Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with John Neral, founder of John Neral Coaching, LLC., located in Vienna, VA, USA.

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

I help mid-career professionals find a job they love or love the job they have. In my business, I provide executive and career transition coaching to people who feel stuck, undervalued, and underutilized in their jobs. My clients are going through a “mid-career moment” where they realize they don’t want to be stuck. It’s their biggest fear. Whether they are “stuck” because of the golden handcuffs or simply afraid to make a career move, my clients seek help in navigating toward something more professionally fulfilling and satisfying.

Tell us about yourself

Before launching my coaching practice full-time, I had a 25-year career in education. I worked as a middle-school mathematics teacher, instructional coach, and district coordinator.

In 2010, I created my next advancement opportunity after realizing my mid-career moment. I didn’t want to be a classroom teacher anymore. While I loved what I was doing, I was ready for a bigger challenge. I wanted to work with teachers helping them be better educators directly. My next job was serving as a Professional Development Specialist for the District of Columbia Public Schools. I supervised 21 instructional coaches across thirteen middle schools. From there, I went to work for the State Superintendent. I then landed at an educational non-profit where I served as a Training and Staffing Director for an 85-person department.

After five years and a couple of reorganizations, I realized that I would need to leave and launch my practice to pursue coaching full-time. And after a lot of conversations, both at work and home, I took the leap in December 2016 because I had an opportunity to serve more people outside than internally.

What motivates me each day is knowing that I have the coaching and tactical tools to help people navigate their careers and make them better. Whether they are looking to grow their leadership presence, lead their organizations more effectively, or increase their overall job satisfaction, I’m able to open up the space for them to explore whatever is next and improve their lives and careers.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My biggest accomplishment is grounded in every client I get to work with and help them create their next advancement opportunity. It’s why I appreciate and treasure the coaching relationships I build with each client.

We spend a lot of time working. We deserve to be happy with what we are doing and know we are doing quality work that impacts someone or something. That’s why every time a client has a breakthrough, lands a job they are excited to do, or finds a way to lead more effectively; I celebrate that with them.

I’ve worked with people who have advanced their careers within Fortune 50 companies. I’ve helped people elevate their leadership presence into executive roles (and got great pay raises on top of that). And I’ve helped heart-centered leaders and professionals find jobs they are proud to have because they know they get to do excellent work there. My clients are everything to me, and I’m honored to get to work with them and help them each day.

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

As a solo business owner, one of the hardest things is realizing that there is no lighting in a can to make your business a success. The internet is full of chatter that makes it seem like you can have a 7-figure business in 30 days. It’s just not my experience. This is a journey. To coin the phrase from Dorie Clark’s book, this is “The Long Game.”

Whenever I feel I am losing some motivation or questioning my abilities to grow my business in the way I see best, I think of why I am doing this and how important it is for me to help as many mid-career professionals out there.

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

  1. Be Consistent – Every result you get will be consistent with your efforts to grow your business. Every week, you must have a plan to find ways to connect, engage, relate to, and develop relationships with people in your network. Consistently putting your message and value out there will resonate with those who want to connect, be in your network, and eventually become your clients.
  2. Limit the Chatter – Many people out there will have great ideas to help you grow your business. Imposter Syndrome is real. Be mindful of when your brain wants to tell you that you aren’t good enough and find ways to make you feel less than. Be mindful and strategic about who you CHOOSE to pull into your network to help you with your business development. One of the best decisions I made was to hire a business coach. He helped me have the business I have today by creating systems and structures that would allow me to be successful.
  3. Never Question Your Value – As a business owner, you do something better than anyone else. There are a lot of coaches out there, but there’s only one person who can help my clients the way I do. That’s what makes me stand out and why people hire me to help them navigate their career transition. You will always have a successful business when you never question or doubt the value you provide as a business owner.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

There is nothing to be ashamed about being a mid-career professional and questioning what's next for your career. For some of us, it's why we enter entrepreneurship. For others, it's about navigating to a new organization or position. It's your journey. You GET to make it whatever you want it to be.

If you are looking for help to navigate your mid-career journey, please check out my podcast, "The Mid-Career GPS Podcast." Also, please check out Amazon for my two books, "SHOW UP - Six Strategies to Lead a More Energetic and Impactful Career" and "Your Mid-Career GPS - Four Steps to Figuring Out What's Next."

And if you'd like to join a like-minded community of professionals all trying to figure out whatever is next for their careers, join my Private Facebook Group - Your Mid-Career GPS.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://johnneral.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnneralcoaching
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnneralcoaching/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/john_neral
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnneral/

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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