EB – What was your education and professional experience before becoming an entrepreneur? Were they helpful to starting your businesses?
Rachel Russo
RR – I received my bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Rutgers University and my master’s degree in Marriage & Family Therapy from Iona College. After graduating from Rutgers, I took the opportunity to pursue “a unique social work opportunity” with a start-up online matchmaking company in NYC. I then went on to do matchmaking, marketing, and recruiting for well-known companies. In between my employment with these organizations, I began finding my own freelance clients for Relationship Coaching. I found these people through Craigslist.com, Lambent Services, and soon from the referrals of satisfied clients.
The profound understanding of human nature that I acquired from my education is a tremendous asset to my coaching practice. My post-modern, solution-focused training as a therapist has provided an excellent foundation for helping clients in a coaching context. I have learned a lot about relationships from doing couples counseling and through my first-hand experience interviewing singles for matchmaking companies. Years of recording feedback on the dating experience of men and women have provided me with valuable lessons on the impact of gender on relationships. A combination of such experience coupled with my own worldview has shaped my practice as a Relationship Coach. Read more