"Operate on the lowest cost possible but high enough to sustain growth."
Diane Rambo is the Founder/CEO of Diane Rambo Coaching & Consulting, an Autism Life & Mindset Coach, an Autism Travel Expert, and mother of two, one of whom is autistic. Helping women is her passion, especially caring for an autistic child.
Her vision is to educate, inspire and empower women to overcome their fear of failing as a parent through community, collaboration, patience and commitment. She enjoys wine, pasta, Transformers and Marvel Movies, Law & Order series and will always see her smiling (her laugh is contagious).
Despite having her daughter at 18, she obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of Missouri while working 2 jobs. In 2015, her son was born. Before he turned one, his pediatrician in St. Louis suspected he was on the spectrum but they moved to Las Vegas.
Diane felt overwhelmed, insecure as a parent and, in many ways, fostered her son’s inability to communicate because it was easier to just do it for him. After misdiagnosis and attempted therapies, at 3, her son was finally diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Fast forward two years later, Diane finally researched what Autism is and how to best support him.
Diane’s 17 years of mentoring in corporate as well as teaching English as a Second Language online has provided ways to make learning simple, fun and convenient for busy women. She has been successful transforming her son’s social and life skills while expanding his liquid diet to exploring foods like meat, fruits and vegetables.
Her love for travel and success with her son’s development led her to become a Certified Autism Travel Professional (CATP) through the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards (IBCCES)
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Table of Contents
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
Diane Rambo: All my life, I have always mentored or trained someone in corporate or personally because everyone admired how I make learning so easy. I taught my grandfather how to speak English while I was barely in elementary school. I spent almost 17 years at AT&T training and even writing Methods & Procedures. I spent some time teaching English as a second language online to kiddos in China. I love to learn new skills and even taught myself how to build websites from code, graphic designs, and investing.
I am a mother of two children, one of whom is diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at 3. Like most parents during the diagnosis phase, I was in denial. Once I accepted him for who he is, I began my research to find out how I could best support him. He is my inspiration.
My simple solutions and travel attributed to his transformation from nonverbal to verbal, liquid food to solid food at his request growth and desire to interact with his peers. I began Destined Adventures to serve families with autistic children but quickly realized many were not ready to travel. Now, I have opened Diane Rambo Coaching & Consulting and am an Autism Life and Mindset Coach and Certified Autism Travel Expert.
I help moms with an autistic child develop simple, effective time-saving strategies to improve communication and their relationship in order to boost confidence to live life abundantly. Neurodiversity: Overwhelm to Abundance Blueprint is set to launch in September 2022.
My overall goal is to build community centers worldwide to support families with autistic children especially those over 21. I am soon to be an author this Fall as well as a speaker at NeuroDash. I have been featured on I am a Fan, PBN and just Two Dads podcasts. I enjoy wine, pasta, Transformers and Marvel Movies, Law & Order series and am always smiling (was told my laugh is contagious).
2020 and 2021 threw a lot of curve balls into business on a global scale. Based on the experience gleaned in the past couple years, how can businesses thrive in 2022? What lessons have you learned?
Diane Rambo: Luckily, I didn’t have a brick and mortar business. All of my business is conducted online. I learned to never give up even when it gets tough and find cost effective ways to operate my business. Automation is the most desirable thing in business but is not a necessity. You must be willing to make the tough decision in order to stay afloat for the long haul.
The pandemic seems to keep on disrupting the economy, what should businesses focus on in 2022? What advice would you share?
Diane Rambo: Operate on the lowest cost possible but high enough to sustain growth. Determine how to operate virtually or by phone and have some flexibility where possible. People’s priorities shifted and we must be adaptable and compassionate to our customers/clients.
How has the pandemic changed your industry and how have you adapted?
Diane Rambo: If anything, the pandemic exposed many things in business. One thing is financial responsibility and budgeting. I made sure to not incur additional unnecessary expenses and learned how to thoroughly demo or test out products that included many subscriptions into one and was still cost effective.
I also am creating ways to make trainings accessible via recordings in case a mom cannot attend a live session but still has access. I am creating hands-on activity to ensure accountability and also keep a track of their progress for much greater success in their ROI.
What advice do you wish you received when the pandemic started and what do you intend on improving in 2022?
Diane Rambo: When I started my travel business 5 years ago, I didn’t really know what it took to start a business. As I rebranded and restructured my business, I am still responsible on maintaining current clients. I wish that I had the knowledge that I have now and worked with coaches beforehand to guide me on how to organize my business from start and not backtrack. It is still doable but takes way longer.
Online business surged higher than ever, B2B, B2C, online shopping, virtual meetings, remote work, Zoom medical consultations, what are your expectations for 2022?
Diane Rambo: I expect online business still continue to grow especially with newfound spread of other diseases and with COVID only increasing in cases. It is also convenient for moms like myself with a special needs child.
How many hours a day do you spend in front of a screen?
Diane Rambo: Too many LOL :)! If I’m not on my screen, I’m on my son’s screen. It’s very hot during the summer in Vegas, so we’re indoors until it cools down.
The majority of executives use stories to persuade and communicate in the workplace. Can you share with our readers examples of how you implement that in your business to communicate effectively with your team?
Diane Rambo: I am always focusing on the positive and use uplifting stories to encourage others and my team. Every experience is a way to learn. For example, look at Thomas Edison before he developed the light bulb. He failed 2,000 times to learn what did not work and found the one that did. I use my own personal experiences as well as others either living with autism or cares for someone with autism that has had some amazing experiences.
Business is all about overcoming obstacles and creating opportunities for growth. What do you see as the real challenge right now?
Diane Rambo: The challenge is always yourself. YOU are your worst enemy and only challenge. There’s the saying, when there’s a will, there’s a way. That exists for a reason. Many people find a way to get what they desire most. Are you willing to face the person in the mirror and say I will become that person or wish you were that person congratulating on the sidelines? There are so many things to learn about where the future is headed. Now is the time to be a student on life to set you and your family up for success.
In 2022, what are you most interested in learning about? Crypto, NFTs, online marketing, or any other skill sets? Please share your motivations.
Diane Rambo: I actually started to learn about cryptos, NFT’s, how to trade, and investing 2 years ago. I like to learn how to make money multiple ways. I even had a drop shipping store. I am using all of these facets to create money making opportunities with my ability to make learning simple. I am very interested in learning about investing in real estate. I plan to invest in a subdivision and apartment complex in the future.
A record 4.4 million Americans left their jobs in September in 2021, accelerating a trend that has become known as the Great Resignation. 47% of people plan to leave their job during 2022. Most are leaving because of their boss or their company culture. 82% of people feel unheard, undervalued and misunderstood in the workplace. Do you think leaders see the data and think “that’s not me – I’m not that boss they don’t want to work for? What changes do you think need to happen?
Diane Rambo: I think once businesses revamp many of their practices that are 20 years or more outdated and adapt to a more inclusive workplace, there will be a shift back into the workplace. I stated earlier many people’s priorities and values have shifted due to the pandemic. I refuse to go back to corporate myself and make less than my worth for all the knowledge and skills I possess to not afford to pay my bills and care for my son the way he needs to be cared for.
Also, business need to develop a strategic plan in case of disasters like this in order to stay afloat but also show that they actually care about their employees. This isn’t the first major crisis the economy has been through and yet businesses still haven’t learned how to develop an effective plan.
On a lighter note, if you had the ability to pick any business superpower, what would it be and how would you put it into practice?
Diane Rambo: The ability to take the moms I coach with their autistic children that complete my year long program on a complimentary trip as a token of my gratitude and appreciation for entrusting me to help them go from overwhelm to abundance.
What does “success” in 2022 mean to you? It could be on a personal or business level, please share your vision.
Diane Rambo: Success in 2022 for me personally means I build financial stability, wealth and freedom to not have to worry about if I can pay the bills as well as have time freedom to travel with my children.
In business, I close out 2022 with helping 20 families create the abundant life that they desire with their autistic child and get ready to start my nonprofit in 2023.
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Diane Rambo for taking the time to do this interview and share her knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Diane Rambo or her company, you can do it through her – Linkedin Page
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