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Hi, I'm Amanda!

Change Maker | Reluctant Runner | Coffee Connoisseur 

Hi, I'm Amanda!

Change Maker | Reluctant Runner | Coffee Connoisseur 

I didn't set out to be a business owner. 

In fact, if you had told me 10 years ago that I would have a successful coaching business and do things like do sales campaigns, produce a podcast, and write social media copy I would have argued with you.

HERE'S ME FROM 10 YEARS AGO:

"That's not who I am. I'm not the kind of person who wants to hustle for business or persuade people to buy things. I don't want to work every night and weekend. I'll just go to work and collect my paycheck, thank you very much."

I was what you might call an Accidental Entrepreneur.

(And if you are an expert, consultant, or coach you might be, too.) 

Even though:

  • People often asked me for help (inbound leads!)
  • I had a lot of expertise that I wanted to share with them (productizable knowledge!)
  • I really liked the idea of having a diversified income stream (an entrepreneurial spirit!)

I just didn't see an entrepreneur when I looked in the mirror.

I spent the first two years of my business thinking of myself as a writer with coaching clients... and, honestly, I was paid like one.  

(Read: I made almost no money).  

After a year of working too many nights and weekends and making a grand total of $3,000, I realized that whether I admitted it or not, this was a business. And I either needed to figure out how to do that right, or give up what was (seriously) the worst hobby ever.

So I started from scratch and brought my obsessive, professional researcher skills to bear.

I was SO SURE I could learn it all myself... I mean, how hard could it be?  

It was hard.  

The following couple of years were simultaneously invigorating AND terrifying.  

I made a LOT of mistakes!  

Here's a short list:

  • I built my first website in a free builder with NO capabilities because I didn't know any better.  I then spent the next 4 months REBUILDING the exact same website in WordPress.... which, if you don't know, is not for a beginner.  By the time my website was "done," I was EXHAUSTED.
  • I got thrown into Facebook Jail for running ads that were "too manipulative..." making me wonder whether I knew myself at all?!? (What kind of "heart-centered helper type" write ads that are too manipulative for FACEBOOK?!")
  • I spend 3K to launch a program that sold ZERO seats. That's all I have to say about that... it's too painful to even think about.

Those moments were some of the hardest I've experienced in my life.

Cover of the Aligned Time Journal - Align Your Time, Grow Your Business.


But I also had some amazing victories!

  • I got myself a coach (BEST DECISION EVER) and booked myself solid with coaching clients, proving to myself that there was a genuine market for my special blend of expertise and support.
  • I sold one seat on my second program.  It didn't run, but I had a celebratory drink anyway. I sold three seats to  my third program! And I've run successful programs every month since then. 
  •  I did a TedX talk titled "Three Reasons You Aren't Doing What you Say You WIll Do" that has gotten almost a million views.  The message is helping people around the world to understand themselves more deeply and get unstuck. Whenever I feel like the work I do isn't making a difference, I head over to YouTube and read the comments.  
  • I designed my first physical product, The Aligned Time Journal, a whole person time management system that helps accidental entrepreneurs (like us) get more done and have more time for ourselves... without feeling stressed and overwhelmed.
  • Most importantly the chaos and overwhelm I felt in the early days of my business have gone WAY down, even though my success has gone way up.  That's because I know WHY I'm doing everything I'm doing.  In fact, if I can't see the path between an action I'm taking and a client, I don't do it.  

I want you to have that clarity, too... because building a private practice is HARD.

In fact, building any kind of business is a great way to come face to face with your worst fears and insecurities on the regular:

Terrified that you are a fraud and everyone will find out?

Entrepreneurship dishes up imposter syndrome daily.

Worried that you are a selfish narcissist for wanting something of your own?

Being a business owner is going to push that button 7 times a week.

Secretly convinced that you are actually deeply lazy and unmotivated?

The bottomless pit of "business tasks" will mock you ever minute of every day if you let it.

Worried that others will find out you have a business and see you as an insincere snake oil salesperson who cares more about making money than the people in your life?

Well, building a private practice actually requires that you prioritize making money, thereby throwing all your money drama back in your face.

First of all, NONE OF THESE ARE TRUE!

It's just your brain pointing to the things that are standing between you and the bigger game you want to play with your life. Fully 50% of the work that I do focuses on helping people overcome their own BRAIN so they can find clients, create content, enroll clients, and enjoy their business.

Second, I work primarily with coaches, and therapists. Helpers just like me who never intended to have a business! This means that a whole lot of that drama is subconscious; tucked away unexamined... while wreaking chaos on your success.

Step One

Admitting You have a Business

Step Two

Facing Some of IT Head On

Here are some resources to get you started:

Ready to Take Control of Your Business?

 Learn more about coaching
Schedule a Free Call

But I also had some amazing victories!

  • I got myself a coach (BEST DECISION EVER) and booked myself solid with coaching clients, proving to myself that there was a genuine market for my special blend of expertise and support.
  • I wrote a book called Great Work: Do What Matters Most Without Sacrificing everything else that Publisher's Weekly says, "turns overcommitted, exhausted readers into productive and engaged dream-followers." 😍
  •  I did a TedX talk titled "Three Reasons You Aren't Doing What you Say You Will Do" that has gotten almost two-million views.  The message is helping people around the world to understand themselves more deeply and get unstuck. Whenever I feel like the work I do isn't making a difference, I head over to YouTube and read the comments.  
  • I produce a podcast called Unleashing Your Great Work, created a time management system called The Great Work Journals and host a powerful community of accidental entrepreneurs in The Great Work Community!
  • Most importantly the chaos and overwhelm I felt in the early days of my business have gone WAY down, even though my success has gone way up.  That's because I know WHY I'm doing everything I'm doing.  In fact, if I can't see the path between an action I'm taking and a client, I don't do it.  

I want you to have that clarity, too... because building a business can be HARD.

In fact, building any kind of business is a great way to come face to face with your worst fears and insecurities on the regular:

Terrified that you are a fraud and everyone will find out?

Entrepreneurship dishes up imposter syndrome daily.

Worried that you are a selfish narcissist for wanting something of your own?

Being a business owner is going to push that button 7 times a week.

Secretly convinced that you are actually deeply lazy and unmotivated?

The bottomless pit of "business tasks" will mock you ever minute of every day if you let it.

Worried that others will find out you have a business and see you as an insincere snake oil salesperson who cares more about making money than the people in your life?

Building a business actually requires that you prioritize making money, thereby throwing all your money drama back in your face.

First of all, NONE OF THESE ARE TRUE!

It's just your brain pointing to the things that are standing between you and the bigger game you want to play with your life. Fully 50% of the work that I do focuses on helping people overcome their own BRAIN so they can find clients, create content, enroll clients, and enjoy their business.

Second, I work primarily with experts, consultants and coaches. Helpers just like me who never intended to have a business!

This means that a whole lot of that drama is subconscious; tucked away and unexamined... while wreaking havoc all over your success.

Step One

Admitting You have a Business

Step Two

Facing some of it head on

Here are some resources to get you started:

Ready to Take Control of Your Business?

 Learn More About Coaching
join Us in the Great Work Community!