapidly after she became more comfortable with outsourcing.</li></ul><p><em>This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Luba Patlakh Kaplun, founder of</em> <a target="_blank" href="https://kidologyinc.com/">Kidology</a><em>. It has been edited for length and clarity</em>.</p><p>I used to dream of being a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/broadcast-journalist-barbara-walters-life-in-pictures-2022-12">broadcast journalist</a>. But my parents — Russian Jewish immigrants from Ukraine — wanted me to do something more serious, in their eyes. </p><p>I floundered for a bit, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/full-time-job-after-college-graduation-tips-work-experience-2025-4">studying journalism</a>, then opening a marketing agency. All the while, my parents were asking, "When are you going to establish yourself?"</p><p>Much of my family <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mother-daughter-duo-begin-their-medical-careers-together-2020-6">works in medicine</a>, but I can't do blood and needles. I did an internet search for careers with the most security and growth potential, and found speech-language pathology. It seemed perfect: serious enough for my parents, and adjacent to the medical field, but with no blood or needles.</p><h2 id="02cec528-ef2a-44e5-9182-f506ec1f9ed7" data-toc-id="02cec528-ef2a-44e5-9182-f506ec1f9ed7">My language skills helped me differentiate my business</h2><p>I got my master's and started working for another <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/speech-therapist-this-trick-avoids-fights-2026-2">speech-language pathologist</a> who had a bilingual English-Spanish clinic. I speak Russian, and when the owner realized that, they started to grow their clientele.</p><p>I realized my community was almost completely untouched. Instead of using my Russian skills to expand someone else's business, I wanted to use them to benefit my family and me. Doing that felt like a way to honor the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/reference/generational-trauma">generational trauma</a> that my family had been through, sacrificing and working so hard to get to America.</p><h2 id="9ec2b6ae-b718-4904-83ed-5a0d44a8dff3" data-toc-id="9ec2b6ae-b718-4904-83ed-5a0d44a8dff3">Doing everything myself started to catch up</h2><p>That's when Luba, the business owner, was born. I started going to all the Jewish clubs and churches to see students. I was juggling seeing patients with building a practice, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-get-medical-bills-reduced-negotiate-challenge-payment-plan-2024-9">billing insurance</a>, and raising awareness about speech-language pathology within my Russian-speaking community.</p><p>I was constantly trying to do a little more before hiring someone. I worried I could never teach the business to another person, and that no one would treat the business — my baby — as well as I would.</p><p>Five years in, I was burned out. I realized I was missing payments because I didn't have the systems in place to track them and follow up with clients. I was good at juggling, but some of the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/psychotherapist-shares-how-to-know-overwhelmed-vs-burned-out-work-2026-6">balls were starting to drop</a>.</p><h2 id="3ef74839-37ac-4f8b-be8d-4df145772d30" data-toc-id="3ef74839-37ac-4f8b-be8d-4df145772d30">Creating standard procedures helped me grow</h2><p>I had just crossed into seven figures of revenue when I came across a survey asking business owners about their challenges. It was a targeted ad, but it was just what I needed. Through that company, I connected with a business course and financial management.</p><p>Those resources changed my entire business. I realized I didn't have standard operating procedures or a management structure. Once I established those, my company flourished. In 2020, we did just over $1 million in revenue. Last year, we did $4.95 million, and we're still growing.</p><h2 id="8942313d-8027-4170-a976-4df319c2cf74" data-toc-id="8942313d-8027-4170-a976-4df319c2cf74">My kids are benefiting from generations of hard work</h2><figure><img src="https://i.insider.com/6aaac3ad16256d3825fde720?format=jpeg" height="1134" width="1512" alt="Luba Patlakh Kaplun's family"><figcaption><p class="copyright">Courtesy of Luba Patlakh Kaplun</p></figcaption></figure><p>My business is 11, and my children are 10, 8, and 4. They've been raised alongside the business. When I do community presentations, my little one loves to tell people to come talk to his mom.</p><p>My older son sees how the business's financial success has impacted his life. He used to play in a little inflatable pool; now, we have a large house with an in-ground pool. He likes to joke that his little brother doesn't remember how things used to be.</p><p>Their lives are very different from mine growing up. My family always had enough money, but we lived in apartments, and my brother and I shared a room for most of my childhood. I tell my kids that, and make sure they know everything they have come from hard work: not only mine, but my parents' and grandparents' too.</p><div class="read-original">Read the original article on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/seven-figure-business-burnout-delegating-growth-systems-2026-9">Business Insider</a></div>
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