If you carry a number, or you're growing your own business, you carry pressure most people never see or understand.

And the pressure doesn’t turn off - targets or your livelihood don’t care how hard you’re working. And one bad quarter can quietly put your role, reputation, and livelihood at risk.

This is why I work privately with commercial leaders, teams, sales reps, and founders who are delivering results but paying for it personally.

They’re running back-to-back calls, skipping meals and workouts, holding everything together until Friday — only to crash by Saturday with nothing left for their family, friends, or life outside work.

Most of my clients aren’t failing. They’re just exhausted, unmotivated, and hoping for a different experience. BUT, they don't want to give up all they've earned.

They’ve built their lives around their income, so slowing down feels risky and impossible — even when the pace isn’t sustainable. They live with constant pressure around the number, growing their company, forecast calls, board scrutiny, and being “the one accountable.” 

Days start with APAC, roll through East Coast teams, and end with the West Coast. Breaks disappear. Energy erodes. Weekends become recovery instead of rest. Over time, anxiety, physical symptoms, and burnout become part of the job.

I know this world because I lived it.

I spent nearly 20 years in commercial leadership — from inside sales through executive roles — and collectively delivered over $1B in new business. And I now run my own business. 

I also know what it’s like to override your body, energy, and personal life in the name of success — until it becomes clear the way you’re operating isn’t sustainable.

My work helps leaders perform at a high level without burning out or sacrificing their health, energy, or relationships - I had to learn how to do this the hard way, so now my mission is to make it possible and easier for others.  

I don’t do fluffy sales coaching or motivation. I do private advisory work and small, high-trust masterminds focused on how leaders can operate under pressure — so performance becomes sustainable, not something survived.

I work with a limited number of executive clients in confidential engagements, with senior directors and VPs 1:1, and founders in small pods to grow into higher roles without self-abandonment and sacrifice.

If you’re carrying significant commercial responsibility, growing your biz, or preparing for the next level and want success without work consuming everything else, reach out.

I built my business backwards....and I see you doing the same thing.


As soon as I started, I ran out and got:
-the website
-an email box
-a logo
-alll the courses to tell me how to make millions
-a VA to do the work I hated

But what I didn't realize is that none of that mattered, and I was doing it backwards.

And what I know now that DOES matter is the willingness to be wildly uncomfortable and do the work that expands my capacities. 

Most people quit the minute they feel uncomfortable with the growth, or the minute they realize a different version of themselves is required to get to where they want to go.

Most new business owners are not willing to
-look stupid
-be cringe
-put themselves out there
-market organically (aka, show up IN-PERSON, *GASP*)
-grow into a different version of themselves 

Annnd most business owners try handling all of this and more, ON THEIR OWN. 

Or, they let someone who's scaling their business tell them to buy their course, then they are left still, on their own.

Doing things on your own is HARD. Having a coach and peers to support you and get you through the tough moments of wanting to give up and quit is exactly why I created entrepreneurial mastermind pods. 

They're SMALL groups (no more than 5 at a time).

So you can get the help you need in your business without taking 1400 hours of course modules that do nothing but tell you how to do something, only to not do it or finish the course, and now you've wasted $3,000 or more.

What I built is different. 

It's accessible. 

It's a 90-day intensive, so we get right to what you need to be successful in your business, and it aligns with exactly who you are and where you're at. 

If you'd be interested in coaching but it feels too out of reach for you as a small/newer business owner, grab 2-4 of your friends, build a pod, and let's get to work on the things that matter most in your business success - expanding your capacity AND having the sales/marketing/strategy to be SURE you don't give up on your dream of being a business owner.

Visit my website, book a consult to talk about what all this entails, and let's get started! 

Click here: ➡️ https://lnkd.in/eANigxf4

Melissa Coloton

When I graduated from college, I felt lost. 

After six years of studying what I thought I'd do forever, my first job paid me $25,000 a year. This didn't pay the bills and made me feel like a loser.

I wanted more from life, so I spent time figuring things out. 

Figuring things out took work. There were lots of ups and downs and tons of frustrations because I felt like I wasted time in school - I had two degrees and no idea what to do with them! 

Ultimately, I had to figure out who I was, where I was, and where I wanted to go. 

This is why I help ambitious young professionals who want to LOVE what they do, find their purpose, and make money with it.

It's what I didn't have but so desperately needed.

I hope to help you, too! And if you want more serious stuff about me, below are my credentials. 

I have a B.S. in Athletic Training, with a Masters in Adult Education, with an Emphasis in Health Professions. I am also a certified health and wellness coach and trained in life coaching under Tony Robbins. 

If you want help figuring out what to do after graduation or just want help growing your career, please click here and sign up for my exclusive content. https://dawn-smoke-6941.ck.page/34011b5888

$1B+ in Lifetime Sales || Aligned success for commercial leaders, sales reps, and founders || Host of The Honor You Podcast || Founder of The Honor You Method || Certified Life & Human Design Coach

In sales, it can get old...rinsing and repeating the same process, the same message, and calling on the same people.


I know it did for me a time or two - especially when my client put me on ice, and I was lost and purposeless. 

So what do you do then? Quit? Nah, you make too much money for that ;)...

Do you pivot? Perhaps, but would that mean you make less money?! Or does that mean you're burning down everything you worked your face off for?

I know these are tough questions which is why I wanted to capture a great convo I had with my friend Dave who built a career in sales....pivoted multiple times and is now doing a super cool job that didn't even exist at the company until he made it exist. 

In the chat, we cover:
• Speaking up without emotional drama 
• Pivoting your career without burning everything down 
• Building confidence by trusting yourself 
• Understanding that your job is what you do, not who you are 
• Honoring yourself to create aligned success (not just chasing money or titles)

If you’ve ever felt frustrated at with your sales role… stuck… unsupported… or unsure whether you should make a move, this episode will resonate deeply.

Even if you're not in sales, I know it'll still resonate if you're feeling these feels at your current job.

And, if you want more but are not sure what to do, I invite you to book a free consult with me: 
Click here: ➡️ ​https://lnkd.in/eYV8vw3u​ 

This is a complimentary 60-minute connect where you can share with me what's going on so we can work through it together -- you're guaranteed to have an ah-ha moment and a BREAKTHROUGH .... 💗don't wait on you, you deserve to have more than what you're currently experiencing!

Imagine being on vacation, toes in the sand, when you get a phone call...


...and it ends your 47-year career.


That’s exactly what happened to ​Sara Rubens​.

No warning. 
No transition plan. 
Just done.

But what she did about it gives an AMAZING reminder and inspiration that we have the power to choose ourselves, even when we didn’t choose the change.

Instead of being bitter, resentful, or letting herself get small...she followed what worked for her without worrying what others thought.

And from just going with it without a bunch of pressure and hesitation, she turned the crappy situation into a thriving business, a published book, a keynote platform, and a whole new chapter of life.

And when I met Sara, I wanted to tell her story loud and proud. So, I asked if she'd be a guest on the podcast and she said yes!

In this week's episode, Sara and I chat about:
• Reinventing yourself after 60 
• Entrepreneurship after job loss 
• Why strong women struggle to receive support 
• Pruning relationships and identities that no longer serve you 
• How to “tend to yourself” without guilt 
• Finding community and meaning after profound loss (small spoiler alert: Sara lost more than just her job, and you'll hear about that in this episode)

It’s honest. 
It’s emotional. 
It’s deeply practical.

I LOVED everything about it! 

One of my favorite quotes: 
"My pivot was not my backup plan; it actually ended up being my master plan!" 

If you’re navigating a pivot, whether that’s career, identity, motherhood, burnout, grief, or simply redefining success, I invite you to listen. 

Especially if that change or pivot came out of nowhere! 

Link to the podcast in comments! 

As always, comment and let me know what you think of the episode, or email me at info@melissacoloton.com and let me know what resonated with you! 

PS, feel free to share in the comments your story of loss and recovery - it'll inspire us all to keep going when life feels heavy and tough!

Ya’ll……I’m SOOOOO so so so so freaking excited to share….I HAVE A NEW AND BEAUTIFUL WEBSITE.

All caps because yes, I’m yelling with excitement. 

I’m so happy to have a beautiful representation of the work I do and how I  help leaders, sales professionals, and founders lean into alignment with their success.

A little story for you…

YEARS ago, I got the guts to put myself out there, and I developed a presence by setting up a website.

Back then, I thought I would be coaching people on body image.

So, a lot of my website revolved around my writing and blogging, and that was about it.

As with most of my side ventures, it eventually petered out.

Then, 2 1/2 years ago, I decided it was time to get serious about building my own business because if I didn’t do it, I never would.

I revamped the old website to present my coaching and consulting services.

I think back then, I wasn’t really sure what I was doing exactly.

The colors represented that: gray, black, white, beige, and a limited presence of me on the site because I didn’t have professional photos. 

And now in 2026, I feel like I am extremely focused, extremely clear about what I want do and how I want to help people, and this website represents all of that, which is why I am so excited to share this with you.

It has beautiful colors. 

It’s warm, it’s inviting, but it’s also representative of “let’s get to business” energy, so you can reach your goals and your dreams. 

I feel like it is very me, and I could not be happier to share this with you.

I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart to Brandolyn Chieco for doing such a wonderful job and capturing me in my business so beautifully. 

If you need the development of your brand represented via your website, run, don’t walk, to get Brandy on your team. 

She takes the time to understand what you want to convey and ensures the site beautifully represents you and your business. 

Photo creds 📸 rosetrailimages 🌹

Website:
www.melissacoloton.com

Showit Website Designer | Helping female coaches, consultants, and creatives show up online like the experts they actually are.

The story that drove my ambition was: “Money solves problems.”


The childhood memories that fed this ambition were:

-Calls from collectors (we’d leave the phone off the hook to avoid them)
-My dad working weird hours (he was a blue-collar factory shift worker)
-Debt that felt heavy and endless
-Talk of “wouldn’t that be nice” when we saw wealthy people
-Getting endless loans just to go to college
-Not buying what everyone else had
-Generalized struggle

So, at the very young age of probably 12, I was begging to make money.

I asked my mom if I could babysit.

Then I got jobs at a restaurant when I was 15.

I worked all through school and college.

In grad school, I had no time during the day, so I’d get up at 4 AM to lifeguard from 5-8, change in the locker room, and head to the training room for my “day job”.

When I graduated, I secured a $28k/year position.

I quickly pivoted to something I didn’t even care about because they were willing to pay me more.

My whole life revolved around this childhood experience.

I don’t hate it - I actually love it. 

It’s what gave me the experiences I have today.

The problem, though, is that the drive drove me too hard.

I’d argue it drove me into the ground – panic attacks and chronic anxiety are not typical success measures. 

I had to change. 

I know many people in the same situation. 

They keep going because there was likely a similar story when they were kids.

And now they’re successful, but miserable. 

My friend, don’t wait for another millisecond to change this. Don’t wait until it gets ugly to make a change. 

It’s not easy, but you don’t have to do it alone. I can help because I went first – I gave up my “fancy sales” career to follow my soul and my purpose. 

This might not be your story, but certainly, the pathway to happiness is the same. It starts with recognizing where you’re at and deciding to make a change.

Each day I wake up knowing I’m serving those who need the help I once needed. I’m working every day to “go first” and lead so others can follow.

I hope you listen to you – I hope you get out of the story that’s driven you to where you are today and build a different version of success for yourself. I know it exists, and I’d love to show you the way.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi, I’m Melissa. I’m a life coach for sales professionals and entrepreneurs. If this post resonates, explore my website and book your free 1-hour consultation. I’ll listen to where you’re at, and we’ll figure out a way to move you forward, together! So you don’t waste another second of your life. 
Click here to get going  ▶️▶️▶️▶️   wwww.melissacoloton.com

This past weekend, I sent an email out to my Entrepreneur POD that ended up IRKING me!!! 

Especially because I was juuuuust trying to watch USA take home the Gold from Canada -- as a Northern New Yorker, I visited Canada tons as a kid, so I love ya'll, but the Gold was coming home with us LOL.

Anyways, back to the point....I was proud of the email - it had alllll the to-dos for the POD -- onboarding them and all.

It was an exciting moment because, for one, the USA was winning and, for two, I just love this POD so much, and getting them going was EXCITING!

-- and then I got this:

"I just took your quiz (LOVE!!) and clicked on the results page link to schedule a call, and your Calendly link is broken here. Just letting you know!" 

No big deal, a link is broken. I'll ask my VA to fix that right up and done and done.

Nope. That little broken link started an avalanche of issues with my backend operations. 

I found OLLLLD things - Like call to actions for people to join the waitlist for a program I ran LAST AUGUST....LAWWWRD.

I'm over here wondering why nobody books time with me after they take my quiz - LOL -- and yeah, I was even blaming them. Thinking, I see you, you're taking the quiz, and you're too much of a coward to take it to the next level and start working on your $hit. 

Ugh... unfortunately, it's not anyone else's fault but MINE. 

And ya know what - that's why entrepreneurship can be so damn hard and humbling -- because you don't get the opportunity to BLAME someone else.

Someone else is YOU. 

It's not fun, friends, but I learn a lot from these moments.

And the learning is not how to run back-end operations better - I'd rather pull all my teeth out one by one than learn that.

It's about learning how to BUILD the emotional capacity to see YOUR F-ups and...

a) not hate yourself too hard about it 

b) not let it tell you a dumb story about how you're not cut out for this, and you should just quit

c) learning and knowing that if you're going to go for it, bet on yourself, put yourself out there on the front stage "naked", you're going to be exposed. 

And being comfortable with that is the key to success as a business owner. If you stay at the emotional capacity you've always had, you'll never make it.

This even applies to those pursuing higher-level roles in the corporate world.

There HAS to be a different version of yourself that shows up and does the work -- knowing, you're going to be exposed, you're going to mess up, you're the only one to blame. 

If you've had one of these moments, tell me about it below. I'd love to hear so I don't feel so all alone.

And if you're thinking about throwing in the towel after a mishap, keep going. Keep growing. Keep putting yourself out there -- you'll break a thing or two, but you'll also grow into a version of you that can quite literally do ANYTHING. And that's worth its weight in Gold... pun totally intended.

Here’s the scariest question I’ve ever been asked in an interview:


“What’s your definition of success?” 

I froze.

I thought, “Holy $hit, I’ve never been asked that before. 

What if I say some stupid beauty pageant answer that nobody cares about? 

What if I say something shallow like, I wanna be a millionaire someday and they think I’m a schmuck?” 

Those questions and many more raced through my head. 

So, rather than jumping into an answer I’d regret, I did something I’ve never done before in an interview - I said, “Can I think about that?” 

We were at lunch, so I could get away with taking a pass at that question, and because it was towards the end of the “interview” part.

The interviewers said, “Sure! Take your time”....And went about chatting with each other about what they did that past weekend – I heard about every 10th word they said because I was trying to come up with my answer. 

Finally, I said, “May I share my answer now?”

They both stopped talking and said – “Go for it”. 

I replied with, “Growing up, my parents worked their a$$es off, I watched them work and work and work and work. 

They never played. 

I don’t want that for myself. What I define as success is the ability to work hard, AND play hard.” 

It was from my heart, and as I write this, it's still hard not to get choked up thinking about how damn hard my folks worked - and still do by the way.

I immediately got a satisfactory smile from both interviewers. I knew, coming from my heart, that I had given an answer that stuck.

And now? 

As I sit here, running my own business, having lived a full career already, and am on to the next one, and in the business of helping people (entrepreneurs and sales pros) on getting to their beautiful, aligned success, I feel a deep sense of full circle. 

If you’re yearning to live out YOUR definition of success – success that aligns with you - I want to help you so bad it hurts. 

Because I know what it’s like, both from personal experiences and from watching my parents, just how important it is to spend time doing work you want to do AND having the resources you need to live it up - die knowing you’ve done the damn thing. 

If you’re interested in doing this work, I encourage you to run, don’t walk, to my website and click on the “book a consult” button. 

It’s everywhere; you can’t miss it. We’ll talk, we’ll have an immediate breakthrough, and we’ll go from there….see you soon. 
Click here ➡️  https://lnkd.in/eYV8vw3u

A wildly underrated sales skill.....


Enthusiasm.

I see way too many people - both sales pros and entrepreneurs get caught up in the perfect words to say (some even using AI to write their messages) and hit the send button without any emotion or connection to what they just wrote. 

There's something magnetic about the person sending the message actually being interested in their own product or service (shocking, I know 😉).

Especially with entrepreneurs. 

If you're trying to work with a client and you're more worried about what to say than helping that person, you've lost.

If you're more worried about what to say than just coming straight from your heart, you've lost.

And if you "can't" come from the heart -- you should truly do some searching on that and dig into why that is.

My guess is you're more worried about how you'll sound than about the person getting what they need.

and...likely, it's because you don't believe in yourself. 

You don't believe in your product. 

You're not embodying all that is, and that is showing up in your sales. 

What do you think is a super underrated sales skill, even if you're not in sales? Comment below. ⬇️

I mean….the sales gurus do tell us  NOT to write “just following up”….so, this is technically NOT that. 


🥴🥴🥴🥴🥴🥴🥴🥴

Being a successful entrepreneur will put you in a position to decide what comes first. 


Chicken or egg?


Do you wait till you’re successful to get help, and then you can be MORE successful?

Or do you get help first to reach a successful outcome?

It’s a hard call because when you first start off, you’re likely not making very much money.

Most people who’ve started their own businesses (even if they had a money nest) find themselves spending more than they’re making.

I know for me, I have invested in help, but it wasn’t easy and even felt reckless at times because I wasn’t making a ton of money to spend on help…

And I thought I could do it myself. 

Surely I could make money on my own when I’ve been in sales my whole life and literally sold over $1Billion dollars.

But, the thing is, “selling” what’s “you” is wayyyyyyyy harder than selling the services of a brand that you’re not attached to.

So, again I ask, which is it? The chicken or the egg first? Do you try and fail, or do you invest to have the help?

If you’re not sure but you really need help, I encourage you to find a way to get it.

Giving up on your dream, your passion, and your love for what you do would be tragic. 

Having coaches that know how to:
-see the mindset you’re leading with that’s not serving you
-see the lack of emotional capacity for running your own business
-get you unblocked from your limiting beliefs
-grow businesses 

…are absolutely priceless. 

Help is the single factor that will dramatically change your business's trajectory and may be the difference between a successful business or going back to your “old job”. 

If you need help but feel you can’t afford it. I want to offer you something.

Entrepreneur Pods. It’s my offer to support your aligned success as an entrepreneur.

You recruit 2-4 of your entrepreneur friends, and you split the cost of my standard 1:1 coaching. It makes it accessible and helps you get what you need to succeed.

Don’t wait on this - it’ll literally change your life and your business's success! 

If you’re interested in this, visit my website at www.melissacoloton.com and book a 1-hour free consultation so we can discuss where you are, help you achieve at least one breakthrough right away, and put you on the path to success. You’re totally worth it, and so is your business. The world needs your business, so don’t give up on it and don’t wait for a miracle to happen. Get the help you need to drive forward your dream. 

I can’t wait to talk with you!!! 

PS, are you someone who was struggling with your business, and when you got help, it changed everything? Tell me your success story in the comments! 🔽

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