We recently connected with Amanda Haro and have shared our conversation below.

Amanda, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

Starting my own life coaching business was a huge risk. I’m a single mom to four kids and I had a “safe”, stable corporate job as a staff accountant. But I had just experienced huge transformations in my personal life that changed everything for me, and I knew that I was being called to help other moms do the same. I had lost my dad to Covid the year before and had gotten an inheritance that was large enough for me and my family to live off of while I built up my business. But it was still scary to let go of my day job because I kept thinking, ‘what if I fail and I’m left with nothing?’ Ultimately the thought that I clung to as I made the choice to quit my job was: I can always come back to accounting if I want to. So I said ‘f*ck it’ and took the leap.

Entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart! It has been very challenging, but I’ve also learned so much. There are things that I would have done differently looking back now, but that’s life, right? The failures and mistakes are how we learn, how we grow. So really, I wouldn’t trade any of it. My journey was perfect in its imperfections because it’s what led me to who I am today.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I teach moms the tools they need to liberate themselves off the backburner. Women are socialized to believe that in order to be good moms they must sacrifice themselves on the alter of their families. The kids must always come first, and she must always come last. But this disconnection from ourselves causes immense amounts of suffering. Moms are living in cycles of stress, overwhelm, and burn out. The truth is that we cannot martyr our way into being better moms. We have to LOVE our way into being better moms. When I started making myself a priority in my own life, everything started changing for me. I developed a strong sense of myself so I know exactly who I am outside of my role as mom. My stress levels decreased because I was pouring into myself every day. I became a better mom once I made taking care of myself a priority.

What really sets my work apart is that it is focused on the PERSON behind the mom. Most mom advice is focused on parenting actions she can take to make her toddler stop tantruming/make her kids sleep through the night/make the teenager put the phone down, etc. My philosophy is that every mom is already positioned to be the perfect mom for her kids. She just needs to learn to stop outsourcing her authority & go IN for the answers, trusting herself. There is only 1 wrong way to parent (neglect and abuse) but there are a million ways to do it right.

I help women reconnect with themselves so they can feel calm and confident in their lives. I teach moms how to create time for themselves every day so they can pour into themselves and not be running on fumes anymore. I help women be whole ass people instead of just being, ‘that kid’s mom’.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

That hard work alone can bring success. My whole life I’ve always been the Hermoine Granger straight A student. This bred in me a belief that as long as I study hard and work hard that everything will work out in my favor. While a good work ethic is important, success also requires surrender and patience. I burned out the first year of my business (which is so ironic as I am a burnout coach) because I was trying so damn hard. A successful business requires playing the long game, and the long game requires sustainable energy. Working hard is not sustainable all by itself.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

As a new entrepreneur I was hungry for information from people in my industry who had gone before me and succeeded. Information is great, and I’m still always learning. But there came a point when I had to take a step back and evaluate the information I had gathered, checking it against my gut. There were strategies that I had clung onto even though they were not working for me simply because I had it in my head that that way was the only way to do it ‘right’. But just because this one way worked for this one person does not mean that it’s going to work for me.

For example: the ‘tried and true’ method for getting clients as a life coach is through consultations for 1:1 coaching. Once your 1:1 practice books out, then you move to group. I always wanted to make a community when I started my business because isolation is a huge pain point for moms. But I deviated from my innate knowing and did what I was told, like the good student I am. It was like banging my head against a brick wall. I finally reached my ‘f*ck it’ point with the way I was ‘supposed’ to do it and pivoted to an on-the-go coaching style instead. No consultations. Flexible coaching that women can fit into their schedules. It feels so much better & serves my people in the way they needed to be served.

There is no one right way to do, there is just the way that works best FOR YOU. To any new entrepreneurs out there: trust yourself always.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fckitmothering/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@fckitmothering
• Other: On-the-go coaching package “Stop Snapping at Your Kids”:
  https://fckitmothering.ck.page/products/stop-snapping-at-your-kids

Image Credits

Lydia Bjorhus Photography