We recently connected with Angela House and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Angela, thanks for joining us today. Almost all entrepreneurs have had to decide whether to start now or later? There are always pros and cons for waiting and so we’d love to hear what you think about your decision in retrospect. If you could go back in time, would you have started your business sooner, later or at the exact time you started?

I used to be disappointed in myself for not becoming a business owner when I was younger. I always thought starting a business at a young age would be a more rewarding experience and would have positioned me to provide my children with better financial security, education, as well as other benefits and opportunities that could have helped them have a step up in life. My viewpoint was starting a business was easy and that you could do it all by yourself without partners or assistance; for instance selling a product that would easy for you to get and simple for you to sell, a tangible product that you could control. I thought I would have been more creative, more motivated, more energetic and would have faced less limitations when I was younger. I started a couple of business and they did okay, not great I broke even but eventually I lost interest and soon my appetite for becoming an entrepreneur diminished and I let go of the idea. I did not feel like a complete failure, but the drive and determination to sustain the business were no longer there.
I no longer feel that way, today I have come to appreciate becoming an entrepreneur at an older age. The benefits that I now recognize by starting businesses later in life actually afford me a better chance of reaching success. As a Christian woman in business I firmly believe that all things happen in God’s timing. My revelation is that I may have been successful when I was younger, but would I have been ready to appropriately handle major success, or would it have been short lived? Today I am confident I can handle the accomplishments and remain grateful and humble while achieving my goals. The bible says the latter will be greater than the former and I now live by that.
I was encouraged by my friend Dr.Nikki Zeigler founder of The HERPRENUER NETWORK to become an entrepreneur. I had already became a Master Coach, so it made sense to combine my 30+ years of Corporate experience with Coaching to become a positive influencer for startup business operations. My life experiences and business acumen were things that I could combine and had the potential to make a real impact. The initial steps to start a business was much simpler than I had anticipated as I had produced business plans, SWOT Analysis and 30-60-90-day goals and roadmaps for corporations, so I was certainly capable of putting things into action for myself and potential clients.
After much prayer and careful consideration I focused on 2 areas… Business Coaching and Consulting which I am extremely versed in and Public Speaking which I have always loved, this allowed me to understand that both areas were gifts that I possessed and were tied into my purpose and destiny. I am a firm believer that “Passion” is one of the most effective motivators when it comes to launching any businesses. Without passion for your work you will not have the endurance needed to get past the pitfalls and roadblocks that will always happen. This mindset reinvigorated my aspirations and led to formation of Created2Win Coaching and Consulting as well as The Speakers House Incubator.
As an older entrepreneur I already know what I like and dislike like and that gives me the foresight to tailor my business to fit what I am good at. This provides me a step-ahead of understanding the processes required and that combined with self-confidence acquired through experience I find myself motivated, determined and inspired by understanding the resilience required to rebound successfully and do better going forward.
In retrospect I now believe many young entrepreneurs have high self-esteem and a certain level of confidence naturally, but much of that comes from pure optimism that their business idea will turn into a hit and that often works and that is wonderful! Optimism is definitely needed when starting a business, but when you take optimism combined with confidence that comes with a successful track record it puts you ahead of the curve of how you approach your business. I have already experienced both wins and losses over the course time, so my expectations are much more realistic based on those experiences and lessons learned. I realize it is critical to face the challenges of business ownership, the roadblocks will occur but I am ready and willing to embrace the realignment and pivoting which are necessary to strive forward and come out on the winning end of the challenges.
My personal perspective on becoming an older first-time entrepreneur has definitely changed. I know being ambitious is not just for the young, but also for the young at heart. There is value in realizing there are more positive attributes as opposed to negative issues starting a business later in life which convinced me that now was not only the perfect time to take the plunge into entrepreneurship but it is my purpose and destiny to not just start a business, but multiple businesses that will bring value to others. For me…the best is yet to come!!!

Angela, 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?

I have been considered a top-performing corporate professional with domestic and international experience in customer facing roles. Always solution-driven with broad knowledge of CX Experience, customer service, customer success and retention. Delivering success in developing customer service/success programs for multimillion-dollar software and franchise organizations. I have consistently recognized by my client base for understanding and quickly addressing issues and concerns, diffusing escalations and creating solution paths to implement resolutions establishing loyalty and longevity . I am strong advocate for employee engagement and diversity. I have a reputation for excelling in demanding, dynamic environments while remaining focused and agile with strong analytical and organizational skills. Diversified experience across client services, customer support, public speaking training and project facilitation. I tried early retirement but quickly realized being that being a home body was not for me and returned to the corporate world and took classes to become a certified public speaker which evolved into becoming a Certified Master Coach focusing on Business Coaching and Public Speaking with an emphasis on realigning your mindset. Today I am CEO – Created2Win Business Coaching & Consulting https://created2wincoaching.com/ so if someone aspires to become an entrepreneur, I provide coaching to assist you discover your passions and start the business you love. Understand your direction and support you as you define your goals. As a new entrepreneur I help you understand the legal requirements for your state (name reservation, corporation status and securing your EIN, etc. ). If you have a business but need to realign direction or pivot, I assist with that as well by providing services as you reset goals, review and update your business plan and provide guidance and strategies to execute your business purpose and direction. I am also the founder of The Speakers House Incubator https://thespeakershouseincubator.com/ where my focus is on speaker development, speech delivery presentation and building your confidence. I teach techniques and skills to create a professional presence to develop your unique speaking voice.
Beginning in July of this year I will be offering 3 Programs
Presenting Me – New Speakers and Speakers that want grow their new business effectively
Persuasive Speaking – Persuasive speaking requires clarity, strategy, topic mastery, plus a sense of style and presence.
Speaking to Motivate – Learn to prepare speeches that inspire and entertain. Speak fluidly and deliver masterful presentations.
I am also Vice President of Certifications at The Life Christian College, where I facilitate the Coaching certifications programs, an Amazon Best Selling Author and Vice President of Operations – The Herpernuer Network. I love providing positive support and direction for my clients, my focus is to bring clarity, direction, and provide positive support.
My next venture on the horizon is “Uncapped by my Handicap” – a non-profit organization geared towards assisting men and women overcome obstacles not just due to physical handicaps, but life altering situations that handicap you moving forward in life.
I take pride in making meaningful connections with clients and helping others discover their purpose. My manta is “Leaving the Norm and becoming the Exception!

Any advice for managing a team?

For me as a Customer Experience professional, Customer Service is key, it is actually one of the most critical areas that lends credence to the success of a business. In order to provide Service Excellence, high morale is crucial. You have to recognize that building morale is the first step you should take as a frontline leader. I belive most people have experienced working for a great company but were dissatisfied with the person(s) they reported to. It is nothing worse than to dread going to work every day and already feeling anxiety walking through the door. My goal is always to create a healthy and collaborative environment for my team. Motivated employees are more likely to perform well, have increased productivity levels, provide better customer satisfaction which all affects your bottom line by retaining customers, word of mouth advertising, easier upsell/cross sell opportunities and longevity of the customer relationship.

From my perspective the byproduct of high morale leads to satisfied customers who are willing to share their experiences and that is one of the most valuable assets of any company. It provides the opportunity to cultivate customers who are willing to share their success stories and best practices. This process also become a reference program and offers customers a forum and platform for promoting their successes others as well as expanding their professional network. This level of service will gain customer trust which leads to loyalty, you become a trusted partner and an invaluable asset.

To get to this level of service creating high morale and gaining buy in from your staff is critical. It is more than a company vision; it is your employees’ belief that as a business owner/employer you value them!! First and foremost, I always strive recognize the need for work /life balance, everyone has a life outside of work and we have to be respectful of being flexible when needed. Be as transparent as possible and remember communication is a 2-way street. Involve your employees in strategies that will benefit the team as a whole. Take suggestions and discuss them openly and decide on what items can be controlled by the team. Be open to your team discussing problems or directions you may have given them both positively and negatively, after all they may have a more efficient way of seeing things. This way, you will make them feel valued and seen, boost their morale, and inspire them to keep up the good work. After all, your team would be less likely to communicate or contribute if they do not feel safe expressing themselves honestly at work.

In my experiences I can tell you employees will respect your honesty while you work together to fix any issues. Inform them about company updates, new protocols, customer feedback, and more. Appreciation is a feeling we all crave – and your employees are no exception. I love to recognize my staff for their achievements and celebrate a job well done – however big or small. This way, you will make them feel valued and seen, boost their morale, and inspire them to keep up the good work.
Provide the tools and resources necessary to help them perform their jobs more efficiently, this will reduce frustration, help your team feel supported, and increase job satisfaction and performance.

I enjoy taking time to recognize my team any time I can by sending Kudos or high-fives to the team calling out something exceptional that has been done. I once Implemented a spot bonus for someone that goes above and beyond, this went over so well my VP worked it into my budget!!!! Remember birthdays, give out cards or small token gift of appreciation during the holidays. Spring for lunch after a project is completed.
Created a growth roadmap. Encourage professional and personal growth opportunities. Employees can become bored, unmotivated, and disengaged without development opportunities or new challenges.

It is not the end game, but the long game for me….It is important to realize teamwork is more important than ever — when it comes to both offense and defense strategies. On any championship sports team, each player has a critical role to play and depends on full support and 100 percent commitment from the rest of the team. The same principle applies in business. When we integrate and align activities, and more importantly share and increase knowledge we have clear, complete, real-time visibility needed to keep customers happy and our business moving forward.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Resilience for me was during the recession of 2008 crisis, living in a constant sense of uncertainty compounded by financial concerns did not lend to the greatest work experience. Everyone was tense and jittery and as the newest member of the executive team I certainly had my moments of uncertainty and stress as layoffs were occurring and no one seemed safe. Job uncertainty combined the everyday pressures of higher costs of living and restrictions on personal borrowing gave way to high levels of stress. Then there was day to day worries … paying the mortgage, heating the house and putting food on the table, my car note, etc. . It was unnerving to know your salary was going to be impacted by freezes on pay raises or no annual bonuses and the dreaded Layoff that could occur. While having all this personal uneasiness, I had to keep my team engaged, it was not an easy task to keep morale high in the midst of layoffs and the expectation that people had to take on additional roles and responsibilities with no compensation. Several business plans and projects that employees were personally invested in were cut because of cost concerns, making it harder for anyone to feel a sense of purpose and confidence about the future. Employee morale suffered due to anxiety of long-term job security and the increase of cheap temporary workers as well as the uncertainly of will I be next on the chopping block.
My job which seemed impossible; how was I going to keep my team engaged and productive, my first task was to realign my thinking and my attitude so that I could lead a team in the midst of my misgivings. The first step I took was a very hard and frank conversation with my VP. It was important to have a transparent conversation in order to come up with a strategy to keep my team engaged. When you do not have a clue to what is going on it lends to unfounded speculation and rumors. My second step was to have a concise and open conversation with my team and give them a reality check in hopes of alleviating some of the uncertainty and clarity when answering their questions. I have always been known to color outside the lines (I do not think outside the box as that implies, I am in a box.) It was important that I connect with team members on a personal level to understand their needs and provide what concessions/ options I could. To keep everyone engaged, I approached other departments and formed relationships with a team of managers, and we created a lunch and learn program across departments as way to keep growth and promotion paths open. We hosted potluck lunches to help break the tense atmosphere and increase camaraderie.
I smile now because I did get into a bit of trouble, but I felt it was necessary to address somethings outside of company policy. I started a flex policy for my team, for both men and women; ; childcare cost were becoming an issue as most of my team were young adults with small children, some had responsibilities for caring for older parent or needed at day at home to work remotely as needs changed rapidly and work needed to be flexible in order to accommodate their request my need for the team to remain productive. It was not initially well received however; over time the flex program showed an identifiable uptick in productivity and morale. Flex time unofficially became an unwritten policy during the recession. I also was not too popular with managers and directors at one point as well, during one of our monthly leadership meetings, our CEO ask what suggestions did we have to help cut the bleeding so to speak, so I outlined a plan where every other Friday or Monday leadership took a day without pay every other week. The summer months were our slower season and that salary savings over the course of the summer months minimized layoffs. So, while I was not the most popular kid on the block, it benefited all our teams in the long run.
Motivating myself, prayer and coloring outside the lines definitely help me be resilient during the recession, it also taught me to keep my head above the fray and understand the bigger picture. It is easy to see the trees, but you have to visualize the forest to see the sky.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://created2wincoaching.com and https://thespeakershouseincubator.com/
• Instagram: created2win_coaching
• Facebook: c2wCoaching
• Twitter: createdtowinc

Image Credits
DeAngelo Rose Photography Derricuis Breon, MUA