We were lucky to catch up with Paige Hamilton recently and have shared our conversation below.
Paige, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about a time you helped a customer really get an amazing result through their work with you.
Most clients hire me because they are dealing with change. Either they want to make a shift and don’t know how to begin, or they suddenly find themselves in the midst of an unexpected transition.
One of my clients was in the latter category. She was referred to me because she faced a legal issue that could impact her career. She was just beginning her career in law enforcement and wanted to be an investigator. Unfortunately, one night she was cited with a DUI. Because of her stellar work record and ethic, her supervisor and department were understanding, allowing her to continue working. However, this particular department didn’t allow for much career advancement, and she was already hitting a glass ceiling.
Plus, she was miserable in the city where she was living and had a deep desire to relocate. She felt trapped. She didn’t see a way forward and thought she’d be forever stuck in a dead-end job in a town she didn’t like. She believed she had no other options because of the DUI. (Many state law enforcement departments will deny work applications if the applicant has convictions.) And so, given all of this, the idea of moving to her dream city (which also had the strictest rules in the country against hiring someone with any record) to pursue a career in criminal investigation seemed impossible.
We worked together for over six months to help her create new habits, positive outlooks, and shifts in her perspective. She adopted the belief that no matter what, she would be ok. Despite the seemingly impossible odds, during our time together, she was offered a job in crime scene investigation at a private company in her dream city. Because it was a private company, they had more lenient standards. Plus, she was promoted within a week of her start date. She manifested her dreams in the face of significant adversity—all within six months!
Paige, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I’m a lifelong entrepreneur and I currently own and run two businesses: Paige Hamilton Design (a handbag manufacturing and design business) and Paige Hamilton Integrative Coaching & Consulting, where I help soul-centered professionals and private clients overcome hurdles and navigate change on all levels so that they can create the work and life they love.
I launched my handbag business in 2005 because I wanted a certain kind of bag that did not exist: lightweight, stain-resistant, functional, made from high-quality materials, and in a sophisticated and streamlined silhouette. I wanted the bags to look great and serve as a tool—easy access pockets, perfect strap lengths, durable and didn’t weigh 10 pounds before putting anything in it.
In 2005, I started with seven shapes, which grew to over 150 successful styles as of today. In the first year, we had ten retail accounts, and since then, our products have been sold in over 100 retail stores worldwide.
Around 2010, I found myself casually advising and coaching my retailers on how they could expand and pivot to stay relevant and thrive in an ever-shifting retail marketplace. They needed to find new ways to encourage customers to come into their stores since online shopping was gaining a considerable foothold and market share in the retail space.
I discovered how much I loved consulting with these store owners. We would work together to help them make important shifts, and they had great results. And while I love designing and creating products that improve people’s lives, I knew my true calling was to grow beyond bags.
My desire to create “serviceable” and sophisticated handbags naturally led to my desire to be of service to people—especially business owners.
Alongside strategy, I address issues regarding an individual’s worldview or mindset that often hinders learning and expansion. In my years of doing this work and almost two decades of running my own businesses, I’ve discovered that people need more than just strategy. They need another component, and this is where I differ. In addition to strategy, I address mindset issues that often block learning and expansion. The real stumbling blocks show up in a person’s struggle with their emotions and the harsh things they say to themselves repeatedly each day.
I am essentially a guide that helps people navigate the unknowns and natural hurdles that arise so they can implement strategy with a more clear outlook and healthy mindset. This outlook or new perspective creates an aligned and integrated path forward to get people where they want to go faster, without the stress and overwhelm that used to trip them up.
By integrating the “thinking” and “doing” parts of their brain, my clients can create lasting change.
I’ve learned that I have the ability to make connections most people can’t, I help them navigate hurdles and overcome negative patterns that used to keep them stuck, and I can guide them through their blind spots. Together, we can find a way forward that is aligned with where they want to go so that they no longer get in their own way.
We work to expand their comfort zones to cultivate and create the work and life they love. They make impactful internal shifts that begin to show up in external changes. By adopting positive habits and mindsets, they can make the career change they’ve deeply desired, start a new business, buy their dream home, find a life partner, increase their income, etc.
It’s pretty rewarding to witness my clients make the internal shifts needed to manifest their deepest desires for their work and life. Their successes allow me to take bolder steps as a coach and consultant, have a deeper trust in my work, and know that I am living my purpose while being of service.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
I have had to unlearn the idea that one must work “hard” and long hours to be successful. This notion was drummed into me from an early age. Most of my family members are toilers, and some are work-a-holics. So at times, I can find myself starting to slip into this limited belief and behavior because it’s so ingrained in me.
While this belief can instill discipline and perseverance, I discovered that, for me, it was a fast track to burnout. I spent at least 15 years of my entrepreneurial career driving and pushing myself hard while working crazy, long hours. I could do it at the time as because I had a lot of energy, but I also had no life outside of work.
To top it off, I founded a second company, where I began to expand my coaching and consulting business. I was exhausted and burnt out, with no time left for fun and enjoyment.
I am also a spiritual person, and I sometimes experienced what I believe to be the universe delivering to me what I call “nudges,” “taps on the shoulder,” and then “smacks across the back of my head by a 2 x 4” in the form of injuries, accidents, and illnesses. These physical issues would force me to take a step back, hire extra staff, and slow way down. The injury or illness would keep this “slavedriver” mentality in check for a while, but as soon as I started to feel better, I would jump right back into the long hours and hard work. It was easy to revert to old habits because our society rewards this way of being, and it was all I knew. I continued this pattern of ignoring the lesson of slowing down and working fewer hours (or, more accurately, regular hours) to see if I could still be successful. I honestly didn’t believe it was possible to have a shorter workday and be more successful.
Then May 2020 arrived. The Pandemic had just started, and I came down with the early and potent form of Covid-19. I was very ill (and to this day, I still experience some after-effects). I did my best to rest and recover, but it was also quite challenging since I owned not 1 but 2 businesses. Thankfully, the handbag business was quieter since retail was shut down, but my online business picked up because I had access to my inventory. My consulting business was more demanding as people were figuring out how to navigate many changes, especially “how to be” and “how to move forward,” in these unchartered waters.
I had to make some tough decisions because most of my time was dedicated to rest and recovery. I discovered that working with my coaching and consulting clients is energizing and fulfilling. The handbag business was often challenging and left me depleted. While I loved the creative aspect and working with my direct customers, overall, it was tiring and draining on many levels. I no longer had the unlimited energy source to sustain long working hours.
Consequently, I had to relegate my energy to what lit me up. It was now time to shift how I ran my handbag business and, more importantly, let go of the idea that I must work 10-14+ hour days to make everything happen.
As soon as I started to “work less,” I experienced more ease and prosperity. I had financial windfalls come from unexpected sources so I could rest more and be focused on my coaching clients and growing that business. I came up with some inspired ideas on how to sell off parts of my handbag business to make it more manageable, all during lockdown.
I still run both businesses today and continue to wind down other parts of my handbag business to expand my coaching business.
I delegate more of my work to my virtual assistant so that I don’t work long hours, “doing it all myself.” I have set work hours each day, and I stick to my schedule. It’s rare that I head back to my office for a “second shift” after dinner. And I rest when I need to.
Despite the reduced “office hours,” I generate more income and ease. (My slavedriver inner critic still can’t believe it!) I find I get more done in less time because I am focused. I put my tasks and big projects directly into my calendar instead of working from a to-do list. This makes me aware of what I can realistically accomplish in a day versus thinking I can do it all.
I am more aware of what distracts me, such as my phone. I purposely avoid doom-scrolling and only use my phone as a “phone” during my working day. I avoid the news and rarely watch any tv.
Like a doctor’s appointment, I put “fun dates” into my calendar. These dates are non-negotiable because I remember how sick I was two years ago. I remind myself that life is truly short, meant to be lived, and is not all about work.
My long-standing commitment to daily morning practices helps me stay centered and calm. These include meditation, writing, yoga, breathwork, walking, and playing with our animals to fill up my energy tanks so I can to be the best version of myself.
These seemingly “little habits” have helped create a massive mindset shift around “working hard is the only way to be successful” idealogy.
Sometimes my inner slavedriver still grabs the keys to the bus and tries to drive, but it’s a short-lived moment. I now have a strong awareness of this behavior and find that if I slip up, I am quickly reminded that this old belief does not serve me. And it probably never really did.
Despite the physical setbacks of Long Covid, I am happy and have a much more balanced life. I love that my work continues to light me up each day. I have a fantastic husband and a houseful of fur babies. Everything just keeps getting better.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
I love this question because both of my business’s founding principles are focused on building relationships and fostering trust first. Another one is: always operate with integrity by doing what you say you’re going to do and by when you’re going to do it. Most importantly, don’t over-promise and under-deliver. This creates distrust, and it can be hard to rebuild it once it’s lost.
Decades ago, when I was beginning to research how to launch a handbag business, I met with a financial adviser. He looked me straight in the eye and told me that my sole focus should be to generate profit so I could sell my business in the future. And yes, I get it. He’s fiscally focused because that’s his job. And yes, you won’t have a business if you don’t generate profit.
I responded to him by saying that my number one priority in starting this business is to build relationships, create trust and operate with integrity. He was not happy to hear this, and he was also not a business owner.
This conversation has always stayed with me when I hear about business owners being so focused on their bottom line. When money is the business owner’s only focus, prospective customers can sense it. Doing business with these folks can feel icky, and these ventures can often be unsuccessful.
Anyone who’s worked with me knows I focus aim to make their experience with me positive and impactful, and money becomes a secondary focus. The bonus is that those customers keep returning, which is fantastic for my bottom line. For instance, I am proud that my handbag company has delivered 100% of all bags that were pre-ordered, and they all shipped on time. I’ve never had to call and cancel orders with my retail accounts. I would also take time to get to know my store accounts and direct customers. I would travel all over the country, doing boutique trunk shows to meet the store’s customers, learn about their lifestyle and ensure they purchase the perfect style(s) that fit their needs.
I developed long-lasting relationships with my suppliers, factories, and vendors. We’d go to lunch, get to know each other, and build trust.
And many of these relationships continue twenty years later. We’ve all gone through a lot together, helping each other navigate the Great Recession, the big marketplace shifts from brick-and-mortar to online shortly thereafter, and then the Pandemic. For those of us who were nimble enough to make the shifts necessary, we were profitable. And I might argue that some folks who didn’t prioritize building relationships and engendering trust probably weren’t sustainable.
I would say my reputation of being of service to my customers and clients has built all of my businesses. Being trustworthy and operating with integrity creates the relationships that allow me to continue to be successful today. Because of my passion for being of service first, I have also created consulting clients from some of my handbag accounts, and we still work together today. They are getting results from our work together, and they become a great referral source for me.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.paigehamilton.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paigedhamilton/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PaigeDHamilton
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paige-hamilton-b03b46/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9xnGUNj3soSyAd1M_D81Ug
- Other: Paige Hamilton Design: https://www.paigehamiltondesign.com https://www.instagram.com/phdhandbags/
Image Credits
Rupa Kapoor
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