Leticia DeSuze is a holistic mindset coach and business strategist who works with C-level executives and established entrepreneurs who desire to break the 7-figure barrier. Having coached more than 1200 senior leaders and entrepreneurs across multiple industries Leticia believes that every problem is a mindset problem and that mindset matters most. Leticia has developed a ‘laser like’ ability to pierce the facades and identify the deeply engrained thought patterns that have limited her clients’ potential and identify opportunities for accelerated growth. She helps them clearly define what they want and designs the roadmap to get there – while holding them accountable. The end result is a life and business they’ve intentionally created vs. one they’ve settled for.
What is Elite Wealth Enterprises, LLC all about?
My company is Elite Wealth Enterprises, LLC. We’re a high-touch personal and professional development company that provides customized mindset and business strategy coaching to C-level execs; senior leaders and minority women in law who want to break the 7-figure barrier. Our foundational premise is that mindset matters most and in all of our coaching, we focus on mindset. A lot.
Tell us a little bit about your background and how you started your company?
I have always been someone who was in an advisory capacity whether it was in my personal or professional life. So coaching came as naturally to me as breathing. The turning point where it became a career was in 2009. I had been selling real estate for 9 years — having even started my own company. I can remember telling my friend, “I don’t love this. I really want to be a coach.” A few months later the real estate market crashed and I took a temporary coaching role. Little did I realize I would be an executive coach for 9 years within that organization — traveling nationwide to coach senior executives within Fortune 500 companies who lost their jobs. I was later certified as a business coach which prepared me for my next role as a fractional CEO for 30+ law firms within another coaching organization. After a year or so, I resigned and started my own coaching company – leveraging the experience from coaching more than 1200 people and working across multiple industries. It wasn’t even well planned. I started getting referrals and requests to coach from attorneys who found out I’d left the second organization. I built a thriving business through organic referrals.
What would you say are the top 3 skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur, and why?
Patience — There’s usually a way we think things are going to go and then the way they actually go. We can sometimes be focused on the six-figure year before we’ve made our first sale – so when it doesn’t happen fast enough it’s easy to lose momentum. It takes a lot of patience to build a sustainable business.
Willingness to fail — Failure is how we get feedback. Because people make failing mean something about them they sometimes stop trying. Failure is simply a way for us to see what works and what doesn’t. Fail quickly. Learn quickly. Keep trying until it works.
Resilience –– Your ‘bounce back’ needs to be strong as an entrepreneur because there are as many disappointments as there are successes. Investing in personal development and making it a priority will help build the resilience necessary to stay the course.
What are your plans for the future, how do you plan to grow this company?
I recently added ‘Mindset on the Move’ which is a weekend mindset intensive that I kicked off in Tulum, Mexico. It was phenomenal! And now I will actually travel to serve my clients wherever they happen to be in the world. So I’m super excited about that!
In addition to high-level 1:1 coaching, I’m also returning to my corporate roots to work with C-level execs and senior leaders.
I will also add a team of associate coaches to support in this work. I know several amazing coaches who love the work of coaching and are great at it but not so much the business side of things – so I know it’ll be a win-win.
How do you separate yourself from your competitors?
I don’t really think about competitors. The term ‘compare and despair’ comes to mind when I do. You’re usually comparing your worst to someone else’s best. Comparing myself will never lead me to anywhere I’m interested in going. There are a gazillion coaches who are doing amazing work in the world. But none of them is doing what I do the way that I do it. I keep my mind focused on how I want to show up and serve in the world and the best ways to do that. I am very high touch. I’m invested in my clients’ personal, professional and financial success and work with a limited number of clients 1:1 so I can retain that quality. I’m also very clear on who I work best with and focus my time, energy, and attention there.
How do you go about marketing your business, and what has been the most successful form of marketing for you?
Building relational equity has taken me a long way. I built a six-figure business on referrals. I was more focused on building it the way I wanted from the beginning which was high touch, high level, and high impact. I limited the number of people I worked with so I could be more invested in my clients’ success and they sent so many amazing people my way. I’m clear that I won’t get to 7 figures the same way. So I am just now investing in marketing like an upcoming podcast but it will still be relational in nature. It’s the only way for me.
What is the one thing you wish you knew before starting your business?
The one thing I wish I knew is how much I would love it! You hear so many doom and gloom stories that you wonder if enjoying your business is really possible. Of course, entrepreneurship has its challenges but I get to do what I love with people I love to work with. Furthermore, I know that I’ve found my life’s purpose so it feels surreal sometimes. I was afraid for so long that I wasn’t ready. That I needed to learn more and prepare more. None of that was true. I just needed to do it.
What are three books or courses would you recommend to entrepreneurs?
I am a firm believer that mindset matters most and that your personal development is the foundation of sustainable success. I would recommend:
- The Go-Giver by Bob Burg
- The Power of TED* by David Emerald
- The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks
What is your favorite quote?
People are where they are because that is exactly where they really want to be – whether they will admit that or not.
– Earl Nightingale
Random Bonus: With the game on the line and 5 seconds on the clock, who takes the last shot? Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, or Lebron James?
Michael Jordan. I’m from Chicago so there’s absolutely no other option here. But he happens to be the best of all time so if I’m losing – I’m losing with Mike!
How can we get in touch with you?
I can be reached under my name – Leticia DeSuze – on both LinkedIn and Instagram. I am just launching “The Winner’s Mind” ™ podcast so be on the lookout for that.
Leticia DeSuze – How to Overcome Fear & The Definition of Success
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