Photo by Jade Beall Photography

Something magical happens when Heroines converge. 

So that’s what we did. We traveled from all across North America to converge in Akumal, Mexico for an intimate and luxurious retreat where we infused infinite possibility deep into our cells. And now it’s go time.

In this interview you will meet five women who said yes to creating their biggest breakthrough year in business. Ange, Deb, Gabi, Julie, and Leslie are collectively the Business Heroine Convergence – a year-long entrepreneurial sisterhood designed for creating magical lives through business.

You will also meet two special women that have contributed greatly to the beauty of the Convergence – Katie Johnston, Business Heroine’s own Outreach Manager of two years (and now founder of her own boutique firm, Parti), and Lisa Berkovitz, soul mastery coach and founder of Project Sweet Spot (who amplified the magic massively as our retreat guest facilitator).

All of these women are creating life according to their own design. Enjoy their exclusive Business Heroine interview…

Angela Doucette, RMT  |  Active Health

BH: Tell us about your business and the work you’re doing in the world.

Angela: When I was in my mid 20’s I was living a life filled with fear, worry and social isolation. I couldn’t “get out of my head” no matter how hard I tried. I thought that my life was always going to be like that as I was in a really dark space in my life. I had hit rock bottom mentally and emotionally. Acknowledging that I needed something to change, that my life couldn’t go on like this forever, I did gentle self-healing that allowed me to get out of my head and into the present moment by clearing up some limited beliefs from past experiences.

I had thought to myself, “If I felt this way, then other must have too.” I feel women need to know that life can be empowering, magical and filled with self-love and acceptance. My Holistic Health Coaching programs teach woman how to release judgments, fears, and stress by using natural solutions such as essential oils and gentle techniques as the gateway to their self-care.

Taking a holistic approach means that we look at your life as a whole to move you towards health not just “treating” one area of concern. We are whole beings and in my opinion our heath care should reflect that. Some of the outcomes people experience throughout my Self-Care programs are confidence, self-love, and self-acceptance.

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

“Self-Love gives us the power to heal,
which allows us to deal with anything that life offers us.”
– Angela Doucette

BH: What does it mean to you to be a Business Heroine?

Angela: Being a Business Heroine resembles a sense of empowerment to move my business and dreams forward in a positive direction. It’s about making what I know to be true in my heart, a reality. I know as a Business Heroine that I’m supported by a community of like-minded women who have a “get the job done” attitude, women who go after what they want in life and ultimately women who put themselves “out there” despite their fears of the unknown outcome. As I stand in a place of my Business Heroine super hero, I have the highest level of confidence and self-love that anything is possible.

BH: Tell us about your biggest breakthrough from being a part of Business Heroine trainings and community.

Angela: My biggest breakthrough has been getting my business out of my head and into the world so that I can serve people with my passion and knowledge. Three years ago I started creating this holistic health business in my head. I was rocking my one-year-old son to sleep at the time and realized that it wasn’t the right time to start something new, that I didn’t have the time or the energy so I put my dreams on the back burner temporarily.

When the universe brought me to Anne Perry, whole-heartedly I knew it was time to make my dreams into my reality. By saying “YES” to the Business Heroine Convergence, I was committing to a year long program with Anne and her magic but more importantly I said “YES” to ME so that I could create a life that I absolutely love filled with freedom of time and money and a splash of magic.

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

Deborah Rose | Walking Alongside

BH: Tell us about your business and the work you’re doing in the world.

Deborah: I work with women who are transitioning into a caregiving role, and I help them navigate the myriad of logistical and emotional aspects of this “new normal.”

I’m a Martha Beck Certified Life Coach with thirty years of education, training, and experience in the coaching process. I’m also a former caregiver to my parents, and I know how challenging and emotional caregiving can be. I am here to provide what I’ve learned to empower caregivers who are just beginning this journey, experiencing burnout, or approaching it.

I’ve recently developed a program for women who are in various stages of caregiving, from their shell-shocked entry into the role, to the burnt-out feeling of hopelessness, and to the final stages of facing loss and grief. I compassionately walk alongside them and offer encouragement, support, and understanding.

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

BH: What does it mean to you to be a Business Heroine?

Deborah: Being a Business Heroine means being part of a community of women entrepreneurs who are changing the world. It also means never being alone. There is always someone who is willing to help, guide, and encourage. Being part of the Business Heroine community infuses me with positivity and the belief that I can truly make a difference in the world.

BH: Tell us about your biggest breakthrough from being a part of Business Heroine trainings and community.

Deborah: Instead of just being “the woman who says she will”, I have become ‘the woman who says she will, AND DOES.” Supported by generous, brilliant and thoughtful women, I have developed and launched a new coaching program for caregivers, something I have been thinking about for two years. I have learned that none of us can live our lives fully or realize our potential in a vacuum – that it does take a village.

Through Business Heroine, I have joined a community of friends and colleagues who will support one another into the future.

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

Gabi Barragan | Content Alchemy

BH: Tell us about your business and the work you’re doing in the world.

Gabi: Content Alchemy offers content and social media services to entrepreneurs and thought leaders who want to be recognized as experts in their fields. I help them create the content strategies they need to build an audience and gain exposure as innovators and disruptors. My clients aren’t just interested in making the world a better place – they want to change it, one idea at a time.

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

BH: What does it mean to you to be a Business Heroine?

Gabi: I am honored to be considered one! I believe there is enough room for all of us questing to carve out careers as entrepreneurs, and by helping each other – even leaning on each other at times – we make the network of Business Heroines (and upcoming ones) that much stronger. In the Business Heroine community, your success is my success, and vice versa – for real.

BH: Tell us about your biggest breakthrough from being a part of Business Heroine trainings and community.

Gabi: It has been life-changing, and I don’t say (or type) that lightly. I mulled over the idea of creating my own business for years, but I hesitated in turning the idea into a reality because I had a very rigid model in my head about what it meant to be an entrepreneur: you take on a lot of risks, you work harder than you ever have in your life, and quality of life suffers because the idea of “balance” is antithetical to entrepreneurship. A powerful breakthrough for me was to understand that I could create my own business with the space I needed to live life on my own terms.

My work with Anne Perry and my fellow Convergence Business Heroines has helped me make a quantum leap in figuring out how to align my passions for the written word, strategy, and social media with a profession that lights up my brain. Yes, there is a lot of hard work, late nights, and working weekends, but I can say with sincerity that I love what I do. And when challenges rise to the surface, Anne, Leslie, Deborah, Julie, and Angela help me solve my puzzles, connect seemingly disparate dots – and provide an abundance of inspiration. It has been a cosmic privilege to work with them. They are my Business Heroine homegirls.

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

Julia Lamonica | The Farsighted Life

BH: Tell us about your business and the work you’re doing in the world.

Julie: In concrete terms, I’m a certified life coach trained by the inimitable Martha Beck, and I run a practice called The Farsighted Life in which I coach people privately, teach groups, and write. Really, my practice is my playground where I get to run free as a magic pixie (!): I’m a healer, a guide, a mentor, a highly-sensitive type, and I help women heal by accessing and knowing their unique truths. The women I work with have decided that they sincerely want to look at what’s beneath the surface (instead of pushing things down and turning away), and they build the courage to live freely – even if that means breaking rules. This truth-dwelling tends to be an intense experience, and I know it’s not for everyone! But the temporary discomfort yields extraordinary clarity, power, and freedom, and I LOVE seeing women transform their lives through this work.

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

BH: What does it mean to you to be a Business Heroine?

Julie: For me, it’s about doing – with a twist. Being a Business Heroine is about taking intentional, consistent, intelligent action to grow my business, and to do so in an inspired, soul-aligned way. It means that I get practical things done in the physical 3-D world and also that I bring in the magic regularly. It means that I write, think, and create when I’m inspired; that I nap, breathe, and reflect when it’s time to rest; that I treat myself with massages and tea as needed. It’s about being free. And it’s knowing that when I show up in the world with full power, lights turned up and ON, I really do make a genuine difference – and that’s the best kind of work there is.

BH: Tell us about your biggest breakthrough from being a part of Business Heroine trainings and community.

Julie: Transforming my life coaching practice from a full-time hobby to an actual business is all due to Business Heroine. I started out coaching people for free, trade, or very low cost, and that was exactly what I needed to get started in my new career. So, no regrets. BUT I very quickly got hungry for having a real business! So, when Anne Perry magically appeared in my inbox and I found Business Heroine, I decided to say “yes” to my myself and grow my business. Through Anne’s mentorship, the Convergence ladies, and the Business Heroine community, I’ve learned the skills and knowledge to make my business a real thing that actually exists (!) and is aligned with my highest, truest self. Which feels really good every day! I’m so grateful to Business Heroine that I could practically burst.

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

Leslie Linnebur | Grit Design

BH: Tell us about your business and the work you’re doing in the world.

Leslie: As an artist and designer, I have rarely shied away from the messy world of creating art. It’s a world where anything is possible once you dig in and get your hands dirty. Like many of us though, I’ve spent plenty of time laboring at jobs and responsibilities that are entirely cerebral in nature. Maybe you feel, as I once did, that there is a piece missing.

Grit Design provides a forum that is instructional, inspiring, motivational, and fun for anyone needing the fulfillment and the connection that can happen when doing something physical and creative. I offer immersive art-making workshops and experiences, private treasure hunting trips, and hosted day trips and parties designed to flex your creative spirit. Each of them will have you walking away with a sense of freedom and accomplishment. Oh and you’ll also have a beautiful object or two made with your very own hands!

Photo by Stephen B. Smith

BH: What does it mean to you to be a Business Heroine?

Leslie: Being a Business Heroine means having the courage to do what you love in the world. It means following your instinct, not the status quo. It means doing the thing that is you to the core and doing it with abandon despite fears, despite challenges, and despite the voice in your head telling you to go get a “proper” job. It means doing that thing in a sustainable way that allows you to be financially and emotionally free to influence the world in a big way. And doing it in a way that nourishes your soul and demonstrates to others what is possible when we live in such a way. I am proud to consider myself a Business Heroine and I strive to empower others to create this same reality for themselves. It is my hope that Grit Design can help to collectively create a powerful, heartfelt voice for women in business.

BH: Tell us about your biggest breakthrough from being a part of Business Heroine trainings and community.

Leslie: My brother would tell you I’ve always been bossy but that’s never really been true…until I became my own boss. Now I boss myself around all the time! But honestly, the confidence I’ve discovered and uncovered in becoming my own boss has been my biggest breakthrough in working with the Biz Heroine community. It is a confidence that I’m pretty sure has always been lurking beneath the surface, showing itself occasionally but never really sticking around to get comfortable. My newfound confidence has made everything possible and I am now creating a business that speaks to precisely who I am while offering a service that I believe is sorely needed. Anything IS possible!

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

Katie Johnson | Parti

BH: Tell us about your business and the work you’re doing in the world.

Katie: My first official business is underway, and I’m excited to be in launch, announce and share-mode soon! That business, Parti, is a culmination of the work I do that feels natural and effortless to me, rooted in intuitive strategies and aligned support. Parti is an acronym for practical PR, amplified missions, refreshed vision, thorough support and inspired marketing – all pieces of business and entrepreneurship that I geek out over! It’s been an almost 4-year journey to blend my interests with my natural areas of genius, and this will be just that. Stay tuned for the updated www.timetoparti.com!

BH: What does it mean to you to be a Business Heroine?

Katie: Being a Business Heroine is having the courage to create the life and business that you desire… like, really create it and build it into existence and reality! And beyond that, it’s having the strength, steadfastness and knowing that life has given you permission to show up fully and contribute to the world in whatever way feels natural and fulfilling to you.

BH: Tell us about your biggest breakthrough from being a part of the Business Heroine team and community.

Katie: My biggest breakthrough so far that has come from being a part of the Business Heroine community came to me at a specific moment while on our Convergence Retreat. I was in one of our business sessions, journaling, and realized how powerful it was that I was surrounded by these incredible, magical entrepreneurs there in that moment. I had the immense feeling of contentment knowing that I was being shaped by the women and the brilliance around me. I was soaking it in like a sponge! It felt so incredibly right to be there, in that setting, with those people – and that feeling has helped propel me into creating what’s next.

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

Lisa Berkovitz | Soul Mastery Coach & Founder of Project Sweet Spot

BH: Tell us about your business and the work you’re doing in the world.

Lisa: I work with world-changing leaders who are ready to create their Life’s Work at the highest level. I coach them on Soul Alignment, Energy Mastery, Mind Mastery, Physical Integration, Business Amplification and Divine Co-creation. My clients are masterful at what they do, as well as deeply committed to their spiritual path, and are ready to integrate those worlds and fully surrender to allowing the Divine to guide their work, their finances, and their lives.

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

BH: What does it mean to you to be a Business Heroine?

Lisa: A Business Heroine is a woman who has the courage to follow her own path in order to live and work on her own terms and make the difference she’s uniquely called to make – even when she’s afraid, can’t see exactly where that path was headed, and/or her choices go against popular opinion.

BH: Tell us about your biggest breakthrough in your own journey as a Business Heroine?

Lisa: I’ve had many breakthroughs on my own path, but one of the biggest recent ones was sub-letting my home on Airbnb for 3 months in 2013 so I could travel and work virtually from wherever I was. I went to Bali and by the time I got back to Canada, I knew it was time to move out of my beautiful home that I loved so I could continue to travel. I’ve been living and working abroad for almost two years now in a number of places including NYC, Austin, L.A., Maui, London, Ibiza (Spain), and back to Bali again. Next are London (again), Helsinki and St. Petersburg this Summer. It’s been a dream come true!

Photo by Jade Beall Photography

Anne Perry | Business Heroine Magazine

A personal note from the founder:

It’s my birthday today and, I have to say, reading these interviews of my dear clients (who have also become friends) is the best gift I could ask for. There is nothing more exciting to me than to witness awesome women turn their business dreams into their waking reality.

In fact, this morning in my  wistfully declared, “I can now die happy…” But there are so many more dream businesses begging to be born! Perhaps yours is one of them?

If you have a dream in your heart to have a purpose-driven, freedom-infused, joy-activating business, please know it’s so much closer than you think. Just take one step at a time in the direction of your dream life and one day you will wake up and realize it’s no longer a dream.

If you are ready to unleash the Business Heroine within yourself, the best place to start with is with Business Heroine Academy. Doors open very soon, and you can get on the first dibs VIP list right here…

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Cover Heroines, entrepreneur, July 2015 Issue, online business, slider, small business, women in business