Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in career development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Megan Genest, Co-Founder of Rudder, located in Alexandria, VA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We help build confident, effective healthcare leaders through individual and group coaching. Whether it's a new leader who needs a guiding hand as they navigate managing their first unit, to the seasoned pro who just can't connect with his or her staff the way they used to, we help healthcare leaders unblock the things that are holding them back from being the most effective, confident and happy leaders that they can be.
Tell us about yourself
I have nearly fifteen years of nursing and healthcare leadership experience, most recently leading over 130 nurses as the clinical director of a cardiovascular ICU. I was fortunate to be promoted early in my career into a leadership position. While I discovered fairly quickly what it took to be successful, I wished that I had a mentor or coach who could help me transition my career from daily, exhausting sprints into manageable marathons. It wasn't until I received executive coaching through my work that I was able to unlock my full potential as a leader while also achieving a work/life balance. Because of that experience, I decided that I wanted others to benefit from the transformation that I went through, so I decided to become a board-certified nurse coach.
Helping other leaders transition from daily "firefighters" into leaders who are responsive but balanced professionally and personally is so fulfilling I decided to dedicate my full effort toward doing a business out of this passion.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Simply starting. When you go through nursing school, no one teaches you how to apply what you're learning in ways other than a traditional direct patient care setting. There aren't any "entrepreneurship for nurses" electives (at least, I haven't heard of any!). Deciding to do something different that few of your colleagues have heard of or experienced took a lot of personal courage. I'm so glad that I went from 0 to 1 and just started. The rest is so easy compared to that decision!
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
Consistency. Doing the little things on a daily basis to achieve success can be monotonous, boring, and frustrating and can lead to you questioning whether you made the right decision. There are so few moments of true excitement or novelty - most of entrepreneurship is putting one foot in front of the other on a daily basis and inching closer toward your goals. But once you get that mindset right, what was once hard becomes much easier, and the freight train that is you start to build unstoppable momentum!
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Figure out your why. Why are you doing this? Write down those reasons and refer to them often, because you'll need to.
- Visualization. See your path to success in your head, and play that "movie" every day. Every single person who was ever successful at anything believed they could be successful. You have to see that success in your mind in order to believe it and align your thoughts and actions toward that goal.
- It's about your customers, not you. If you want to make a living, you have to find what your target market disparately wants and is willing to pay for, and you need to align your purpose and skillset with those desires. Life becomes much easier when you achieve product-market fit - when you and your target customers are aligned and when you can demonstrate that the benefits that your product provides answer what your customers are looking for and willing to pay for.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.rudder.care/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CoachMeganRN
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rudder-care/
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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