Aimee Odette builds coaching and community ventures after USC career

Former USC social work professor Aimee Odette, DSW, has launched a coaching practice for women in transition while continuing to expand her Venice, Florida, businesses. Her work ties together social work, entrepreneurship and a focus on sustainable self-care. Why it matters: - Aimee Odette is trying to widen how women think about support during major life changes. - Her coaching model ties self-care to career, relationships, environment and purpose, not just physical wellness. - Her move from academia to entrepreneurship shows how social work skills can translate into direct community services. What happened: - Aimee Odette, DSW, stepped away from higher education after 13 years in academia. - Odette most recently served as an Associate Professor of Teaching at the University of Southern California’s Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work. - In 2026, Odette launched a coaching practice for women navigating transitions such as career changes, divorce and loss. - Odette also offers a free monthly women’s group focused on self-care and holistic wellness. - In Venice, Florida, Odette and her husband co-founded a local bookstore and expanded it twice in five years. - The couple bought a local art gallery three years ago. - Her community voted Odette Businesswoman of the Year. The details: - Odette has nearly three decades of experience as a social worker. - She began her career after earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work in 1996. - Her academic work focused on preparing future social workers and teaching professional self-care. - Odette’s teaching emphasized sustainable practices for helping professionals working in high-stress environments. - Her coaching practice offers individualized support for women facing personal and professional transitions. - Her group sessions address environmental, intellectual, relational and vocational health. - Odette’s approach reflects a broader view of self-care than traditional physical wellness. - Her entrepreneurial work is rooted in local businesses that she sees as spaces for connection and cultural enrichment. Between the lines: - Odette’s career shift suggests a broader effort to turn social work principles into a business model. - Her focus on sustainable care systems lines up with a central challenge in helping professions: burnout. - She frames imposter syndrome as a “beginner’s mindset,” which turns uncertainty into a learning tool. - Odette credits relationships, mentorship and community trust for much of her success. - Her mother’s advice to acknowledge people with eye contact and a greeting became a guiding professional habit. - Odette sees authenticity, honesty and integrity as the values that shape her work and decisions. What’s next: - Odette plans to keep building her coaching practice for women navigating change. - She will continue to link education, entrepreneurship and community leadership through her Venice-based ventures. - Odette is positioning her work around long-term resilience, not short-term fixes. The bottom line: - Aimee Odette is turning decades of social work experience into a coaching and community-centered business aimed at helping women sustain themselves through change. More information