We were lucky to catch up with Dawn Marie Morris recently and have shared our conversation below.
Dawn Marie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Getting that first client is always an exciting milestone. Can you talk to us about how you got your first customer who wasn’t a friend, family, or acquaintance?
My first client came from LinkedIn.
After launching my business, I exported my contacts and began reaching out to people in my network. One of those contacts worked at a college and was looking for a speaker to discuss how to maintain professionalism while remaining passionate about social justice causes.
When I submitted my proposal and pricing, I was nervous. As a new entrepreneur, I wondered whether I was asking for too much. During our negotiations, however, the department leader shared how impressed she was with my background and approach. She assured me that even if they couldn’t secure approval this time, they would absolutely find a way to work with me in the future.
Thankfully, they didn’t have to wait.
They hired me at the exact price I had quoted.
That first “yes” was more than a contract. It was confirmation that the voice urging me to “graduate”from corporate America into entrepreneurship was not my imagination. It was the moment I knew that God had called me to this work and had already gone before me to prepare the path. That opportunity became the first chapter in what is The World Class Training Institute, Inc.
Dawn Marie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
If your organization has leaders at any level who need to improve collaboration, manage emotions more effectively, strengthen workplace culture, resolve conflict proactively, develop their teams, enhance leadership effectiveness, prioritize strategically, delegate confidently, or manage performance more successfully—or you do not have an internal training team, but have the need for leadership human capital development, The World Class Training Institute is your solution.
Through executive coaching leadership development, and professional development solutions, we help organizations across a variety of industries strengthen leadership effectiveness, improve employee engagement, and reduce costs associated with attrition, workplace conflict, and human resources-related litigation.
Our specialized curricula can be customized to meet the unique needs of each client. What sets us apart is our commitment to listening deeply, identifying the root causes of organizational challenges, and designing tailored solutions that create measurable results. That intentional approach is what makes us world-class.
What’s been the best source of new clients for you?
The old-fashioned way is still the best way for me. I make phone calls weekly to pursue new opportunities. As a business-to-business company, I use social media as a vehicle to establish credibility. Closing deals, however, is still very much relationship-driven, and it all begins with a phone call.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
The only way to stick and stay is through a tenacious spirit of resilience.
When opportunities I was certain would become clients failed to materialize, I had to keep putting one foot in front of the other, trusting that better days were ahead. And they were.
Over time, I developed a new perspective: when a deal doesn’t come through, it isn’t necessarily a loss. More often than not, it’s making room for a better opportunity. Today, I believe that every “no” simply redirects me to the “yes” that was meant for me all along.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.worldclasstraining.net
- Instagram: @worldclasstraininginc
- Facebook: @thewcti
- Linkedin: The World Class Training Institute and Dawn Marie Morris
- Youtube: @theleaderslounge
Image Credits
Riley Baxter, III
Adrian Pearson-Art by Tovias