Dawn Abbott: Turning Grief into Gratitude

On this episode of the Growing with Purpose podcast, host Paul Spiegelman speaks with Dawn Abbott. Dawn is an author, EOS implementer, and owner of three businesses: Fun Productions, Connections Team Building, and Abbott Coaching.    Early on in their marriage, Dawn and her husband, Tim, knew that they weren’t going to be able to get where they wanted to go in life by working for others. So, they saw a niche and a need in the special events space and created Fun Productions, an amusement rental company.   In 2013, with their two sons both about to be in college, Dawn and Tim thought they were ready to slow things down. However, life had other plans, and Dawn became pregnant with their third child, who she calls her “accidental blessing”. Tragically, only several months after their daughter was born, Tim died in a boating accident. Before Dawn knew it, her life was flipped on its head, and she had no capacity to run her business.   But her employees stepped up and helped carry the company through this tough time, teaching Dawn some valuable lessons about gratitude, leadership, and the importance of a strong culture. From there, she made significant changes to focus on caring for her team, a move that not only felt better, but worked better financially.    Tune into this episode to hear Paul and Dawn discuss the difficulty of losing someone close as well as a business partner, how EOS has shaped Dawn’s view on business, and having her eldest son take the reins of the company.    Show Notes: 4:43 - When life flipped on its head 9:45 - Walking in the light of gratitude 17:15 - Early influences & experiences 21:13 - Family transitions 26:05 - “Your Life Is Not a To-Do List”