Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in professional development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Sarah Saint-Laurent, founder of Sarah Saint-Laurent Consulting, located in Washington, DC, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Saint-Laurent Consulting is dedicated to building organizational excellence one human at a time, one moment at a time. Every moment is an opportunity to shift and become better. My clients are organizations requiring change and transformation and strategic communication plans.
Tell us about yourself
I adore what I do, and my plans are to provide my services in Transformation /Change Management, Design Thinking, and Coaching right up to the day I take my last breath. Seriously! That is how fun my job really is! I help humans and their organizations understand their potential. How could that not be fun?
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
An accomplishment I'm particularly proud of is bridging both the Federal Government and the Commercial Enterprise sectors. They are very different animals, and possessing the ability to influence and inform change on either side of the fence requires strong emotional intelligence and effective communication skills. Meeting my client exactly where they are, understanding their core needs and prevailing mindset, and having the acumen to identify gaps and encourage new thinking that results in real human-centric transformation always leaves me very satisfied.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
I'm a creative. I am the 'big idea' person. And one of my strengths is building a psychologically safe environment for everyone to share 'big ideas.' I struggle with administrivia. I need administrative support, and if I'm honest, I need the 'follow through' types on my team. I work better when I have support. If I'm required to have my head in excel spreadsheets, I'm going to lose interest. I advise business owners to understand their strengths and surround themselves with others who can shine in areas you don't. Take the Clifton Strengths Finder test and understand your genius zone and where you will benefit from having support.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Understand owning your business is hard. You will work much harder and many more hours than traditionally employed people. It requires energy!
- If you want to be successful, treat yourself and your business like the servant-leader boss you are. Show up, get dressed in real clothes, and go to 'the office.' If you treat your business like a hobby, then that is what it will be.
- Have a mindfulness practice. Mindfulness will help alleviate the stress, of course. But what many do not know is mindfulness increases creativity, thinking capacity, and memory.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
Get an experienced professional certified coach. Have someone on your side who can help you identify blind spots and biases and give you tools to help reframe your thinking. Our thoughts can get scary sometimes. Just remember they are only thoughts and not a reality unless you believe them.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: http://sarahsaintlaurent.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sarahsaintlaurentconsulting/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-saint-laurent/
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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