[REAL TALK] - Is it worth it?
Recently, I sent this out in my email broadcast, but I've had so many conversations with folks this week about the same thing, it seems worth repeating here. Good News/Bad News: your fear and doubt are not special or unique. What you're feeling isn't your fear, it's The Fear. We all have it. The difference is the extent to which it's running the show.
I hear from people all the time who share a common dilemma - they really want to work with a coach, they know it's going to make all the difference, but they’re not sure it’s worth the money.
They wonder, “Will it work for me? Will I be able to follow through? Will I make the changes I'm investing in, or will I just keep doing the same old things, using the same excuses?”
I get it. I really do. Before I hired my first coach, I was worried about exactly the same things.
Maybe you’ve already paid for a bunch of self-help, and career/business development things (books, workshops, retreats, online programs, etc), and you haven’t made the most of them. You haven't followed through, and you haven’t applied what you learned. +hand raised+ Yep, me too.
I could go on and on about why coaching works, and why I’m great at what I do. Instead, I want to share something I received recently. This made me absolutely GLOW! Not because I'm awesome (although, I am +wink+), but because THIS is why it's worth it.
I'd gotten an email from a potential client asking if she could speak with some of my current clients. I gave her a couple options, based on the things she wanted to work on, and then made the introductions.
Below are the questions she asked, followed by the responses offered by someone who was part of my WildFire Group Coaching Program, as well as a 1-1 client. I couldn’t have said it better myself. <3
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- Could you tell me about your overall experience working with Angie?
“So happy to e-meet you and talk about coaching with Angie. I really love personal development work, and have done the most growth in my adult life in my work with Angie, so I'm always happy to talk about it!
From first meeting Angie, I knew she had an energy I couldn't ignore, I have always felt so seen and heard by her.
When it came to working with her, she was always incredibly open, honest and patient with me, but kindly firm. From the beginning, I loved that she could hear what I was really saying, and press on the right things, asking deep questions to help me get me to the bottom of something I was trying to figure out. I had many, many epiphanies and huge awakening moments throughout our sessions.
Our one-on-one work has been incredible, she helped me get so clear on who I am, what I want, and how to plan it out.
Our group work was also really powerful, the way she led the program was so intentional, honest, strong and empowering. I know it sounds gushy, but her personality is just the best for coaching - strong but gentle, smart but humble, kick-ass action and soulful thoughtfulness.”
- What do you accomplish in your coaching sessions that you cannot do without her?
“I am terrible at accountability and follow through. I really need accountability to get anything actually done. I'm a big ideas person, and can go mile a minute on the creation end, but then get overwhelmed and don’t follow things through or achieve outcomes, especially on my creative projects.
She helped me harness the big ideas, pick the main ones that are most important, and then create an action plan for making them happen.
One project in particular I have been thinking/planning for years! She pushed me to pick a date for a trial run, and by doing that, I actually did the trial run! It’s now the most proud I've ever been of a project idea, and I will be launching it properly in 2018. She gave me the accountability to realize an idea I had been putting off for years.
The other thing she’s helped me accomplish is breaking down fear blocks, scarcity mindset, imposter syndrome - all that stuff. Reminding me that I'm a powerhouse that absolutely should put my work in the world!”
- Do you feel more confident that you are taking the right steps with her guidance?
“‘Taking the right steps’ is such an interesting phrase, because the short answer is YES absolutely. But more importantly, I think she has helped me uncover what the 'right' steps are and what the best steps are for me. With the start of the new year, I’m re-grouping on my goals and using all the frameworks we laid out in our sessions which feels awesome!”
- How has she been able to help you choose a focus and stay motivated?
"I was in a job I hated, mostly due to the people, but also because of the whole culture and industry. I was too scared to do anything about it. Angie helped me see what parts I liked, what my true skills were, and how worthy I was of a job I loved that I could balance with my creative work goals.
Through visualizing and working toward this other opportunity, I applied for and interviewed for things I wouldn't normally have gone for. That confidence and clarity meant I landed a job with a small start-up that I completely love! I was able to quit the job I hated, and feel freer and braver about doing that.
I had an overwhelming sense of lost-ness and like I had abandoned who I really was. That’s why I reached out to her in the first place. I now feel more clear and focused, and therefore brave and empowered, than I ever have. Its hard to explain, but the way she phrased things or delved into things got me to a place of certainty and self compassion that I don't think I’ve ever had before.
I felt so self-sabotaging before, and now I feel like I'm really backing myself.
I know this sounds crazy, but so much of my personal and family life has improved over the past few months as well. I can pin-point moments where career and creative project clarity and action have made my personal relationships better or healthier. I did not expect that, but it is one hell of a bonus!”
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I want to share this with you because I am you. Even though I’m a badass coach and human, I struggle with the same things! You’re not weak for feeling this way. Needing accountability, and a fresh perspective to see your own ideas & opportunities more clearly, is 100% normal.
I cannot, and do not, do what I do by myself. I need support too - someone who is not my friend, not my mom, not my partner, not my therapist - someone who has no judgement or stake in what I do or don’t do, who doesn’t make it about them, and who is only there to help me see more clearly and hear my own voice.
If you’ve read this far, and you want to know more, you have absolutely nothing to lose. Use this link to schedule a totally no-strings-attached call with me right now. You do not have to figure all this out by yourself.
If you’re fed up, and ready to expand your world of “what’s possible”, I’m ready to do that with you. I am SO lit up right now; I’m expanding, too. I’ve got space to take on 1-2 new clients. Is it time for you to take the leap of faith?
If you're waiting to be "ready", that's exactly what you'll keep doing - waiting. We make the path by walking it. Of this, I am certain. There is no other way.
Thanks so much for being on this journey with me. When you show up, you allow me to be in my purpose. That is truly the greatest gift I could receive.
- Angie Cole
Writer, Wanderer, Wonderer, Guide