Second Act Success Career Podcast
Season 1 - ​​How A Parent Volunteer Turned Her Experience Into A Marketing Business
Episode - #89
Host: Shannon Russell
Guest: Kathy Colaiacovo
Transcription (*created by Descript and may not be perfectly accurate)

[00:00:00] Have you been wondering if now is the right time to change careers? If you have been asking yourself that question, you are not alone.

I created a new 10 question quiz that will give you the clarity you need.

Download the quiz at secondactsuccess.co/quiz.

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I am also including private podcast links to give you even more information on how you can move forward to pursue your second act career.

You can grab it now at secondactsuccess.co/quiz. Good luck.

[00:00:39] Shannon: when you go into a second act you might have to step back and learn or figure things out. And I think

that's really important and also, know that when you start out, whatever you envision now is probably not where you're gonna be in five years, 10 years, or even 20 years.

Be open to opportunity and that'll shift and change and evolve.

[00:01:00] Hey you. Are you feeling stuck, desperate for a career change

or thinking of starting a business but you're just not sure how to make your first move? I'm television producer, turn Career coach Shannon Russell, and this is the Second Act Success Career Podcast. This is where you will not only get the career advice you've been craving, but you'll get tips from career and business ex.

Experts along with inspiration from others who have made a career transition to find Second Act Success. Let's get started.

Welcome back. My friend, I will be joined today on the show by Kathy Colaiacovo

The founder of Pepper It Marketing and the host of the Marketing Your Private Practice Podcast. Kathy launched her business when she was in her forties after pivoting careers. Uh, volunteering for years and raising three kids. She never knew that she would end up in marketing, but now looking back, the road seems inevitable.

I'm so excited to introduce you to Kathy so that she can [00:02:00] share her second act success story with you. Let's get to it.

[00:02:05] Shannon: All Right. I'm here with Kathy. See Kathy. Welcome.

[00:02:08] Kathy: Thanks, Shannon. It's so good to be here.

[00:02:10] Shannon: Kathy and I, for those of you listening or watching, Kathy and I have met through Adam Schaeuble's Podcasting Business School. So we are in a group kind of coaching program with Adam and it's been wonderful to get to know you in there. It's great to be able to bond over our podcast and then to get to have you come on here to talk about your second act. But first, let's start with your first act, Kathy. So where did your career kind of begin with you?

[00:02:36] Kathy: So it's kind of interesting I started my business when I was 41, so almost 15 years ago. But prior to that I did move around a lot as a military brat. So I went to 10 schools and have lived in a lot of places and. Think for me, that changed how I was.

I was very, very introverted, very [00:03:00] shy, and these days I probably would've been diagnosed with social anxiety. So when I went to university, I actually dropped out. I did not make it because I was terrified of the people looking at me and staring at me in the halls. And so then what I did was I went and got some jobs, and then I took a training program to work with a bank.

So back in, I think it was 1987, I started working for a bank and that was my first career. I was there for 13 years and kind of moved my way up through admin positions. You know, I was a bank teller and then the front desk person, and then I went to another department and did some work when, where they did trading and securities and stuff.

But at that point I had my third baby and I was good at math and I had figured out that when I went back to work after the six month maternity leave, I would've had a four year old, a one. And a half year old and a six month [00:04:00] old. The the last two were pretty close,

[00:04:02] Shannon: Yeah.

[00:04:03] Kathy: We needed to have them in daycare cuz my husband worked as well.

And so, I did all the math, figured out all the places we could try to get to and go, and I would've had to pay $750 every two weeks to go to work for 80 hours. And when I did the math and took out my bus pass to get to downtown, cuz parking was more expensive, maybe if I had one meal out a week, you know, for lunch.

Buying pantyhose cuz you worked in an office and some dry cleaning. I tallied it all up and I would've been paying about $200 every two weeks to go to work for 80 hours and not see my kids. So I

quit.

[00:04:43] Shannon: awful is that? Right? That's Oh, so you gave notice.

[00:04:47] Kathy: I gave notice.

[00:04:48] Shannon: it.

[00:04:49] Kathy: no, it was not worth it at all. And you know, we kind of, I kind of jumped into that, not really, really thinking about what it might be financially, but I just knew I.

It, that was not the way to go. [00:05:00] Right. Who, who wants to go and end up paying out money and not see your kids? So I did find a part-time bank job in one of the grocery stores. So I was one of those famous people that would come down the aisle, Hey, would you like to earn free groceries while you bank? You know but it worked part-time with our schedules and then we moved and I got transferred to another job.

So, And at this point I was able to keep the part-time job, but we had to get a different kind of babysitter. So we hired out. It was a nightmare. It was a nightmare where we were because my middle son, who of course had never really had daycare or sitters, He got to the point within a month, that if the doorbell rang or if I got dressed in nice clothes, like I'm going to work, he would start crying because he didn't like this woman coming to take care of them and

[00:05:53] Shannon: on you now,

[00:05:54] Kathy: Yeah, and I mean, how.

[00:05:56] Shannon: and earn

[00:05:57] Kathy: was awful. As a mom, it was horrible. [00:06:00] Now, my older son, who was five at the time, I didn't worry that anything was going on. It's just this, he just didn't like this person being there. Right. I would go to work and I was like, oh. It was awful. And then one day I forgot my swipe card, so I had to come back and she always used to take them to the playground right away cuz he was an outdoor kid.

He loved that. And it would help with the crying cuz there was a lot when I would leave to go to work and I pulled in the driveway and they were just going out to leave. She had him up in the air by one arm and his feet weren't touching the ground and he was crying because he wanted his mommy and she was yelling at him to stop his boohoo, hooing. And as a mom, I was like, I didn't know what to do. I really didn't know what to do. And so I went in the house and got my key and I left. I gave him a little hug, said I'd be back. Dad would be home soon

it, honestly, it probably wasn't horrible, but it just, it hurt my heart. [00:07:00] It really did. And I got to work and I called my husband and said, you have to figure out how to fire the babysitter, and I'm giving my notice today and I will be done work in two weeks. And so then I babysat for a few years and I got involved in the home and school, which is like parent teacher associations and you know, I didn't know what I was doing, but back then I was marketing.

I just didn't know I was marketing. Right. And so they were running like school fairs and stuff and, and as a military brat, one of the things you don't like to hear people say is, well, we're gonna do it the way we did it last year. Well, military people were never around last year, so we didn't know what was going on, right?

So I would always help them. Communicate better and the way that I helped run things. We actually got more people coming to the things, and I've kind of left a legacy of helping raise almost a quarter million dollars for a couple of my kids elementary schools by helping [00:08:00] them do events and planning. And I ran an awesome haunted house.

And. We moved around for my husband's work and as we moved around I would get involved again and do different things and I've, it's kind of nice because I've left these legacies behind me of events that got started and continued on afterwards, right.

[00:08:20] Shannon: That's

[00:08:21] Kathy: Which is really cool, but I got some leadership experience.

I would be the president of some of these associations and learn to speak up a little bit. And I think as, as a parent, you also learn to find your voice by speaking up for your kids, right? I didn't in the moment with the babysitter, cuz I just was so shocked I didn't know what to say or do to her.

But

[00:08:42] Shannon: don't know what I would've done either.

[00:08:43] Kathy: afterwards you do learn, like you learn how to. Speak to someone if they're bullying your kid. You just learn how to find that voice. And I think over time I was finding my voice, but I was also doing marketing that I had no clue I was doing. I was very resourceful. I [00:09:00] learned back then to help these associations.

I was always ahead on the internet and stuff. We always had internet fast when I was a kid. We had computers early, you know, and all that kind of stuff. We had our Commodore 64 computer anyhow so I learned how to do webpage on Microsoft front page. I would build websites and so I'd build them for the home and school, and I got took part in the baseball association.

My kids were playing baseball and so I would help do that and. One of the things that happened when I joined the baseball association became the president. They were trying to build baseball up in this small town we were living in. Soccer was the big thing. And so to get people and kids in interested in baseball. What they were doing was sending an older baseball man out, like 75 years old to go at recess and show the kids how to hit the bat or whatever. And I'm like, that is not gonna get us new members. I said, you gotta get where. The paying customers are, you need to get something home in the hands of the parents.

So [00:10:00] we would create these flyers, we cut them all up, we'd found out how many kids were in each classroom in the schools, and we'd divvy 'em all. Like we just found ways to reach the people. And I actually ended up getting an a provincial award from the Sports Association for my work in. Almost tripling the size of the baseball membership in a couple years because of the work that we did, you know, and again, it was marketing.

And so then it was time to move again and we're moving on to another place, another province.

It was not a great job where my husband had gone. He found another one soon. So we literally bought our house on October 19th and listed it on January 8th. So we were in and out really quick, but that's where my true second act came into play

[00:11:00]

​

[00:11:16] Kathy: in this time here, after all these moves and all this work, you know, volunteer work, like I always said, for seven years I was a full-time volunteer.

[00:11:25] Shannon: it sounds like it. Yeah.

[00:11:27] Kathy: Yeah. And

[00:11:28] Shannon: It taught you what you enjoyed, and it taught you all these skills you didn't know you wanted.

[00:11:33] Kathy: I had no idea. So when we were getting ready to go, the wife of the president of the basketball association who I had helped out with communication she said to me there's this article in the newspaper. And she said, it's about a woman here in Prince Edward Island who has a virtual assistant business.

And she said, I think you would be really good at this. And when you move back home to Nova Scotia, [00:12:00] she said you should go to XX Place. They have programs for people called the Self-Employed Business Program, and it helps business owners who are starting it supports you for 40 weeks with. Some money so that you can start a successful business and get through that first year.

And they have training and like advisors for business and you have to do business plans. And she said you qualify for the funding because you're gonna give up your job to move. And so I kind of started doing this research and thinking about it and you know, trying to decide if this is what I wanted to do.

So I decided it was something that I wanted to do, and in July of that year, I got in the program and I started my business as virtual assistant. But for me, the way that the second act came, it wasn't anything I thought about. Like literally people say to me, well, how did you start your business?

Someone told me to do it. They said I'd be good at it, so I did it.

[00:12:57] Shannon: That's it. It like took someone [00:13:00] else to see that in you or do you think you, would you have ever thought that?

[00:13:05] Kathy: Not in a million years, never in a million years. And my husband's first act, he was an entrepreneur. He had a bar in downtown Halifax, in Nova Scotia when we were first married, when I met him, and he was an entrepreneur and he still is at heart. He works in corporate now, but he still has that mindset and mentality, and I do as well.

It's probably why we've been married for 30 years, but, you could never have said anything to me, ever that at some point I would have a business and a successful business and that it would grow to what it has turned into. Cuz it's, you know, it started as a VA business. It grew after a few years.

I hired VAs at, at my peak with the virtual assistant business. I had 14 VAs working for me. Part-time and about 40 clients on the books. We were doing all their online marketing [00:14:00] for them.

[00:14:00] Shannon: Wait. First I just have to ask, did your husband see it in you when you went home and said he did. So he was supportive from day one.

[00:14:08] Kathy: A hundred percent supportive. And he is one of my business advisors. Like when I get into a situation he's one of the first people that I will talk to or ask questions. I may not like what he says and I'll ask somebody else, but

[00:14:21] Shannon: Yeah,

[00:14:21] Kathy: that's just the marriage thing, right?

[00:14:23] Shannon: a marriage thing. Yep, exactly. But he's your sounding board and

[00:14:27] Kathy: a hundred percent.

Yeah.

Somebody described him in the beginning as my business loan.

I don't think I'm as brave as a lot of people to start a business because we didn't require the money to live right. It was extra, it was great.

I would've found a part-time job and made some income. But I. We were able to live with the family on his salary. So there wasn't that concern. Like there is a huge pressure on a lot of people that I, you know, had the privilege of not having. So it made it easier, but it doesn't [00:15:00] mean, I guess, that I didn't work hard cuz I've, I have the entrepreneur hours in the week and you know, I have the drive and I don't know why at some point I said I wanna hire people.

And get more clients. Like it just was the way I wanted to go. I just never consciously sat down and said, okay, do I wanna grow or not? It was like, oh no, I'm just gonna hire people and get help and keep going. So,

[00:15:24] Shannon: So you're, you're volunteering, someone tells you, Hey, I think you'd be great at this, and you launch into it. Did you know much about what virtual assistants did at the time? How did you go through that learning process? Okay.

[00:15:37] Kathy: not a single clue at all. And this was back in 2008, virtual assistant was not a term people knew about back then at all. So for me, when I thought I was gonna start this business, well, I was gonna build front page websites and help people with PDF newsletters that I made in Microsoft publisher, like the things that I'd been doing in the [00:16:00] associations, right.

And it was just like, that's where I thought it was gonna be. Well fast forward to literally May or June of 2009, and I was a social media specialist at that point.

[00:16:11] Shannon: Wow. And I can see how that can transfer. Right? It's all in the same house of marketing, getting your business out there. So did you find that that was what you were most interested in and you kind of navigated that way? Or was it just what the clients wanted? I.

[00:16:26] Kathy: I was really good at it it clicked for me how you could work, like my second client came from a tweet, so.

[00:16:33] Shannon: Amazing.

[00:16:34] Kathy: The first client was the basketball association back in p e I.

[00:16:37] Shannon: They were faithful. They were loyal.

[00:16:39] Kathy: Yes, very loyal for many years, but the second client was actually somebody who found me from a tweet that I had posted and hired me.

It was honestly the worst client I've ever had in my life, and I'll never make that mistake again. But it was a good experience and I really could see how to use social media to get [00:17:00] business and to reach out. And the funny thing is, I'm here in Halifax, Nova Scotia in Canada, on the East coast. From day one, 90% of my business has been from the states.

[00:17:13] Shannon: Mm.

[00:17:14] Kathy: And even though I tell people always start local and go global, cuz I kind of did, but they weren't ready for virtual assistant back then. And so I went where they were and I did networking online. And I always say, you know, I went from someone who quit university and dropped out because of social anxiety and people staring at me in the hallways to someone who built her business.

Like a multi six figure business by networking with strangers online all around the world.

[00:17:45] Shannon: You. Yeah. Your younger self would never have thought that,

[00:17:48] Kathy: No. No,

[00:17:50] Shannon: but you know what? You can be home behind the computer screen. There's something to be said about that for social anxiety, don't you

[00:17:56] Kathy: Yeah, there is. I, like for me, it [00:18:00] has passed a lot. Having a business also I think makes you be brave in a lot of ways and try to overcome things that you might not. And I know for me, once I got the taste of this freedom, I had three kids.

When I started the business, they were , seven, eight, and 11. So it was nice to be home, if they needed a lunch or homework. Forgotten. You know, all of that was really cool. And the drive.

I think that kept me going to wanna make this work so hard, especially at the beginning, and do things I did not wanna do. So I did what it took stay in business.

[00:18:35] Shannon: And you grew it. That's incredible. How many years have you been in business now? You said it was almost 15.

[00:18:41] Kathy: Yeah. 15 years.

[00:18:43] Shannon: And so you just found your people, you found your clients wherever they were. Let's talk about your clients. Let's talk about who your ideal client is, cuz I'm interested in this too, because you really niche down,

[00:18:54] Kathy: Yes. Yeah. So, and I will say that when I started. After I did the first [00:19:00] conference or two and I became part of the International Virtual Assistances Association as well. And ultimately I became president of that. So I would go to these events and I would meet people and I'd talk to people. And a lot of that helped as well, getting the clients that I did.

Right. But way, way, way back when in 2009. I was subcontracting for another virtual assistant. That's how I got some of my work started by working on other people's teams, and one of my first clients with her was a dietician business coach, so she was a dietician, but she'd moved into business coaching for other dieticians and. She was the first dietician type coach I had. I got connected with many others and in my time in business, I've just about hit 500 for one-on-one clients that I've worked with. It's about 295 of them have been dieticians, nutritionists [00:20:00] therapists or doctors or dentists.

A couple years ago, my business coach was like, you really need to niche down more. And so I decided that was where I was gonna niche down was to private practice owners. So dieticians in private practice, nutritionists, Therapists, clinicians, and that's sort of where that came from. And ultimately, I can track it back to that one initial client.

Like I can almost trace everything back from her.

[00:20:26] Shannon: Because she started spreading the word, she introduced you to more, and it just kind of grew from there.

[00:20:31] Kathy: I did some speaking with her. I always was open to opportunities. I will say that I went from being the person who dropped out of school to someone who's ]'

""

[00:20:41] Kathy: , sure, I'll do that. Sure, I'll try that. Yeah, let me do that. So that client and I actually spoke at what's called the FCI Conference.

So it's a huge conference for dieticians in the us about 14,000 go to this conference each year. I think it's, it's definitely less now after Covid. But we spoke [00:21:00] and did a breakout session on marketing and. That opportunity also was the opportunity that helped lead to a bunch of things, but it would never have happened if I hadn't met her way back when from that original client that I had.

[00:21:14] Shannon: How incredible. And you spoke on stage and did breakouts.

[00:21:19] Kathy: Yeah, in the breakout session, like they plan for 750 people in the room, so I.

[00:21:24] Shannon: breakout session. Oh my gosh.

[00:21:26] Kathy: no, I think we only had about 300 or so. But I mean, it's, it's a lot of people and I've done that now several times. You know, I get paid to speak on occasion. And it isn't something that I've pursued cuz I prefer. I guess helping people with their marketing over speaking.

But I do speak to teach people marketing and strategies and stuff. And I spoke a lot as part of the IVA Association as well. And I still get nervous for sure, but not like, I'm not passing out like I used to as a kid.

[00:21:56] Shannon: Well, and it's probably because you're loving what you're talking about and what you're [00:22:00] teaching and just knowing that you're growing your business each time you do that, and it just, I can tell in this, in how you're speaking about your business, how I. Involved you are, how much you love it, and how it's really your, your every day

[00:22:13] Kathy: It's funny because I had a, Come to Jesus moment

[00:22:17] Shannon: mm-hmm. Yeah.

[00:22:18] Kathy: and I had it when I was at an event in Los Angeles and I was speaking and doing a training on marketing there so I'm kind of a tomboy, my favorite.

Shoes are my cowboy boots. My favorite pants are my jeans, like, and I'll wear, like, I have a nice sweater on today. I'll wear blazers and stuff, but I am most comfortable in my jeans and my cowboy boots. So I was on stage in a white dress. I had the Spanx on and my red branded blazer, you know, and all of that.

And, and after I got off stage there, I just, it was, I'm sorry, Sarah Blakely, but your Spanx made me really mad.

[00:22:55] Shannon: Oh no.

[00:22:56] Kathy: And it just, I was so uncomfortable in my body and I was just [00:23:00] like, I am never doing this again. And so I had this moment of, from now on when I speak, I'm, I'm being me. I'm gonna be authentic and real and comfortable in my body.

The dieticians and the. And the nutritionists in particular and therapists that I work with are all anti-D diet dieticians, and they're all about positive body image and love your body the way it is, you know, and all foods are good foods and diets don't work and all this. And I think a lot of why I like working with them is because I really have embraced that, you know, and, and I love the message they put out there, and that's why I really like helping them get to more people out there.

[00:23:35] Shannon: Right. And with your help at Cannes, really like what a great, perfect niche for you to feel good about every day.

[00:23:42] Kathy: Well, and it was funny cuz one day I was talking at an event, a local networking event. It was a bunch of women and the woman who runs it had brought cookies and the cookies were on the table I couldn't believe, cuz I really wouldn't have noticed it before working with all the women that I have.

[00:24:00] But all of these people kept going over to the table, oh man, if I could only just have a cookie. But I had too much of this today or too much of that today. And I was looking at, I think about half the women in the room looked at the cookies and I was like, cookie, it's awesome. You know? And I'm like, I had three,

[00:24:19] Shannon: Good.

[00:24:20] Kathy: you know?

And I was like, this cookie's not gonna kill me. But. It was amazing, like when you work with people that have such a really impactful message. You can really see how that changes you too. And I remember that day I thought, my God, I cannot believe what I'm seeing here. And it was really clear to me why their work was so important.

Because all of these women needed to learn to know and understand that one cookie on that table was not gonna kill them. It was not gonna ruin their lives forever. It was not gonna kill their diets, whatever that might be forever. And just eat the dang cookie, right.

[00:24:55] Shannon: I know. I hope you went around and handed a cookie to everyone and said, it's [00:25:00] okay.

[00:25:00] Kathy: No, I tried to explain it to them, but they needed more education than I could do at that point.

[00:25:05] Shannon: Oh. Well, I love it. I feel like you're marketing such a great message just yesterday, you and I were on a call in our podcasting group and you were giving spouting off this marketing information, SEO information, and everyone was like, wow, like this is great. I got a text from someone in our group afterwards going, I need Kathy to look at my website.

[00:25:24] Kathy: Oh,

[00:25:25] Shannon: Yeah. And it was, I was like, yeah, I know. I'll tell you afterwards. But yeah, it was just like, really, you know your stuff. If you think about it, you taught yourself all of this. Yes, you had a program to help you set up your virtual assistant business, but you decide these are the people, these are the clients I want you niched down and you really grew this amazing business.

Tell us the name of it, because I don't even think we said it yet.

[00:25:47] Kathy: So the company is called now pepperitmarketing.com, and it originally started as a VA business, but in 2015 I changed the name I wanted to go. I had a very functional name. I will [00:26:00] say it was time on task, virtual assistant services, and my tagline was literally minute by minute, helping you work smarter.

[00:26:08] Shannon: Oh very.

[00:26:09] Kathy: So, but in 2015, I knew I was shifting. I was, I actually let go a lot of my clients, a lot of the team, I didn't wanna do that. I wanted to get more into helping people who couldn't afford to hire us, learn how to do their own marketing and get into the online programs. And so I'd made this decision in late 20 14 15, so I decided to go with Pepper It Marketing

so I consider more marketing, consulting, coaching, training business now it was actually named after my dog Pepper. The way I named it was I try to help people put a little more pepper into the, their marketing, and that's what it's all about.

And so a lot of times you'll see her behind me in the chair. She's the logo on my web. Site. But yeah, so what we do now at Pepper It Marketing, I have a few clients that I keep, and my team and I, so we're down to like six on the team, and we manage the marketing for some clients and their online [00:27:00] schools and their email and social media.

But then the other side is teaching people, dieticians and private practice owners in particular, how they can do their own marketing and just helping them simplify it because. Most people, it's really complicated. Right. And so I always say my famous words for when we do website audits is welcome is not one of your keywords. You're not a tourist bureau, so it's not a keyword for you. So,

[00:27:24] Shannon: right. But that seems so simple to you. But to. The rest of us. It's like we need that information. So I love that you're teaching other people how to show up the best that they can. And you have an academy, you have a whole program as

[00:27:37] Kathy: yeah. So I have the Thrive Marketing Academy, so it's a year long group coaching and training program. And then people also get five, one-on-one calls with me throughout the program, five strategy sessions. So, and then there's some extra audits that we do that are part of the program too.

The goal is by the time you're done that you've had the time for the training, you've had the time for the learning, you have had time [00:28:00] for implementing. So when they're done, the goal is that they know and really understand how well they can do their own marketing cuz they know exactly what to do, where to do it, how to do it, when to do it, and in a way that gets them clients.

[00:28:13] Shannon: yes, that's the ultimate goal, I'm sure for them.

[00:28:16] Kathy: Yeah, and I think the unique thing about what we do is, I tell people now, it's funny considering I started out as a social media specialist, but now we try to, I try to teach people that you shouldn't be relying on social media. It's only one piece of it. So what we look at is a lot of the foundations and things like SEO and messaging and content and systems, because those are all the things that are gonna save you the time.

[00:28:39] Shannon: Let's talk about your podcast also.

[00:28:42] Kathy: Yeah, so the podcast started last year. It's called Marketing Your Private Practice with Kathy C and it's really all about helping practice owners get easy to implement and actionable steps to help them with their marketing. It is marketing for your private practice, but service-based businesses get a lot [00:29:00] out of it as well, so that's what we focus on in the, in the podcast, is giving you steps and ideas to simplify and streamline what you're doing with your marketing.

[00:29:15] Shannon: Name one thing that these different chapters in your life have taught you.

[00:29:19] Kathy: Biggest thing for me is you have to be open for opportunities and you have to be ready to say yes. I have done things I never pictured I would ever do. You know, I've spoken on a stage in Los Angeles, I've spoken on a. Stage in Las Vegas. I have traveled to so many places. I've met so many people.

I had the opportunity to go in with as one of the experts working with Bob Proctor. And. It's all about connections, like from the get go with my business on social media, I always said social media is connections without expectations.

That was kind of my tagline back then. But I [00:30:00] the connections without expectations. So when I think about all these different things, a couple of the first conferences I went to led to me. Meeting certain people. That led to me getting nominated as the marketing director for this VA association.

That led to me being nominated as president and elected president, first Canadian ever on their board as a president, which was cool.

That connection and that relationship with the previous president, one of the previous ones, led to someone who worked with Bob Proctor reaching out to me. And having me become one of these experts that would go in and work with his students.

And that led to lots of lucrative contracts with clients and other opportunities and different things. I got to meet some celebrities from another client that I met before that experience. Who connected me to another client because she said, would you come to my conference?

And do the live social media from there? Well, from that I connected to somebody else who I eventually ended up going to [00:31:00] do their social media at their gala in Hollywood where I met like, Malcolm Jamal Warner from the Cosby Show, and I met John Schneider from the Dukes of Hazards.

Like I met the guy who started the Children's Miracle Network, telethon like awesome opportunities because I said yes to one thing and I think because I kicked my anxiety in the butt and said, I'm gonna do this. I wanna make it work. I love the freedom too much so. Being ready to say yes to opportunities, I think is just one of the biggest things that you can do.

[00:31:36] Shannon: I

[00:31:36] Kathy: Sorry, long-winded.

[00:31:38] Shannon: No, I love it. It's so, so true. I'm a big believer in just say yes, do it. Say yes. You won't regret it.

So would you recommend taking a leap into a big life change to your best friend?

Uh, Definitely you never know where life will take you if you take a leap like that. I took it because somebody else noticed something in me and recognized my talent. Unfortunately, a lot of people I think [00:32:00] are probably out there missing out on this cuz they don't recognize their own talent and we're not good at it.

Recognizing ourselves for anything really. Mm-hmm. So, you know, if you know somebody and you think they'd be good at something, you gotta tell them. But if you think you would too, I think it's important to take that jump and that leap. That's an important lesson. Like if you notice that in someone else say something, that woman went above and beyond to look up, this program for you to tell you that you're qualified.

She deserves a lot of the credit too. Yeah, and that's just, that's wonderful. I saw her this summer on the waterfront in Halifax. Her family was visiting the city and we were just down walking the dogs. And I was like, oh my gosh, it's Lynn. And I was like, every time I see her I'm like, you changed my life.

And every time I meet her a few years later, under just different circumstances, it's still changed, like mm-hmm. You know, my life totally changed because she said that to me. Oh. So what is one piece of advice that you would give to someone who's trying to start their second act? So I think having patience [00:33:00] with yourself and, and going through the changes you're gonna have to do and.

Blocking time to learn.

[00:33:07] Shannon: When you go into a second act you might have to step back and learn or figure things out. And I think that's really important

too.

[00:33:15] Shannon: And also,

I guess,

[00:33:17] Shannon: know that when you start out, whatever you envision now is probably not where you're gonna be in five years, 10 years, or even 20 years.

Be open to opportunity and that'll shift and change and evolve.

Yes. Great advice. So what does your next act look like? What's next for you and your business? So I think for me, I'm. Gonna keep on with the podcast. I'm definitely loving doing the podcast.

I'm going to continue to work with people in the group program. I think these days more than ever, you know, showing and helping people understand that the instant gratification of social media isn't always gonna be helpful, and there's other foundations you wanna put into your marketing. But my thing I [00:34:00] think is I.

I'm not ready to retire. I'm in my mid fifties and, you know, freedom 55, I've had freedom since 41 when I started, right? Mm-hmm. Yep. And you're having fun. You're having fun and freedom and I'm having fun. And I don't know, like I think when I get ready to say that I wanna retire or, you know, slow down, I don't know, as an entrepreneur, That's something you actually would do?

I think if I get to that stage, I would still wanna do something. Right? Yep. Right. It's ingrained in us to want to be creative, to be out there, to be, yeah, I agree. I mean, it could be, I go back to volunteering type of thing. Mm-hmm. Or whatever. Because volunteering has been a big aspect of me getting a lot of opportunities too like tons of opportunities from being part of volunteer associations or whatever.

But I think, you know, for me, I don't see it quitting at any time soon. And my goal is to really just [00:35:00] try and reach more people through the academy and help them learn and understand how they can make it simple to, to reach their clients. Cuz I always talk about them. I call them private practice heroes.

Because I look at them as what they do is changing lives. It's really helping create people who love what, who they are. They are healthier, they're happier, they're living their best life. And if I can help more people create a world filled with people like that, I think that's just an awesome mission to have.

It's a great mission. You're on your way, you're doing it. So where can my audience connect with you? So the easiest way is go to my website, pepperitmarketing.com, and you can click on all my social links there. And find me there, or the podcast is at marketingyourprivatepractice.com as well. If you wanna listen in there.

Definitely listening because I'm a service based business as well with my career coaching. But yeah, I've picked up some great tips from listening, so I, I really suggest [00:36:00] everyone goes over there and I'm gonna link to everything in the show notes as well.

Kathy, thank you. This is such an incredible time to get to hear how you've evolved over the years and I love that there's that thread of marketing and volunteering kind of through everything all right, well thanks Shannon. It was great to share the story. I love it's when I get back to tell it, sometimes you forget how things happened and what you know, what you did. So it's kind of nice to talk about it again because I know that can inspire others, and I know that's what your podcast is doing, is helping others.

Kind of get ready to take their own leap. I hope so. And hearing your story makes it sound easier. I know it wasn't easy, but I'm sure if someone's listening and they're like, I'm gonna connect with Kathy now and really chat with her about how she did it, and I'm sure you'd be happy to chat with them.

Yeah. And that's really what Absolutely. My mission is about here. Yeah. Oh, well thank you for being a part of the show. Thanks.

[00:36:54] Shannon: Thank you, Kathy, for sharing your Second Act Success story with us, what you've built and [00:37:00] how you're helping your clients grow their businesses through marketing is incredible. I will link to all of the ways that you can get in touch with Kathy in the show notes below this episode.

Or just head over to pepperitmarketing.com. For more success stories from other people who have transitioned to a second act career. Make sure that you subscribe to the Second Act Success Career Podcast so that you can go back and bend all of our past episodes that are sure to inspire you. Things again for listening. We'll be back again very soon with another episode, make it a great day. My friend.

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