Stress, illness, and a near-death experience. That's what propelled Maureen Wendy Dearborne to find her calling in life.

From a broken engagement to missed promotions at work, Wendy felt like her life was unraveling. "I was blaming everybody and everything for every woe in my life," she says.

But Wendy's perspective changed when her life was nearly cut short by illness.

"I had a near-death experience when I was 21 years old," she says, adding with a laugh, "That was something that I actually didn't talk about with anybody for about 10 or 11 years maybe, because when people actually spoke about things like that, you wound up in facilities that wanted to give you electric shock."

About this experience, Wendy explains, "I was literally shown . . . all the things that I had done that led me to this point. All the things! And it was so easy for me to understand then that choice was such a powerful thing. Whether you're in business, whether in your daily life, everything you choose to do impacts your world."

Wendy knew she wanted to dedicate her life to empowering others, a principle she holds to even as her business journey evolves. From receiving two doctorates in metaphysics and holistic life coaching to becoming a classically trained aromatherapist and reflexologist, Wendy has continued to stretch her mind and abilities.

As a business owner and personal development and choice-making coach, Wendy has insightful advice for entrepreneurs. Here are some of her top tips:

• You don't need to look outside yourself to find your niche or your next ingenious business idea. "Your niche is already within you. You need to find it within you so you can express it outwardly. And whatever you do, you have to give more service than you get money for," Wendy explains.
• "People, places, and things can be moved for you when you are living your passion," she says. And as you live that passion, you will impact others' lives for the better, and they in turn will change lives so your influence will grow exponentially. "You never know how you will impact the world," she says. "Don't think because you are making cupcakes and you're not sort of like Beyonce or what have you that you are not relevant. You are relevant. . . . What you do is relevant."
• It will work out, just maybe not in the way you expect. "People think that when you are in business and in life that it is meant to be all cupcakes and rainbows and unicorns and fairy dust. They don't realize that you can get dragged up the rough side of that mountain to get to the top," Wendy says. But those challenges help you experience personal growth and achieve a higher potential.
• Be patient. "There are no mistakes and there are no failures. There are only opportunities to use what you have experienced to move forward," she explains. Wendy compares business development to growing a mustard seed. You need to give the idea time to nurture and grow. And even as your business grows, you need to continue nurturing and shaping it.
• You are in charge of your destination and success. "Your life is built one choice at a time," she says. "Everything that you do in life is predicated on choice." Let that empower you to move forward and keep going in your business journey.

For more insights from Dr. Wendy Dearborne, explore her website, connect with her on Facebook, listen to her podcast, or follow her on YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter.