Hi, I’m Kia Gardner. I’ve been a problem-solving solopreneur for my entire 30-year career - mostly as an independent creative.

As a designer then, and now as a coach, I show up in service to support and nourish people as they find elegant, useful solutions to their challenges.

Connecting people with the right information, insights, and ideas that can help move the needle in their lives is what I was put down here to do. 

Which is why I love coaching. 

When I first moved to France from the U.S., I decided to work in a completely different field than design. Unfortunately, this meant starting a business in a new field (crazy), at a stage in my life when my energy is definitely not what it used to be (real crazy), AND in a foreign country where I don’t have a handle on the language (super-duper-quadrupa crazy!). 

Starting, growing, and maintaining any business by yourself is certainly the definition of an exhilarating, rewarding experience…and it’s really hard. There’s so much to learn, so much technology to sift through, so many decisions to make, and don’t even talk about all the work of getting the clients. Pure overload and mind mayhem.

But you’ve got to do it. If you don’t do it, fix it, or figure it out, nobody else will. Let’s say that somebody else actually can figure it out for you. The time you now need to spend finding that person is time you don’t have to give. And forget about work/life balance. Did I mention that it’s kind of lonely sometimes, too?

During my executive coach training, I became part of a group of professionals who were navigating a similar journey. Unlike me, most were transitioning from executive corporate roles as employees to a new career in coaching as business owners. I loved the power of this community as we worked together through our fears and our practical challenges, coaching each other and providing guidance from our shared experiences.

It made the heavy lifting seem so much lighter. 

I literally wanted to cry when our training ended because, once again, there I was by myself, staring like a deer in headlights, trying to figure out how to make this thing go.  

Well.

If I’m honest, the thought of going through the meat grinder of growing a business by myself one more time was daunting as much as it was depressing. But, I had to do it.

Even after I got my business going, I had so many conversations with other coaches about their struggles around entrepreneurship, self care, and the elusive work/life balance.

This was a lightbulb moment for me.

A compassionate, safe, resourceful space for women coaches, no matter where they are on their business journey, somewhere that they can go for help with pesky business challenges, or to brainstorm on a marketing message, or even a little support on how best to address some client issue. This was the thing I wished existed.

The truth is, we don’t have to do it alone.

Why is this important? Because if you’re constantly doing all the heavy lifting, then your business is running you instead of you running your business. The little bit of energy reserved for your clients quickly evaporates. If there’s no work/life balance, that’s no good for you or your clients. Support and belonging feels good, and it’s good for you.

Don’t believe me? Research indicates that women entrepreneurs in supportive environments report higher levels of confidence in leading and expanding their businesses, with figures as high as 96%, with some studies showing profit increases of over 20% for those actively engaged in focused networks.

That’s the awesome power of women in community.