If you’re queer or questioning your identity, you already know it isn’t just about who you love or how you label yourself. It seeps into every corner of your life – including how you show up in your business.
I want to share a story that cracked my heart wide open last week. I had a coaching session with an incredible human who came to me feeling stuck in her business. At first, she thought her stuckness was about productivity and focus. She’s neurodivergent and had been under stress in her personal life. When we first connected, it was for a market research interview. She identified as queer or nonbinary, but wasn’t sure exactly how she fit into the LGBTQ+ community. She seemed shy, socially awkward, and uncertain of herself. Her voice was quiet, her shoulders curved inward, her energy scattered like her thoughts.
We talked a little about identity in that first conversation, and I asked her: “How do you think being queer or questioning affects you as a business owner?” She didn’t really know then, but she took the question to sit with it.
Fast forward to yesterday. In our first official coaching session, she told me she’d been thinking deeply about that question. It had inspired her to go to a queer poetry reading. She wanted to see what it felt like to be in a space where she knew – for the first time – that everyone there would accept her.
And holy shit, it changed everything.
Queer or Questioning: Why Identity Exploration Matters in Business
During our session, she asked for coaching specifically around her queer identification process. She shared that she still felt internalized shame, confusion, and a fear of “doing queerness wrong.” She wasn’t sure how she fit into any LGBTQIA+ labels, and that uncertainty made her feel like she didn’t belong anywhere.
I get it. As someone who came out as a late-in-life lesbian, I know exactly what it feels like to carry decades of internalized shame. For so long, I didn’t even know what was missing in me. I just thought I needed to achieve more, market harder, or fix whatever was “broken” inside me to finally feel confident. But what was actually missing was my authentic self. The part of me I’d hidden away to stay safe. The part that was so terrified of visibility that I spent years sabotaging my own marketing efforts and staying small so I wouldn’t risk being judged or abandoned.
That’s why coaching queer or questioning folks is so close to my heart. Because it’s not just about productivity hacks or revenue goals. It’s about helping you reconnect with your truth so your work becomes an extension of who you really are – not just a performance you put on for clients or social media.
From Shame to Glitter: The Power of Identity-Safe Coaching
By the end of our session, something magical happened. As we explored her inner queer self with curiosity and no judgment, her entire physical demeanor transformed. She went from hunched and quiet to grounded, open, anchored in her body. Her shoulders relaxed, her gestures flowed naturally, and suddenly she wasn’t shy anymore. She was radiant. Outgoing. Glittery, as she described it herself – but only among people who felt safe, of course.
She got a little teary as she shared that this was the first time in her life she had felt safe in her own body.
And I’ll admit it – I got teary too. Watching her transformation in real time, seeing her reclaim a sense of safety and possibility, moved me to tears. I’ve never felt so in line with my purpose and zone of genius. This is the work I was born to do: helping LGBTQ+ business owners untangle shame, claim their true identities, and build businesses rooted in who they actually are.
Because here’s the truth: If you’re queer or questioning, your confidence issues aren’t just about mindset. They’re about a lifetime of being told – subtly or overtly – that you’re too much, too confusing, too weird, or just wrong. That shit lodges deep in your nervous system, and it will keep you stuck until you find a space where your whole self is safe to come out.
Why Work With a LGBTQ Business Coach Who Gets It
She chose to talk to me about her queer identification process specifically because she knew I’d walked a similar path. I wasn’t going to shame her confusion or rush her into a label that didn’t fit. I wasn’t going to bypass her trauma with some “just be confident!” bullshit.
If you’re reading this and you’re queer or questioning, please know this:
You deserve to feel safe in your body. You deserve to feel proud of your identity, even if you don’t have the perfect label for it yet. And you deserve to build your business from a place of authenticity rather than fear.
If you’re ready for that kind of transformation – if you’re ready to go from hunched and hidden to grounded, glittery, and proud – I’d love to work with you.
Because your queerness isn’t a liability in business. It’s your fucking superpower.
Yeah, I want to work with you if this resonates. Hit me up.
