Last week, I was on a phone call with a business acquaintance, and he commented that he had found my blog on our company website. He said to me, “You come across like you are a business coach.”
That was such an interesting comment. I think he expected that my blog would be about the fresh produce that we sell.
So I gave him the backstory of why I started blogging. In late December 2009, I read an op-ed piece in USA Today by then-Whole Foods CEO, John Mackey. John got a lot of flak about his op-ed piece because he was talking from his personal opinion, not as the CEO of Whole Foods. He commented afterward that “a company CEO should be able to have their own personal voice separate from their CEO role.”
John’s comment inspired me. So, in late January of 2010, I launched my own blog, “What’s on Karen’s Plate?”—the name was suggested by our company marketing director.
In the beginning, I wrote about produce, two or three times a week. But, I got tired of sounding like I was pitching the produce my company sold, so occasionally I would write about things happening in my life. One time the title of my blog was “What it’s really like working with my sister”, and I got so many positive comments that I started to rethink what I would write about.
Over the years, I transitioned from writing about produce to writing about what was going on in my life. And my posts seemed to resonate with more and more people. One time I wrote about why I had to change my thyroid medicine, and several people wrote to me that they had the same experience.
A few weeks ago, I wrote about “Is the upside worth the downside?”, and I had several people email me or call me to say that they were able to use the information I shared in making a critical decision that week!
And I cannot tell you how many people write me notes, emails or texts saying that it feels like I am “in their head” when I write my blog.
That is what inspires me to write—knowing that what is going on in my life is most likely happening for others. Whether it is about kids, aging, health, business, continuous learning, fitness, love or friendship, I may be verbalizing what others are wondering about.
So, when I saw this quote in a friend’s newsletter, it completely resonated with me.
“If you can help people see themselves in your story, then you have a connection.”
-Muhammad Ali
So, am I a business coach? Or a life coach? Or am I just someone who wants to inspire others to live their best life?
Karen
