Nan O’Connor: Entrepreneur To Coach
In episode #7 of My 2.0, guest Nan O’Connor, a Business Coach for Business Owners and Their Teams, shares her transition from running a communications company for 15 years to becoming a business coach.
Nan explains how she built a business that didn’t take into account what she loved doing. And how terrifying it was to rediscover her identity without the business. She built two separate lists, things she was really good at, and things she loved to do. And she landed on becoming a business coach, which had just started to become a thing.
Once she could visualize becoming a business coach, she executed her plan of action. Which was to take her academic training, and build a client list.
She talks about the concept of cheerleaders and their importance in the transition journey and recommends applying discernment to differentiate real from misled (yet well-intentioned) cheerleaders.
She talks about her practice of meditation, journaling and reflection causing her to be a lot more meaningful when grounded in being.
Her transition toolkit comprises imagination and vision, resilience and tenacity.
Her advice to her pre-transition self would be to believe in herself, that things will work out as long as we apply ourselves. And to have more trust in ourselves and less fear.
Some of the transition myths she debunks is that people feel like the grass is greener on the other side (of the transition). She asks us to explore that for ourselves, that it may be greener. And if it’s not, then if not, then we simply course-correct.
Resources: