Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Diane Cady, Founder of Cady Consulting, located in Rogue River, OR, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
As a developmental editor and writing coach, I help writers get their projects out into the world. While many of my clients are academics, I help a wide range of writers, from seasoned professionals to virtual beginners. I am especially good at assisting writers with larger holistic issues, including argument development, organization, and structure. I also have experience in publishing and helping writers pitch to publishers and agents. I especially love working with people who are brimming with ideas and who are looking for a coach to help them lasso them into prose.
Tell us about yourself
I have a Ph.D. from Cornell University and was an English professor for 20+ years. While I absolutely loved my job, truth be told, over the last few years, the work/life balance was beginning to tip. And then the pandemic hit. As was the case for many, it made me stop and think: what do I want? What kind of life do I want? My partner and I decided to move from the Bay Area to a 28-acre property in the Rogue River Valley in Oregon, where we are closer to family and nature. We love it!
Helping people tell their stories and pursue their intellectual passions motivates me each day. As a first-generation college student myself, I am especially committed to supporting those who are often marginalized by academia and traditional publishing, including BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and neurodiverse writers and scholars. Now more than ever, the world needs our voices!
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Sometimes when you have very specialized training or you have been in a single profession for a long time, it is hard to imagine how your skills and passions might translate to other kinds of work. Realizing that I have skills and knowledge that are in demand outside academia and figuring out a way to turn that into a business has been my biggest accomplishment.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
I am a mentor and cheerleader at heart and love the one-on-one work I do with clients. But there are other aspects of owning a business that, while perhaps not as fun, need to be done. I'm still figuring out how much time and energy I need to set aside for these more mundane tasks.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Do an inventory of who you are, what you love, and what you are good at. So often, we have talents and abilities that have become invisible to us that the world needs. It can be hard to do this kind of inventory ourselves: a trusted friend or family member can be a great interlocutor.
- Consider starting small: I did this work for about a year and a half before transitioning to it full-time. Beginning part-time provided me with a safety net that gave me the time and flexibility to be creative and generative and see what works and what I enjoy without the financial worry.
- If your business is related in any way to a previous profession or hobby, do let people know what you are up to. Much of my business has come from word of mouth, and these networks are important.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.cadyconsulting.net/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/diane-cady-89a11979/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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