Who in your life is there to stand for your awesomeness when you can’t see it for yourself?
When I was a freestyle competitor on the Canadian Freestyle team in the early 2000s, I was one of the best female paddlers in the world. I had the skill to win a majority of the time, but I struggled with my confidence. I would let outside influences affect my mindset and take me out of my high performance zone. Influences like comments other athletes said to me, what I thought people in the crowd were thinking of me, or my fear of failing, to name a few. Instead of paddling at my highest performance level and sticking to my performance plan, I would often ‘choke.’
Choking sucks
It’s one thing when you lose or miss the podium because you all paddled to the best of your abilities, and someone paddled better than you. When you don’t perform well because of nerves, mindset and lack of strategy, and miss the podium, that is frustrating, deflating, and can send your confidence into a tailspin. That was my experience.
It’s not like I didn’t experience success. I was on the Canadian team for 5 years, won a bronze medal at the 2001 Freestyle World Championships and finished in the top 3 in several freestyle and extreme races on the circuit at that time. What was missing for me was a coach to help keep me focused, on plan and owning my skill.
At the time there were no coaches except for husbands and boyfriends coaching their partners. My boyfriend at the time (husband now) was not interested in taking that role on. I tried to convince him, which was unfair of me, and now that I’ve been with him for 20 years, I see that he really isn’t the type of coach I need anyway. 🙂
Years of suffering
I spent years suffering in upset, equating my self-worth with my competition results. Without a coach, someone who could remind me that I was much more than my competition results, my confidence in and joy for competition spiraled. I decided that I didn’t like competing and stopped. It wasn’t that I didn’t have the skill or potential to continue, it’s that I started buying into my own disempowering stories around my ability to compete.
A coach is someone who can get you out of your own head and see a whole new possibility for yourself. An effective coach listens and provides you with effective strategies for reaching your goals. And, when you start to fall back into old habits, a good coach can get you back on track with compassion, inspiration and action steps.
In today’s freestyle scene there are several coaches, and I’m so glad for the athletes. You can really see, especially in the women’s class, how effective the coaching has been for increasing performance and advancing what’s possible in competition. I’m also a little jealous because I would have loved a coach!
A new opportunity to work with a coach
Three years ago I felt stuck and uninspired in my business. I couldn’t see a way forward on my own, and was drowning in the disempowering stories in my own head. My anxiety skyrocketed, and even though I had good self-care practices, my anxiety got so bad that I experienced a few panic attacks. That’s when I knew I had to do something different – it was time to invest in a coach. I didn’t want to quit my business like I quit competition.
Hiring a business coach has been the best thing I’ve done for my business, and my health. She provides me with strategy, ideas and action steps to help me effectively grow my reach so I can help more people, and stand in my value. And, when I freak out about something or start doubting myself, she helps bring me back to what’s important and what works.
She stands for my greatness in the moments when I can’t see it for myself, and that is the difference between confidence and success vs doubt and being stuck in my same old s&*t. My coach has also introduced me to a whole new community of female entrepreneurs who inspire and lift each other up.
My anxiety has disappeared, my confidence has flourished, and I’m stoked on my business focus on how I can best help people with my unique skill set.
If you find yourself suffering in an area of life where you feel stuck, I highly recommend hiring a coach to stand in your corner. You are worth the investment, and when you invest in being the best, healthiest, and most confident you can be, you amplify your contribution to others. That’s a win-win-win! Plus, you’ll get introduced to a whole new community filled with support and strategy.
If you have questions about working with a coach and what that looks like, email me and let’s have a convo. I’m happy to help.
