We were lucky to catch up with Meet Alyssa Anne Austin recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Alyssa, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
I started my website, PoisedandProfessional.com, in 2016 as way to advise other professional women on how to advocate for themselves in the workplace and find career success. I had been working in corporate marketing for about 5 years at that point, and I had always been deeply interested in helping others achieve the success they desire, both in their professional and personal lives. I myself was doing really well in the professional realm, but I had a gnawing feeling that I was lacking some purpose in my career…
Around this time, I also reconnected with my passion for performing – I had danced my whole life through college, as well as performed in plays and musicals, but I got in my head that that was something I needed to stop doing once I “grew up.” In 2016, I auditioned for my first show in 10 years and found myself back on stage – and I felt that spark of inspiration that I had been missing ignite within myself. It was an “aha” moment that acting needed to be a part of my life.
This led to a two year personal journey of self-discovery – I was realizing I had a deeper calling to help others and also that my 9-to-5 marketing career was not going to jive with my professional acting ambitions. This ultimately led me to writing my first book, “35 Days of Confidence,” and pivoting Poised & Professional to a full-time career coaching & personal branding strategy business in 2018, where I embody my mission of inspiring and empowering others to go after their dreams.
Alyssa, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I believe deeply that we all deserve to know exactly WHO we are. What are our gifts, our natural talents, our aptitudes, our strengths, our passions – and how do they combine in a unique way that only WE can embody?
And this is what I do: help people realize and use their gifts. That’s such a key aspect of finding success and fulfillment in life (which is what it’s all about!) and being able to help my clients develop a stronger sense of self-connection and clarity is the most rewarding thing.
Developing an understanding of this is the aim of most of my coaching programs. Whether it’s a Career Coaching partnership focused on finding a new job or navigating a potential career pivot, a Personal Branding program focused on clarifying the client’s unique value and strategic messaging to achieve personal/professional goals, an Interview Coaching engagement to build confidence and preparation for upcoming job interviews – creating that clarity around “who am I and what do I want” is an essential part of the process (and an essential practice for living a happy and fulfilling life!)
In this way, I serve as a mirror for my clients, giving them space, dedicated exercises, and guidance around how they can clarify and walk towards their vision of success.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
When I got to the point in my professional journey where I knew I wanted to start my own business and be of service to others, I was really grappling with the idea of purpose.
I knew that my purpose lay at the intersection of my gifts and natural talents, my strengths, my professional aptitudes, my passion, and something that others would find value in… but I wasn’t sure what it was!
Fast forward to mid-2018. I was actually on a vacation in Hawaii and it hit me: the thing that I could help OTHER people with was confidence! It was one of my strengths, something that came naturally to me, and something I knew I could help people with.
So I got to work – I wrote my book, “35 Days of Confidence” and began creating coaching programs around teaching confidence.
But I realized after a few short months that selling “confidence” (even though it’s a desired skill and something that a lot of people admittedly know they need to build!) was not a product that “flew off the shelves.”
And looking back, this was such a great business learning for me of understanding what people THINK they want versus what they actually NEED.
For example, if someone is looking to improve their confidence for an interview, they’re not going to seek out “confidence coaching;” they’re probably going to seek out “interview coaching.” Or if someone is feeling unfulfilled, they’re not going to seek out “fulfillment coaching;” they’re probably going to seek out a new job, or a new career or something to CHANGE their life.
So I kept selling and learning and pivoting… and listening. And I found that the external manifestation of what people think they need tends to be very concrete. So I reassessed my strengths and the value that I could offer in a way that would be most tangible and ultimately most helpful to clients (and something they would see value in). And this ultimately led me to Career Coaching & Personal Branding strategy… But it took a while to get there!
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
I think one of the biggest lessons I’ve had to unlearn as an entrepreneur is that need to be as “productive” as possible. (I actually kind of hate the word “productive” now and try to actively NOT use it!)
I’m a hardcore list-maker (being a planner is part of my job description!) and that’s always been how I operate. And when I first started working for myself, I found I was consistently putting WAY too much on my list, trying to do ALL the things… and then kicking myself for not getting it all done.
I realized over time that when you have your own business, there’s so much more responsibility to (and so much more personal investment in) your work. There was a greater sense of ownership there for me. So pushing task A until tomorrow meant I’d have to shift back a launch, or postpone something else instead, which was hard.
Also the work I was doing was more emotionally draining, so even though it was maybe only 5 hours or work, it was 5 hours of active listening and responding, and being fully present for my clients.
So I had to re-learn the way I made lists, and the way I approached planning out my days. I had to become a “ruthless de-prioritizer” and change my mindset when it came to being okay moving things around. The reality is there usually isn’t enough time in the day to get everything you want to get done, done. And that’s okay! Now I’m in a headspace where I’d rather overload my to-do list, focus on my priorities, and then move things around if I need to in the interest of balance and longevity. But it was a tough lesson to unlearn!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://poisedandprofessional.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alyssaanneaustin/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PoisedandProfessionalBlog
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alyssaguttendorf/
- Other: https://www.alyssaanneaustin.com/ Email: [email protected]
Image Credits
Photographer: Brooke Aliceon Photography (http://www.brookealiceon.com/)