Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Megan Johnson, Founder of Megs Colleen Life Coaching, located in Lake Geneva, WI, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
As an award-nominated coach, writer, and teacher, I help folks hand back dominant cultural narratives keeping them caged, so they can reclaim inner capacity and live their freedom now.
If you are feeling: boxed in by culture telling you who you should be and how to do it, frustrated by the unconscious patterns, you keep living out (oh, hello, old coping strategies!) like there must be something "more" to life, but confusion on how to find, "more" – I invite you to begin your Freedom Journey.
You can release the outdated cultural stories, expired coping strategies, and cookie-cutter marketing plans designed to make you feel not enough to step into a new reality. You can live your freedom now.
Tell us about yourself
Growing up and as a young adult, I navigated a lot of confusion and deep inner turmoil. Enmeshment, narcissistic abuse, and additional traumatic experiences caused me to become a shape-shifter of sorts. In order to feel safe, I became a "people pleaser." I learned how to fit the boxes, the "Dominant Dogma," of my subculture. I taught myself to distrust my intuition, I (tried to) hide my trauma responses, and ultimately I became a ghost of who I truly am….and who I knew I could be.
As the years went on, I faced different seasons and lessons, which resulted in reaching out for support. With the guidance of my coaches and mentors, I began to integrate my fragmented parts. I returned to wholeness, my essence, and freedom. I became empowered to set boundaries, discovered how to take up space, step into personal responsibility, and understand the mind-body connection. I learned how to become my own healer, my own authority, my own business advisor, my own responsibility, and my own leader, and I discovered… anything is possible. I believe this is possible for others too. Now, as a life coach and counseling student, I support others on their healing and entrepreneurship journies so they can live whole, free, and empowered.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Last year I was so incredibly grateful to be nominated for Emerging Coach Of The Year by my coaching academy B.Y.C.A.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
As an entrepreneur and solopreneur can speak, business ownership comes with a lot of responsibility, including navigating changing markets, marketing with integrity, and ensuring that you actually take home a paycheck after all payments have been made. With this in mind, I believe so strongly in playing the long game. Noticing what will take time to develop and where things need to be reevaluated. I see so many small business owners giving up after 1-2 years due to the ups and downs in business, but it is CRUCIAL to remembering that growth takes time and solves the problems that keep you from staying in the game.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Ensure you have funding. So many entrepreneurs put pressure on their businesses to make money right out of the gate. Instead, I encourage folks to get funding (whether through personal means, sponsors, investors, etc.) so their business has space to grow while you work out the kinds and build your customer base.
- Profit first. As your business begins to make money, ensure you and your people are getting paid. Keep your running costs low, pay your people, and enjoy the fruits of your labor.
- Become a master of communication. Read the books on marketing and storytelling, learn about ethical marketing practices, take a stab at writing a book and work with a brutal editor to hone your craft. Communication is crucial to reaching your audience, and no matter where you are, you are the megaphone for your business, learn to tell its story well.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
A final tip would be to continually develop your self-trust and emotional intelligence. In business, you will have to navigate ups and downs daily. Bake in practices that allow you to return to your center so you can clearly hear your intuition and make informed choices.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://megscolleen.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/megscolleen/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/megscolleen
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/megscolleen/
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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