Being Of Service Grows A Great Business
In this episode of On The Map podcast, your host Lee Caraher talks to Karen Catlin.
Karen built software products for 25 years as an executive before she realized there was a sharp decline in the number of women who worked in tech. Reinvigorated, she changed paths with a purpose and now is a leadership coach, highly acclaimed author and speaker, and the author of three books, all on the topic of inclusivity in the workplace.
Karen explains that when she had this realization, she wasn’t originally paying attention to this at first. She says after going to a conference that highlighted this issue for her, she began to create and offer resources for the women who worked with her. This led to more initiatives and efforts on her part to improve workplace diversity and inclusivity. Karen shares that she felt passionate and excited about this work, which was her catalyst to leave her job in software development and dedicate herself full time to this work.
She began her leadership coaching practice not long after this and she faced her fair share of challenges. Karen shares that taking the first steps were the hardest, and she needed a couple of friendly nudges from her support system to really put herself out there.
Karen started coaching women in the tech space, but realized very quickly that despite amazing efforts, her clients weren’t getting ahead. This is when Karen deduced that some of these major companies aren’t as ‘merit-based’ operationally as you might believe. This impacted Karen immseley, and she made it her mission to help companies become more inclusive.
Twitter As Growth Engine
She went on to start her own anonymous Twitter handle and she began tweeting, sometimes with a hint of snark, simple ways to improve corporate inclusivity. Her Twitter handle remained anonymous for years, but before long, she’d gained notoriety. No one knew who she was, yet she was soon getting speaking requests in her DMs. She began speaking as a result, but at least once per engagement, she’d be asked if she had a book to share.
Writing the Book
She went on to write her first book, Better Allies, which is now in its second edition. Karen says that many allies just don’t know where to start when it comes to making positive, inclusive change in the workplace. She says to start with simple things you can incorporate incrementally into your day to day.
Email Spreads the Word
Karen also shares that she started an email newsletter. While the newsletter started very small with only a handful of subscribers, as of now, it has surpassed her Twitter reach. She began using a format that would offer weekly tips to being an inclusive ally in the workplace. As a result, her newsletter grew exponentially and is now an amazing source of subscribers, community, and authority for Karen. This is one of the ways Karen put herself ‘on the map’ as a solopreneur.
Want to learn more? Check out Karen Catlin’s website at https://karencatlin.com/.
Check out all of Karen’s books at https://karencatlin.com/writings/#Book2.
Check out Karen Catlin on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/kecatlin/.
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