My side hustle: “I wanted to make what I’d experienced much easier for other women”

Why did you start your side hustle?

I really started to focus on what I am doing now at the beginning of this year, when I completed my EFT (emotional freedom technique / tapping) practitioner training. I’ve been trying to make something happen before that for a number of years but things just kept getting in my way. I completed my life coaching certification about 5 years ago and played with doing some work in that area for a while. At that time I was married and had my two daughters still at home, so competing priorities just meant it never really got off the ground. I had a few clients here and there but nothing consistent. I love coaching, it’s something I do in my day job too. But for the work I really wanted to do it felt a little two dimensional.

I’ve always been interested in energy work, metaphysical and esoteric stuff – all things that some people consider woo woo, so I decided to do a Reiki Level 1 course. I absolutely loved it and it opened up a whole new way of working with people. I completed my Reiki Masters the same week my marriage fell apart. That was almost 2½ years ago. It took me a good 18 months to work through the emotional mess and everything else that goes with the end of a marriage. During that time I put my business on hold and gave myself the time and space I needed. I decided to do a few more courses and workshops in areas that really interested me and that included my EFT practitioner training. That changed everything. It gave me a way to work through my own emotions, limiting beliefs and fears and also an accessible but really powerful way to work with other people. 

So now I work as a mindset coach and mentor for women who are going through change or transition in their life. Women who recognise that there has to be more to life, that somewhere along the way they lost who they really are. It happens so often for women that we are so many things for other people that we forget to be who we are for ourselves. I work at a mindset and energy level to help them uncover and release limiting beliefs, blocks and the ways they self-sabotage – that are stopping them from living a life aligned to who they really are. I also provide support at a practical level with action and accountability. It’s really powerful work and I love it. 

Why did you start it? 

To do something that is really worthwhile, really makes a difference. After having taken the long way round to come back to who I am and the things that are really important to me, I want to make is much easier for other women. 

How much time do you spend on it every week? And where do you fit this in? 

I have approximately 17 hours a week allocated as set business hours and available for client work. On Wednesday and Thursday evening after my day job and Friday and Saturday. But this is flexible and I do admin and other things in bits and pieces at other times too.

What’s your main source of income? Why did you choose that job and how many hours per week do you do it? 

My main source of income is my job in human resources. I work 30 hours a week Monday to Thursday. I do that because it’s what I’ve always done, I fell into it after uni. I also feel it actually matters. It can have a positive impact in the workplace. 

What’s your favourite thing about your side hustle? 

The work that I do with my clients. I love it. Being able to help women reclaim their strength, power and courage and create a life they really love on their own terms. Way too many of us change ourselves so we fit it, so we are acceptable. Helping someone unravel the beliefs and limitations they have unknowingly taken on over their lifetime, and let restrict how they live their life, is amazing.

What’s your favourite thing about your day job? 

The people I work with. I work with great people who are really passionate about the work they do and the difference it makes to our community.

What’s the most challenging aspect about balancing the two? 

Having enough time to focus on and build my business and also making sure I allocate time to living my life. You know things like exercise, a social life, even housework.

How do you stay motivated to do both? 

I know it’s what I have to do. I’m single and completely responsible for my financial commitments so that’s a really good motivator to make it work. Some days are tougher than others and I sometimes wonder if it wouldn’t just be easier to go back to working full time in a job, but I really love what I do in my business. So I just have to make it work for now. 

What’s your end goal? Do you want the side hustle to become your full time job or are you content to straddle the two? 

I’d love my business to be become how I earn my living. That’s the ultimate dream. I don’t want it to be full-time hours thought. I want a business that provides me flexibility and a really good income so I can be doing work I love and have a life I love. I’d love to be able to work from anywhere in the world. 

Who is your inspiration when it comes to your side hustle? 

Women like Natasha Corbin and Denise Duffield Thomas. They are both women who support other women in such a beautiful and powerful way. Who took something they are passionate about and created an amazing business and lifestyle. Both have had an impact on my life.

What’s one thing that would help you the most to create the working life you want? 

The first thing that comes to mind is enough money in the bank so that I could take time out from my day job and really focus on my business. To see if I can really make it happen. That would be really exciting and liberating.

What’s the #1 thing you do for your well-being while you run your side business and a job? 

My self-care practices which include meditation, journaling, EFT and going to the gym. I know that’s more than one thing but they are all really important for my mind, body and soul. If I don’t do enough of one I really notice it.