We had the good fortune of connecting with Anna & Erica and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Anna and Erica, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Before opening Good Life Consulting, we were school counselors at the same high school. We have both always been extremely passionate about helping kids on their journey of self-discovery, as well as promoting authenticity and empowering kids to be themselves and we believed that by becoming school counselors we would be able to reach and impact a large population of young people. We were excited to listen and connect with students and help as many students as possible feel seen, cared for, and valued. Unfortunately, the role of a school counselor has grown to encompass an increasing number of administrative tasks which eat away at precious face to face time with students. Our school was no different. We found ourselves in endless meetings, coordinating standardized testing, creating and updating transcripts, generating student schedules, and so on. We were overwhelmed, exhausted, and frustrated. We were no longer doing the things that we loved most and what made us want to become school counselors in the first place. When discussing our student’s futures, we would always encourage them to do what they loved and to follow their passions. We decided to take our own advice and in July of 2021, we opened Good Life Consulting, LLC.

Our thought process behind starting Good Life Consulting was to not only create a business that we loved, but to also help others discover who they are and what they love to do. We wanted to give others the confidence (and resources) to follow their dreams and pursue their passions and to live the most authentically good life possible!

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
We began solely as a college consulting service. Through our work as school counselors, we realized the value that our expertise, knowledge, and personality brought to both our students’ college admittance and their emotional well-being during the post-secondary process and we wanted to help even more students find the same success. Our favorite part of working with our students is helping them discover who they are and what they love and empowering them to live authentically. We realized how little high school students actually know about themselves, yet society expects them to be able to figure out what they want to do for the rest of their lives. However, when we provide the space and time for them to do some self-discovery, we see a decrease in their stress levels and an increase in their motivation. Their dispositions are lighter and brighter, as though a weight has been lifted. After helping numerous students navigate the college admissions process, we knew there was so much more we could offer.

We discovered Human Design, a holistic self-knowledge system, a year prior to opening our business and we were fascinated by it. We spent all our free time learning about the intricacies of the system and signed up for courses to dive even deeper. We began experimenting with our own unique designs and our lives completely shifted in the most beneficial and positive way. We knew that we wanted to incorporate it into our business and share it’s magic with our clients.

{We know that many people reading this may have never heard of Human Design so before we continue, we wanted to share a little bit more about what it is. Human Design blends ancient wisdom — astrology, the I Ching, the chakra system and the Kabbalah — with modern science — quantum physics and genetics — to give you an operating manual that shows how you are uniquely designed. We love that it’s rooted in ancient wisdom while being practical and applicable to everyday life in the modern world. It offers invaluable insight into who you are “designed” to be and how you are meant to share your unique gifts. Put simply, Human Design helps you to see yourself, know yourself and love yourself — thereby giving you permission to just be yourself.}

In addition to learning the Human Design System, we also became certified life purpose coaches. We now proudly offer college/post-secondary consulting as well as Human Design and life purpose coaching. One of our new offerings is an amazing, holistic seven week program called Life on Purpose that blends Human Design with life purpose coaching. We created this because we saw how it could benefit not only high school students, but also high school graduates in the workforce, current college students, and recent college graduates who are struggling to figure out who they are and what their purpose is. We help our clients uncover their strengths, passions, gifts, and we support and encourage them to live in alignment with the best, brightest, and most fulfilled version of themselves.

Our approach is a relatable one and is rooted in authenticity. We show up as our true authentic selves every day and create a safe place for our clients to do the same. Our sessions are filled with a healthy dose of laughter, enthusiasm, insight, support, empathy, encouragement, and hope. Many times, our clients don’t even realize that they just worked through some really tough stuff because they walk out with a smile on their face and they feel better than they did when they walked in.

Quitting our jobs and opening this business definitely came with it’s fair share of challenges, but it was all more than worth it. Creating this business was the best thing we have ever done and we are so grateful that we are able to do what we love every day!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
The Connecticut shoreline is filled with so many quaint shops, delicious foods, and beautiful water views so our week would be packed! For breakfast, we would take them to Ashlawn Farms, Mirsina’s, The Tea Kettle, and the Old Saybrook Parthenon Diner. For lunch, we would grab some lobster rolls from Lobster Landing in Clinton and some sandwiches from Bradley and Wall in Madison. For dinner, we would definitely go to La Marea in Old Saybrook for some fine Italian food, as well as Bufalina in Guilford for some delicious pizza! Throughout the week, we would take them to Old Saybrook to shop at Pearls & Plaid x Post Road Supply for a cute outfit and Mar Floral for some beautiful flowers. We would also take them to Madison to shop at RJ Julia’s to purchase a new book and Tea & Tarot for all things mystical. We would also spend a lot of time at our favorite beaches along the shoreline!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
We have so many incredible people in our lives that we would like to shoutout:

Our husbands, Greg and Ryan. They are our biggest cheerleaders and their belief in us and our business means the world. They are the ones who encouraged us to follow this crazy dream we had and helped get Good Life up and running. We are so grateful for their unconditional love and support!

Our parents (Bob & Lili Mastronardi and Joe & Pam Calano). We were both so fortunate to have the upbringing we had, which was filled with love. They taught us the importance of having strong values and a good work ethic. From an early age, they encouraged us to always set high expectations for ourselves and follow our dreams. We are so thankful to have such loving and supportive parents!

Erica’s uncle, Michael Mastronardi. Through weekly zoom calls, he guided us through all the financial, legal, and strategic planning that is needed to start a business. His wisdom, advice, and support has been invaluable to us. In our office, we have printed out a few pieces of advice that he quoted often and put them up on our walls. Our favorite one is, “Always remember–you can’t be all things to all people.”

Our families, friends, and former colleagues. We are so lucky to have such amazing and supportive people in our lives!

Last but definitely not least, our former students and current clients. We are beyond grateful to have had the opportunity to work with the most incredible people who have inspired us in so many ways. They remind us every day why we do what we do and motivate us to continue to grow, learn, and be the best we can be!

Website: www.goodlifeconsultingct.com

Instagram: @_goodlife_consulting

Facebook: @goodlifeconsultingllc

Image Credits
Mairin Finnegan-Johnson

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