My Business Journey With… Louise Chunn

I studied history at the University of Auckland before moving to London in 1982. I immediately started working in the media and worked for several big magazines in the 80s and 90s. During my time as a journalist, I edited Just Seventeen, ES Magazine, InStyle and Good Housekeeping, and was the deputy editor of Vogue. I also worked at the Guardian, before becoming the editor of Psychologies magazine. I always knew I wanted to go into journalism – my father was a doctor but he encouraged me to pursue a career in writing. Having worked in the industry for over 35 years I was lucky enough to work with some great people along the way, and I might still be doing that now if I hadn’t decided to try something else.
 
 
There were several reasons why I decided to step away from journalism. Like many journalists, I’ve been made redundant a few times which was emotionally and psychologically hard. When you’re in your 50s and being made redundant, it’s already a difficult time – getting older, working in a young person’s world and seeing your children grow up. I also felt as though print publications were changing and it would be a good time to step down and try something else. One thing I quickly realised was that I needed to do something online. I didn’t know how to do it, so it was a case of going back to basics. To get some online experience, I became an intern for a woman who was once an intern at a magazine I edited.
 
 
When I left Psychologies magazine, my husband and I were discussing my next steps, when we had a bit of a lightbulb moment in the middle of the night. He said: ‘Do you remember when you wanted to see a therapist but didn’t know how to find one? Why don’t you do something like Match.com, but for therapists?’ And that was where the idea came from. After my own experience, I wanted to make it simpler for others to find the right therapist or counsellor. Therapy is expensive and takes a lot of time, but it can be very effective and is often lifechanging. But you’ve got to find the right person, which can take time.
 
 
We started taking on therapists in 2014 and in the beginning I was doing everything on my own with the help of one intern. I managed to get a place on a Google course for ‘founders over 50’ where I was chosen to take part in a business course in Silicon Valley. It was an amazing opportunity for start-up businesses where we learned how to present ourselves for possible investment. During this time, I also launched and edited a new magazine, Planet Mindful, which I worked on part-time. It was a challenge juggling both at the same time, so when the business grew, I decided to commit myself to Welldoing full-time.
 
 
We spotted a gap in the market for the business and ran with it. Welldoing is based on a ‘therapeutic alliance’ – the technical term for the match between the client and the therapist. Finding a therapist can take a long time, so we wanted to make the process as simple as possible. We built a questionnaire and algorithm that makes it possible to sidestep the jargon and find people a match. We also have personalised matching where people can tell us their availability, what type of therapy they want and their budget. Because mental health has become a critical issue in recent years, there are lots of services to choose from, but ours is a good choice for people who want expert advice. Clients can re-match up to five times in order to find a therapist or counsellor who’s right for them.

I found the transition from being a journalist to a business owner rather tricky at times. I’d gone from being in a team to largely working on my own. It was also eye-opening to not have a stable income – when you have a business, you don’t pay yourself for quite a while, which took some time to get used to. Having to live off very little and being reliant on my partner was sometimes difficult, too.
 
 
I had the confidence to start the business as I’d seen other people launch their own projects. Also, my parents had done similar things when I was younger – my father was a GP for 15 years then decided to become the first allergist in New Zealand. He had to completely retrain as well as uproot the family out of our suburban house to a much smaller apartment. Similarly, my mother had been a nurse for many years then started her own business that sourced locums for therapists. They weren’t the most natural business people in the world, but they both made a success of it.
 
 
There were times when I was worried the business wasn’t going to be a success, but I think that’s natural for any business owner. You’ve got to keep the worry in check, but it keeps you focused and gives you energy to keep going and put in the work. Luckily, I’ve never lost the energy to keep it up. Often, you’ve got to convince other people that you have a great idea and you’re confident in it, so you have to back yourself. Around 90% of start-ups fail but I didn’t know that at the time which, in hindsight, was a good thing. 
 
 
I think the business has been successful because people have realised that therapy can be beneficial in lots of different circumstances. It’s not just for those who are having a breakdown or have a terrible diagnosis; it can also be incredibly useful if you’re going through a period of transition, for example. I’ve had therapy through divorce, redundancy, mid-life and, when my mother passed away, I had bereavement counselling. It can help someone understand themselves and find out what can trigger certain things in their life. We also have a great range of different therapists, and we make it easy for clients to find the right person for them.
 
 
The one thing I wish I’d known when I was starting out was the importance of having a good team. At the top, especially, you need a few people for things to work. One of my mentors pointed out early on that I didn’t have a partner, so one of the first things I did was try to build a good team. After having a few partners, I now have a great partner who is the chairman of the board. I also wish I’d known that there are tech people out there who can help you along each step of the way. It can be daunting when you don’t have first-hand experience in something, but enlisting a third-party company to help you with the tech side of things is so beneficial. 
 
 
I try to stay energised working full time, but to be honest, it’s not always easy! I am working from home at the moment, and I keep office hours, starting around 9am and then stopping for a proper lunch with my husband and 20-year-old daughter. It’s a chance to stop thinking about the business and shift the focus to more ordinary things. In the same way, I benefit from walking or running before work starts and doing a short Adrienne Mishler yoga session at the end. I think energy flags when you are doing the same thing all the time. You have to mix it up, and that includes not doing end-to-end Zoom calls, taking time out to read a chapter of a book or phone a friend. Everyone has struggled with exhaustion over the lockdown, and I think many of us are finding it hard to bounce back with the energy we had before.