Donovan Maycock is a functional medicine certified health coach, a National Board certified health and wellness coach, and a certified nutrition wellness consultant. He has been working in nutrition as the co-founder of his own business for over a decade. He first studied finance, then became interested in the area of nutrition and weight loss. He decided to switch careers  create his own program called Perfect Solutions with his wife. The program is whole foods based and teaches clients to move away from processed foods to improve their health, something Donovan is passionate about. Working directly with people, helping them make changes and keeping them motivated keeps him constantly inspired in his business.

Donovan found Meal Garden after searching for and trying out many different meal planning tools. None of them provided the whole food based recipe database he was looking for. He finally found Meal Garden and appreciated the large recipe bank of recipes free of processed foods. He also uses the ability to tweak recipes and make them ‘Donovan approved.’ Meal Garden helps him put together tailored programs as well as augment nutrition education with his clients. He suggests new users start using the large collection of ready to go meal plans and make any necessary changes to start. After getting familiar with this, try creating your own plans from scratch.

What makes his program different and so successful? Donovan believes it is his 1 on 1 relationship with his clients and his ability to truly guide them through the process. Unlike programs that simply give information, Donovan gets to know his clients so he can truly help them.

When asked for words of wisdom for fellow nutrition professionals, Donovan had a ton! Here are some secrets of success after over a decade in the industry:

• Don’t get caught up in making the ‘perfect plan,’ remember, if clients won’t follow it, it won’t be useful for them no matter how good it is
• Be clear about what you want to accomplish with your clients. Avoid telling clients what to do, let them know why they might make one decision over another
• Understand your clients and where they are coming from
• Be sure to keep foods your clients enjoy in their meal plans. If you’re trying to help with lifestyle changes, you have to suggest the types of recipes they will enjoy long term, not leave them feeling deprived
• Ask clients for feedback, and use that feedback to make your work better
• Always remember what drives you and let that be your motivation
• Happy clients are better referral sources than marketing ads- don’t waste your money!
• Focus on science and health, avoid fads
• There are tons of nutrition professionals, so find your niche and think about what makes you different
• Talk the talk- if you are suggesting certain practices to your client, you should be able to do them yourself

Donovan is still excited by clients achieving success like making healthy diet changes to increase whole foods, reduce blood pressure and reduce the need for medication. On the opposite side, helping clients through behavioural change and maintaining his role as a health coach are often difficult. Clients may need the expert opinion of many different professionals, and remembering to stay in your lane can be a challenge. Clients truly do struggle, and while helping them through it is challenging, seeing them get through it is rewarding.

He works with tons of delicious recipes, but one of his favorites is the DA Java Chip Smoothie because it’s a healthy snack that’s also a bit of a treat!

Donovan Maycock, Client Engagement, Getting Started, growing your business

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