Remember that time in your twenties when you struggled to figure out what you wanted with your career? Belma McCaffrey founded an entire business, Work Bigger, dedicated to helping dissatisfied individuals find their purpose and build community. As a coach, she helps others by integrating deep mindset work and neuroscience into her coaching, combined with career planning. Yet, McCaffrey did not start her career wanting to be an entrepreneur. Her twenties were a confusing time when she felt unsure of her purpose.

Before starting Work Bigger, McCaffrey worked in media and strategy roles. It was not until business school that she found solidarity among her peers, who also struggled to find purpose with their careers. Thus, she was inspired to start a blog and free community. “Business school helped me to shine a light on my problems, and the process of launching a business helped me overcome them,” says McCaffrey.

Two years later, she became a mother and working part-time allowed her to start focusing more on her business. She became fully committed to Work Bigger in 2018. “I took that leap because I had to,” says McCaffrey. “It was such a strong pull, and it actually became painful not to listen to it.” Transitioning into a full-time business did not happen overnight. “It was really hard to get there and took some time financially to figure out. I also want to acknowledge that there was a level of privilege that comes with being able to leave your job,” noted McCaffrey. The next year she launched the paid community, received her coaching certification, worked with private clients, and found things shifting into full swing.

As her business advanced, she no longer felt the same uncertainty from her twenties. What aided her the most was finding her community, growing through coaching, and taking action. “In the process, you’re engaging with the things that scare you, and you’re addressing them as you go; you’re taking action, you’re moving forward, you’re learning about yourself,” says McCaffrey. Her mission with Work Bigger is to help people step into their purpose and reach their full potential. “The more connected we are to ourselves, the better we show up. I think the way we make a positive impact in the workplace, or in the world, is not just by what we do it’s also by how we show up for each other, our team members, our colleges, our families—all of that has an impact.”

Community is a large part of McCaffrey’s life, and IAW provides many networking opportunities to continue meeting and supporting other women. “Community has been invaluable in having that group of people to discuss mental, emotional, or strategic challenges with the business,” says McCaffrey. IAW also provided her a platform to share her story and connect with other entrepreneurs with similar experiences. Her advice for her IAW peers is to “do the best you can as these are challenging times and finding connections to lean on each other is really important right now.”