For more than 20 years, Maggie O’Dea has blended “business and mindfulness,” which form the foundation for The Inspired Life Project, where she shares her experiences and learning to other entrepreneurs who want to find their purpose, and use that purpose to grow their enterprises. Aside from running Inspired Life, she is also a “business mentor, entrepreneur, mother, and author.”
At Inspired Life, Maggie O’Dea has followed up the success of her body care line called Devi Mukta. The “ancient teachings and modern wisdom” that have propelled her to her current success also inform the programs Inspired Life offer to their clients, from an Elements of Business Course to one-on-one coaching sessions with Maggie herself.
Maggie O’Dea also wants to share and fulfill her intense passion for “developing new ideas and helping other business owners achieve growth and realize their true potential.” The Inspired Life Project is her platform and “mentoring service” which guides business owners “through a process of self-discovery” so they can lift their business goals from vision to reality.
For over twenty years, Maggie O’Dea has also been actively practicing yoga. She is a former Jin Shin Jyutsu teacher, and she has an MS degree in Natural Health from Clayton College of Natural Health. She also earned a BA degree in Interdisciplinary Studies: Philosophies of Healing from Naropa University.
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Jerome Knyszewski: What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?
Maggie O’Dea: What makes any company I create standout is having a strong purpose behind it. While building I ensured that the design was very high-end because you can always change out the finishings in a house but the actual bones are there for many generations. As part of honoring the land and resources that go into building a house the design should not be compromised.
Jerome Knyszewski: Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
Maggie O’Dea: In any industry the key to burn out is having a strong purpose. That way you can always go back to your purpose and find your way. Without a strong connection to your purpose it is very easy to give up when things are not working according to your plan.
Jerome Knyszewski: None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
Maggie O’Dea: My mom really believed in me even when I did not. She was going to help finance my first project but then went through a divorce and did not have access to the money. She believed in me while I figured out my own way to secure my financing through the equity I created in the remodel and build my first house.
Jerome Knyszewski: Ok thank you for all that. Now let’s shift to the main focus of this interview. The title of this series is “How to take your company from good to great”. Let’s start with defining our terms. How would you define a “good” company, what does that look like? How would you define a “great” company, what does that look like?
Maggie O’Dea: I think again what distinguishes a good and great company is purpose. In building my purpose was to create expansive feeling homes on a modest budget. Use passive solar design to maximize heat gain during the day and reduce energy costs. Without purpose you build typical homes with minimal natural light and the inhabitants miss out on having an extraordinary living experience.
Jerome Knyszewski: What would you advise to a business leader who initially went through years of successive growth, but has now reached a standstill. From your experience do you have any general advice about how to boost growth and “restart their engines”?
Maggie O’Dea: Again, tune back into your purpose. From there ask yourself about new services or products you could offer to expand your clientele or look at new ways to market that you have not previously tried. Either get people to buy more things from you, or find more people to buy from you!
Jerome Knyszewski: Generating new business, increasing your profits, or at least maintaining your financial stability can be challenging during good times, even more so during turbulent times. Can you share some of the strategies you use to keep forging ahead and not lose growth traction during a difficult economy?
Maggie O’Dea: I think this is about mindset. There are always people with money, maybe your ideal customer demographic needs to adjust. This will change how and to whom you market, but there are always people with money if you have something that people desire.
Jerome Knyszewski: In your experience, which aspect of running a company tends to be most underestimated? Can you explain or give an example?
Maggie O’Dea: I think networking and marketing are the most underestimated. We want to deliver our goods or service but few entrepreneurs want to think about how to market their company. This really comes down to empathy. Put yourself in your ideal clients shoes and see the world from their perspective, now sell as a service to them. Solving their problem and improving their life. Instead of how can I get people to buy from me.
Jerome Knyszewski: Great customer service and great customer experience are essential to build a beloved brand and essential to be successful in general. In your experience what are a few of the most important things a business leader should know in order to create a Wow! Customer Experience?
Maggie O’Dea: Follow-up with your customers before they seek you out. Ask them about their experience and how it could be improved. Think about offering special offers or experiences for loyal customers.
Jerome Knyszewski: What are your thoughts about how a company should be engaged on Social Media? For example, the advisory firm EisnerAmper conducted 6 yearly surveys of United States corporate boards, and directors reported that one of their most pressing concerns was reputational risk as a result of social media. Do you share this concern? We’d love to hear your thoughts about this.
Maggie O’Dea: It is risky to put yourself out there. You risk turning off some customers, but if you follow the 80–20 rule then you really want to market to the ideal client ensuring they will be a returning loyal customer and the other percentage was never going to be the best fit. I think the rule is to always be yourself. If you turn away customers by being too provocative then you probably just won over some very loyal customers in the process.
Jerome Knyszewski: What are the most common mistakes you have seen CEOs & founders make when they start a business? What can be done to avoid those errors?
Maggie O’Dea: The most common mistake I see is not really being connected to their passion and purpose so they abort the mission prematurely. Before you begin, really ask yourself if this something I would want to do if I had a trust fund and did not need to make money? If you would not do it for free you will probably give up right when things were about to get good. When you have that connection to your passion it is a wellspring of inspiration and you will find a way through the hardships, setbacks and mishaps!
Jerome Knyszewski: How can our readers further follow you online?
Maggie O’Dea: You can find me on:
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Maggie.InspiredLifeProject
Jerome Knyszewski: This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent with this!
