At a crossroads in her career and found a big surprise through coaching
“A few years ago, I was feeling an itch in my life. I was at a crossroads in my career, and I felt like I needed to go…where? I knew I wanted to make a change, but I just couldn’t put my finger on what that was or what it would look like. I’d been a teacher for many years, and while I loved the satisfaction of working with children, there was a little voice in the back of my mind, that asked: ‘Is this it? Is there, maybe, something MORE for me?’ I was also concerned that teaching didn’t adequately provide for my family. As a single mom of two teenagers, I was still dependent on alimony and child support to supplement my monthly income so I could meet my expenses.
A friend suggested I try career counseling to help point me in the right direction. I met with a career specialist, who was excited to help me revamp my resume and market myself for the new career. But what was that new career? The career specialist pronounced me ‘unready’ for her services and referred me to Michelle – stating that Michelle was great at getting to the bottom of where the client needed to go – and she would be happy to work with me when I knew where I was headed.
I started working with Michelle, certain that we would quickly discover my secret passions, she would pronounce me ready for a career in ‘X’, and I would be ready for marketing and resumes in no time.
But I did not plan for Michelle. In her wisdom, she could see that there was a long road in front of me before I reached my destination. Michelle sees the whole client, not just the skills on a resume, and what she saw when she looked at me told her there was a lot of work to be done before I was ready to take on a new career. Using a variety of exercises and assignments, Michelle helped me wade through and clear out a lot of personal ‘noise’ that had to be processed before I could hear my true calling.
As I worked through each exercise, Michelle supported me in every way possible. She restated my conclusions into terms I could hear and understand, and she gently pushed me to dig deeper with each succeeding assignment. It was always so great to hear her joyful, ‘Yeah!’ during a coaching call when I stumbled upon a particularly insightful nugget, and I felt validated throughout the entire process. Michelle gently guided me, never judging, never pushing, always working with the flow of where I was along the path, rather than rigidly making a plan and sticking to it, no matter what. One of the most powerful exercises she walked me through involved saying ‘goodbye’ to things in my life that weren’t working, and replacing those things with ‘hello’ statements – sort of affirmations of different parts of my life. Three years later, I still reread those ‘hello’ statements on a regular basis. And I will be forever grateful for Michelle’s guidance in the creation of my Life Purpose Statement.
Imagine my surprise when I concluded that I did want another career…just not yet. That the itch I was feeling was the need to find myself in all the static, rather than ‘another career’. That I was in the right place for the current needs of myself and my family at that time.
In the end, I made many discoveries about myself, my values, and goals for my life. Michelle’s guidance was invaluable and came at just the right time for me. As I edge closer to the next crossroads in my life, I will continue to keep Michelle on my team. I am so grateful she has chosen to relentlessly pursue her own joy, as it has grown exponentially. Meeting and reading about all the women she has influenced is a creative inspiration, and I am lucky to count myself among their number.”
