Today we’d like to introduce you to Niquenya Collins.
Niquenya, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I have always been everyone’s resource person. I was the one friends and family would call whenever they needed a resume done, letters composed, homework help, or to listen to and critique their speeches for upcoming presentations. I was even the one called in times of crises like at 2 in the morning when I had to talk a close friend out of breaking the windows on her cheating boyfriend’s car. I was the go-to-gal on every job I’ve ever held and because I am so resourceful and highly skilled in multiple disciplines, much of my talent was abused with little compensation nor recognition and acknowledgment. My pay definitely didn’t reflect the work I was doing and I found myself buried under additional tasks that fell well outside my job descriptions with no additional raises or promotions. It had been a long-standing joke that one of these days I would make people pay for all the things I did for free.
Like most people, I lived my life according to the expectations of others – whether that be family, friends, or society at large. When I graduated high school, I was instructed to go into computer science because that is where the money was being made at that time. The internet was just starting to gain traction in people’s homes and technology was rapidly changing. A people-pleaser, I didn’t want to disappoint anyone so I aligned my goals with what was expected of me. I pursued a degree in computer science.
It wasn’t long before I realized that I didn’t enjoy this work. I was a people person so being stuck behind a computer screen for eight hours a day just wasn’t my cup of tea. I had landed a full-time contract job on the employee help desk at one of the largest mobile technology firms at that time. I was being paid over $18 per hour, not too bad for a college kid. Unfortunately, it was this position that was the straw that broke the camel’s back. The cubicle walls surrounding my desk were over six feet high and I’m only 5’2″. I literally never saw my coworkers. In fact, the only person I ever came into physical contact with was my supervisor who would once a day drop by to toss a stack of reports on my desk without so much as a “hello” before returning from whence he came. Furthermore, there was this thick hostility and tension in the air from employees who didn’t hide their disdain for contractors like me whom they felt had stolen their friends’ jobs. I went to lunch alone and felt entirely isolated. The majority of my days were spent resetting employee passwords and troubleshooting hardware problems most of which involved telling them to check if the blank monitor screen they were experiencing was due to it not actually being turned on. I was miserable and quit after three months.
It was then that I knew that the Master Plan, or what most people refer to as the American Dream, wasn’t for me. The expectation was that we are to go to school, get good grades, graduate, get a good job, make lots of money, get married, buy a house with a white picket fence, have 2.5 kids, and a dog. I had already messed that all the way up. I was an unemployed, 19-year-old, naive, wet-behind-the-ears, black, teenage mother in college with a disabled child, poor credit, bad financial habits, and horrible relationships living in public housing. The one thing that I had really going for me is that I was thirsty for knowledge and very resourceful.
I loved attending workshops, seminars, conferences and any other nontraditional means of learning stuff. I was interested in just about everything. I attended one seminar that happened to be facilitated by a life coach. As she discussed what she did and how she did it, I realized that what she was describing was a lot of what I had been doing all along for free. I decided at that moment that I would start a business as a coach. I immediately went home and threw up a website and that’s how I became opened for business. But what does a 19-year-old know about life? As it turns out, absolutely nothing!
I used all my resourcefulness to create my website and build my online presence. I ordered business cards and started attending networking events. And I started writing my own articles and blogs that helped establish me as a subject matter expert. Before long, my phone began to ring and I also received a lot of media attention. There were very few other people doing what I was doing back then so it was a fairly easy entry into the marketplace. The crazy thing is that I found myself suddenly swarming with life coaching clients who looked nothing like me. They were all middle-aged, white men burnt out from corporate America! That is when I learned the power of story. It was my story that resonated with my clients who felt the same frustrations with the expectations of the Master Plan, or the American Dream, as I had and they were looking for a change. A change that I promised and delivered.
My business continued to grow until the economy shifted around 2004/2005. Suddenly people were being downsized and laid off. With no jobs, they began to seek me out for career coaching. I had always helped my friends and family with resumes but now I also had a legitimate full-time job in Human Resources doing all the ground hiring for a major airline in seven airports. Yet again, my experience and skill paid off allowing an easy transition from general life coaching to career coaching. The problem was that there were no jobs to be had. People were having a very hard time in this new economy. Job expectations had changed and companies were hiring younger people with business or technology-related degrees. This left a lot of job seekers feeling desperate and discouraged. I found that my clients were now seeking out ways to monetize their talents without worrying about how loyal a company might be. They were looking to entrepreneurship to resolve their problems so I shifted to business coaching.
I love business coaching! This is where I get the most joy. This is where I can completely utilize all my skills, talents, and experiences to truly help people to realize their biggest dreams. This is what I do today. I transform dreamers into successful entrepreneurs. I specifically seek out people with bigger-than-life visions who want to stop wasting time, monetize their talents, and finally generate the income their brilliant business concepts truly deserve. As a result of partnering with me, aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners in growth mode get connected to their passion, purpose, people, and processes to propel them to profit faster than they ever could on their own.
Has it been a smooth road?
Definitely not! I was young and naive when I started my business over twenty years ago. I had so many obstacles stacked against me. Everything about me screamed failure and statistic! I wore all the labels that could be easily written off by societal norms – young, black, woman, teenage mom, poor, etc. And I had no examples of how to do things the right way nor did I know anybody who was trying to do anything even remotely similar to what I was trying to do.
I heard no so many times but I simply refused to allow that to stop me. It took a lot of willpower and determination to overcome these obstacles. I made a lot of mistakes and wanted to quit at least twice a day but my dreams were bigger than my demons. Even today, I still struggle with overcoming labels and expectations but now I have a team of like-minded individuals around me for support. My circle has been the best motivation and help.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Building Bridges Consulting is a small business consulting, executive coaching, and corporate training firm specializing in transforming dreamers into successful entrepreneurs. We partner with small business owners, aspiring entrepreneurs, nonprofit leaders, executives, thought leaders, and career transitioners to bridge the gap between where you are now and where you need to be to build a successful, sustainable, and profitable business or career.
Our primary focus is on the 4 P’s of Profit™, a proprietary model developed by me as the CEO and Master Business Coach. These four pillars include Passion – the what of a business (products and services), Purpose – the why of a business (mission), People – the who of the business (includes customers, employees, vendors, and other partners), and Processes – the how of a business (repeated and duplicable systems that turn a profit). I train business owners, executives, and career transitioners to adopt this model in their decision-making processes.
I also work diligently to fill in the gaps missing from other programs offered by traditional business assistance programs like SCORE and the SBA. Several clients have shared that they don’t like the cookie-cutter approach such organizations take toward business development and prefer programs that meet each business owner exactly where they are on their specific entrepreneurial journey. To this end, I created the Jump$tart Business Basics Training Series that includes free webinars, free Lunch ‘n’ Learns, and live, full-day networking and learning events. I also founded the Design Your Dream Biz Training & Accountability Group which is a free community for aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners to connect with like-minded people, share resources, and receive additional training, accountability, and support.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Yes, our city is a great place to start a business because it is truly representative of the melting pot America is known to be. We have a very diverse population and with that diversity comes many opportunities to serve in unique and innovative ways.
Chicago does have its problems however. It can be expensive to get the proper licensing and certifications that may be required at the city, county, and even state levels. Most business development programs encourage that business owners register as Limited Liability Companies (LLC) for the protections this entity type can provide; however, Illinois has one of the most expensive LLC registration processes. Taxation requirements for retail establishments can also be cost-prohibitive or at the very least require administrative hurdles. Chicago, as a major international hub, should advocate on behalf of small businesses at the state and federal levels to reduce these costs and time constraints.
Pricing:
- $40 – Foundation Fast Forty: Subscribers receive 40 daily tips and resources direct to their inbox and 40 days email consulting/coaching to ask any question regarding their business/career
- $297 – Jump$tart Business Basics Live Training: Full-day experiential networking and learning event at our Skokie, IL training facility to grow your business fast; includes meals
- $500+ – Book me as a speaker or trainer for your next event (fundraisers, workshops, keynotes, panel discussions, etc.)
- $2997 – Full-day consultative strategy session includes advance ready-to-implement strategies, done-for-you templates, and meals
- Pricing varies – Coaching programs for business owners, entrepreneurs, authors, speakers, executives, or career transitioners
Contact Info:
- Website: http://buildingbridgeschicago.org
- Phone: (773) 360-0496
- Email: ncollins@buildingbridgeschicago.org
- Instagram: http://instagram.com/coachniquenya
- Facebook: http://facebook.com/groups/designyourdreambiz
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/coachniquenya
- Other: http://coachniquenya.com
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