Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in health and wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Chelsea Pambianco, founder of Mind Your Own Nutrition, located in Fullerton, CA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Mind Your Own Nutrition is a private practice that offers nutrition counseling to individuals looking to improve their relationship with food and movement. My typical client is someone who has yo-yo dieted in the past without success and is interested in learning a different, more sustainable way to eat and move their body. I also help individuals break away from disordered eating patterns such as restricting or only eating foods because they are "bad" or "good" and obsessively tracking food intake to meet dangerously low calorie or macro goals.
I counsel using the principles of intuitive eating to remove the stress and guilt associated with eating food, reconnect my clients with their biological cues of hunger and satiety, improve their body image, and find joy in moving their bodies in a way that feels good.
Tell us about yourself
I completed my undergraduate degree in business and took a position in the insurance industry fresh out of college. After five years of feeling unfulfilled by my career, I decided to take a huge leap of faith and leave my full-time, stable job to pursue a master's degree in Nutrition. I was already spending all of my free time researching nutrition and giving advice to my friends and family, so I figured I might as well make it into a career.
As I completed my degree and the internship necessary to become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, my outlook on nutrition changed. Much to the credit of the book Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch, I started focusing less on what was going into my body and focusing more on my relationship with food. I discovered that following a diet and restricting food with the goal of weight loss is not health-promoting - it actually causes a lot of harm. A dietitian that doesn't believe in diets is a pretty radical concept, and therefore there aren't a ton of job opportunities that align with my ideals.
With my background in business and my passion for helping clients discover a more sustainable way to eat, I felt it was the perfect opportunity to open my own practice. Guiding clients through the process to food freedom, where all foods fit into their lives without guilt or worry, is the most fulfilling work I could have ever asked for. It drives me to continue growing my practice so that more people can benefit from having the ability to eat intuitively, as it is truly a lifelong skill that will improve the overall health and well-being of a person.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Getting started! Imposter syndrome is real, and you can easily talk yourself out of starting a business by believing that you are not qualified or won't be successful. I felt immense pride and a dose of reality when I received my first piece of mail with my business name on it and got paid for taking on my first client!
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Finding the time to effectively market my business via all available outlets to reach clients (e.g., social media, blog posts, partner referrals, community outreach). It can be difficult to identify which one to spend most of your time on to best connect with your ideal clients.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Don't wait to get started because you feel intimidated by the overwhelming prospect of opening and sustaining a business. Things will fall into place once you get the ball rolling, and you can tackle each obstacle as they come.
- Don't be afraid to make mistakes. Each mistake you make provides the opportunity to streamline your process and provide a better service.
- Don't underestimate the power of pounding the pavement. It's easy to hide behind a computer these days to market your services or products, but nothing compares to getting out into your community to connect with people in person. A potential client is more likely to remember a face than an email or social media post.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.mindyourownnutrition.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mindyourownnutrition/
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3NFoMSg
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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