We all have powerful lessons to share and learn from. The question, is how these very lessons can serve to help your audience?
Ask Yourself: How does my life story help my audience?
Today, I will share a bit about my story with you to help get you started.
I began my career in coaching about 10 years ago. At that time, I was still working full-time. I was determined to launch this business, and embraced every aspect there was of leaving my corporate job and stepping into entrepreneurship.
What my certification did not prepare me for was all the things I needed to learn how to do. It was simply overwhelming! I gave myself credit though, I built my own website, had business cards drawn up, did everything I could to immerse myself into what I needed to do to get my name out there.
The problem was, although I was proud I was stretched so very thin. I was anxious to leave a less than favorable position managing several departments at a law firm which was causing me immense stress and anxiety.
I felt the pressure of “making it” knowing how much I had riding on the line.
At the time, I had not heard of hiring a virtual assistant, a social media manager or even a web designer – I thought it honestly came with the territory of owning your own business. So I did the best i could with the knowledge I had.
Over time, I began taking more and more classes on marketing, how to build an online business, how to build a coaching business and everything else I could get my hands on. So through the years I learned A LOT about online businesses, but what I realized was ….
I was finding less and less time to spend on the actual business – coaching.
Ok, let’s fast forward a bit to 2014. I will never forget the day October 29, 2014 I woke up with pains in my chest, my legs had gone numb and I thought – is this what a heart attack feels like. I had just endured the day before one of the worst ever days working in corporate undergoing a massive level of abuse that no employee should ever have to deal with…. and I thought to myself, wow this is how it is all going to end.
I was admitted to the hospital and thankfully, it was massive stress but after sitting in the hospital bed for 3 days for continued observation……..
…it was my wake up call to say the least.
I made up my mind laying in that hospital bed that:
- No longer was I going to tolerate this job
- No longer was I going to live a lie without passion
- No longer was i going to settle for a life less than I deserved. I knew at that very moment in the hospital bed,
I was never going to step foot in that office again.
I was ordered to bed-rest from my doctor, but while I was home I made a phone call to my boss and asked to meet for lunch. He must have known what was coming from the prior week and heard through the grapevine what transpired. Before I could even say that I was going to quit, I was offered a severance package. This may have been one of the happiest days of my life.
To this day, I celebrate October 29th as my Freedom Anniversary!
After my severance pay ended, I went on unemployment. It took me a few months to clear my head and figure out the next plan. I had a few offers from competing law firms due to my experience, but knew this would not be the path that lit me up. I would never return to working in law or finance again and I will never work in a corporate environment again.
I knew in my heart, I was meant to be a leader.
I discovered while I was on unemployment I could start a business, and it came to me as clear as could be. I wanted to serve other entrepreneurs and guide them with personalized support to excel the launch of their business so they could avoid the misinformation and the sea of courses that I endured. While grateful for all that I learned, because it brought me to where I am today, I recognize not everyone would want to take that path.
This is how Virtually Empowered was born!
My passion is to serve women entrepreneurs by building a boutique agency of professionals that would meet all of their business needs. I would lead my clients as not only a Strategic Business Coach but a Transformational Trauma Release Coach – designed to support THE WHOLE WOMAN.
This is what makes working with Virtually Empowered unique. To have the ability to receive the combined business and personal coaching excels your goals but having the team sends it right into implementation.
People were against it, people said it could not be done.
Here we are 5 years later, and I think our clients would say otherwise.
In return, we have created a family of team members at Virtually Empowered who are all sharing the same purpose and mission, to serve women and provide the support they need to exceed their goals.
So when i ask, how does your life story help your audience, maybe this story will inspire you to see what is truly possible.
With love,
Amanda
