The Colégas Pivot
I will be focusing on providing curriculum consulting services from now on.
Photo by peter bucks on Unsplash.
As I mentioned at the end of 2024 in Pivoting Colégas Towards Consulting for School Districts, the Colégas Group is going through a shift… a transformation. I promised to say more in subsequent blogs so here we go!
First, I plan to change my LLC to a DBA this year. It will be less of a company and more of a consultancy. Under the LLC, I had plans of growing my business into something that would allow me to hire or collaborate with folks. I did that for a little bit and was marginally successful. In the end, it was not sustainable given what time and resources I had available, so a DBA is a better fit for what I want to do.
Taking the advice of my Small Business Administration mentor, I am going back to basics. My consultancy will be the one thing I will focus on this year. I will be shifting my website to focus just on that aspect of my company. My skills are strongest there, so it makes sense to build on my strengths. I will pour all I have into this work and see what happens.
Some would take this pivot as a downgrade, or succumbing to failure, or whatever. Stop the projections, please. I don’t see things that way. I see it as an opportunity to reflect, regroup, and pivot. The beginning of every year provides us all with the opportunity to see our business with fresh eyes. That is what I am doing.
Another thing I am doing to challenge myself is to post on TikTok every day. It is a self-imposed challenge so don’t think you missed out on a trend (#FOMO). Every day I think of something to post. Whether it is a video, a photo of me, or an image, I do it because I need a daily reminder that change requires courage. Embracing change must be done even when you are scared, unsure, or alone. If you want to follow my journey on TikTok, you can find me @dr.marie_nf.
As I mentioned before, I want to see if my deliberate and clear-eyed approach to change has helped me create the next version of my venture. Next week, I will again be meeting with my SBA advisor to let her know what I have done and my plans. In addition to the web redesign, I am looking at upcoming local meetings, seminars, and symposia that focus on Ethnic Studies topics and/or curriculum development. Once I identify the event, I will ask to be a part of it – either as a presenter, speaker, or workshop leader. This will help me in a few new ways:
It will hone my messaging
Get me known as an expert in my field
Show me as someone who can solve a problem for others
All of these things are very important as I re-imagine my work as a consultant. At the core of this work is trust. Doing my work to create connections helps build trust. No education leader would bring a stranger into their school to teach their educators without first seeing and hearing what I do. An important part of revamping my website is to add testimonials from the districts I work with. This tells others that the work I did with them will be as beneficial and impactful to their overall mission as it was to the other schools and districts. That trust factor is important to have as I grow my work as a consultant.
So, what are you doing for the new year? What are you planning or hoping to do differently? What are you continuing to do because it has been successful? Let me know so that we can all learn, grow, and flourish together.