We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Katharine Donovan Kane. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Katharine below.
Alright, Katharine thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.
When I think about risks I immediately think about my desire to write a book. There is a book in me, I used to say. But I kept this secret to myself when I was younger. For some reason the idea of wanting to write a book felt scary, impossible to do.
Meanwhile, the library was my private hideout in my younger years. It was a place where I imagined writers to be mysterious beings. They cobbled together words that magically appeared on thick paper surrounded by a hard cover. I visited their world and was able to shapeshift into a word magician. In that imaginative space I had a special wand with power to create stories where flying was normal, spirits hovered, and animals spoke to you of the future. Then one day fear and doubt crept into this world. Somewhere along the way, I lost my wand. Words and stories became harder to create. Ideas no longer came in a flourish to conjure whimsical tales. And so, the misguided seeds were sown. The book in me became a dream, a dream that I forgot each morning upon awakening.
Instead, the magician in me began to wield her powers in the adult world where writing business plans, press releases, and complimentary letters to donors was coveted. The secret to write a book stayed safely tucked away. It rarely poked its head into the light of day for fear of being dismissed, or worse ridiculed, for having the audacity to show its face.
Then one day something mysterious happened. The book materialized when I, as the now older magician, least expected it. I was helping clients feel better about themselves by accessing their deep inner wisdom when a flash of inspiration pierced my protective armor. As quickly as the swish of my old wand I realized my magic was needed and, it was about time that I shared this energy with others.
And so it was that my clients became the mentor. The voices of their yearnings penetrated my steeled layers of protection. I felt it and I knew. Like the mystical words of Mary Oliver in her poem The Journey, “…little by little, as you left their voices behind, the stars began to burn, through the sheets of clouds, and there was a new voice….”
The risk was still lurking close by, of course. I knew I needed to break through walls of un-magic, practicality, ordinariness, and self-criticism. I needed to find my wand and hold it like a sword. It’s not easy to chip away at the power of old negative ideas but the commitment was made.
What happened next was as magical as flying. It was as normal as if my dog companion spoke to me with her sage advice. The idea for a book came suddenly, called Soul’s Homecoming, An Empath’s Journey to Inner Wisdom. Actually, the concept was there all along. I just needed to see it. The title had already popped up in my journals and in my blog several years before. And the process of hybrid publishing wasn’t nearly the difficult mountain that I had imagined. It was a miracle really. The words poured out and within a year or so I published a book. I feel good about this achievement and – bonus – it offers solace for those who need it. What more could I ask?
Now you’ve done it, my sidetracked self said. You’ve opened yourself. There’s no going back. I still sense those foreboding thoughts, but they no longer have the power to deflect. Now, I’m armed with my sword and my determination.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
What also draws the attention of visitors is my expertise with working dreams. I love to help people reimagine an inspired, magical life. It’s the writer in me who isn’t afraid to guide others in an inner landscape – or a dreamscape – filled with intrigue, excitement, challenges, and desires. Lurking there are shadows, archetypes, and old stories that are just waiting to be revealed. I am a deep listener and what I offer is inner wisdom wayfinding and dreamwork.
Those who find their way to me are mostly women. Generally, they have hit a transitional moment in their lives and, as highly sensitive people / HSPs, they report experiencing overwhelm of one kind or another. So, I say to them, “Let’s explore together what it means to recognize your power, the inner fire that is uniquely your own. Life’s crossroad has brought you to the exact challenge that needs to be addressed. It’s offering a message that will make clear the journey forward.” The takeaway is that I am an explorer and a seeker. It’s embedded in my nature to use intuition while I help others find their own guidance system.
Along the way I studied, traveled, and lived overseas. I gained valuable appreciation and insights from very different perspectives. I received a master’s degree from Fordham University and obtained certifications from The Haden Institute, Martha Beck Coaching, Reiki I/II training, and the Dream Tending Program.
I offer individual coaching as well as dream circles. These dream circles meet for a minimum of eight, 90-minute sessions online. Many of the participants live in a variety of time zones so the online format is key.
Like my clients I am an HSP and an intuitive empath. I listen to their energetic presence. I feel passionate about helping others – especially HSPs and empaths – to embrace who they are as a gift. This gift will enable them to love themselves more fully.
Why is deep listening so necessary? It’s time to be unafraid and confidently reassert our gifts as intuitives and sensitives in a world that has progressively severed itself from the spiritual understanding of the mind-body-spirit triad. Our mind offers a structured container. The body is the channel, the tuning fork. It’s the spirit that is the mysterious, magical, sacred essence of conscious and unconscious wisdom. Wisdom asks us to expand our awareness of this triangular wholeness so that the messages in our visions, our dreams, and insights can be expressed.
The world needs sensitives. We can help change the world for good by helping others open to this awareness, but we can only do this after first getting to know our own inner wisdom. The world is waiting for us.
What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?
I am often asked about effective strategy. I ask this question of others myself and get different answers each time.
As an HSP, a writer, an introvert, and a left-hander I typically do things differently, backwards sometimes, from the regular crowd. This can be a problem in a world that generally operates from a need to do-do-do. I am often approached online by persons who say they can help me make 5 or 6 figures in short order. They are from a world that measures success in how much money you make, that trains marketing professionals to push for likes on Facebook or calculates your business value by the number of social media followers you have acquired. It’s hard not to be sucked into this operational style. Why? Because everyone else does it, so that translates into the best way, right? Actually, no.
The kind of person I am and the kind of work that I do generally does not find clients surrounding the energy of this big, bigger, biggest modality. It is exhausting even to think about. I have a presence on social media, yes, but don’t rely on this space at all to bring the clientele I am looking for. These are not the places where people who want to connect with me spend time.
The most effective strategy for my business continues to be online areas that most people overlook. When I ask new clients where they have found me nearly every time they have located me while researching online communities for HSPs, find me listed in a coaching program directory they are considering, or see me listed on a site where I participated as a co-host.
Volume is not my goal. I want to attract persons who resonate with my work and with my writing. My monthly e-newsletter mailing list is modest in size. Yet I consistently have a 75% or higher open rate, and 25% click rate. Very few people unsubscribe. However, when they do unsubscribe I am not bothered. To me I like to know the people reading my blog are truly engaged.
I’ve listed below some of the online options that resonate with who I am AND attracts my target market.
• Having a web presence with a blog works wonders. This offers me the opportunity to post and repost variations of the same blog material. This includes recording videos on YouTube or Instagram. Some people “just” want to listen since they are overwhelmed with so much reading material online.
• Co-hosting online programs that combine various mailing lists into one marketing outreach is a great idea. It really helps if the program has an ongoing presence after completion and keeps the co-hosts listed with their contact information.
• Asking to be a guest author on blogs that have a similar style and message where I know the mailing list includes my target group.
• A presence on online directories where I’ve received certifications. Not all universities, institutes, or training programs offer this option for graduates, but many do.
• A presence on online directories of membership organizations in my industry. Some organizations have directories for their members.
Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?
It took a little time to realize that when I first started in the spiritual coaching field I looked outside myself for recognition, validation, and advice to succeed. But here’s the thing that came to me one day when I was paying close attention to my own inner wisdom. I am the expert for what I do. The heck with worrying that there are so many others out there doing similar work! That only leads to the rabbit hole of competitive marketing, need for lots and lots of likes, and the feeling of not being good enough. Staying true to myself and not to what marketing professionals say I need to do to succeed is not easy, but necessary.
Believing in myself is the bottom line. I realized one day that people want me to believe in myself because they are having a hard time doing that themselves. Frankly, I am an elder. The world needs me more than ever to be the deep listener that I am. It brings tears to the eyes of some people when they say to me, “all I ever wanted was for someone to care enough to listen.” This is what I love to do. And this is what I do well…in a way that is uniquely my own style. It’s what brings people to my virtual door. I open the door, smile, welcome them in, and hand them a warm cuppa.
We go from there.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kdkane.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katharinedonovankane/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kdonovankane
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katharinedonovankane/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCANbdISSSMn9XaVzozOJ0wQ
- Other: LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/kdkane
Image Credits
Julie Hove Andersen