Meet Kathryn Farrell | Anesthetist and Inventor-Entrepreneur

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kathryn Farrell and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kathryn, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I have actually wanted to start my own business for a long time, but previously hadn’t found an idea that seemed worth pursuing. My day job as an anesthetist is very fulfilling in some ways, but has left me wanting more for a few years now. While I enjoy taking care of patients and I love the science behind anesthesia, I have felt stagnant for a significant part of my 10 year career in the field. This feeling had been nagging at me for a while, and then the pandemic happened. My job suddenly went from routine to terrifying, and I was now putting myself and my family at risk every day for a job that was no longer my passion. On top of the exhaustion from my professional life, I had two young children at home. My son was 2 at the time, and my daughter was not quite 1 and she was (and still is!) quite a handful. She wanted to be held during all waking hours, and only by me. Any other solution, including putting her down or allowing someone else to hold her, was rejected in the form of intolerable screaming and tears. After months of doing everything around the house with one hand while I held her on my hip with the other arm, I thought there must be a better way. I made a rough prototype, asked a few mom friends what they thought of it, and realized this was a great idea that could truly help other people. When I think about why I really wanted to start my own business, the most important things are autonomy, the ability to work hard on something I really care about, and freedom. After a decade of sitting in an Operating Room all day every day, only going to the restroom or eating when someone comes in to give me a break, getting stuck late because of someone else’s decisions, and usually seeing no sunlight for the duration of my shift, I am more than ready for a change. I appreciate everything my career has taught me, and now I am ready to pursue something that fills me with joy and gives me a greater sense of purpose.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My entire life, I have been interested in many different topics. Finally, in my third decade of life, I have realized that I am happiest when I am learning something new, or pursuing some sort of new challenge. I went from being a highly competitive Division 1 athlete in college (Track and Cross Country at the University of Florida) to a very difficult grad school program. After grad school, I pursued and got a job at a Level 1 Trauma hospital. When I got bored there, I started running marathons and moved across the country to live in a land of extremists- Denver, Colorado. After a few more years of working at other large teaching hospitals, I started to feel a very real dissatisfaction with my chosen career. I had become very efficient at my job, and no longer had many real challenges or learning opportunities in my professional life. This dissatisfaction grew exponentially during the pandemic last year, and I knew it was time to make a change. I have talked to my husband about changing careers for a few years now, but never found a traditional path that seemed like it would be an improvement on my current situation. Even if I went back to school, at the end of the program I would once again be an employee. Restricted in creative freedom, obligated to fulfill someone else’s mission. I knew that I had more to offer the world, I just had to find the best path to share it. When I had the idea for the Co Carrier, I felt an excitement I hadn’t felt in a long time. (No offense to my kids, this was more of a “personal fulfillment” excitement!) As I refined the concept, I realized I might really have something worth pursuing. I knew this was an item that could help other parents, because it was something that really would have helped me during the most difficult year of my life. The development process has been difficult, but in the best way possible. There are so many things to figure out when inventing a product and starting a business. Some are large obstacles, and some are small details, but they are all fun to solve. And I have learned that there are so many people out there who want to help others, and it’s never wrong to ask for advice or help when I’m really stuck on something. What I would like others to know is that I am not without insecurities and doubt. I have certainly had many moments of questioning whether or not this is all worth it, as I expect most entrepreneurs have. But I continue to remind myself that I would have purchased this item if it had existed when I needed it, so surely there are other parents out there who can benefit from it. There are plenty of days where I want to just close my eyes when my kids go to sleep, or relax and read a book when I have 10 minutes to myself. But I remind myself of my purpose and my goals, and find just one more problem to solve.

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?
One of my favorite things about Atlanta is the never ending supply of interesting people. I also love being outdoors, especially when the weather is nice (which is pretty often here!). If it’s my real life best friend coming to town, we are definitely going for a run down the Beltline to Piedmont Park and hopefully seeing at least a little bit of city craziness along the way. And then, in this scenario, we are compensating for calories burned by enjoying a bowl of queso at La Parilla. If this is a fictitious best friend who doesn’t run, I suppose we can go for a walk around these areas and stop along the way for an overpriced fancy coffee at PCM or a big fat cheeseburger at The Albert. Hopefully this trip is occurring during a cool festival like the Atlanta Science Festival, the Jazz Festival, or the weekend of the Pride Parade. The range of celebrations we get to enjoy here is one of the coolest things about this city, second only to the beautiful bouquet of people we have here to enjoy them with! In a post-pandemic world, I’d like to believe that I am going to enjoy another night out raging along Ponce or dancing in Midtown. However, I am in my thirties and have two small children who don’t care about Mommy’s hangover. So in all reality, we are probably front-loading our imbibing by spending the afternoon at a brewery (lately have been frequenting Dr. Scofflaw’s at The Works) followed by some perfect barbecue at Das BBQ. Another night we might get dressed up and sink our teeth into some steaks at Marcel or Kevin Rathbun Steak. And no trip to Atlanta would be complete without at least one visit to a few establishments on Buford Highway! Beyond that, we usually fill our days by taking our kids to one of the number of awesome playgrounds near us or going for a little urban hike in the Morningside Nature Preserve. If the weather doesn’t cooperate, I love our options for entertaining the kids like Fernbank, the Georgia Aquarium, and the Children’s Museum. Maybe by then we will be returning to Atlanta United games and seeing our fellow season ticket holders to catch up on life and cheer for the A. That’s what I really love about this city. Whatever you’re into, we’ve got it. (Except the beach. But as my Mom always said, if we had that, everyone would want to live here!) Art, food, performance, culture, drinks, hiking, learning opportunities, history, anything else- you just have to look for it!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I am relatively new on this path and I have already met so many amazing other entrepreneurs and business owners. Many people have been so encouraging and helped me navigate this new world. It’s hard to pinpoint one that goes beyond the rest, so I have to share a few. First, I would not have been able to get a professional prototype made if it weren’t for Noah McNeely and his company, Product QuickStart. He provides such a valuable service for those of us who are bootstrapping the development of a new invention. I highly recommend him to anyone I know who has a great idea, but doesn’t have tens of thousands of dollars to spend on traditional prototyping processes. Other female business owners have also helped me not only by providing services I desperately needed help with, but most importantly by offering encouragement. Most notably: Amelia Dortch of Hines-Dortch Consulting, Dr. Kate Edwards, author and business owner of Precision Physical Therapy and Rachel Bowers of Palmetto Films Video. I have also been shocked by how willing to help my friends have been, while asking nothing in return. There are too many names to list at this point, so I have to just give the biggest thank you with all of my heart to every person who has helped me by modeling the carrier, giving me feedback, or being actors for the day for our video content. I don’t think I will ever feel “even” with those who have stepped in and helped, so I hope I can pay it forward and help others as I continue on this adventure. Of course, I also couldn’t do any of this without the support of my family. My husband has been my stone foundation through all of this, holding me up through the storms of starting a business. And while my kids don’t quite understand what Mom is doing just yet, they have given me joy and purpose. I hope to inspire them to chase their dreams, and maybe even make it into the Shoutout section of their future successes!

Website: cofamily.co

Instagram: @cofamilyco