As a part of the Morning Lazziness series about empowering women who are encouraging and doing incredible things with their ideas in society, I had the pleasure of interviewing Crystal Anderson.
California Mobile Acupuncture provides executive stress relief sessions, comprehensive pain management, injury recovery, and tailored workplace wellness programs. They offer services designed to enhance overall health such as acupuncture, massage therapy, nutritional counseling, pregnancy care, palliative care and more.
Here’s what we found out about Crystal‘s everyday routine, followed by an exclusive Q+A.
Can you share the story behind the founding of your business and what inspired you to become an entrepreneur?
I’d love to! My name is Crystal Anderson & I am the Founder of California Mobile Acupuncture, which offers on-demand holistic healthcare solutions, such as acupuncture in home or offices. I opened my practice while serving El Camino Hospital Stroke Rehab Center in Los Gatos. As the patients would be released, they often had paralysis or weakness so they would prefer treatments to be in-home. They would ask me to come home with them and continue care. That’s when I realized there was a need for mobile care not only for stroke patients but for hospice or just busy working moms that needed one less appointment to have to leave the house for.
What challenges did you face as a woman in the business world, and how did you overcome them?
Just being a mother of 3, an active and present wife, as well as a business owner is a challenge playing 3 very important roles daily. It’s important for me to “show up fully” in each of my roles, sometimes it is hard to juggle it all but I get through it with a good support system. Finding the right help, finding the right employees, and people to help care and love my children. Lastly, just having the understanding with my husband that we are a team and we need to work together.
How do you maintain a work-life balance while running your own business?
It’s very important to take a break, switch off when you can and to get 8 hours of sleep, starting at 9pm actually (that is the best time for women to go to sleep to maintain good hormone balance).
What advice would you give to aspiring women entrepreneurs who are just starting their journey?
Set your sights on the horizon, remind yourself of the long term goals. We’re such an instant gratification society right now that we all expect to get successful quickly, it doesn’t happen overnight, but remind yourself you are making an impact in the future, so put your head down and keep going, don’t give up. Stay goal oriented and do what you are doing for a purpose, create meaning with what you’re doing. So if you’re helping people then continue to do it to help people, right? I love helping people and I’m passionate about serving others, that gets me up everyday with renewed energy!
In your experience, how important is mentorship for women entrepreneurs, and have you had any significant mentors in your career?
I think it’s very important, we should always be learning, and a good idea to offer to be someone’s mentor too!
What strategies have you found effective for networking and building strong professional connections?
Cause networking and building strong professional connections by getting involved with charities. I really love to give back and so in giving either my time, my money, or my service I have been able to do some pretty solid networking and continue to build strong relationships.
What are the top 3 skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur, and why?
Have good work ethic, you have to have good work ethic as an entrepreneur because you are required to work even when you don’t want to. Be patient, success will come! The third would be to be a good leader, share and teach the skills you have learned and lead by example.
How do you stay updated on industry trends and continuously enhance your skills as an entrepreneur?
Well, I am constantly reading trying to educate myself both in business and in the health industry and I try to surround myself with successful business owners that help enhance my skills.
Can you share a memorable success story or achievement that you are particularly proud of in your entrepreneurial journey?
That’s a big one, I am lucky to have many. But one that stands out was helping a young boy with a traumatic brain injury. I have helped him regain his motor skills after being unconscious. We saw results in one treatment of acupuncture but we’re still working with him. Because it’s such a traumatic brain injury it was so severe and he was basically in a vegetative state, but the doctors are now just shocked at how well he’s doing health wise and, and how far he’s coming logically. “You gave our son a second chance at life,” his parents said to me. And now he’s opening his eyes tracking me around the bed, he’s moving his hands to go reach out… I mean, this is a little boy who was completely paralyzed from the top of his head to the bottom of the seat.
How do you approach risk-taking and decision-making in your business?
Starting a business is all about risk taking and decision-making. So how I approach it is with as much information as possible. Understanding the numbers is huge and having faith in myself and my employees is a big deal. So, with as much education and information as possible!
As a woman entrepreneur, do you think there are unique opportunities or challenges that women face in the business world? How do you navigate them?
For me, it’s trying to get people to understand the benefits of holistic medicine. But I am navigating those unique challenges by proper communication with people. I think the challenge I have is that not a lot of people have faith in alternative medicine because they don’t know a lot about it or haven’t had experience with it. So we just need to educate them!
