Tracy Borgmeyer is an incredible example of how anyone with a message to share with the world can write a book and launch something incredible—even with three little ones at home!
The path to a new venture is never a straight line, and Tracy certainly didn’t start out as a writer or a speaker.
Actually, she started out as a chemical engineer for a big oil company in Texas. She was one of the few female chemical engineers at her company, and even though she knew there it would be an upstream swim, she moved up in the company for nine years.
With her good sense of humor and sharp engineering skills, Tracy made her way to management level engineering and would often hop on the company helicopter and fly out to the Gulf Coast to check on the offshore oil rig that she was in charge of—talk about being a role model for young women engineers!
But she wanted to have children, too. When she had her first baby girl, she tried balancing work and family, but she wasn’t happy with that arrangement, so she quit to stay at home. She loved being a mom, but could she be a mom and something else? Something that didn't involve being away from home 60+ hours per week?
When baby #3 was on the way, Tracy started seriously asking herself, “What do I want to contribute to the world?” She’d started a blog that documented the science experiments that she was doing with her oldest daughter, but she wanted to affect the world in a much bigger way.
She kept dreaming of writing a book.
But she had no idea where to start.
I actually met Tracy in a mom’s group. We’d bring our kids on a Friday morning to play together, while we moms talked and dreamed. Tracy and I got to know each other, I told her that I’m a writing coach who helps people write books, and her eyes got real wide, real fast.
She said, “I think I want to write a book! How do I do that?”
Let's just say that we became friends very quickly. While the other moms were talking about preschools, we were talking about writing habits, memoirs by famous authors, and brilliant marketing ideas.
We went out to a dinner at a French restaurant (real table clothes and no kids!), and Tracy officially said that start writing her book, and she brought me on as her coach to help her write, edit, finish, and launch her book. It’s been one of the most rewarding book projects I’ve ever worked on because I got to see every step of the way in person (even while kiddos tugged at our pant legs during coaching sessions).
Now, Tracy is a published author and rapidly growing a speaking career.
Earlier this year, Tracy released her first book, She Loves Science: A Mother’s Guide to Nurturing the Curiosity, Confidence, and Creativity of Her Daughter. It’s available in e-book and paperback form at the Amazon store. (Right here!)
Within about six weeks of publishing her book, Tracy had been interviewed by some of the largest radio stations in Houston and invited to do three speaking gigs, and the opportunities continue to just land in her lap. Plus, she has her book in local brick and mortar stores, which is every author’s dream!
What began as a simple blog of science experiments is growing into a full-fledged movement of women who want to raise daughter confident enough to go into science and engineering, and Tracy is leading the charge. Every day, I am in awe of Tracy and all that she's accomplished.
Tracy might not have known all this would happen because of her book, but she is courageous because she took that first step.
I think what makes Tracy so inspiring is that she knew that she’d left corporate engineering but she also knew that there had to be some other way to make an impact in the world. She had a vision for how her book could start a movement of science-loving moms, but she didn’t know what would happen.
She took courageous, committed action, day after day, month after month, and now she’s seeing it all come together more beautifully that she ever could have imagined.
I’d like to let Tracy tell a bit of her own writing journey.
Here’s a video of Tracy telling you exactly how her writing journey went—the highs and the lows—and I hope that you’ll be inspired by her and realize that you are just as able to take courageous, committed action toward your dream, today.
Watch Tracy’s writing journey here:
Are you ready to write your own book?
I’m currently taking on writing coaching clients. So, if you have a book that you think could launch something big—a business, a platform, or a movement—check out how you and I could work together on your book, right here.