My Career Change Journey: How Timi Turned Her Side-Hustle Into a Successful Business

Hi Timi, great to see you again!

Could you please tell us what your career is now and what you were doing before?

I am a Spiritual Business Mentor and Founder of Connect One Marketing. Previously, I worked as Head of Strategy for a start-up.

What made you think you wanted to change your career? And when you realised a change was needed, did you already know what you wanted to do? or did you have no idea what else you could do?

When I was working with Bruna, I had already launched Connect One Marketing, however I treated it as a side hustle instead of my passion coming alive in my work (even though I landed 3 clients within the first month of launching it).
 
At that time I took on other projects as part-time C-suite / advisory roles. Looking back I realise that I did that because I didn’t believe in myself as much as I do now. When I was working with Bruna, one of these part-time roles was Head of Strategy of a coaching company.

What made you think you wanted to change your career? And when you realised a change was needed, did you already know what you wanted to do? or did you have no idea what else you could do?

I was happy with the part-time role of Head of Strategy as I absolutely loved the team and the impact the company made.

However, I felt that I was focusing too much on building someone else’s dream as opposed to mine. I was managing a full team and creating cutting-edge strategies for another entrepreneur while serving my own clients and feeling guilty for taking a day off. I knew that if I shifted my efforts to my business or another project where I could also grow as an entrepreneur, I would see faster growth within my own business.

When you’re unhappy at work it’s easier to realise that you need a change. In my case, the hardest part was realising that even though I loved being part of that company, it was time for me to move on because I wasn’t learning anything new.
 
Since I was a kid I knew that I needed to manage my own business to pave new paths instead of following known routes.

When you decided to change your career, what obstacles and challenges did you face and how did you overcome them? 

The biggest challenge I had was my internal guilt for “not making a big enough impact”. 

I felt guilty about taking time off and for not working. As I was already juggling multiple clients and projects at the same time, I couldn’t see how else I could accelerate my impact. I felt like I was letting myself down by not utilising my potential fully.

Bruna helped me realise where my irrational guilt about slowing down was coming from and she made me schedule proper downtime within my project plans.

Please describe the steps you’ve taken to land the new job:

I wasn’t actively looking for other opportunities when I was working with Bruna yet I still ended up landing a new project (and let go of the existing one) which increased my monthly part-time consulting fee by 67% (from $3k to $5k) while cutting my working hours in half at the same time. But the best part was working alongside an inspiring 7-figure entrepreneur which created an environment where I felt I could learn more. This is how this happened:

1. I executed all the exercises that Bruna gave me, tailored to my situation
2. I allowed myself to be more intuitive in business (which I now teach to my clients)
3. I reevaluated the financial worth of my experience, talent, knowledge and personal gifts and increased my prices
   The new project was advertised as a full-time role which I turned into a part-time opportunity to fit my own needs. I did this by authentically communicating what I wanted without playing any games.

In addition to landing this new project, I also started seeing major growth in my own business as I removed myself from an environment that no longer contributed to my personal growth. Basically, my personal growth resulted in business growth in multiple ways.

In order to make the change, did you take a salary cut? If you did, what helped you afford it?

No I didn’t. The opposite happened.

How did working with Bruna help you?

I had the drive to go at full speed and I could already see the road. What I was missing was a co-driver to make sure I didn’t crash at the first turn. Bruna helped me slow down which accelerated the impact of my career.

In what way did Bruna help you get unstuck?

She helped me see my own success from a different perspective which now I know was a key role in avoiding another burnout. She also made me realise that my impatience is an asset of mine, not a weakness. I learnt how to turn my impatience into my drive to pursue my vision.

Describe three or more things you enjoyed about the process of working with Bruna.

There are definitely more than 3 things I enjoyed about working with Bruna! Besides the obvious one: how she’s an incredibly talented and inspiring coach, I would highlight these 3 aspects:

1. Her ability to create space for me during a session. She created a zero-judgement environment which helped me say out loud some of my limiting beliefs that I wasn’t even admitting to myself. Without these deep realisations, I would not have been able to experience the fantastic results I achieved by working with her. And yes, other coaches do the same thing but the way Bruna does it is so natural. You don’t even realise what’s happening, you just suddenly feel like a lid has been opened somewhere within you and a burst of energy is rushing to the surface clearing out the conditioning that no longer serves you.
   
2. Her high-energy character instantly lifted me up. Not only during the sessions, but I could feel that buzz a week after our session. As we have similar personalities, this gift of hers was something that deeply motivated me to pursue my own visions and dreams. I was somehow able to see what my clients and business partners experienced when working with me when I fully bring my personality into what I do. A bit of backstory to explain this better. I made a conscious decision back in 2018 when I resigned as a CEO and made a vow to myself: to be fully authentic in everything I do, including my work. That decision helped me progress faster than I imagined and led me to Bruna eventually in late 2020, when she managed to accelerate this core value of mine. She showed me that I absolutely don’t need to “dim my own light” and encouraged me to not hold back. I became more confident in sharing my visions and views about life. I let go of the “this is how a business needs to communicate” to replace it with “this is how Timi is, this is who Timi is”.
   
3. Her mindset tools she brings by beautifully mixing neuroscience with Buddhism concepts. I’m equally fascinated by how our brain works and how Buddhist practices can enhance our minds. Bruna quickly realised that I’m open to both angles and found ways to expand my mind using both perspectives.
   

What is the major benefit in your life of this career change?

Having more self-confidence in my visions and gifts.

Thinking about the future, would you consider using a Career Coach again to progress or change a part of your career? Explain your reasoning.

Absolutely yes.

If you are a senior leader or entrepreneur, not everyone is able to give you constructive feedback or challenge your mind to see things from a different perspective. Working with any kind of coach helps you see things from a different angle. I don’t believe we ever stop learning, I don’t think there’s a day when we wake up and say “Ok, now I’m done learning.” And the more we push our limits and expand our minds, the more exciting our development becomes. For that type of elevated development, a coach is an excellent co-driver 🙂

On top of your career change, in what way this coaching journey helped you grow in other areas of your personal life? 

It helped me avoid another burnout and helped rewire my brain about taking time off for myself.

What have you learned about yourself through coaching with Bruna?

Three major things:

1. I recognised that I have a lot more gifts than I imagined;
   
2. I understood that I make a much bigger impact in the world when I give my mind a break;
   
3. I learnt that my impatience is NOT a weakness as everyone has been telling me for many years. It is one of my best assets and now I use it to carve new paths and make impactful things happen.
   

Finally, what is your top tip for people who are stuck in the wrong career?

First, understand what makes you happy.

Not just at work, but by trying to figure out what you ENJOY doing and what type of activities feel natural to you. Then take some action to do more of those in your career. If you can’t see how to do that, work with a coach because it really speeds up the process of figuring out what needs to be done to feel like YOU at work.

Thank you Timi, your feedback is fantastic.

In conclusion:

As Timi showed you, there’s no one size-fits-all and career coaching helps you develop a career change paths fully tailored on your needs, your values, your ideas and all that makes you, you. It couldn’t be more personalised.
 
Book a taster session to give it a go and feel how it feels changing careers with me.