Usually when we hear about successful entrepreneurs, we focus on the entrepreneurs themselves.
Who we forget are the coaches behind them--their very support and guide who took them from struggling to thriving.
Today I have the great honor of interviewing Tanya N.Smith, an international coach and trainer for women. She empowers and educates women into running their own business. One of her clients was able to go from a struggling single mother of 4 to launching a million dollar clothing business and putting all of her children through college.
Can you tell us about your client who went from a struggling single mother to millionaire entrepreneur?
Sure! One of my clients, who I had just finished working with-- she had been in a job for over 20 years.
She had 4 children, and just could not fathom leaving her job because how was she going to support her 4 children as a single mother.
We started working with a life map and a vision board to look atwhat she would do if she had no fears and if anything was possible, what she would want etc.
We did some brain storming out of what she wanted from life, and I used some of my NLP techniques in my coaching with her.
NLP is about results vs. reasons and intentions are everything! There is a technique called removing negative emotion.
Using this technique, we got down to some of the root causes of her fear to eliminate doubt and help her move towards her goal, while installing her visions of life for the future.
One of the major roadblocks was that she didn't have a clear positive goal on what she wanted yet.
We went through all the fears that were holding her back, and started talking about what if all those things were removed, what would life look like for you?
We did a full day session on looking at those things and what had held her back was her past--parts that that had nothing to do with her future.
So sitting down and working through with her and also the fear of the what if--what if she wasn't able to provide for her children?
This opened up a world of unforeseen possibilities for her.
Once we got over the fear of not being a good mother and not being able to provide and coming up with a plan, we were able to reach breakthroughs.
Now a year later, she has quit her job and is a successful entrepreneur.
She runs an online clothing business where she's making way more money than in her 9 to 5 at a financial institution and was able to put her 4 children through college.
Can you tell us a bit about you and your business?
I am the CEO of Mind Your Own Business; an international training and business coaching company geared toward female entrepreneurs.
I empower my clients to transition from the corporate world into entrepreneurship.
I use NLP frameworks as the basis of my programs and coaching I do with my clients, as I truly believe all my clients have what it takes to reach their goals.
I work with women in North America, Latin America and the Caribbean to figure out what their life plan is so they can build profitable customer centric businesses that support their lifestyle.
How does an NLP coach differ from a business coach?
NLP is a do with process, not a do to one; the client always has total control over the results..
NLP is basically the framework the uses both the unconscious and conscious to enablr the process of change to occur easily. The one thing that I really love about the techniques is that your are actually getting to the root cause of a lot of problems that are holding people back.
Once they believe they can make a change and have the vision in their mind, they can make it happen. If they don't get through the root causes, sometimes they make a change and revert back to what they were doing.
What made you want to become an entrepreneur?
I actually always wanted to become an entrepreneur from the time I was in my early 20s.
I knew I was never meant to work for somebody for the rest of my life, my father actually became an entrepreneur when he was 19, and that kind of inspired me.
I've always wanted to have a life that's not cookie cutter, that's one of my main reasons for becoming an entrepreneur, basically to afford the lifestyle I want.
What challenges did you have in the beginning?
The biggest challenge was thinking it was easy! [laughs]
It was like "Oh, that can't be that hard."
For me, the biggest challenge was talking to people about what I do, and also asking for what I was worth.
The first time I had to present a price to a client about what my services were, I thought I was going to choke!
What if nobody was going to buy or pay?
I realized that if you don't have the confidence in yourself, then nobody else would.
What advice do you have for women who want to start their own business?
Really sit down and figure out if you really want to do what it takes to become an entrepreneur.
If you are stuck in a corporate job, and you are thinking you want to be an entrepreneur, talk to another entrepreneur, and let them walkyou through a day in their life.
Entrepreneurship is acutally sometimes harder than having a day job, but the rewards are so worth it! So figure out if it's right for you .
Also think about why you're doing it. What's going to keep you getting up every day?
Sometimes you don't have any clients, and bills may be piling up, what's going to keep you motivated and going?
Are you doing something that you're going to love?
If it's something you really believe in, keep going and keep pushing, sometimes when you least expect it you'll make it.
At times we can't see the whole staircase, but need to trust that the other steps will appear as we take the path..
You have to have a lot of faith in yourself and the process to be an entrepreneur.
What did you feel when you were in a 9-5?
Every morning I would be asking myself, "ok, What am I doing?"
"Why am I wasting my time here? This is not how I am destine to live "
I would tell myself, "I can't leave because I have a home to pay for it would be irresponsible to leave a job that is paying me so well" etc, so it took a lot of self talk to say, "Tanya, ok, you know what? You are working for somebody else but you can do the same for yourself. "
The one thing that I preach to my clients all the time is you can never know too much. As long as you are alive, you need to invest in yourself and continue to learn. If you stop learning you might as well call it quits.
What would you like to be known for?
I would want to be known as the female Richard Branson in Latin America and the Caribbean.
My goal is to open a centre similar to Branson center for entrepreneurs but for women in Latin America or the Caribbean.
How can we get in contact with you?
You can learn more at my website www.mindyourown-biz.com or tanya@mindyourown-biz.com or reached on my Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mind-Your-Own-Biz/1650010771898345