Brace yourselves, as I will sound elderly.
In the early 2010s, I knew a lot of Internet People. I’m not sure how else to call them; they were starting and running companies (agencies, product start-ups, consulting businesses), NOT in response to a distressed job market but because they had IDEAS. Sometimes those ideas were strange but often, at least among the folks I knew back then, the ideas made sense. These creative people had identified a population that needed them… and so they created an offering to meet that need.
It was around this time that I had the idea for Plucky. I am positive that I never would have stepped out on my own if I hadn’t been around people whose energy was consistently DO IT! Do it, Jen, why not you?
I find that the tech world has lost this mojo. Opportunities have become ho-hum jobs and innovation has become, well, AI.
I find that the tech world has lost this mojo. Opportunities have become ho-hum jobs and innovation has become, well, AI.
Lately, more folks have been asking me how they might start their own coaching businesses. Every time, I say: who are you serving? What population needs you? And what is their budget?
Charging for your coaching skills only works if someone needs them. You must be offering something that your audience is thirsty for; their requirements grant your business stamina.
For example, you can’t be a coach for everyone but you might be a coach for:
– federal worker breadwinners
– retired school administrators
– English major new grads
– non-binary leaders
You see what I’m getting at. Marketing for these categories writes itself.
I was lucky enough to spend time reuniting with said Internet People last week and hoo boy are they still energized. Why not you, Jen? they said when I wondered about my own new directions. Less complaining, more action. Less scarcity, more energy.
And so, dear readers, I ask you: what does the world need that no one else can provide? If you’ve been laid off, how might you re-see your purpose in the world? What if the recent bumps and career injuries are invitations to do something interesting, curious, spicy?
Why not you?
Mentorship: how the heck does it work?
Several people have referred their college-age kids to me lately, probably because they’re entering into a job market that is wack. I’m not the right coach for this population but I can still share some guidance, specifically:
1. You don’t need THE job right out the gate. You need A job.
2. You might want to find a mentor.
The first tip requires humility and reason. The second, a willing volunteer.
The Mentor Pack is a great resource for these times. It helps you structure a mentorship, including how to begin and end the engagement. It also gives you prompts for both the Mentor and Mentee. If you’re heading to a graduation party sometime this spring, this might be a nice little gift for someone heading into the (exciting!) unknown.
Check it out here: https://shop.beplucky.com/products/the-plucky-1-1-mentor-pack
Last month, I participated in Career Day at my son’s Elementary School. I demonstrated coaching with a volunteer who was comfortable coming to the front and sharing a challenge. These problems included friction with little sisters, recess frustrations and tensions with fellow soccer players. It was… adorable.
On her way out the door, a 5th grader approached me.
“Was it hard to start your own business?” she asked.
“It was,” I said. “But lots of things in life are hard. If you have an idea and you’re motivated to make it happen, it’s much easier.”
I asked what she was thinking and she said that she loves smoothies and she was thinking about making a smoothie food truck. (DEATH! DEATH BY 5TH GRADE EARNEST AMBITION!)
I kept my shit together and told her that her love of smoothies would be really helpful to her business… and that she should call me one day so I can be her first customer.
The kids, man. The kids who haven’t yet had their enthusiasm knocked out of them. Inspiring AF.
xo Jen
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