Six Years of Purposeful Transformation: Reflections from the Chrysalis

6 years ago today, I took the leap and launched my HR consulting business.

When I focused on how I wanted to make a difference, this quote, which inspired me from the first time I read it nearly 40 years ago, was what resonated with me.

“Treat others as if they were what they ought to be and you help them to become what they’re capable of being.” - Goethe

By resonate, I mean that everything lined up and hummed together with a shared purpose. And I was inspired to call my company Chrysalis HR Consulting.

I shared with my daughter the name that had come to me. Later that week, when I picked her up from summer camp, she handed me her finished art project. I was so touched that she had designed and embroidered a logo for me! (You can see it above.) And then she told me this story.

When coming up with the design, she researched other companies called chrysalis. She shared that while all of their websites had butterflies, none of them had an actual chrysalis -- the place of metamorphosis where a caterpillar transforms into a butterfly.

As a mom, my heart was now swelling with love and gratitude and amazement at this unique human being in my life. It was a reminder that her distinctive perspective took me in a direction that I never would have imagined.

She was about 2 weeks away from beginning high school. Her chrysalis moment was underway. If middle school transformed her from being a 6th grade girl to an 8th grade young woman, high school was going to take her even further, to becoming a young adult.

This was fall 2019. At that time, none of us knew that by spring break, we’d be in lockdown due to a global pandemic. It was an event that would shift her trajectory and ultimately lead her down a path that resonated with her.

At the same time, my chrysalis moment was coming. As a mom, my role was shifting: to prepare her to be a responsible and self-sufficient adult. As a solopreneur, I was navigating my own path of how to be a consultant in a different way. I was developing relationships to support my clients with achieving their goals -- by listening to them and then helping them to create organizational structures that are aligned with their culture, meet their business needs, and ensure compliance with the employment laws that apply to them.

I didn’t know at that time that I’d find my purpose working with small businesses and nonprofits. As I began working with business owners and executive directors, I blended my HR consulting expertise with my coaching skills to support them in the way that was best for each of them.

I found my purpose: focusing on culture, policy and people development. And I learned that I can make HR fun and easy to understand.

Looking back over the past 6 years, I’ve had the wonderful experience of meeting new people, reconnecting with colleagues, and learning about the work being done in our community to serve and support others. I’ve also been able to create my own path, one that I hadn’t seen precisely where it would lead.

I understand now that these chrysalis moments will be ongoing. Around every corner is a new opportunity to transform into something that I didn’t yet know would exist.

Each of us has these moments of transformation. What’s your chrysalis moment?

Nicole Norian is the founder of Chrysalis HR Consulting, an experienced HR leader, and a certified executive coach. With over three decades of HR expertise and a deep commitment to helping individuals and organizations thrive, she has dedicated her career to empowering leaders and fostering dynamic, mission-driven cultures.