Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your 'backstory'? What led you to this particular career path?
Carri are exported all over the world and different industries with quality first. Our belief is to provide our customers with more and better high value-added products. Let's create a better future together.
With my MA in counseling psychology, I have been a therapist, worked in gang prevention and victim services, and was the Executive Director of a highly successful education-based nonprofit.
Although I never really dreamt of being an entrepreneur, I've always been great at helping others and service is a core value of mine. I've craved true freedom and have always joke that I'm allergic to offices.
A few years ago, I packed my life in two suitcases and moved to Asia. I was craving adventure and more freedom. I found the online coaching space about a year later, and instantly knew I wanted to be a part of it to help people create lives of freedom and impact. But when I couldn't sign a client to save my life online, it was incredibly frustrating. Now that I've 'cracked the code online' I'm incredibly passionate about helping driven entrepreneurs scale their businesses to 6 and multiple 6 figures working from anywhere in the world.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company?
There are so many at this point and it's honestly my clients that inspire me to keep doing what I'm doing! One of the most rewarding and inspiring stories that happened recently is a client who 7'xed her income from one month to the next (after believing it was straight up impossible!) but we worked to keep it really simple to ensure she was showing up each day to be in service to others and make offers for her services. And she was amazed how it worked like magic!
Since starting my coaching business, I will say the most rewarding stories continue to be helping others understand that their unhelpful patterns not serving them can be changed, and to own their voice and expertise to be of service to the world (while making a LOT more money in the process).
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
There are certainly a lot of those! I really knew nothing about the online space or marketing when I started. I fumbled a LOT and thought everyone on the internet was annoying and super selfish. It took a lot of inner work and looking at my own judgements of myself and others to re-write these narratives.
I would say when I first started a funny 'mistake' if you will were a lot of my judgements. My insecurities were brought to light, and the way I simply thought everyone was lying on the internet about their income. I simply couldn't wrap my head around it! Ultimately though it was super inspiring to open the door to possibilities of what others were doing, and see that my judgements were showing my desires. I now understand it was showing me what I wanted to: more financial, time, and location freedom!
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I've been fortunate to have a lot of great mentors and coaches in my life. I had a mentor when I was 17 years old that completely changed my life because she believed in me when no one else did. Her faith and belief in me was truly life changing. She taught me so much about taking a stand for people and seeing beyond what others may or may not see in them. Even all the years later, I take lessons from that period in my life where I was so down on myself and could borrow the belief someone else had in me. That saying of 'be who you needed when you were younger' couldn't be more true and I love modeling that for clients now.
Ok, thank you for that. Let's now jump to the primary focus of our interview. According to this EY report, only about 20 percent of funded companies have women founders. This reflects great historical progress, but it also shows that more work still has to be done to empower women to create companies. In your opinion and experience what is currently holding back women from founding companies?
As much progress as we have made, there are still places where women don't have the same advantages as men. I believe the top thing holding women back from founding companies is a lack of equitable systems that give the same kinds of opportunities to men.
That being said, I do like to focus on the possibilities and how we can begin to make change. We need to empower more women to start companies. I believe in empowering women and with the right mindset and strategy, women can be successful with founding their own companies.
Can you help articulate a few things that can be done as individuals, as a society, or by the government, to help overcome those obstacles?
One of the simplest things that we can do is support local, women founded businesses. When we intentionally choose where we spend our money and resources, it can make a big change. Since women are not given the same opportunities still in our society that men are, it's important that we advocate for fair and inclusive policies. It is essential that we focus on diversity and women led companies when it comes to funding and support.
This might be intuitive to you as a woman founder but I think it will be helpful to spell this out. Can you share a few reasons why more women should become founders?
As cliché as it is, I believe women can do anything! Women are natural care-takers, problem solvers, and great on the fly. We are determined and loyal to a fault. This is something that helps us to be great founders and a reason I believe more women should own their own businesses. I seek to empower women to believe in themselves and go after their dreams. Entrepreneurship is the scariest and most beautiful thing I have ever done. Doing the work to unlearn the behaviors and conditioning in society of who you 'should' be or 'need to be' has been some of the hardest work I've ever done, but the most important. Learning to lean in and trust myself above all else is a skill that I hope every woman alive develops. We are taught to shrink, to play small, and not take up too much space. The path of being a founder teaches you beyond this pattern and opens up doors I can't even describe. It takes a lot of courage to break out of these patterns and yet I know that it is the most rewarding thing I have ever done and want every women to experience this too!
What are the 'myths' that you would like to dispel about being a founder? Can you explain what you mean?
That you have to be a certain type of personality or leader to be a founder is a myth. Not to mention that many founders are solopreneurs when they start anyways, so they might be a team of 1. The idea that you have to fit into any kind of box is a myth, since after all you started a business since you are most likely a little rebellious. I see this rebellion as such a great thing if you can learn how to hone in your skills of leadership and ensuring that you carry out the vision of your company to help and serve others.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website carri light.
Is everyone cut out to be a founder? In your opinion, which specific traits increase the likelihood that a person will be a successful founder and what type of person should perhaps seek a 'regular job' as an employee? Can you explain what you mean?
It is absolutely not for everyone! Some people like the 9'5 work life where they know exactly what hours they are working and what their paycheck is going to be. However, I do believe that most people can become entrepreneurs with the right mindset. The founder or entrepreneurial life is a completely different mindset than being an employee ' that's for sure!
In order to be a founder, you'll need to be committed to your 'why' and your mission. Business has become easy and flowy for me (once I decided it got to be), but there are still plenty of hard moments and days. If your vision or your commitment to serving isn't strong enough, it'll be hard to stay in it when things aren't going your way.
The top traits I see needed for this path are creative thinking or solution focused thinking. Business is all about solving problems for people and charging for your services and in order to be a great founder, you'll need to tap into your resourcefulness and determination to stay in it. Although I don't believe it's for absolutely everyone, I do believe a lot of this is a mindset that you can cultivate.
Ok super. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your '5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started' and why? (Please share a story or example for each.)
How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
Our goal at Set Yourself Free is to empower clients each and every day. For them to step into the power that was always theirs and use this to impact the world in a positive way. Although these days, I generally focus on helping clients scale their businesses to 6 and multiple 6 figures so they can enjoy location independence, it's about so much more than that! It's about the freedom to live life on their own terms. The money that allows them to send their kiddos to better schools. It's about the ability to give to charities that we care about.
My goal is always to make everyone feel like a someone and I know I get to do that each and every day in my work with clients. Many clients tell me that our work together is more powerful than 40+ therapy sessions. I cry happy tears on a regular basis, because I am so honored to get to do this work. As a former therapist, I absolutely believe in therapy and I also believe I was built to be a coach. Supporting others in this way is truly my superpower and the greatest joy of my life!
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
I want to inspire women to know that they are far more capable than they ever imagined! Rewiring our brains is some of the most important work we can possibly do and learning how to do this through intentional future journaling, thought + feeling work + big, bold action.
Our thoughts create our feelings, not the other way around and once we understand this ' we truly start paying attention to the thoughts we are thinking between our ears, since research says we have about 60,000 thoughts per day!
We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.
Sara Blakely is by far my favorite female entrepreneur. I resonate deeply with the mission of being here on this planet to empower women.
Sara and her husband Jesse's annual 'Hell on the Hill' charity event are truly #lifegoals for me of how I desire to make an impact on this world. This is the type of charity event I absolutely want to run in the future and give back similarly to how they do. Both Sara and Jesse have incredible mindsets and attribute so much of their success to it. My dream would be to sit down to a private meal with Sara and/or Jess and talk about billionaire mindset mentality!
Okay, this may be a two drink convo. So, grab your fav and let's have a 'get real' gab girlfriend.
Business has truly become hyper-dynamic and ever-changing at the speed of light. She is often one, fickle bi%$#@. Yep, it needed to be said...and heard. It's create, adapt & dance or die.
Not allll businesses or ideas, even 'good' ones, have real, rocket-fuel potential. And, not all businesses should be pursued long-term. "Wait...wha, whattt!!! I love my business (even though it's a constant struggle and I don't make any real money and I work a zillion hours). But, it's got loads of potential." Reality Check: TONS of "great ideas" currently reside in the graveyard of good ideas. Ideas and plans are a penny a pound.
Time to stand at the mirror and take a peak at your own panties. You can't change what you don't see. You can't grow if you don't know your reality. Before you can make things bigger and better, you must be willing to see things as they are - all the good, ugly and so-so.
Are you really ready to dig deep and ask yourself the seriously hard, deep questions that get straight to the core? Are you willing to have the hard conversations with yourself? And most of all, are you willing to pull the trigger to make the hard and sometimes gut-wrenching decisions that "must" be made in order to breakthrough any barriers nad drive your business to the next phase? If no, then...knock knock knock...this is a serious kick in the derrière to give you a wake up call. Time to take off the blinders or risk losing your dream.
At least, twice a year, you should be doing personal, private planning retreats where you deep dive into the "current state/reality" of your business, your mission, your goals and next right actions/plans. Stay tuned tomorrow for more on what to ask, dig into, review and do next.
SIDEBAR: Some ideas can be highly viable and make solid bank...as a side-hustle or part of a heartier, overall plan.// Question is: how do you know 'your' business is worth the sacrifice, has true growth potential, or that you're even ready for shifting into rapid growth mode? And, equally important, are you ready to get down to the brass tacks, make the hard decisions and Do What MUST BE DONE? Truth is: it all starts and ends with you.
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