Graphic with the Collective Agency logo and the title “Behind The Business” in bold red text. Subheading in yellow says “Sharing Our Story,” with smaller blue text reading “Introducing The ROOTS Methodology™.” On the right side, a blurred background shows a woman speaking on camera, with the camera screen in focus displaying her image. Colorful abstract shapes decorate the corners.
The ROOTS Methodology™
Welcome to the final installment in our Getting to Know Us series. Today, we’re sharing the foundation of our work: the methodology that guides Collective Agency™. If you’ve been wondering what makes our approach different, this one’s for you.
How Our Approach Took Shape
As conversations about mental health, identity, and hustle culture began to shift, more entrepreneurs started seeking support that honored their whole selves, not just their business goals. During our time at the NH Women’s Business Center, we supported hundreds of clients each year. But behind every data point was a person trying to build a business while caregiving, healing, or navigating systems that weren’t designed for them.
What they needed wasn’t just more information. They needed more humanity, space to weave who they are into their business, and to be celebrated for it.
The more we listened, the clearer it became: we were missing a map that aligned with human life, not just business plans. We drew inspiration from our experiences in business advising and mental health, our work with systems change and trauma-informed care, and from models like social permaculture. Over time, our observations, questions, and lived experiences came together into what we now call the ROOTS Methodology™.
A split image showing two contrasting scenes. On the left, a hand points to a sketched corporate org chart on a whiteboard filled with many boxes representing employees. A pink text box at the bottom says: “Solopreneur = All the boxes in the org chart.” At the top left, bold text reads “POV:”. On the right, a man works on a laptop at a desk in his living room while holding a toddler on his lap, with a sofa, lamp, and coffee table in the background. A pink text box above him says: “But it’s just you and… the daycare called. Solopreneur Next Level.” In the bottom corner is the Collective Agency logo.
It's Clear that a New Approach is Needed
Traditional western systems often demand that entrepreneurs fit a mold or follow a linear path. But we saw folks get stuck not because they didn’t try hard enough or have the right expertise, but because those models didn’t reflect their reality.
We needed something that honored complexity, invited vulnerability, allowed for rest, and supported the joy that can come from connected entrepreneurship. Something that supported sustainable businesses and healthier humans. Something that made it easier to be in relationship with self, with others, and with the broader ecosystem.
So we started asking better questions:
What does it look like to build a business that energizes us, not burns us out?
How do we support others without becoming the bottleneck?
What did we do differently with the clients who found clarity and success?
The answer to these types of questions shaped the values that are the core of our approach.
What the ROOTS Methodology Offers
Our approach centers trust, collaboration, and care. We value depth over speed, alignment over urgency, and sustainability over quick fixes.
At the core are five guiding pillars we use across our work:
Reflect™ – Build self-awareness and reconnect with your purpose and environment.
Orient™ – Clarify your customer, goals, values, and place in the ecosystem.
Organize™ – Design systems that work for your life, not just your task list.
Tend™ – Practice ongoing care, recalibration, and repair.
Sustain™ – Grow with intention on your own terms, not someone else’s timeline.
When applied together, the ROOTS Methodology supports entrepreneurs to grow businesses that are financially viable, personally fulfilling, and socially impactful.
ROOTS in Practice
The ROOTS Methodology informs everything we do — from educational peer programs to collaborations with resource partners. Whether someone is just starting out or rebuilding after a major change, ROOTS helps them orient, organize, and move forward with confidence, clarity, and community support.
Our current offerings reflect this:
Empowered Business Practices™ — practical sessions to help with task flow, strategies for deep care, and tapping into your unique power.
Groundwork Circles™ — shared learning and accountability rooted in trust and relationship.
Community Pop-Ups™ — connection points between entrepreneurs and the broader support ecosystem.
And when our guided resource roadmap and online community launch, they will continue to draw from the ROOTS Methodology so entrepreneurs can engage on their own terms and in their own time alongside others walking the path.
If ROOTS Were a Conversation
A graphic with a large orange quotation mark outline framing the text: “It would feel like someone who celebrates your brilliance, invites your questions, and gently reminds you to rest.” The words “celebrates your brilliance” and “reminds you to rest” are bolded in dark blue. Behind the text is a semi-transparent flower graphic in coral and gold. At the bottom right, small text reads: “@our_collective_agency” with the Instagram icon.
The ROOTS Methodology is a reflection of everything we’ve learned from business owners like you. Born from our own experiences of starting over, not just professionally, but personally, it’s how we hold both care and clarity. And it’s how we hope to contribute to a more humane and empowering small business ecosystem.
We’d love to hear your reflections: What grounds you? What are your ROOTS?
In Community,
Tricia + Chandra
Collective Agency
