EvolveMe
Mar 7, 20224 min
Each month we feature inspirational women who've made it to the other side of career change. Learn how they did it and take away usable tips from their professional journeys!
Meet Kristen Coffield, Founder of The Culinary Cure, a consulting business and information website dedicated to helping people “live younger, longer, and better. She's also Co-founder of Better Than Gossip- ageless advice for timeless women, a new streaming media television show, award winning podcast, and brand amplification network.
Kristen is a passionate advocate for food as medicine, life navigator and culinary wellness coach. She reinvented her life after a devastating personal decade and is now mission-driven to help others do the same. Read on to learn How She Did It!
What is your personal mantra, mission, or manifesto?
Start where you are, use what you have, do what you can. Love this by Arthur Ashe.
What inspired you to launch your current career/launch your business?
Food has always been my medium and then life didn't turn out like I had hoped or expected. I did a pivot in my 50s and launched The Culinary Cure as a brand to meet people at the intersection of lifestyle and wellness.
What is unique about returning/pivoting in midlife? Challenges & opportunities?
When I was 50 and felt like a stranger in my own life. “I spent a decade trying to change things over which I had zero control. It nearly killed me.
I was diagnosed with cancer, struggling with feelings of depression, dealing with financial challenges that affected my marriage, and trying to maintain a ‘normal’ life for my family.” I had to mourn many losses, but it also created space for new things and I started an online business to help other women who might find themselves "lost" in life.
What’s one intention you have for your work this year?
Support other women along the way.
What are you most passionate about right now?
Better Than Gossip: Ageless Advice For Timeless Women! Partnering with the amazing Amy Schmidt who is as passionate as I am about being a creator and elevating women, female-owned brands, and brands that support women.
What does a typical day look like for you?
Morning hours have always been my most productive. There were not enough hours in my day to accomplish all I wanted to, so, I harnessed the power of the am and started getting up earlier.
Rising earlier has been an amazing game changer for my productivity.
4 am wake up, 15-minute meditation, drink warm lemon water, take probiotic, Instagram post for the day
5 am workout
6 am breakfast and oat milk latte or green tea with hubby, get gorgeous
7:30 head to the office or desk to start the day
10:30 healthy snack - green tea, nuts, organic hard-boiled egg or green juice
1:30 lite lunch with protein and fiber to keep me full and focused
4- 4:30 wrap up work + 15 minute meditation
5:30 prep healthy dinner- 2 veggies and small protein, fun stuff like personal projects, catching up with family, watching a favorite show.
8:30-9 get into bed and read.
What’s the one thing that has advanced your career in the last year?
I experienced a series of situations that required me to have thicker skin and let go of the outcome. In a nutshell, trust that the universe has my back and look for the silver lining in every situation! Understanding it's ok to NOT be in alignment with people and just focusing on where I am in alignment and what feels really good in relationships and partnerships.
Who’s your “tribe” when it comes to professional inspiration or support?
Mel Robbins, Marie Forleo, my team at Better Than Gossip - simply amazing women.
Favorite book, app, or podcast?
Malcolm Gladwell is one of the most provocative writers today. His books are fascinating, relevant, and insightful. I have loved them all, but I keep re-reading Outliers, The Story of Success. It is a rich compendium of valuable information that can be used to better understand why some people have more success than others.
Fearlessly Facing Fifty podcast which is becoming Better Than Gossip!
You’re granted an extra hour in the day, how do you spend it?
Soaking in a steamy hot tub with bath salts, a great book, and a big bottle of water. Never gets old!
The advice I wish I had given to my 20-year-old self is…
It would be incredible to travel back in time with the knowledge I have now. I would tell my younger 20-year-old self “ Now is the time to act on those ambitious ideas, DO NOT WAIT!”
The advice that I want to give to my 75-year-old self is...
Now is the time to act on those ambitious ideas, DO NOT WAIT! You are never too old to start something new.
Your theme song that played every time you walked in a room would be?
Get This Party Started by Pink
Best career advice for other women?
Network, network, network! As an entrepreneur, I am often working in a vacuum and it is hard to have and keep perspective. I reach out to other women in my space, join networking groups and talk to my adult children and their friends about my business. Really listen to the input of others, it’s amazing what we learn AFTER we think we know it all.
When did you feel you got “you” back?
What I experienced in my life didn't happen overnight, it happened over time. Like many women, I found myself in a situation where everything was fine until it wasn't. It was a decade. When I changed my mindset and my energy I was able to land an amazing job and that allowed me to build The Culinary Cure on the side. I got me back when I went full-time working on my business.
What’s up next?
Better Than Gossip: Ageless Advice For Timeless Women. The best is yet to come with our award-winning podcast, new streaming media tv show, and brand amplification platform for thought leaders, entrepreneurs, and female-owned brands.