What if you could step away from your demanding career for 19 months to recharge and reshape your life – and come back even stronger? In this episode, we welcomed the incredible Fernanda Ortega, a transformational mentor, coach, and consultant with over two decades of experience as a global CHRO. Fernanda shares her extraordinary journey of taking a sabbatical and how it has transformed her life and career.
Join us as we:
Come along with us on the journey to humanize business by discovering the glue that connects the dots between results and people.
You can connect with Fernanda:
Website: Eager Consulting
Instagram: @eagerconsulting
LinkedIn: Maria Fernanda Ortega
Thank you for listening.
Connect with Chart to Heart:
Website: https://www.charttoheart.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/73198543/admin/
Instagram: @chart2heart
Connect with John on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrjohnhenryscott/
Connect with Portia on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/portia-r-scott-7753923a/
What if you could step away from your demanding career for 19 months to recharge and reshape your life – and come back even stronger? In this episode, we welcomed the incredible Fernanda Ortega, a transformational mentor, coach, and consultant with over two decades of experience as a global CHRO. Fernanda shares her extraordinary journey of taking a sabbatical and how it has transformed her life and career.
Join us as we:
Come along with us on the journey to humanize business by discovering the glue that connects the dots between results and people.
You can connect with Fernanda:
Website: Eager Consulting
Instagram: @eagerconsulting
LinkedIn: Maria Fernanda Ortega
Thank you for listening.
Connect with Chart to Heart:
Website: https://www.charttoheart.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/73198543/admin/
Instagram: @chart2heart
Connect with John on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrjohnhenryscott/
Connect with Portia on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/portia-r-scott-7753923a/
We need to take care of different aspects of our lives and we need to make choices like intentionally choices on where to put our, where to focus our energy and where to really I spend our time. So for me, it was not about working or not working. I realized that working is an important part of my life, so I couldn't imagine my life without working. But I really wanted to do other things and I really wanted to take care of my other areas of life and I think I could find that balance right. So for me, it's like it was pointless not working. I said, okay, now I'm happy. So it was not exactly like that.
Speaker 2:Hello and welcome to the Chart to Heart podcast with your host, john Henry, and Portia Scott, through the lenses of stories, interviews, principles and best practices, we will discover the glue that connects the dots between business and people.
Speaker 2:Hello, darling, and welcome to today's podcast. Super excited to introduce you to a podcast guest that we had on about two and a half years ago and she is back. She is going to talk to us about what it was like to take 19 months off to as she has coined it sabbaticking, and what the new chapter of her life looks like. This particular house guest is now a transformational mentor, coach and consultant. She is working with business leaders and executives to help them to discover the possibilities that await by bringing their hidden potential and expert talents together. Listen, she has over two decades of experience as a global CHRO and she has just been all over the world. She's done so much work. Today she is here to talk to us a little bit about mentorship and sponsorship and why that is so very important.
Speaker 2:More than that is that I wanted to have her on, because I can probably safely say that 98% of us know that our career journey, that our life journey, has not been linear. It's up and down, it probably took its way around and it didn't maybe go in the exact steps as we thought or that we hoped, but really, what that experience and what that journey helps us do is really be able to connect the dots between people and business. And so she's coming on, she's going to give us some lessons learned. We're going to be able to put some things in our toolbox that we can take back to our organizations, that we can take back to our communities, that we can take back to our own personalized. So please help me welcome back to the podcast Fernanda Ortega. Hi, fernanda, hello.
Speaker 1:Portia, so nice to be here again, so nice to see you.
Speaker 2:Thank you so much for agreeing to be a podcast guest again. I wanted to have you on. I think a couple of weeks ago you were in Paris and I was so, so, very jealous And you were actually having lunch with a mentee of yours, someone that you had mentored years ago, and I said you know what? I want to make sure that I have Fernanda back on the podcast, because I know you're just a wealth of knowledge, and also to hear a little bit about that 19 month journey that you had as you were sabbatical, exactly, exactly, fernanda. So I mentioned sabbatical for our guests that, or our listeners that don't really know what that is, because that is something that you coined And I absolutely love. But tell us a little bit about sabbatical and what that looked like for you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, sure So. So my sabbatical process started actually many years before I take an actual sabbatical. So at that time I had turned 40 and after 20 years of crazy executive career ladder life, so I just decided to okay, it's time to take a break and try to build something new for my life, for my career. It's not possible that I'm going to continue doing same things, the same way I've done for the rest of my life. So so when I turned 40, i was living in the US, i was living in Atlanta, and then I started to think about what my second chapter would look like, right? So then I decided to take a mentorship. So I invited a mentor to help me through the process of designing my new future, i would say. And then fast forward. I was already living where I wanted to be. I was in staying at the time still working for this international company having teams in 40 countries, like traveling a lot. So and at some point I said, okay, now it's time to really plan my break. And then I forecasted that to happen after one year. At that time I was invited to join another company for a project, and that was amazing because the project will be to sell the company. That process would take one year and I said, okay, great, i do this transaction. After one year I'm done. And then I go to my sabbatical.
Speaker 1:Then it was back in 2019. So keeping my dates there, so it was February 2020. I said now I'm ready. So I'm ready to go, i'm gonna get noticed to my new employer And from June I'll be on my sabbatical. And guess what?
Speaker 1:March 2020 came, and then the pandemic and all the craziness of that time, especially for those working on the HR. It was my case at that time. Beyond that, the company sold the company, but then the antitrust organ in the UK they didn't allow us to sell the company, so we had to come back again and start all over again all the sending process and managing the pandemic. So, since my sabbatical was delayed at that time, i said you know, i'm gonna start sabbaticking right now. So I'm gonna start to incorporate moments of pause in my life. I'm gonna start doing whatever I wanted to do if I was in my time away, right. So then I started to paint, i started to read, i started to talk to people from different fields, i started to really study and try to get in touch with my other talents to try to figure out what to do next. Right, so you know, put for me, yeah.
Speaker 2:Oh, not to cut you off, but I think that's so important because and we're going to get into your, you know, long sabbatical but the fact that you were taking these moments of rest and you were taking these moments of pause, like you know, i think that's so very important is something that John and I have actually put into our own lives as well. Right, so I have calendar alerts for seven minutes. Seven minutes during the day I take a pause, right, because I can do that, or maybe it's a lunch break, but it's where I cut off all distractions and I just have those seven minutes by myself. But I love that.
Speaker 2:You said you, you couldn't do the long pause, you know, but what you could do was incorporate that into your life. And so did you see that really helping you? right, because it sounds like this you know, we're trying to sell the company again, we're in the midst of COVID, it's high stress, right? I'm sure a lot of things are happening all at once. Did you find that that actually helped you when you took those moments of pause, when you had these intentional moments of pause? Yeah, totally, totally.
Speaker 1:For me it was the time to recharge. One, two, i discovered that we cannot have all the eggs in the same basket, meaning your source of happiness or satisfaction or fulfillment can't be only at work. So for me, that was the main aha moment. So meanwhile, i was doing these kind of you know grades and they were not long breaks as you said, but it was just, you know, taking one hour of lunch and instead of being, you know, having lunch, meanwhile doing a so called. I was literally, you know, off cameras, off slow men, talking live with people or doing or reading a book or whatever. So in those moments I could find joy and I could find, like the call I needed to go through all the stress I was.
Speaker 1:I was living outside, you know, my, my, my, my, my time, and that that really helped, but really helped in my, in my work, so in my performance. So so it was. It was so that it was not planned but. But then I realized that maybe I didn't need a full time sabbatical, i really needed a break. So at that break came next, however, the moment or whatever moment you need or you can give yourselves, because I acknowledge that for some people, taking a full year is impossible, it's just right. But then I realized that the power of a small break that can be really important for us to, you know, having different ideas and be more creative and drive, so yeah, so that worked for that additional year that I had to be here and you know, and finally, because very mind that meanwhile I was doing these breaks and everything, so I moved to Barcelona, so I did, you know, changes in my life as well. Meanwhile I was dealing with these complex M&A right.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:But then when the time came, it was 2021, and I think we spoke at the time, yeah, so I was ready. I was ready because I took the time beforehand to really prepare my mind and my health to go through these no-work time which, for me, used to be a big part of my life. So being in this black hole because I didn't know what to find there so I had to prepare myself for that was crucial to take the best of the time right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, i love that, fernanda. And so you take this time, because I remember we met in Atlanta when you finally took the plunge and you were on your sabbatical and you know, and you were just so excited. I think one of the things that you know, we're always excited about a new journey or starting something new. There's nervousness, but there's also, you know, this excitement about this new journey. I remember when I left my corporate position and I wanted to start something new, i think it was like maybe the first week is when I initially first met you And I remember John Henry saying, portia, entrepreneurship is a runway and he had given me time on that runway.
Speaker 2:So he I remember him saying you don't have to, like, carry up and find clients and figure everything out, but sit back and kind of take this runway of time to think about what you want to do, what you want that to look like. And even though we had prepared and I felt like I prepared for a year, it's so different when you know that day one comes and you're like, oh, oh, what do I do? You know, and I want right. So so, how you know? so, fernanda, for you, you know you're taking this sabbatical, you're taking this step back, you do build something new that we're going to talk about, what was like one of those lessons learned during that time of rest, during that time of just trying to search for what that next chapter would look like.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Portia, the big lesson learned is that we cannot run away from our lives. So life happens, regardless you are on a sabbatical or not. So so for me, it was like, you know, i couldn't push pause in everything, right, but it was not a moment that okay, life and life is on pause, i'm going to take care of myself and I'll be, you know, super happy looking at the ocean 24 hours a day. So it was not like that. So, for me, the main learning was that we need to take care of different aspects of our lives and we need to make choices like intentionally, choices on where to put our, where to focus our energy and where to really spend our time.
Speaker 1:So for me, it was not about working or not working. I realized that working is an important part of my life, so I couldn't imagine my life without working. But I really wanted to do other things and I really wanted to take care of my other areas of life, and I think I could sign that balance right. So so for me, it's like it was pointless, not, you know, not working. I said, okay, now I'm happy. So it was not exactly like that And but but yes, so for me it's like that we will fly where you know, we put all the areas, and then I could see okay, now it's time for me to take care of my health, now it's time for me to take care of my relationship. But one doesn't happen without the other things, otherwise the wheel doesn't run right. So so, so for me then.
Speaker 2:I love that And I love how you say like you couldn't put life on hold, life was going to happen. But just being really intentional about what, where you're resting or where you're putting your energy in this season or for this moment. And I think that's so important, especially as you know we talk to executives. As we talk to, you know entrepreneurs and you know even just regular, you know just employees that are in high stress situations and you know things are going on and where the job becomes the only thing, right, or the business becomes the only thing, but we're human And so there's a people component into that. Like, even though we think we're machines, you know AI has this full that, like, we're not machines, we're people And so because business, because organizations are people driven, it's so important that I like how you say, take these moments and then also understanding where I'm putting my energy at in that moment, right And intentional about it is really hard to be intentional about every single thing, but really making sure that I kind of have this wheel and I'm kind of looking at these areas and saying, okay, now I have time, let me do this, and then let me hit this and let me hit this, and then I think at some point, right, it doesn't ever just become perfect, but at some point there's alignment.
Speaker 2:Right, there's alignment.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and you are in peace with your choices. So if any, you know, later in time I need to be involved in any work or any project that is going to consume more time that I wanted to, but at least that's going to be a choice or not something automatic. That, okay, my, like my patterns. I used to be only working, working, working at, and now I can, i can really say okay, these are the times that I'm going to be with my family, these are the times that I'm going to be with my, my, my friend, these are the times that I want to travel and those are the times that I will not be traveling. So making choices for me was equivalent to be free, right, so, and and if I could summarize in one word, the word is sabbatical Me, to me, it was to, you know, it was freedom for sure.
Speaker 2:Freedom. I love that.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:So it was a long journey and you start something new. You start a new page. So tell me a little bit about eager consulting.
Speaker 1:Yes, so to to get in there. When I started my sabbatical I was, so at some point I was really kind of it was right after summer, and then I said I said, okay, now I want to do something, i need to be productive. I'm not, you know, having a job, but I need to deliver something to the world, so that's part of my purpose, right? So, and then I started to do some, some mentorship and you know and some and advising on on some volunteering programs. So I started working with refugees, refugees in Latin America and here in Europe. So so by doing that, i was finding, you know, a lot of joy. It was. It was amazing. I remembered why, 20 plus years before I decided to be a psychologist. So I took quite a degree in psychology and then I started working right in HR. So then I've never, you know, worked as a psychologist. But then by doing those mentorships and supporting refugees, i remembered why people was. That was my thing, right. And I don't know what I'm going to do next, but I know that it's related to people, it couldn't be different And a friend of mine.
Speaker 1:So so that happens when you are on a sabbatical or not, get here, whatever. So normally your friends, they get nervous, they don't want to see you doing nothing, right, right. And that is how people were always inviting me to think why don't you join his group, why don't you do that, and why don't you do that? Well, whatever, so one million things. And I used to be really hard and say no. And then one friend of mine just said, fernando, there's this amazing coaching certification at Columbia University, so she lives in New York, and she said, okay, maybe you should attend that Had a problem. So you, i think you would be a great coach, and so you know what I'm going to do that. And then I was.
Speaker 1:It was like in the end of the registering period and everything. So then I registered, i was approved And I said, great, i'm going to start this program. I thought I was super naive that I said, okay, i'm going to be studying, it will be nice, i'll be busy somehow, but not so busy. But then it ended up that the program one of the requirements was to have actual clients and paid clients. And I said, oh, so the volunteering that I was doing couldn't count as hours of coaching, right, no-transcript? And then it's okay So for me to have clients, so I have to have a business. There was a thing but, and then to have a business, i need to do it for times, but business. Well, long story short, borscha, my great sabbatical, full-time sabbatical, lasted four months. Right, that's true, because then I started with my own consulting and it was amazing, i was well. The requirements for the program was to have 50 hours of coaching and I had 200 hours of coaching.
Speaker 2:Oh, you're just a little bit of an overachiever.
Speaker 1:Anyways, and that was, yeah, i was so overwhelmed but anyways I said, oh, my goodness, i need to take a sabbatical of my sabbatical, and but I was so happy, i was really, really happy because I found my thing And then I said, okay, so that's what I'm gonna do. So so I was waiting for the enlightenment of, oh, what I'm gonna do next. And then I had it And but I started, you know, i would say, slowly, slowly, on the time of, with no big expectations, right. But finally in the end of last year I put more energy and effort to say now I'm ready to come back full-time as an entrepreneur. So then I longed to eager consulting with the brand and with its venue proposition and services. And now I'm happily, you know, working again And again all my will of life, i have all the areas that I care and working. So I can see that and I can see a more integral approach to my life And I feel really happy as a You know, fernanda, i think it's so incredible.
Speaker 2:You know, you have all of these. You know two decades worth of working with people as a chief human resources officer, and then you also have experience with culture, right And engagement, and then you have this experience where you have this certificate for coaching and transformational coaching and consulting, and I think it's so important. You and I kind of talked a little bit about this when we spoke, you know, a couple of weeks ago, just about the importance of mentorship, right? And so I read this study and I wanna say this, that there was a study conducted by Deloitte. This is what they found is that employees who are mentored are five times more likely to be promoted than those who are not, and mentees are two times more often than those without mentors. So, like, that is pretty huge. I mean, it really shows the importance of, you know, having mentorship. One of the things that you added to the conversation was having mentorship and sponsorship, and so for you, you know why is mentorship so important?
Speaker 1:you know, within an organization, Yeah, yeah, for me it's interesting. I was listening to a podcast this week with between Adam Brand, which I love, so I love him. So he's an organizational psychologist and I'm a big fan And he was just a real in-dector Steve Martin. And then Steve Martin was saying that you know, today people are encouraged to be themselves right. So everybody says, be yourselves.
Speaker 1:But before being ourselves, we need to learn who we are right. So when we are I don't know 25 or 30 or 20 years old, so normally we don't know who we are. So actually now I'm almost 50 and I don't know who I am right. So it's so important for you to know who you are And most importantly is how I want to be right.
Speaker 1:So having these role models is so important for people to really learn. So what kind of person I want to be, how I want to show up to the world and how can I perform my talents the best way. So I bring that example to this conversation here, portia, because you know the power of mentorship, besides all the benefits about improving performance, improving engagement within the company, enhancing leadership. But that is really good to shape our best self right, because by having good role models we can kind of highlight our strengths and we can work toward our goals, showing the best of us. So for me that's the main benefit of having a mentor, because that person is going to show us the shortcut to getting there and to show our best.
Speaker 2:Yeah, i love that for you, fernanda, because I think it's also important, you know, for me, when I was, when I left the military and I came into corporate, when I worked at corporate, then I had a break for the military, then I went back to corporate, and so I think, for me, i had two mentors that really took me under their wings when I really was trying to get into the project management profession, you know, and if it had not been for them, like the project manager, the things that I had been able to accomplish, they were so instrumental, you know, for me, they were instrumental for me, and so why I had those were like the two direct mentors that I had.
Speaker 2:They were in the organization that I was in. It was incredible. And then, as I went to different organizations without having mentorship, i realized how important it is, as you're in different organizations, as you get to different levels, right, but within that same organization, they also were sponsors to me, right. And so, you know, i want you to talk a little bit about the importance of like, not just having mentors or you know, but also having sponsorship.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and that's one step further of having a mentor, because the sponsor is that person that advocates for you, right? So the person who tells your name in these talent review discussions, they are the ones who brings you to the table even though you are not there yet. So I could see these. While working for internationals, i could see that. So, being sponsored myself and having other people like showing up in these executive discussions. So the power of a sponsor is just making you visible to the organization. Meanwhile, you are part of a group that is not so visible.
Speaker 1:Let me explain. So if I let's say that you, if you work for a company which the headquarters are in Sweden, normally people live in and working in Sweden they are seen because they are there, right? So, especially at the time where you know, we used to work presentially in the offices. So this poster is going to be that person that is going to talk about that talent that is seated in South Africa with a different accent, or that person in Colombia who you know did an amazing project. So the sponsor is the person who really shows you what to the rest of the organization And as a protégé you are going to be, you are going to have your career accelerated, right So. So that's really important, especially if you are part of an underrepresented group, which I used to be part of, right So. So I could see that, thanks to some people that really believe on my talent, because I was a nod competitor in that, you know, in that competition I was, i was a Latina with a broken English, with you know, with you know, my degrees were not so amazing at the time.
Speaker 1:So I was living in Brazil, so I didn't have all the credentials to be, you know, to be part of the group that that later in time, i was to be part. So so, thanks to a CEO that was seated in Brazil, so he could see my work and say, listen, we should give a try and bring this Brazilian worldwide to be a global head of HR for this French company. And you know, i was surrounded by my, all my colleagues. They were French, right, so? so then I was there, i was different And my team was different. I was the only one having, you know, this remote team spread everywhere at the time. So so I could put in practice my beliefs and my, my values, which at the time used to be really different from, you know cheap the French, so so, yeah, so I could experience this myself. So I'm extremely grateful for the mentors that I had in my, in my career and my life.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I think having those what I'm hearing right from your story, from my story, looking at some of the data is when we have mentors, when we have sponsors, people who are standing up for us, it brings a sense of belonging, right, because sometime, like you said, if you're part of a underrepresented group, or even if you know the company is headquartered in Sweden but you're working in the US office or you're working in the South African office or you're working in the you know Hong Kong office or wherever it is that you can feel disconnected, right. So having those mentors, having those sponsors, it makes you feel like I belong to, even if I'm not part of this group or even if I'm not within this territory or region. is that it makes you feel belonging? And that's one of the things that John and I talked about on another podcast is in his travel, the one thread, the one common thread, is that people want to know that they're heard and they want to feel like they belong, right, and so sponsorship does that, and I think we see it in some organizations and then we may not see it in some, and so you know.
Speaker 2:for you, fernanda, this is the work that you do. If you were going into a company and they, you know, maybe don't have mentorship or don't have a structured mentorship or sponsorship program. what is like one thing that an organization can do to start right, like we're not saying like build this whole framework in two months, but what are some of the things that you know we can do as leaders? and then also maybe you know employees working in there that's looking for mentorship, but it's like one thing that you know that we can do to kind of start that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, because, as I said, so it can be a cost free, excellent for the company. So there's no reason to do not have a mentorship program within the company because they don't need to hire anybody external to do that. So you have the talent inside the company, you have great tourists to be shared there. So this reverse mentorship is amazing as well. So if you have, you know, a more experienced mentor, we have less experienced mentee. So the most you know, the more experienced can learn a lot from this new generation as well. So it's win-win for everybody. but we still don't have you know. these as a process.
Speaker 1:I would recommend from this is it's such a you know kind of bottom up. So if you're looking for being mentored, so please raise your hand nothing on the door of that person that you admire and say you know what? we don't have one hour a month available to have a coffee with me and then we can discuss about that. I would love to learn about your trajectory, your career, get some piece of advice. So by my experience, i've never seen anybody saying no to a request of being a mentor. So because people feel proud of sharing their stories, right? So it's hard for you asking somebody to be your mentor. So you're going to be amazed that you know the quantity of people open to that. And then these become this, can organically grow within the company, and then you build a mentoring organization.
Speaker 2:I think that's so good, right. I love how you said from a bottom up, because I think one thing that it does is it builds, like, your self-esteem, it builds who you are And it also shows the person that you want to be mentored by. Like I'm serious about this, you know, like I'm knocking on your door, i'm sending emails, i'm trying to get in touch And so making sure that we show up in a way that you know I'm not wasting my time and you're not wasting your time, but this is something that you know. And sometimes, like I need a mentor and I don't really know it. I don't even know what I don't know. And I think having those conversations and being open and being vulnerable in that way to say like I don't even know what I don't know, but what I do know is that I need one to help me And also with the generations that are now, the boomers are moving out and then you have, you know, eggs and millennials and Z's, and so everybody has something to contribute to the conversation.
Speaker 2:You already So while I may be, you know, have all these 20, 30 years of experience, i can help you in that way, but you also have a handle on different trends and technologies and things that are moving that I can bring into my teams as well. So, while you're the mentee, mentor relationship, it is this passing of information and knowledge and a diverse ideas in creativity. I love that. So, as I said earlier, we're with your mentee in Paris, and so you know that's a great story. So how did you know that end up being your mentee And where is he now?
Speaker 1:Yes, he's very good, Leandro. So, yeah, that's the funny story. So when I started in that company, so I was hired to be the HR director for Latin America in that company. So one of my main dates was to really review the human resources function. And then I had a pretty diverse team, so in many senses including generational, i would say diversity at the time. And then I knew that I needed someone really young to bring some knowledge and activity on data and analysis and everything. So then I opened this position on LinkedIn for an intern for my job. So then I published the job and a couple of days later I was opening my own email, my personal email, and that was this message from this person saying hello, my name is Leandro, so sorry for invading your personal mailbox, but since I know that you are receiving tons of resumes, i decided to take another route to be here. And then he said OK, i am the right person to this job because of this, this and that.
Speaker 1:So, leandro, he was also part of another represented group, so he came from a very humble family. He's the first generation of his family to take a degree, so he learned English and Excel and other tools through NGOs and supporting programs. So he was a total supplier because I was interviewing other students with a much more, i would say, privileged background. So that was on the case for Leandro at all at all And he was 19 at that time. So the job was his. And then we invited Leandro to join the company And he was a superstar. So everybody wanted to work with him And he grew so fast in that position. So, from intern then he was invited to join the Latin American group in a compensation in Colombia And then later in time now he's a global compensation and benefits specialist for the company. So that is a huge company, it's a huge position. He is now 27, i believe.
Speaker 1:So, yeah, i can relate a lot to his story because part of this is my story too, and I also had my mentor at the beginning of my career, someone who took my hand and said listen, fernanda, you're going to be whatever you want because I'm going to help you. So I knew that I had to give that back And I was so proud because I was in this business trip to Paris He was living there and then we met for lunch And we said our young service couldn't never imagine that we would be here having a lunch, a very nice restaurant near to Champs Elysees, and celebrating how good life can be. So it was a really emotional meeting. It was great to see that maybe I could have taken all those routes at that time and picking one of these spectacular resumes, but his attitude and his eager to try for me was crucial for my decision, which I would never regret, so I think that was one of my highlights of my career, for sure.
Speaker 2:I love that, fernanda. We talked about companies that maybe don't have mentorship, and so that's some of what you do. You do this mentorship and coaching and consulting, and so what is something that and I guess, tells a little bit about how eager incorporates that individually and for organizations as well, that are looking for this mentorship that are looking for how do I take people along And some people, how do I find my thing, how do I thrive, and find that thing that pushes me on this path of limitless possibility?
Speaker 1:Yeah, This is a field where there are so many people today doing coaching And mentoring. So then I had to figure out what my niche is. So where can I add value And what makes me happy in the end of the day? Because remember that I am seeking for fulfillment at this point of my life. So then I realized that I should continue working with transformation and change and believing in these amazing talents.
Speaker 1:So my focus of mentorship and coaching is on people that are no conformist, so those people who they want they don't want to be where they are as of now in their lives, in their field of work or in their countries. So they are seeking for change and they need someone to drive them through these uncertainty. So that's where I put my focus on This. Is I befriended with chaos? I don't feel I'm not afraid of uncertainty. So this is the tool that I can most help my clients with, being an individual client or a company. So the mindset is the same. It's let's walk and let's navigate through these tsunami. I'm going to be together on that, because I'm always positive that after that we're going to find something really, really good. So yeah, so this is the vendor proposition of Eager Eager, by the way, the name it was.
Speaker 1:So that was another thing, because I was stuck trying to okay what's the name of this company and everything no-transcript and all of my you know these archetypes and everything that we do when we are building a brand. So my archetype is all about this. this energy is about, you know, being a trio blazer, this kind of thing, right. And then all the names were around fire and blazing edge. So I think, oh, that's not exactly what I want to be.
Speaker 1:But then I had my set of values, right. So I wrote my values. And then the day I said, you know, today I need to come out with this name. And then I was reading again my values and my values energy, authenticity, growth, mindset, empathy and resourcefulness. I put this like you know, organized like this was you know what that's an acronym and this is Inger. So that's how my name was born.
Speaker 1:It was through my values. So those are the values that put on my work, on my projects with corporate clients or with my individual clients as well, and I've been really surprised by the amount of people that today are looking for a self-improvement and not expecting the companies to pay for it or to sponsor them for this. So people are looking for that anyhow. So if the company doesn't have a mentorship program, people are looking for mentors And I'm really probably mentoring, you know, people all around the world, so there's no performance that you know they are thirsty for change and to really, you know, explore the world and explore new possibilities. So that's what I do And this is where I am now after those long months of discovery.
Speaker 2:Yeah, i think that's so good that you said people are going after it. They're hungry for this right, they're hungry to grow, they're hungry to learn, they're hungry to do more, and I think it is so much about the more that I grow, the more I can impact the people around me. You know, the more I can impact on my business, the more I can impact on my organization and my home and my life and my community. And so I think you know we talk about growth and we talk about mentorship and sponsorship And sometimes it looks like just to climb the corporate ladder, but a lot of this is to be able to look internally right And to be able to take out my strengths, to work on those areas where I have opportunities to grow, so that I can be a better person and show up, you know, as a better person And pretty much every area of my wheel right Every area of my wheel And I'm doing this so.
Speaker 1:So people can discover a new possibilities, as I said, and coming up with a plan B or a plan C. I think that was one of the learnings of the pandemic for us that you know, the environment can change overnight. So when we need to get ready and with resources and toolbox to do something else, right. So either because the conditions I have changed, or because I've been laid off, or because what I used to do doesn't have a meaning for me anymore. So, anyways, i think this self discovery is so important because we take the ownership of how we're narrative our lives, our choices, right.
Speaker 2:I love that, so that is a great way to just close this interview for Nanda. It's been incredible. But I have one a couple of two more questions to ask. One is how can people stay in touch with you, how can we keep in touch with you and eager and all the incredible things that you're doing?
Speaker 1:Yeah, sure, so through my website. it was made by an amazing and talented designer, so her name is Janice, so she's amazing. So it's eager consultingcom, so you can learn more about my offerings myself and how to get in touch. I'm also live on Instagram, so eager consulting is the page and on the only thing, so I believe we're going to share the link here. So I'm there sharing my thoughts and some articles and some inspiration to people.
Speaker 2:Excellent. So for Nanda, we're going to think about it that this is 20 years from now, right, and you've accomplished everything that you've desired to do. you know with eager, but also you know in your household, in your home, and you can sit back and you can be in Barcelona, looking over the ocean, the sea and and you know, with the sun out and just knowing that you have impacted so many lives across the globe and so many lives that are close to you as well. All this has happened. What is the one thing that you are most proud of?
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh, maybe, maybe, it's my courage to take this, the big step of, you know, making choices by myself, but I couldn't be more grateful for the people that have been with me within this journey, because it was not a linear journey. It's being, you know, a bumpy road. I would say So. So my family, so they are my main partners in crime. So, yeah, my, especially my husband and my two kids. So so all the changes that happened to me, of course, impacted on their lives as well, and and and we are here together and, you know, enjoying all of the, and I'm proud of the mentors and people that inspired me along the way. So, without them, i I couldn't, maybe I couldn't be here.
Speaker 2:So so, yeah, i love that. Well, fernanda, thank you so much for coming on the podcast and for just you know all of your just knowledge and your care and just how you are just living the life that you want to live. So thank you so much for joining the podcast.
Speaker 1:Thank you. Thank you for having me for shine. Good luck with your new journey.
Speaker 2:Thank you again for listening to the chart to heart podcast. We hope you enjoyed this episode. Make sure to subscribe and share. Leave us a five star rating and review. You can also connect with us on all of our social media channels at chart the number two, heart. Until next time, we'll see you later. Adios, zai Zhan Quahiri.
Speaker 1:Cheers folks.