Female Disruptors: Tara Jackson of ‘Empathpreneurs’ On The Three Things You Need To Shake Up Your Industry
‘Always give 10% of your paycheck away’, this is also known as tithing. Something I have always wanted to do is help and give to others, and is one of the reasons I do what I do. Since day 1 I have given away 10%, even in months which were difficult and I was barely making any money, I always gave something. This has helped me so much and kept me true to why I do what I do, and also I learn that the more I give the more I get back (internally as well as financially).
As a part of our series about women who are shaking things up in their industry, I had the pleasure of interviewing Tara Jackson.
Tara is a business mentor, color alchemist and wellness coach, and founder of Empathpreneurs®. She is the author of ‘Embodied — A self-care guide for sensitive souls’, and ‘Embodied Business — A guide to grounding and aligning your business with the chakras’. Her work supports empath entrepreneurs with the inner energetics and blocks that can come up, as well as the practical elements of running an online business, done in a way to honor the needs of sensitive souls.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?
I have had over 20 different jobs in the past 20 years, some have been full time, others part time, I’ve been a freelancer and had temporary positions, then finally my own business, which has evolved too.
These jobs included a number of different roles — I’ve worked in PR, marketing and new business development, HR, business administration and business operations, office management, and event management — all giving me a huge range of experience with companies ranging from solopreneurs to global corporations.
Having worked in all these areas and supporting many people in business, I saw a real need for the inner work to be addressed, when it comes to being successful in business. So many people go into business expecting it to work, but when it comes down to it, they come across inner blocks which stop them from taking action, getting support, creating boundaries, owning their worth, being visible and doing what it takes to make their business a success on their own terms. This is why it’s now the primary focus of my work — once these ‘blocks’ are addressed it’s amazing how fast you can turn something around, and take action to do what you know you are here to do and want to do.
Of course there is an element of practical knowing and you do need to know how to market your business, for example, but it’s the inner work that makes all the difference, especially for the people I work with which are mainly empath entrepreneurs (or empathpreneurs as I like to call them), soulpreneurs, lightworkers and conscious, heart-centred entrepreneurs.
Can you tell our readers what it is about the work you’re doing that’s disruptive?
My work is with empath entrepreneurs (who I believe will change the world) to support them to clear these chakra blocks so that they can step up, speak up, take action and do the incredible work they are here to do, whilst grounding their businesses in ways which are sustainable and practical, and will make a difference to this planet.
I combine energy healing with color and regression therapy (into experiences in this life and others) as well as grounded business advice to make this happen, which is bringing a whole new dimension to business and what it means to be an entrepreneur.
I have found that connecting to past lives in regressions, in particular, and Quantum healing and shifting patterns and behaviours can have radical effects. This modality in itself is definitely not the norm in traditional business!
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
I’m not sure I’ve made funny mistakes, or at least I can’t think of any. I tried SO hard not to make mistakes actually, as I tried to prove myself as this ‘perfect’ person who had it all together. Needless to say I didn’t learn much from not making mistakes apart from the fact that I felt so uncomfortable in myself as I couldn’t relax and let go. These days I am happy to make mistakes, try out things, put myself out there, speak up for myself and say what I think/feel, as I ALWAYS learn from this in some way.
We all need a little help along the journey. Who have been some of your mentors? Can you share a story about how they made an impact?
Two people stand out the most for me, one is my cousin Rachel O’Connor, who runs a successful travel and lifestyle comms agency in London — Siren Comms. I worked there on and off for a number of years and Rachel taught me to always be open to new ways of working, and to be willing to change what you are offering (or pivot) to meet the demand of your target audience. Rachel also modeled doing business with empathy — being kind and really listening to what others have to say. This is increasingly important in the world we live in today, especially with less in-person human contact and the move to working more online where it’s even easier to feel less connected to one another.
Another is now a close friend, Lara Waldman, who was my first mentor when I began to unpick what was going on under the surface that was stopping me from taking the action I needed to make my business a success in the way I wanted. I learned so much from Lara on how it’s the energy within us that can attract, or repel something, even if we think we want it. Learning how to shift this and clear inner blocks is now fundamental to my work and what makes it unique in the business world. So Lara was a big influence on what I do today, even though I have now made it my own and use different modalities.
In today’s parlance, being disruptive is usually a positive adjective. But is disrupting always good? When do we say the converse, that a system or structure has ‘withstood the test of time’? Can you articulate to our readers when disrupting an industry is positive, and when disrupting an industry is ‘not so positive’? Can you share some examples of what you mean?
I think disrupting can be a great thing, especially when new ideas or new ways of doing things are brought in that help and support many, or are needed for our evolving times. Look at the way food delivery or taxi services have changed with companies like Uber and Uber Eats. Now, I’m not saying all of their practices are right but they have radicalized these two industries and have been disruptive in a good way for many.
I personally feel the point at which disruptive becomes a ‘not so positive’ thing is when it harms others or the environment, and puts its own interests (usually financial but not always) first, at the expense of others.
Can you share 3 of the best words of advice you’ve gotten along your journey? Please give a story or example for each.
‘Do it your way’ — this is something I had to grow into as I learned so much from others on how they ‘did’ business. It was only when I really started sharing what I wanted to in business that I began to see real success.
It leads on from the first, ‘trusting myself and my intuition’. This again hasn’t always been easy and there have been times when I have had no intuitive guidance (which in itself if guidance). But always listening to my intuition and trusting what has felt right to me, and not what I think I should do, or what others tell me do (which is what I believed initially) has been the best thing for me and always, always takes me on a magical journey in my business.
‘Always give 10% of your paycheck away’, this is also known as tithing. Something I have always wanted to do is help and give to others, and is one of the reasons I do what I do. Since day 1 I have given away 10%, even in months which were difficult and I was barely making any money, I always gave something. This has helped me so much and kept me true to why I do what I do, and also I learn that the more I give the more I get back (internally as well as financially).
We are sure you aren’t done. How are you going to shake things up next?
I am currently organizing an online Business Chakras® Summit, all about aligning your business with the chakras. It will include a number of experts who can help with all parts of a business, and it will bring together the practical and the inner energetic sides.
In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by ‘women disruptors’ that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts?
I sometimes find I am not taken as seriously when I suggest ways of working and methods that are outside the norm. Even though I know the effectiveness of these methods I can sometimes be met with skepticism and dismissal. This may be in part to do with the fact that I am bringing something quite alternative to business though, and not because I am a woman.
Do you have a book/podcast/talk that’s had a deep impact on your thinking? Can you share a story with us?
Lucky Bitch by Denise Duffield Thomas, and indeed her other books too. Denise’s work is all about clearing the inner blocks when it comes to money — charging your worth etc. She was one of my early influences, who taught me that business was more than just the practical parts. Her work made me think about what other areas there might be blocks, and this eventually led to me linking them to the main chakras in the body (with other influences too).
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
My work is all about trusting the intuition of our bodies and letting it guide us. When we live in tune with our bodies we are able to show up more, move through areas where we feel stuck and be all we are here to be. The more connected we are to ourselves the more we care for ourselves and give to others also. So I would love connecting with your body to be a daily practice for everyone, and this can mean different things — yes, movement and exercise, but also going into the emotions and feelings and starting to really get to know them as they are all here to help us.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
One of them is ‘You cannot heal the world until you heal yourself’ — I’m not actually sure who it’s attributed to. This quote is a reminder to look inside and do the work/healing etc that needs to be done there first, even in business. This has been important to me as our outer worlds are a reflection of our inner and by doing the inner healing the outer world really does become a mirror to what’s going on inside. Also by healing the inner wounds I am able to show up SO much more powerfully and resiliently for my mission to help others. If more of us looked inside and started there, healing our own wounds and continuing to show up for ourselves, the world truly would be a kinder and more compassionate place.
How can our readers follow you online?
My Instagram @empathpreneurs is where I have the most fun bringing color alchemy, visualisations and prompts in.
Also my website www.empathpreneurs.org where I have a number of free and paid resources to help you begin to clear your business blocks using color and regression therapy.
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!
Female Disruptors: Tara Jackson of ‘Empathpreneurs’ On The Three Things You Need To Shake Up Your… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.