Time for a Shift

Career Focus
21 April 2024

It’s time. Time for a shift. I’ve been feeling it for a while but have resisted. I don’t want to give up the old but I know I must in order to make way for the new.

Homeostasis kept me hiding in the comfortable, chugging along, waiting for the “new” to present itself. Now it’s apparent. The new has revealed itself. In its revealing, I’ve realized what needs to happen: it’s time to end my weekly blogs.

I’ve played around the edges of this for a while, hinting at it here and there, yet I refused to give up the familiar. Weekly writing created a cadence that brought structure to my life as I transitioned from working at companies with set hours and processes to working for myself.

Adversity

Seneca said, “No man is more unhappy than he who never faces adversity. For he is not permitted to prove himself.”

I’ve faced adversity the past few years. Until I actually had to build my own business from scratch, I didn’t – couldn’t – truly appreciate what it means to create something from the ground up.

I found tools to assemble what I needed, exercises, visualizations, assessments, and so on. Studied mindset and leadership. Learned about business development, marketing, and, yes, even accounting which, as anyone who knows me can attest, is not my strong suit!

Insights Gained

I needed these challenges to become who I am today. Writing Life fully loved helped me develop my thought leadership on coaching. Using Arthur Brooks’s language in From Strength to Strength, it helped me transfer from fluid intelligence to crystallized intelligence. In consequence, I’m stronger nowadays than I was when I started this business. Definitely more confident.

I know now that you can do what you love and get paid for it. I had a mistaken belief that I’d be poor if I actually did what I wanted. Sounds crazy but I had a lot of messed-up beliefs, particularly around money.

It’s been fun, too. I feel more connected, whole, and open in a way I never did before. I can be my authentic self, without a filter. HR and project management contained elements of who I was but they served a larger purpose, for me to become a coach. In hindsight, I can see that I was always slightly filtered wearing those lenses.

My Vision

I want to build a kinder, gentler world. That’s my vision. My way of doing it is through people. Making sure they’re doing what they’re meant to do and, if not, helping them find what fulfils them.

Next, I want to get the right people on the bus, as Jim Collins says in Good to Great, by putting the right leaders in the right organizations for them, meaning ones in which they experience a cultural fit.

Finally, I enjoy developing these leaders through coaching so they can be the best they can be. It’s very clear there isn’t one type of leader that succeeds. There are many types and their success comes from knowing who they are and what they want.

“A rising tide lifts all boats,” as Kennedy said.

By nurturing my clients, they build the capacity to fulfil their visions. It’s a positive, virtuous cycle that I know will make the world a better place, one filled with abundance, not scarcity, compassion, not judgement.

Life fully loved

Next week, I’ll explain where this blog is heading but today was about sharing my journey. I’ve loved it – the writing, podcast, and videos – and love you for joining me. May you all find ways to lead a life fully loved. I’ve found mine.

You have to be open minded in order to grow. The coaching that Laura gave me opened my eyes to what and how I was doing things and allowed me to see the bigger picture. I am not done yet but I already see the changes in my everyday life.
MM

I think coaching is a great way to help you clear your mind when you get stuck with overwhelming situations or when stepping into changes in your life.
MO

Coaching is life changing. It pushes you outside your comfort zone and challenges your perspectives. It is highly motivating and the exercises and techniques used are both fun and informative. I think the main benefits of coaching are to see yourself, others and the world more clearly. I think coaching is valuable to anyone regardless of where you are in your life or career.
LE

I honestly never thought I’d need a coach. I thought coaching was for CEOs and industry VIPs. I didn’t think it was for the “little guys” (i.e. me). Now, I’m of the belief that everyone – yes, EVERYONE – needs a coach. Coaching has really benefitted me and I’m so grateful to have had that time with Laura. It’s changed my life!
VB

Laura is very patient. She took the time to understand what was causing me to be stuck where I am today and help me build a better vision so I can continue to grow.
MM

I think Laura’s coaching was what I had been waiting for. Laura was so approachable, kind, and open. Her willingness to help and support made a difference for me. I found in her coaching new strategies, ideas, and perspectives that I could incorporate into my goals and objectives that I didn’t see before.
MO

Laura is an incredibly intuitive, positive and caring coach. Her techniques helped me recognize both my strengths and areas I might want to explore as I embark on the next chapter of my career. The exercises she employed were instrumental in providing self perspective and challenging my frames of reference.
LE

Laura is a natural coach. Her probing and compassionate questions helped me learn about myself: my value system, interests, goals and strengths.
LM

Coaching sessions with Laura gave me new perspectives on how to process specific feelings and situations in life. She showed me how to sit with my emotions, acknowledge them, and then use visualization strategies to move through them. I now feel more confident and in control of how I choose to walk through life.
CP

From the beginning, Laura put me at ease, creating a safe, open space for me to talk and share freely without fear of judgement. I loved the variety of approaches she used depending on the topic we were working on and it was fun being able to try out things I wouldn’t have considered before! With Laura’s coaching, I substantially grew my confidence in the workplace, overcame fears, dealt with issues I’d been carrying around for many years and, most importantly, learned to value myself and define a path forward into the future.
AG

Laura’s coaching was a breath of fresh air and EXACTLY what I needed at that point of my life. I didn’t realize how impactful coaching was going to be, but by the end of the sessions together, I left feeling refreshed, inspired and genuinely curious about what my future held for me. Because of Laura and her coaching, I believe I became a better person – someone who is more open-minded, someone with a clearer focus, and someone who is willing to explore opportunities and possibilities far more than I ever did before.
VB

I engaged Laura for coaching as I took on an expanded role leading an asset management company in Canada. As a female, I knew I would be a role model and had high expectations of myself. I was feeling overwhelmed and anxious.

In our first few coaching sessions we worked through exercises that allowed me to reflect on my purpose, leadership style and what mattered most to me. I continue to be grounded by the clarity I achieve in my coaching sessions – allowing me to be resilient and confident when challenges came my way.
OS