Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in coaching but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Barbara Waxman, founder, and CEO of Odyssey Group Coaching LLC., located in San Francisco, CA, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

My business is coaching adults, midlife and better, in skillfully and authentically navigating today's complex challenges. My coaching model, Entrepreneurship Turned Inward (ETI)™, follows a process that yields increased clarity, alignment with purpose, impact, and joy for clients. Another foundational aspect of my coaching is the Five Essential Elements™ process, which bolsters one's resilience and decreases stress, resulting in enhanced vitality and wellness. My clients range from CEOs, entrepreneurs, and other game-changers looking to have a greater impact or to make a shift.

Tell us about yourself

Some of my favorite childhood memories were accompanying my father, a physician, as he volunteered at the Menorah Home and Hospital in Brooklyn, NY. I would roam the halls of this nursing home and visit with people. I loved their craggy faces and their stories. That began my lifelong interest in aging. I received my Master's in Gerontology when I was just in my 20s and worked as a consultant for some years until clients asked if I would coach them. At the time, over 20 years ago, coaching was a relatively new field, and I was not at all familiar with it. Once I realized how powerful it could be, I went back to school (in my 40s, by the way) and launched Odyssey Group coaching. I am motivated each and every day to make the world a better place by enabling people to show up as their very best—for themselves, their families, communities, companies, and more. I have the opportunity to work with individuals whose leadership impacts thousands of lives. The coaching work amplifies their impact—and mine.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

This is an excellent question. To answer it, I went through the mental tickler file: my Myth of the Midlife Crisis TEDx Talk, having my Middlescence work featured on CBS This Morning, or even being a three-time author. But the truth is that I feel my greatest business accomplishment is the relationship I have developed with clients. It may be years since I have worked with someone, but they will reach out to keep me in the loop to let me know of things they are doing—or accomplishing—to make the world a better place. It inspires me to no end.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

It can be lonely at the top. Particularly over the past couple of years, we have all been suffering from a great sense of isolation. So, I worked hard to invest the time and energy needed in personal relationships that sustain me to pay it forward and lead at work.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Watch out for mission creep. Many people start a business thinking they can be successful by meeting all kinds of needs or selling a plethora of products. The truth is that the more you can find a niche you can authentically 'own,' the more successful you will be.
  2. Create a personal board of directors. We all have that board of directors in our heads, often sharing not-so-helpful advice. A personal board of directors is made up of those people who are truth-tellers and whom you can rely on and share the good times and bad.
  3. Create objectives associated with the niche you have identified. Then make them SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-oriented. And work to achieve your SMART objectives by being micro-ambitious.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://barbarawaxman.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialBarbaraWaxman
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barbarawaxman/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/barbarawaxman
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/barbarawaxman/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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