We were lucky to catch up with Julia Woods recently and have shared our conversation below.

Julia, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s jump to the end – what do you want to be remembered for?

Legacy is the most important conversation every human needs to have with themselves on a consistent basis. It is the only thing we have that lives beyond us and it is the only thing big enough to truly call us up to the greatest versions of ourselves.

We live in a world where it’s easier to not think about tomorrow or to blame someone or something for what isn’t going the way we want. However, the most sobering question we can ask ourselves moment by moment is will this decision I am making right now take me towards a legacy worth leaving or not?

Our legacy is what our spouse, children, and those we impact say about us. It is the lives we lived that others desire to model when we are gone. It is the way we made people feel when they were with us.

The legacy I committed to live is one that invites others to see their value and worth in such a way that they are driven to create a legacy worth leaving.

Julia, 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?

Hi, my name is Julia Woods. I am a transformational coach, trainer, and the founder of Beautiful Outcome a coaching company focused on helping couples communicate in ways that allow both of them to feel seen and heard so they can partner together in creating a future worth having. I do this through online course, couples workshops, 1:1 coaching calls, YouTube, a podcast and blog.

I feel so honored to get to walk alongside of couples as they choose to take responsibility for themselves and show up responsibly and emotionally mature in conversations calling out the best in each other. The couples I work with move from defensive conversations to conversations that deeply connect them no matter how hard the topic. They transform their relationship and shift from their default future to a future worth having. The legacy they can produce together becomes filled with unlimited possibilities.

Transformational coaching is unique because it focuses on getting to the root of what is driving the spouse’s actions and reactions. It is based on the understanding that what we believe, produces what we think, which produces what feel, which produces what we do. Each person’s reactions and actions aren’t by chance. They are coming out of what they believe. So, when they are reacting in ways they don’t understand or don’t want to react in, we get to the root by exposing the belief driving that action. Once the belief is revealed they can now decide if that belief will take them towards a future worth having or not. If is isn’t, they can change that belief and they will automatically think new thoughts, feel new feelings and do new things. It is called transformation. As they change their beliefs, they change their legacy.

Can you talk to us about your experience with selling businesses?

After 25 years as a portrait and wedding photographer, I sold that business and started my coaching company. I had thought I would be a photographer until I retired. I loved what I did. And yet, my heart started telling me there was something more. I didn’t know what that was. I was just hearing the still small voice inside of me asking me to let go of what I had in order to receive something new. Here are the valuable lessons I have learned through that.

– 1. Set you business up to sell from the start. What does that mean? Make the name something someone else can take on. (Don’t make it your name) Seven years before I sold my company, we change the name from our names to a name that anyone could do business under. At the time, I had no plans of selling, but I knew I wanted to set it up to sell if I ever decided to. That was a very wise choice.
– 2. Understand what creates value in a business. When I had my business appraised, I was surprised by how much value there was in the brand and systems I had built. I had always thought that the value was simply the clients and equipment. However, because I had built clean repeatable systems and consistently tracked my financials, those aspects were far more valuable then the clients and the equipment.
-3. Use a business appraiser when you decide to sell. I hadn’t know that was actually a thing when I first decided to sell my company. However, in the end, it was extremely vital to the bank giving the buyer the loan they needed. There are people that specialize in appraising companies and they are worth investing in.
-4. The day you sell your business, let it go. When I sold my business, I had bigger visions for it. I was intentional in communicating to the buyer what I thought was possible. It felt like I was handing my baby over to someone else and asking them to keep raising it to great levels of success and maturity. I don’t recommend that. I recommend, letting your visions be a part of what you let go of in the sale. The new owner will likely have a very different vision and rightfully so.
-5. Follow your heart, it knows the pathway to your life lived fully alive. When I sold my company, I couldn’t imagine that there was something I would love more than that. However, I decided to follow my heart and trust that it knew what I longed for more than I was currently aware of. It was correct. I was born for what I do, and I can see that while I had thought my photography business was my longterm plan, it was simply a training ground for what was to come.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

It may sound cliche, however, I will always believe that word of mouth is the best way to gain new clients. In both businesses I have owned, it has been my main focus. It has allowed me to build two almost million dollar businesses. It is king and here is why. Each client has a circle of influence. People in their lives that are watching and learning from them. When you make a big enough difference that their circle of influence can see the difference or they client is so moved they can’t help but talk about the difference you are making for them, you can significantly grow your business. It is throwing a rock into a pond. It has a ripple effect. Serve each client like they are the most important person and your business will rapidly expand.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://beautifuloutcome.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heyjuliawoods/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSG3bkl-bmJRSzX0AUqBFYw
• Other: podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-julia-woods/id1553841384 blog: https://beautifuloutcome.com/blog/