Meet Catherine Collucio
Hi, I’m Cat, a transplanted Australian who has called New Zealand home for over 21 years. I live on the fringe of Auckland in a semi-rural area with my husband, grown children, and way too many cats and chickens.
I’m also looking forward to becoming a first-time grandmother next month! My family is extremely important to me and my driver in life and business has always been the desire to make a positive difference in the lives of others.
We all have previous chapters in our stories – Tell me about your working life/business experiences before now? |
|
| A few years ago, I realised that my children were about to start university and my role as homeschooling, taxi-driving, cheerleading, supportive mother was about to become redundant.
On top of this, my body was changing, wrinkles were appearing and life, in general, was changing as I entered that season known as “midlife.” I had a choice. I could pine for what my life used to be, or I could embrace the new. It wasn’t easy, but as I navigated the ups and downs of midlife, I chose to purposely find joy. Even when things were tough – I chose to still ROCK my midlife – and I decided that I wanted to encourage other women to do the same. I already had a four-year degree in education, but went back to school and trained as a Personal Trainer, then later added Life Coaching to my tool kit. As well, I launched Rocking Midlife™ – a free online community where women can connect and talk openly and vulnerably about the challenges they are facing and find support. A place where women can share a laugh. A place where women can come together with the common goal to ROCK their midlife season too. As I found myself meeting more and more women however who were floundering, wondering what on earth their purpose was now. I wrote my book “Girl! get over yourself and get in the Game!” to encourage them that life was by no means “over” – in fact, there was SO much more for them to become and do! I launched coaching programs to support and encourage women through this season of change, ran the very first LIVE Rocking Midlife™ event in Auckland and was featured in a 6 page spread in a national magazine after my “Rock your Jeans” campaign that encouraged older women to wear their jeans with pride, went viral. I traveled to LA and had the privilege of speaking at a midlife conference there. On returning, I wrote my two next books, 21 Hacks to ROCK your Life! – the original and the Teen Edition, and determined to continue connecting, inspiring, and encouraging midlife women worldwide. I firmly believe that when women find their purpose in life, they impact not only their own lives but their families and their communities. I also fully stand by my personal motto – for myself and for other women: “you are never too old to have a new beginning in life.” |
|
Please provide a snapshot of your business |
|
| I have recently launched a new arm of my business called “Your Life of Purpose.” Under this, I have a number of ways in which women can work with me, ranging from purchasing my books to attending my virtual or live workshops and events, (featuring this month, the “Unleash your Creativity!” virtual workshop) to watching my free webinar “5 Customer Attraction Secrets using the Power of Facebook Groups!” where I introduce my new “Groups Attraction Formula,” to being part of a 3 month “Your Life of Purpose Success Team,” where you receive a private strategy session with me as well as the encouragement and support of a group of women who want to see you succeed.
In short, my style of coaching is a mixture of encouragement and challenge, where I hold you accountable to deliver on what goals YOU determine are important to you, whilst reminding you that you are so much more capable than you give yourself credit for. |
|
Assuming you are now in “Your Next Chapter”, what led you here? Tell me about your purpose, your why, the difference you want to make, who you are called to serve? |
|
| I think I have probably answered this already Angela!
My goal in life? “To help women create purposeful lives and businesses.” |
|
What did you find most challenging about getting started/moving in a new direction? |
|
| I have the same internal voices that most women have, you know the ones. They whisper constantly that I am not pretty enough, skinny enough, young enough, smart enough, successful enough – etc etc and whenever I want to launch into a new direction, I need to shut these voices down and I do this in two ways.
One is to fill my mind with positive input via books, videos and podcasts, the other is to intentionally take action to change the loop using practical steps that I outline in my 21 Hacks books. |
|
What have you found most fulfilling? |
|
| Seeing women get excited when they realise what they are REALLY capable of achieving and then going on to ACHIEVE their goals! | |
Have you experienced self-doubt? What causes it to flare and how do you work through it when it hits? |
|
| All the time! I take action in the 2 ways that I mentioned above, and I continually challenge myself too.
As an introvert in real life, I struggle at times putting my face out there, but I know that if I want to serve other women, I need to be prepared to grow and push past my own fears first. |
|
How do you feel you have grown since you started? |
|
| The past decade has been a huge period of growth and change in my life.
There’s too much to write here but I would like to think that not only have I grown in confidence, knowing that I DO have the ability to help women transform their lives and businesses, but in empathy and compassion towards others too. |
|
What has been most effective for you when it comes to sharing your message and attracting clients? |
|
| So much of what I do today has come out of using Facebook groups and I now teach others how to build their businesses via this medium.
I have used groups ever since I was a brand new Personal Trainer wanting to serve my clients while nurturing warm leads, and groups are still the backbone of my business today. |
|
Have you developed any particular habits/strategies that facilitate getting things done in your business? |
|
| I’m all about prioritising as I am one of those people that loves to work on numerous projects at once, which, if not managed properly, can lead to overwhelm and procrastination.
I always have one main thing to be achieved each day, and ticking that offsets me up for success for the rest of the day. My 21 Hacks book gives a great overview of the habits and routines that I use to help me stay on track with my own goals. |
|
Why do you feel women in the 40’s and beyond make fabulous entrepreneurs? |
|
| Women who have held families together, or worked tirelessly in their careers have a wealth of wisdom by the time they hit their 40s.
What is even more important though, is that they will have developed RESILIENCE having weathered many of life’s storms and this is possibly THE most critical tool for an entrepreneur to have if they are to survive the ups and downs of business. |
|
What would you say to other women who are standing on the edge of their own Next Chapter, not sure if they can take the leap? |
|
| Many women hit this stage of life and discover that there is a freedom that comes from having older kids who can drive themselves around, and parents that are still able to look after themselves.
This sliver of time gives women the gift of being able to explore the questions of “do I love who I am?” and “do I love what I do?” and take action accordingly. Life moves past so quickly and I would encourage any women who find themselves in this position to grab this gift with both hands. |
|
What’s next for you? Share your vision! |
|
| I’m very excited about this weekend’s “Unleash your Creativity” virtual workshop! So many of us lay aside our creative and artistic pursuits as we get older, deeming them “not practical” and therefore of no value.
I believe that everyone needs to have a form of creative expression, and when we allow ourselves to do so, creativity flows through into all areas of life. I’m also excited about launching my signature Groups Attraction Formula, which is a program designed to help entrepreneurs and small business owners use the power of Facebook Groups to build their business. |
|
|
When I’m facing a something new and challenging I… |
|
| Turn off the voice in my head that tells me that I can’t do it, and then I read! I love research so will always research something new and challenging! | |
|
I know my greatest strengths are… |
|
| Resilience, self-efficacy (my ability to research and find solutions), persistence | |
|
The best piece of advice I’ve ever been given is… |
|
| You don’t need to wait for permission to do what your heart is calling you to do | |
|
Some of my favourite books are… |
|
| I am such an avid reader that I struggle to list favourites! I always have about 6 on the go at once. | |
|
My favourite podcasts are… |
|
| Why yours and mine of course!! I do particularly enjoy “The Creative Penn” Podcast | |
|
My favourite business tool or resource is… |
|
| My computer!! ZOOM so that I can still deliver workshops while in lockdown, and Canva – I love playing with graphics. | |
|
My favourite quote is… |
|
| “Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself. ” George Bernard Shaw | |
|
Not many people know that I… |
|
| Am an introvert in real life when they have either seen me on stage in front of thousands when I used to perform as a musician or they see me speaking at conferences. |
You can connect with Catherine here.
