Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Dr. Mickey Parsons, founder and Coaching Psychologist of The Workplace Coach, LLC., located in Atlanta, GA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
The Workplace Coach is a team of award-winning executive leadership and career coaches who equip business leaders, entrepreneurs, and professionals for breakthrough, high-performance results. We provide our coaching and leadership development clients with the strategy, structure, and solutions to fuel growth, innovation, and success. Since its launch in 1999, The Workplace Coach has coached thousands of executives, aspiring leaders, entrepreneurs, managers, and career changers.
Tell us about yourself
When I was 22, I was promoted into a job heading up a multiunit department at a county government in Chattanooga, Tenn. Fresh out of college, I found myself managing people who not only were much older than I was but were more experienced in their roles and in the organization. Looking back, I see what a difference it would have made to my team members and to me if someone had been coaching and mentoring me as I stepped into this demanding new role.
Over the years, as I moved into higher-level roles in different organizations (while pursuing advanced studies in psychology), I saw firsthand the need for skilled managers and leaders. (Gallup’s research indicates there’s as a good a chance an employee will end up reporting to a disinterested or incompetent manager as to a manager who cares about and works to lead and develop their people.) Most of us are not born leaders. We need to develop the skills and self-awareness that are the foundation of good leadership. We need guidance and mentoring along the way.
When I discovered the coaching profession, I saw an opportunity to combine my background in business management, HR, and psychology and support others in maximizing their own potential, whether as entrepreneurs, managers, and leaders or in their professional careers. This is my passion. By founding The Workplace Coach, I was able to build a team of coaches whose complementary strengths and skills bring this transformational work to a diverse audience.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
I’ve coached nearly 2,500 leaders, received a variety of honors and awards, mentored more than 200 coaches, and built an award-winning team of professional coaches. However, my greatest accomplishment is one that I and my colleagues aim for with our clients every day. It’s that “ah-ha” moment in a coaching session when a client has a breakthrough that allows them to see new possibilities. Sharing that spark or lightbulb moment with a client, and knowing their work and life will be transformed because of it – that’s a feeling of accomplishment like no other!
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
It really depends on the stage of growth. For me, in the beginning, the challenge was building confidence in my coaching and in my ability to grow a sustainable business. As the business grew, the challenge became finding the right partners to complement my strengths. Today, it’s about scalability – tweaking the business model in a way that supports desirable growth while allowing me to enhance my lifestyle and personal time. At all phases of growth, juggling priorities and navigating change can be tough, but it does get easier with time!
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
I’ll share the three steps that have helped me navigate the ebbs and flows of business and build a steady stream of clients.
- Drive immediate sales by leveraging my existing network, working to differentiate myself in the marketplace, and meeting regularly with key influencers.
- Improve our visibility by building long-term strategic partnerships (my most valued partnership took eight years to cultivate!) and finding new ways to put myself out there.
- Develop a long-term business pipeline. We do this by turning happy clients into advocates, using “drip” marketing to stay in touch with our favorite client companies, and continually upgrading our own skillsets and expertise to enhance the value of our services.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
In my experience, success as an entrepreneur is directly linked to self-leadership. As entrepreneurs, we are often the brand. We must have above-average self-awareness to manage this aspect of our roles. I encourage all entrepreneurs to devote time regularly to develop their skills, learn about themselves, and put that knowledge to work.
Build a support system, whether it be with a coach, psychologist, massage therapist, concierge service, house cleaner, or a combination. Learn to delegate. Be sure to meet your core needs for love, connection, growth, and fun. And for heaven’s sake, take time once a week or more to work ON your business, not just in it. If you really want to be purposeful about the evolution of your business and yourself, carve out regular time weekly for strategic thinking, planning, and actions steps, and don’t let anything get in your way!
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.theworkplacecoach.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-workplace-coach-llc/
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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