We were lucky to catch up with Rachel Langston recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Rachel , thanks for joining us today. How did you get your first job in the field that you practice in today?
I have loved school and everything about it for as long as I can remember! My first job in any field was in public education as a high school teacher. I was hired by a school system that was installing its first networked computer lab in the school. This was in the early 1990’s – before the internet, before cell phones, and before wireless computing – personal computing was slowly becoming a “thing” and, since most homes were not wired for “data”, schools created networked classrooms to take advantage of new tools like word processing, spreadsheets, email, etc. My job was to install the new computers, figure out how to connect them to each other, then teach the English department faculty how to use them for themselves and integrate them into their curriculum.
Fast forward 30 + years … after stints as a stay-at-home mom, freelance writer and editor, administrative assistant, live stream and podcast host, podcast producer, social media coordinator and communications project coordinator, I wanted to do something that let me have more control over my schedule. One of the goals my husband and I had set in our early years as parents was for our children to graduate from college (or whatever training they pursued after high school) with no debt. It was a gift we had both received in our lives and we wanted that for our own children. So, with two children in college, I didn’t have the option of not working at all but I was ready for a change.
During the time I was investigating options for my job change, one of our children was nearing college graduation, but struggling with procrastination, feeling stuck with the responsibilities of classes, questions about what to do after college and all of the anxiety related to all of those things. In talking about that, I realized, at some point during the semester, there was a point when everything became too overwhelming and our child just shut down.
As the last semester before graduation began, I suggested that we have weekly “check-ins” to talk through schedules, class assignments, priorities, organization and all the things leading to the eventual “shut down”. And that is what we did! I had copies of all the class syllabi with all the appropriate information/dates and we met each week. During our conversations, I asked questions to help focus attention and create a plan for the week. We discussed all the things that would be due during the semester so we could have an awareness of what was coming. During our weekly conversations, however, we didn’t look at more than one or two weeks at a time. Narrowing ALL THE THINGS down into the few things that were “current” made the requirements seem more doable.
During the time we were having these weekly meetings, I was still working my full-time job and thinking about what I wanted to do in my next job. Not long after the semester started, I ran into a sorority sister from college I hadn’t seen in years and we made a lunch date to get caught up. At lunch, we were catching each other up on life, kids, etc. and I mentioned my meetings with our college student. She immediately stopped me and said, “You’ve got to talk to my son. He needs that same kind of help. AND, you have to let me pay you.”
I think I just sat there looking confused because I didn’t know what to say. It’s one thing to mandate a meeting like this with your own child, but quite another to talk to someone I didn’t know about how to do something they might or might not feel they needed. Eventually, I told her I would be happy to talk to her son, also a college student, but I didn’t want her to pay me. She persisted and we finally agreed I would talk to him and, if he felt like I could help him, we would go from there.
A week or so later, he contacted me and we met online. Our first conversation was immediately prior to him having 5 tests in 3 days, feeling very anxious, and not knowing where to start with how to prepare. Just like I was doing with my own child, I asked some questions to help him focus, then suggested a couple of tweaks he could make with his schedule to get through the tests. He made a plan to get through the next 5 days and we agreed to meet after all the tests were finished.
When we met the second time, I asked more questions and learned that he was “stuck” in some of the same ways my child was and needed some help with knowing how to schedule his time to help him be more productive. Every time we talked, we would plan another meeting. We didn’t meet every week like I was doing with my child, but, in both cases, I could see positive results. And, I loved feeling like a “teacher” again!
Not long after I had started meeting with my friend’s son, I woke up early one morning with all this stuff in my head. I don’t even know what to call it except to say that it was inspiration. I didn’t know what it meant by I had an overwhelming thought that I needed to write it all down. And that’s what I did! Before work that day, I found myself furiously writing out all these ideas that I couldn’t get out of my head and left them on the page for when (or if) they started making sense to me.
Over the next few days, I couldn’t get the online meetings or the notes I had written out of my head. I’m still thinking about a job change, by the way, and the idea popped in to my head that I might could teach people how to do what I was teaching these college kids to do. I called my friend, the mom of college student #2, and said, “I think what I am doing with the kids could be a business. Is that completely ridiculous?”
She immediately replied, “That’s what I have been saying!!! It’s called Executive Functioning. There are a LOT of people that struggle in these ways and you could absolutely have a business to teach people these skills. My son is your first paying client. Sign us up!”
I hung up the phone and remembered the notes I had written a few mornings before. It was all there – the business name, the process I wanted to walk through with clients, ideas for identifying potential clients, etc. Now I knew what I was supposed to do with all that stuff I had written down!
From there, I spent some time praying about it, talking to my husband and figuring out what I needed to do to learn how to run a business. I was 56 years old and running a business was NEVER something I felt smart enough to do! Once my husband was on board, I hired my own coach, a business coach of course, and began the process of leaving my full-time job. The business officially started in April, 2024 and my last day at my full-time job was in July, 2024.
Never in my wildest imagination did I see myself as a business owner, but I’m having so much fun learning what that looks like! As for the coaching, it’s a natural extension of the teacher that has always been inside me. I love everything about it!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I graduated from Samford University in Birmingham, AL with a Bachelor’s degree in English/Psychology and a Secondary Teaching Certificate. My first job was as a Writing Lab Coordinator in a public high school and my work there led me to going back to school. I received my Master’s degree from the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD where I studied Educational Technology.
I am somewhat unique in that, while I attended school in the pre-internet world, I started my career in the early internet era and I have experience in both worlds. I think that experience is very helpful in my work with clients because I am comfortable with technology (i.e. the only world they have ever known) and I can offer them some “old school” tools and perspectives that address their specific needs. While I do see ways that too much screen time can negatively affect young people, I also have an understanding and appreciation of the ways that technology helps manage daily life so I think helping them find ways to use both approaches is helpful.
My husband and I have been married since 1997 and we are the parents of two adult children. My work is a direct result of something that I did to help one of our children. Because of that, it is work that is deeply personal to me. I believe that I have been gifted in these areas and I am forever grateful that those gifts are something that I can teach others.
In addition to my work as an educator, I have spent time as a stay-at-home mom, an administrative assistant, a freelance writer/editor, a livestream & podcast host, a podcast producer, a social media coordinator, and a communications project coordinator. I believe that ALL of these experiences have given me the background and experience to be able to provide effective training, objectivity, and accountability to my clients in ways that address their specific needs and challenges. I am not teaching them a set system or curriculum. I am helping them build a process that works for them and their specific circumstances.
My primary work is done through a 1:1 coaching subscription. That subscription includes 2 live, online coaching sessions each month and access to me between sessions using a private messaging app. Clients also receive a subscription to my newsletter (twice each month), and priority registration for any online classes and events that occur during their coaching period.
The initial coaching subscription is a 6 month minimum commitment that includes topics like:
Goal – Setting
Personal Organization
Prioritization
Time-Management
Habit Formation
Task Initiation
Mental Health
Flexibility
Small Group coaching is available on request. Periodically, I offer online classes that address specific requests and/or areas of interest.
I am most proud of the relationships that I build with my clients. While I fill a rather narrow niche in the coaching world (something between a life coach and an academic tutor), I am able to work with clients on skills that can produce significant results for them. In my mind, no two clients are alike so, instead of trying to fit a client’s needs into my “system”, I am able to spend time learning what they need the most for the life they are living.
Focus On Fewer is a mindset that starts with seeing the big picture, focusing on smaller pieces of that picture, and learning how to accomplish the things in the picture in the most effective way FOR THAT INDIVIDUAL. I am proud to be able to walk with my clients as they discover what works for them and take the steps to implement what they discover!
Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?
Honestly, I think the most helpful thing IN ANY FIELD is a willingness to learn!
Today’s technology, economy, political situation and job market is not the same as the one I grew up in and it never will be again. The vast majority of people in the world today will not end their careers in the same job they started their careers in and the only way to stay employable in constant change is to be willing to learn and adapt to new things. That doesn’t mean that you have to completely recreate yourself, but it does mean that successful people will spend more energy and effort on the journey than on the destination.
The other aspect of being willing to learn new things is that it opens vastly more opportunities for those people. I’m a prime example of that. If I hadn’t been willing to learn how to start, operate and own a business, I would have missed out on the opportunity to be in control of my own time and engage in meaningful work that I adore. I’m so glad I didn’t let what I didn’t know keep me from doing the things that I already knew.
Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?
I’m a big reader so I could list LOTS of books!
The ones that have impacted me most in the last year are:
The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt – EVERY SINGLE ADULT SHOULD READ THIS BOOK!
Deep Work by Cal Newport
Slow Productivity by Cal Newport
Atomic Habits by James Clear
Unreasonable Hospitality by Wil Guidara
My business coach has been a phenomenal resource for me! https://www.hillridgeco.com/rethanichole
These TED Talks have been helpful as well:
Everyone Needs A Coach – https://youtu.be/iGeiJBN5P2k?feature=shared
GRIT: The Power Of Passion & Perseverance – https://www.ted.com/talks/angela_lee_duckworth_grit_the_power_of_passion_and_perseverance?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare
The Power Of Believing You Can Improve – https://www.ted.com/talks/carol_dweck_the_power_of_believing_that_you_can_improve?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare
Contact Info:
- Website: https://focusonfewer.net
- Instagram: @focusonfewer
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61559504747825
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelplangston/
- Twitter: @focusonfewercoaching
- Other: https://focusonfewer.substack.com
Image Credits
Photos by Emily Prior Photography