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At home, I’d be working nonstop. There was always something I could be doing in my business, whether it was marketing, providing free content through my podcast or social media accounts, or answering questions from existing and potential clients.
Here, I was forced to take a break and rely on my assistants. I preferred to be in control and do most things myself, but it was nice to have someone to rely on, too.
When Knox, Sarah, and Addy left, we finished cleaning the kitchen.
Heath washed the countertops. “Ireland wants to meet with you today to talk about the movie nights.”
“She’s going to follow through with those?” I’d offered advice to entrepreneurs before, and even when it was met with excitement and approval, they didn’t always implement my ideas. I tended to act on my ideas quickly. It was weird for me to see others mired in indecision or coming up with all the reasons why it would never work. It was debilitating when you couldn’t make decisions or pivot when things changed in the market.
“Ireland loved your ideas. I think she wants to implement more of them, but it’s baby steps with Emmett. She knows how to get him to do something, and she must be confident she can convince him that movie nights are the way to go.”
“I’d love to talk to her. In my experience, people think something’s a good idea, but they never follow through. It can be frustrating as a coach, so I have low expectations. I can tell people about opportunities, but I can’t make them act on it.”
“That must be frustrating. People complain, you give them a solution, and they still do nothing?”
“That happens more often than you think, especially with how much they pay me for my advice. I feel guilty, but at the end of the day, they make their own choices. All I can do is offer suggestions.”
“I can’t imagine dealing with that.”
“It is frustrating and draining. That’s why I handle very few one-on-one clients anymore, and I’ve raised my prices considerably to attract more established entrepreneurs. There are a lot of coaches helping people who want to start a business and have no idea what to sell. My sweet spot is helping them build the business after it’s established.”
“Your online materials had a lot of information regarding beliefs about money.”
“I have a few topics I’ve taught over the years, but money seems to be the one I’m best at.”
Heath smiled wryly. “Some of your ideas run contrary to what I’ve heard from Sebastian. You know he’s an accountant.”
I smiled. “I give different advice than a financial advisor or accountant would. I don’t like narrow-minded thinking when it comes to how much money we can have and spend. There’s a lot of shame in society surrounding debt, but I see it as investing in yourself and your business. I think that’s why I’ve been so successful. I offer an alternate way of thinking that people are desperate for.”
“Why did you want to teach about money? You didn’t go to school for math or accounting, did you?”
“I was a psychology major. I got my master’s and ended up dropping out of a doctoral program. By then, my business was growing, and I wanted to focus solely on coaching.”
“Mom never said why you majored in psychology but didn’t continue with your education.”
“I was fascinated by relationships and family dynamics. But when I practiced counseling, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I thought I would. I didn’t feel like I was making progress with my patients. I wanted to have a bigger impact. I figured I could do that online without the constraints of being a therapist. I can say things I wouldn’t if I was treating someone.”
“I’ve heard of life coaches, but nothing like what you do. It’s impressive.”
It felt good that he was impressed with my work. “I love it.”
He tossed the washcloth into the laundry room off the kitchen. “You should love what you do. Speaking of, why don’t we go for a walk? We can see the property and then meet Ireland by the barn.”
“Let me change.”
Heath nodded as he pulled out his phone, presumably to text Ireland about meeting with her. Upstairs, I pulled on leggings, a sweatshirt, and boots for the walk, excited to have something to do this morning besides come up with content for my online accounts.
Writing emails and videotaping podcasts was a lot of work. There was pressure to come up with fresh, new content. But maybe I could repurpose old videos and webinars and reuse them for times when I was busy. I sent a quick email to my assistant, asking her to go through old clips and see if we could use them in future videos.
Then I went downstairs, where Heath was waiting by the door. His face brightened when he saw me. I wondered if he was excited for me to see the farm. It was different when we were kids and just hiding out in the woods, hoping his brothers wouldn’t find us. Now he was showing me something he’d built and was proud of.
He opened the door, and I went outside on the porch. “I love this time of year. When the leaves change and anticipation is building for the season.”
“I’d forgotten how nice it is to experience four seasons. We only have two in California, warm and cool. I don’t think it’s very wintry, although the native Californians wear their sweaters and boots.”
We walked side by side on the path down the mountain. There were poles with lights strung between them. I’d seen them lit at night, and it gave the property a year-round holiday feel. Combined with the cabins and the evergreens, it was like living in your own world. It made me want to stay awhile and forget about the troubles with the inn.
“In the fall, my brothers start ramping up the stress surrounding the season. They worry we won’t have enough people working or that maybe we won’t sell everything we want to.”
