I’m Sue Garland, and I’m a personal life coach. If you’re reading this, you’ve probably already wondered if you might need a coach. And if you’re wondering if you need a coach, you probably do. So read on, and see if I’m the coach who can help you get back on track.
I say “back” on track, because I’m convinced that we come into this world already programmed with ideas about a path to follow. I think science would agree that much of who we are exists in our DNA before we take our first breath and begin our journey on this planet. We arrive with artistic tendencies, or we’re linear thinkers, or we’re in love with words, or we’re adventurous, or we’re shy, or we’re insatiably curious – the list of characteristics we can come in with is enormous, and the possible combinations are unlimited! We’re just little bundles of potential, ready to unfold!
But many of us are born to well-meaning parents who have their own ideas of how their children should “be” — mostly because their parents had the same notions about them — and who see it as their moral parental responsibility to “form” us. So almost instantly, we’re exposed to some degree of pressure to “con-form” to our families’ expectations and dreams for us, often without regard for how we’re programmed.
Before long, we’re willingly on our way to ignoring our own inner guidance, in favor of pleasing those on whom we depend for approval and affirmation: parents, family members, teachers. Next thing we know, years have gone by, and we’re making choices based on the thoughts and needs of friends and employers; and we’ve gotten so far from our inborn programming that we can’t even find it any more.
So, immersed as we are in the business called “life”, one day we realize we feel uncomfortable, maybe even downright miserable. Nothing’s really wrong, but nothing really feels right, either. It’s the old is-that-all-there-is? thing. Or maybe the life-is-passing-me-by thing. There are lots of things we genuinely love about our life, but the level of satisfaction we’re getting from what we’re doing just isn’t enough; we don’t feel authentic; we don’t feel complete. We almost feel as if we’re living someone else’s life.
If this sounds familiar, you’re in good company. There are lots of us around!
Marrying at 20, I added “pleasing a husband” and “being a mommy” to an earlier skill-set that was dominated by “appeasing parents” and “getting good grades”. This kept me fully occupied for many years and, to be sure, it called forth much of my creativity. But eventually I found myself in mid-life with only the faintest recollection of who I really was. I had four wonderful, individualized children who were nearly grown, and I was struck with the realization that I could not live for them, nor they for me. My marriage to their father was also ending, and while I was facing a freedom I had never known, I had no idea how to use it to become my authentic self.
The journey from this position of “lost” to my present position of “in love with life” was a joy to make; but how much easier – and shorter – the journey could have been if there had been someone to help me make that journey, to support me as I sought to discover the steps I needed to take, and to hold me accountable for taking those steps.
You may have found this website because you suspect there has to be a better way to meet this challenge without a major meltdown. Maybe you’ve seen someone make the shift gracefully from frustration and dissatisfaction into authenticity and joyousness, and you’d like to find a way to make that shift for yourself.
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Do you know that being in love with life is your birthright? Do you really know that?
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Is there a small voice inside you calling you back to yourself?
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Do you want to get started on that journey, with an experienced coach who can help you find your path and hold your vision?
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Does it excite you to think about getting back on track? Are you willing to do the work?
If so, email me at EMAIL ADDRESS. We’ll set up a free, 20-minute sample session, and you can see how it feels to be coached by someone who knows the journey. We’ll look at some questions you can ponder, to begin finding that path.
I don’t have all the answers – but I know that you do! Together we’ll find the steps to bridge the gap between where you are and where you want to be.
