Today we’d like to introduce you to Heidi Hood.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Heidi. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
My story as an entrepreneur began as a child when I sat with my dad on the couch, creating business ideas and plans at the age of twelve. I was obsessed with the idea of financial freedom. Growing up, we always lived in a state of scarcity. We didn’t live in poverty but there was always so much concern around money that I grew very tired of the way money seemed to “bully us around” in our lives. I became very interested in the idea of financial freedom as a result. I didn’t realize everyone has a relationship with money, and that all I wanted was a different one than what I was taught.
Needless to say, my first step towards this end was doing everything I could to prove I could make money on my own. Even as a minor, anything I took up as a hobby or interest, I began finding ways to make money with. I can remember cleaning houses for relatives, offering spa services, creating flyers, selling baked goods door to door one Christmas to earn money for Christmas presents.
Then, while I was finishing up my Vocal Performance degree in college, I began teaching music lessons privately – and my journey as a “real entrepreneur” began. I taught anyone and everyone who would pay me money and found out very quickly that I’m not meant to teach everybody – and that that is the quickest path to burnout. I was always uncomfortable with the business side of things and very unsettled in my choice of occupation.
A trained performer since childhood (in piano, acting, and voice), I really dabbled in what felt like everything after college – trying to find my “place in this world.” I was waiting tables, teaching music lessons, attending auditions for both film and theatre – doing all the things you’re supposed to do when you’re figuring life out and trying to “make it big” somewhere. But nothing seemed to click with me until I discovered the world of character entertaining.
This was my new heaven on earth. I could use my performing artist passions and expertise and combine them with my entrepreneurship to create a business that provided event entertainment through fairytale characters. It was the best but it shocked me how expensive it was to run a business like that and do it well. I gave it my best shot, meanwhile starting other businesses in my attempt to invest in my dream business and achieve financial freedom – from network marketing to e-commerce. I found out through all this that it is much more expensive to learn from the entrepreneur’s school of hard knocks than it is to learn from experts who have been where you wanna go.
I hired a business coach. Several actually and it made all the difference. I realized that I had been diffusing my energies everywhere, that not every business idea or customer or client was meant for me to serve, and that a little intentional smart work can take you much further than simply working harder. I decided to go back and rebrand my music studio (which I had quit completely due to burnout), and ran a successful three month intensive, filling it up in only four weeks.
The coolest part was that I made more money in less time than I ever had before, serving my favorite clients, teaching my favorite parts of singing and leaving each session so energized along with my clients. I knew that I had tapped into something really magical, and I wanted to help others like me do the same thing. That is when I decided to drop everything I had been chasing and become a branding coach for creativepreneurs.
I kept investing in myself. I built my own program and launched it successfully in the middle of the pandemic. It has taken me years to discover my path, and it was 100% worth it. Every milestone, failure, heartbreak, and success. All has led me to a path that I am so confident in and so fulfilled by. Not only this, but I also have been able to identify and rewrite toxic mindsets that had taken root for me in regards to money – I had been living in fear and scarcity mentality for much of my life. Now, to live in an abundant state of being – doors open for me and my clients as a result that never could have before.
I never dreamed I’d be a branding and business coach for entrepreneurs, but it gives me so much fulfillment and joy to see myself and my clients creating our abundant stories through our businesses. I’m so grateful I kept moving forward to find my way here.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has NOT been a smooth road. I learned from the school of hard knocks for business and that is an EXPENSIVE way to learn. I do not advise it. I wish I had hired a coach sooner because it would have saved me SO MUCH stress and time money and energy.
I can remember the day my hubby and I decided it was time to close my dream fairytale character entertainment business so that we could find a way to put groceries on the table… we were drowning in debt and had to enroll in a debt relief program to make it. I can remember feeling so much grief over the loss of that dream and feeling like such a fraud to think I could help other entrepreneurs make it when I had experienced so much loss and failures along the way.
Once you realize that your failures actually can empower you to empower others, though that’s when the real breakthrough happens. I can come from a specially effective position as a coach now, because I know what it’s like to do things the wrong way AND the right way. It makes a world of difference for the understanding and empathy I can offer my audience and my clients as well.
We’d love to hear more about your work.
I help female creative entrepreneurs and coaches manifest abundant lives by tapping into their unique story brand – helping my clients align their business with their passions, values, talents, and story so that their business fulfills them instead of the other way around. As an entrepreneur, mindset is everything so half of the training my clients go through with me is shifting perspectives, debunking myths, and eliminating harmful belief patterns. This is what enables them to freely tap into the power of their own story and brand themselves in a way that they can confidently attract the right clients consistently.
The other half is strategy work. We do a TON of work around the client’s story and messaging. You can have an incredible product or service, but if you aren’t communicating that in a way that the RIGHT people resonate with it – your business won’t go far. Once the client’s story, offer, and message are all aligned – we deep dive into selling authentically and confidently. It’s straight-up magical to see the results.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
One of my favorite childhood memories is pizza and popcorn with ice cream floats on a Sunday afternoon in front of a cheesy movie or show with my family. It really taught me the importance of taking nonnegotiable time for rest and never allowing the worries or cares of life to consume you.
Contact Info:
- Email: heidi@heidihood.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/heidihood.social
- Facebook: facebook.com/heidihood.social
https://www.facebook.com/groups/abundantcreatives
Image Credit:
Angela Germany Photography
Suggest a story: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
