We recently connected with Mandi Briggs and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Mandi thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about a time you helped a customer really get an amazing result through their work with you.

A veteran CEO came to me on the verge of burnout. She was unsure of why she was unhappy and felt stuck both personally and professionally. Helping her gain clarity and create a path to move forward was the goal.

During her coaching sessions, we uncovered limiting beliefs that were holding her back. It’s interesting how a simple thought can really impact your entire way of living. For years, the CEO equated her ability to perform to how lovable she was, which impacted not only her business but also her relationships.

After dissolving those thoughts and replacing the outdated beliefs with new truths about herself and her business, we created a plan of action. The steps prioritized her peace and aligned with her new goals which required a pretty significant shift in the business model.

A little over a year since we first met, the CEO created a new service model that aligned with an industry shift she’d previously resisted, closed an arm of the company, purchased a new home, took several international vacations and is now constantly finding joy in her days. Having the right tools and ongoing support to navigate such massive changes were keys to her successful transformation.

Mandi, 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?

I’m Mandi, and I’m a coach and business strategist, but my specialty is really helping female leaders meet their future selves.

For the last 8 years, I’ve spoken at more than 30 workshops or conferences and coached over 100 female leaders to recognize the significance their inner voice has on how they show up in the world.

Through sharing my own story, giving examples from others I’ve helped, and providing practical tools, clients understand that putting themselves on the back burner is a surefire way to lead to burn out.

And I get it. I was that woman who was burned out. Coaching helped me to see where I was operating out of alignment with my values and priorities.

So after 13+ years in corporate America, I set out to transform my life, which led to me quitting my cushy 9-5 job and selling every possession I owned to travel solo around the world.

By refocusing on my values + priorities, everything shifted. I became the leader, friend and partner I’d always dreamed of being.

Now, through coaching, business masterminds and workshops, I help female leaders navigate burn out and dream again. When they experience confidence and clarity around the direction their business is heading – that’s the best part of what I do.

Let’s move on to buying businesses – can you talk to us about your experience with business acquisitions?

In 2020, just 6 weeks before the world shut down, I purchased a coworking space for female entrepreneurs. The acquisition process was relatively easy, but I learned some really valuable lessons throughout the process.

The coworking space was very attractive as it had great brand recognition and a solid reputation in the community, was fully furnished, and had a solid book of members locked into 6-month contracts.

My first lesson – negotiate the purchase price. The seller presented an initial asking price based on her needs, not a valuation from a third party. That isn’t necessarily terrible, except when the sell price randomly increased after a conversation with her husband. It felt like every time I turned around, something about the initial offer changed.

This leads to another lesson – do your due diligence and get solid financials. I asked repeatedly for profit and loss statements and was only given projections. The seller didn’t have clean books and made her asset more attractive than it actually was. After the purchase was finalized and I dug into the financials, only to discover several factors had been misrepresented including the size of the book.

The last lesson – be willing to walk away. I wanted to purchase the coworking space. The former owner knew it. I knew it. And because of that, I wasn’t willing to walk away (or even negotiate) despite the red flags I was getting. As the buyer, you have a lot of power. Don’t overlook that.

At the end of the day, I’m extremely happy with the acquisition and wouldn’t change it. I’m better for the lessons I learned and know that my story has helped other buyers.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

You can have both a successful career AND a successful marriage.

There was a time in my career when I was climbing the corporate ladder. I was winning awards fro my work, had just received a 30 Under 30 award a a rising leader and received a promotion when my marriage started to crumble. Immediately, I quit focusing on my work and poured into saving my marriage. It felt like both were falling apart, which led to the narrative I adopted for a long time – You can have one or the other, but not both.

It took a significant amount of inner narrative work to undo that damage that message had to my psyche.

Minding our mindset, especially as leaders, is so important. It’s one of the reasons I’m so passionate about the work I do with female leaders. While it isn’t always a narrative of work or marriage, it’s frequently one regarding work and motherhood. We can have both. We can be both. And we can do both well.

Noticing our narrative and re-framing it is the key to finding that balance.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.simplymandi.com
• Instagram: @mandibriggs @thecollectiveok
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/simplymandicoaching; www.facebook.com/thecollectiveok

Image Credits
Leslee Layton