Starting Up

So how did this all come about you might ask? I LOVE being a Bikram yoga teacher but that is not the most lucrative position. Owning a Bikram yoga studio seemed out of the question as SF is pretty much set. OK what else can I do? I spent many a conversation talking to my husband John about this as well as family and friends. One suggestion that kept coming up was Life Coach. Really? Coach some one's life? That seemed too big. I liked the idea of being a coach. I knew I wanted something that was a specialty, simple in concept and had a teaching element. Then I remembered a side job where I helped two former accounting clients of mine organize their "stuff." I will never forget opening their garage and thinking "oh my God, they think I am Oprah and have a team of people". But before long, the "stuff" was itemized, sorted and finally organized, donated or trashed. I so enjoyed parking their car in the garage! Hmmm. I liked that. It goes with my whole motto of being "green" by reusing and recycling and as anyone knows I like to be organized..."one item out for any new item in". OK I got it. I am going to be a Professional Organizer. Thankfully I shared my idea with my sister. In less than a week she had me connected with her friend Laura who is a Professional Organizer in Palm Beach, and who has become a mentor. I immediately ordered all the books she suggested and checked out the on line association of Professional Organizers called NAPO. Then I started to tell people...the response has been thru the roof. I met with one friend for coffee and immediately she wanted my business cards to pass on to her clients. Guess what I had to do that day? Yep, go home and make business cards and of course that led me to my website. John and my friend Samantha are amazing writers so they did all my edits. It seemed that within a two week period of making this decision I had cards, a website and clients. Yes, I had clients! Talk about a vote of confidence.

Scary but in a good way. My main focus is to truly just enjoy this process rather than focusing on trying to have a million clients.

I have attended a couple networking meetings and realized I am "just not there yet". My first was a business networking meeting where the soul purpose is to give each other referrals. One guy who works on websites and business cards basically he told me mine sucked. That was a learning moment. Don't insult someone if you want their business. Anyway, how can I get other people referrals when I am just trying to get some of my own? I think this has to wait. On a side note, I did get a client that morning...the President of the group. I think by being honest with who I am and sharing my concerns that I made an impact on the group. Good to know...be myself and represent exactly where I am at.

My focus for now is working with clients and exploring the various tools of the craft. I have joined NAPO and enrolled in a couple of their classes. In fact, I am attending one of their chapter meetings tonight (more on that tomorrow). Yes at some point I will need to focus more on Marketing but for now I just need to get in there and work with people.

My tip for today...if your closet seems full check out the hangers you have. I am a BIG fan of the Ultra Slim Flocked Hangers in the Camel color. I find them cheapest at Bed Bath and Beyond and remember to bring the 20% off coupon they send in the mail.