When Karen Oliver, 31, lost her job due to illness, she turned her health blog into a coaching business to support those struggling with eating disorders.
She’s now studying Psychology part-time with The Open University and says the support she’s received as a busy entrepreneur and single parent is taking her business to the next level.
“The support, resources, and advice I’ve received from The Open University as a student entrepreneur have been a game-changer for my business,” said Karen.
“The OU is set up and designed for distance learning, so I knew I would be well supported. I can fit my studies around all my other commitments as a single parent and business owner.”
Taking on a new business venture
Karen previously trained as a social worker and was inspired to begin documenting her own struggles with body image and disordered eating.
“I started Beyond The Bathroom Scale in 2012 as a health blog during my first degree. I saw it as a hobby at the time, but later, when I lost my job due to illness I began to think about my business more seriously as I needed to make money from home, often while in a hospital bed,” she said.
Karen’s business soon evolved and she was inspired to create a series of affordable, simple self-help tools to support those wanting to ‘make peace with food and their body’. Her business now provides a range of services from an award-winning coaching programme to digital therapy resources and an intuitive eating app.
Karen’s next step is to expand her business into private practice so she can provide tailored one-on-one support.
“I realised the moments I loved most in my social work job were the deep conversations I had with service users. I decided I wanted to pivot my career from social work into psychotherapy so during lockdown I chose to study a Psychology degree part-time alongside a CPCAB counselling course at my local college,” she said.
Balancing business, parenting and study
As a busy student, mum and CEO, Karen says that planning her time is vital to fit everything into her packed schedule.
“I try to fit my studies and business activities into the school hours or after 8pm when my son is in bed,” she said. “I set goals and plan for the month ahead and then break this down into actionable tasks for each week. I also use a project management tool, Asana, to keep track of my daily business tasks.”
Karen says that having a supportive student community has also been vital to keep her motivated and help spot new opportunities for her business.
“I am part of a lovely study community on Instagram and I’ve connected with graduate psychologists who have offered invaluable advice on training and setting up private practices.
“Everyone at the OU is supportive, friendly and eager to share advice and resources to help other,” she added.
Finding light through darker times
Though Karen chose to study to advance in her career, she admits she didn’t realise how much it would positively impact her personal life.
“At the time of enrolling, I had suffered a severe mental health breakdown following the death of my father and my divorce in the same year, just before the pandemic hit,” she said.
“I felt very anxious, depressed, and withdrawn as a person. I felt like a ghost of the person I was when working in social services. A year later, I can honestly say that returning to my studies gave me a source of hope for my future, support for my business and ambitions, and has thrown me a rope to pull me out of what was a dark place.”
As she progresses through her degree, Karen is now looking forward to expanding her coaching company and developing a business idea close to her heart.
“I had the idea to set up a specialist mental health service to help people with eating disorders, something I experienced myself as a student during my first degree,” she said. “I want students to be able to access support from the comfort of their phones, without long waiting lists or fees.”
Karen says that the OU careers team has been invaluable in helping her develop this idea further, suggesting resources, additional training courses and opportunities like the OU’s annual Student Entrepreneur Competition, through which she won a £1,500 grant from Santander Universities.
Advice for fellow entrepreneurs
It’s opportunities like this that Karen advises all students to seize to help make the most of their studies:
“My advice for OU students is to keep an eye out for opportunities within the University alongside your degree. Being at university is about so much more than the qualification you are studying towards.
“Make connections, form friendships online, seek advice from all the services offered by the University and throw yourself into it to get the most out of the next few years – they will go very fast!”
LEARN MORE
- Inspired by Karen’s story? Visit the ‘Entrepreneurs Hub’ from the OU Careers & Employability Services team on how to start your business and the support available
- Take a free OpenLearn Entrepreneurship short course to help you transform your business idea into a reality
