Being on the leading edge of leadership and coaching today really means understanding the quantum rules: how life works as energy in motion. So that’s really what we’re here to explore today in terms of leadership, to see what more we can understand about transformational leadership and how to work with our coaching clients in that arena.
How did you get into coaching?
When I left graduate school with a masters degree in singing, my goal was to teach singers who sing on the biggest stages of the world. I loved teaching, and although I enjoyed a very nice performing career, I knew that teaching was my real gift. By the time I was 40 I had reached my goal. I was singing and teaching in New York and my students were singing leading roles at the Metropolitan Opera and in most of the leading opera houses of the world as well as on Broadway. However, as I reached my mid-40s I started to yearn for something more. I was very good at what I was doing, but I felt like I wasn’t learning anymore. And so I began asking what was next.I had already been teaching workshops for performers in understanding energy and how energy moved through their bodies during performance. I was loving that work and had written my first book, Intuitive Living, during the late 90s. Then around 2000 I heard about coaching and realized that perhaps this was what was next.I did my coach training in 2001 and by 2003 had completely shifted my income from teaching singers and performing to coaching. I continued to write and began teaching workshops more extensively. One book led to another, and one workshop led to another, so that now I have four successful published books and lead workshops throughout North America and Europe. I have a full practice of coaching clients from four continents and absolutely love what I do. I think I have the best job in the world!
ICA has proven to me that coach training by telephone can not just work, but be very successful. They have crafted a solid learning platform that supports the students for great learning and very strong coaching. Hats off to Robyn and all of the staff and trainers at ICA.
How are you using coaching to make a difference?
I have had great fun working with organizations and small businesses to help them discover their soul mission or fundamental purpose, and then build a vision inspired by that soul mission. From there we put their vision on The Manifestation Wheel, a coaching model I developed several years ago and now a book. Through this work together, they develop a coaching approach to their work together and to accomplishing their goals and projects. Several organizations have experienced significant turn-arounds because of this and now find their working environment significantly different because they’ve learned a new way to think and work together.
What was the most valuable thing you learned at ICA?
My experience at ICA has been wonderful. And the community is fantastic! One of my favorite events each year is the ICF conference where we get to meet one another in person! That’s so much fun. This past December in Florida there was more mix of trainers, students, and graduates than ever before, it seemed to me. It made me so happy and proud to be a part of this community as I learned about the wonderful work ICA coaches are doing around the world.