Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Elizabeth Mahusay. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Elizabeth, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What do you think Corporate America gets wrong in your industry?
One of the areas where we get this wrong in Corporate America is being convinced that training and coaching should always emanate from within the organization. The thinking is that someone hired full-time by the company is best positioned to coach and train in alignment with the companies mission, vision, and values. And that is fair. The challenge is that in any organization, you don’t know what you don’t know and you can’t see what you can’t see. Someone operating within the organization can easily become subjectively focused on the issues at hand and unknowingly struggle to bring an objective view to any given growth opportunity.
Bringing in outside perspective is not to say that a company is missing the mark, only that the organization sees the value of having someone not in the day in and day out operations taking a fresh look. A look that is not connected to an emotional attachment to people and policies that may or may not be serving the organization well. Think of the phrase, “you can’t see the forest for the trees.” That is often what happens when all coaching and training happens from within. As you walk among the trees of “your” forest it is easy to become territorial as you reflect on “your” contribution to “your” people. It is equally easy to take personally any thought of someone from the “outside” coming in giving helpful advise.
An outside consultant is a vehicle that transports “you” up to gain a 30K foot view of your forest! Consultants accomplish this through asking lots of questions, probing the what of decisions and policies, exploring the how things work or could work. Problem solving for meaningful change if needed, and creating solutions that align with the companies mission, vision, and values.
Elizabeth, 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?
Most of my friends would say I’m dynamic, full of energy, and focused on helping people realize their full potential. I do that through cultivating conversation. That is a fancy way of saying “I’m a talker.” From early on in Elementary school days I was getting in trouble for talking. I’m a communicator at heart. I have a passion for helping people.
I earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry Education from the University of South Florida. During my time at the university, I actively participated in the Sun Coast Area Teacher Training Honors Program, which provided me with valuable opportunities to enhance my communication and leadership skills, as well as develop expertise in Kagan Cooperative Learning and problem-solving techniques. My involvement in the program led to my role as a coach, where I mentored and guided aspiring teachers while pursuing a master’s degree in Curriculum & Instruction with a focus on Instructional Technology.
I like to say my very first sales job was as a chemistry teacher, convincing high schoolers they could excel in a challenging subject. That desire to see students excel in my class was inspired by Jerry Waters who was my high school Chemistry teacher and mentor. While teaching, I also discovered the significance of nurturing human potential while serving as a dance coach for a highly accomplished competitive dance team, despite the fact that I never had formal dance training. During my time in the public school system I served as the Science Department Chair and Instructional Technology Specialist.
I transitioned from my formal public school role to a “work from home” mom role after we added our two sons. For 19 years I excelled in direct sales leading a 180-member team, building leaders, and training at the local, regional, and national levels. I later went on to lead the women’s ministry for my church for a season where I became a licensed minister of the Gospel.
I joined Southwestern Consulting in September of 2020 to combine my love of business development, leadership development, and my entrepreneurial spirit as a professional sales and leadership coach, certified trainer, and keynote speaker.
Tell us more about Southwestern Consulting since that is where you are investing your time now.
Southwestern Consulting is a consultancy where we look to partner with sales professionals, business owners, leaders of sales professionals, and anyone that has a desire to grow personally and professionally. We focus on providing customized solutions for 1-2-1 coaching, sales, leadership, operational training, and keynote speaking for local, regional, national, and international stages.
Important characteristics that set us apart from others:
1. We have a 160+ year history. Our parent company Southwestern Advantage was founded in 1855 and is still training thousands of people each year.
2. We have a team 150+ coaches in 15 countries around the world. We coach and train in 18 countries.
3. We are not industry specific as we work to provide customized solutions.
4. We combine person to person contact and a robust online course work platform to assist in an individuals growth plan.
5. We are practitioners first. We each operate our own business that is focused both on sales and coaching operating completely as commission-based professionals.
6. I enjoy focusing on serving within my local community through the Chamber of Commerces, Community Events, and the extensive network my husband and i have built since moving here at the end of 2010.
Have you ever had to pivot?
My husband and I moved to McKinney in December 2010. We arrived full of confidence and expectation that starting from scratch was going to be easy. But, it wasn’t. Through a lot of tears, self doubt, and perseverance we rebuilt not one, but two businesses as entrepreneurs. We didn’t have friends and family to help us restart. We had to humble ourselves, put ourselves out there in public forums and deal with the rejection that came from people not knowing us. After all, why would two entrepreneurs with 8 and 10 year old sons pick up and move to a completely different state to restart without it being a corporate job relocation? Cue the raising of our hands!
The challenge of learning to network, building relationships, determining our niche markets, finding our ideal clients within those markets, provided for many opportunities to learn and grow as individuals, as a couple, and as business owners. So in 2020 when the company I was with for 19 years announced they were closing their doors, it was a no brainer to pivot to Southwestern Consulting. Now I appreciate any opportunity that presents itself within my coaching conversations to share how we worked through the hard of restarting; the mental fortitude that was developed as a result; and the passion it cultivated in me for transformation in ones thinking.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
One of the big lessons I had to unlearn was self-reliance. When we moved here I had been able to just get things done. I am an achiever after all. If I wanted a better grade in college I would just study longer and harder. I was self assured and self confident, but moving to a new market and restarting obliterated that. I had to learn quickly that I needed others. Other individuals, other organizations, other ideas, and other approaches. I had to humble myself and ask for help. I had to learn to ask more questions and actively listen. I had to cultivate better problem solving skills, develop strategic partners, and find ways I could contribute within my community to build a reputation that would serve me well.
One of the ways I chose to do that was by joining the McKinney Chamber of Commerce and consistently showing up. After a year of attending LINKS (the weekly networking meeting) I joined the committee responsible for orchestrating the meeting. My husband also joined the chamber with our Fredshots Photography business and started attending weekly. I served in leadership for LINKS for 8 years and during that time I also served in leadership for Women’s Alliance of McKinney (WAM). Fred and I still tell people that the McKinney Chamber of Commerce was and is pivotal to our success. As such, we always look for how we can give back to our community through them and through other local organizations.
Contact Info:
- Website: elizabethmahusayswc.com. and elizabethmahusay.com
- Instagram: @ebmahusay
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elizabethbmahusay
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-mahusay-coach-author-keynotespeaker/
- Twitter: @ebmahusay
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ElizabethMahusay
- Other: Podcast: Thinking that Matters https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/thinking-that-matters-with-elizabeth-mahusay/id1663975322
Image Credits
Fred Mahusay withy Fredshots Photography