Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Maggy Doherty. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Maggy, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear the backstory of how you established your own practice.

I started my first group dietetics practice, Doherty Nutrition, in 2019. The early days were a mix of curiosity, bliss, stress, and so much excitement. Honestly, I didn’t fully know what I was getting myself into, but I was eager to do it on my own and built something incredible from the ground up.

Fast forward to 2024, and I started my second private practice, Maggy the Dietitian, under completely different circumstances… My personal life was actually falling apart at the seams, I felt unfulfilled in my role at my original practice, and this new outlet became the one thing providing me with sanity and hope. To be completely honest, I was struggling with depression, had lost touch with my identity as a dietitian during a recent sabbatical, and was dealing with overwhelming anxiety. But I knew one thing: I needed this practice. I needed to work as a dietitian. I needed to make my own money- something I could rely on. I needed to help others, even before I realized that helping others would, in turn, help me.

I’ve now started two practices- one during one of the easiest years of my life, and the other during one of the hardest. And if there’s one lesson I’ve learned, it’s this: don’t wait for the “perfect” time to start your business. Things don’t have to be going smoothly for you to take the leap. In fact, you might be surprised at how much you’re capable of and how your business can support you like a best friend through life’s toughest moments.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I’ve been a foodie and a little entrepreneur for as long as I can remember! My love for food runs pretty deep- from creating my own DIY food tours, making recipe books with torn-out magazine clippings, writing restaurant reviews, to creating my own carb loading meal plans for half marathons. At the same time, I’ve always been drawn to business- whether it was running social media for a Chicago coffee shop during grad school, publishing my own cookbook, or consulting as a side hustle during my first job as a dietitian.

Now, my passion lies in helping dietitian private practice owners by sharing the toughest lessons I’ve learned from my own mistakes. My coaching style is rooted in authentic friendship and trusting direction… I’ll be your business BFFL, giving you the real talk, hard-earned insights, and support you need to grow in your own path.

Have you ever had to pivot?

The mark of a successful entrepreneur is the ability to pivot quickly and strategically when circumstances change- without judgement, guilt, or too much overthinking. And, let me tell you- I’ve had my fair share of pivots!

When I launched Maggy the Dietitian, I started with three services: diving nutrition, eating disorder counseling, and business coaching. I was convinced that branding myself as a diving dietitian would take off… but I quickly realized I had niched down too much. That part of my business didn’t grow the way I expected, but my nutrition counseling did- so I leaned into that.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, my business coaching for dietitians started gaining traction. I launched a program in Summer ’24, and it took off. So I relaunched it in Fall ’24 and then it flopped. WTF LOL! So, I pivoted again, shifting from a program model to 1:1 business coaching, and that took off instead.

The truth is, business is constant evolution. You don’t always know what’s going to work until you try, fail, adjust, and try again. The key is being flexible enough to recognize when something isn’t working and shifting gears- without letting ego get in the way.

So yes, so many pivots! And I’m sure there are plenty more ahead.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Resilience isn’t built through easy times- just like character isn’t shaped by good times. It’s through struggles that we develop endurance, which in turn builds character, and ultimately, our strength and hope.

Over the past two years of building my businesses, resilience has truly become my defining trait. In the spring of 2024, I made the difficult decision to step away from Doherty Nutrition, the group practice I had spent years growing. I wanted to see how I felt without it. On one hand, I didn’t miss the stress of the financial pressure to scale, the constant moving pieces of managing a 30-person practice. But on the other hand, I felt a deep and painful loss. I missed my identity as a business owner, manager, and dietitian. I missed mentoring my team. I missed guiding my clients through their journeys. I missed who I was and what the practice used to be. I was having a hard time with letting go and all the changes.

At the same time, I was struggling with depression. Some days, I didn’t want to get out of bed. I felt lost without the structure and sense of purpose my original business had given me. But something shifted when I forced myself to start seeing clients again and building new business plans on my own. Little by little, session by session, my hope started to return.

Depression can feel like an endless cycle- isolation leads to hopelessness, which leads to more isolation. But breaking that cycle, even in small ways, can spark something new. Coaching dietitians reminded me of why I started in the first place. It showed me that even in my hardest moments, I still had something to give. And in giving to others, I started to heal myself again.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s this: resilience isn’t about never struggling- it’s about finding a way forward, even when it feels impossible.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.maggythedietitian.com
• Instagram: https://www.maggythedietitian.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Maggy-The-Dietitian/61559845947499/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/maggy-the-dietitian/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MaggyTheDietitian
• Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@maggythedietitian