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Internationally Accredited with the International Coaches RegisterMaster Transformation Coach You may view Lara’s listing by clicking here. |
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What led me to becoming a Life Coach
Throughout my life, I’ve been at many crossroads – periods where I’ve had to face major challenges and change! At times these felt overwhelming and almost unbearable.
As an only child, I was incredibly sensitive and shy and battled throughout my school life to make friends with other kids. I was academic, not very sporty, and, in my teens, quite chubby. This led to may years of bullying, peer rejection, and incredible loneliness. It was only after I left school, that I made a concerted effort to “come out of my shell”, started playing sport and learnt to mix and socialize a little more. It took lots of effort and there were still many decidedly lonely years.
Due to financial constraints, and discrimination against women for bursaries in the field I had dreamed all my life of studying, I had to make do with other, very different work opportunities. On the positive side, I gained wonderful experience in a diverse array of business environments, which has helped me enormously in life and in my coaching career.
In my late 20’s I was in business with my folks, when the economy took a huge downturn, both my Mom and Dad took very ill, and we basically lost everything! We had to relocate and find a way to start from scratch again. My parents had married and had me quite late in life, so they weren’t youngsters anymore. There followed years of struggle, uncertainty, and very hard work. More change, more areas in which we were forced to adapt.
Due to economic downturn, I changed careers again at age 40. Five years later, my Mom, my confidant and my best friend, took very ill. I was her caregiver and also holding down a full-time job. She passed away not long after being diagnosed with cancer. This loss left a gaping hole in my life. And, just to add to the stress, 18 months later I was retrenched!
I was at a point of point of sinking into a dark cloud of bitterness and despair. After much soul-searching, during a moment of intense clarity, I made the choice to use the lessons I had learned from my challenges and hardship to help other people through similar situations in their lives. I hauled myself up and made the decision to pursue a life-long calling, my career in Life Coaching. And I’ve never been happier than I am now!
The lessons in all this:
- no matter how hopeless life seems, there is a solution
- you can weather any change
- it’s never too late to start again
- the more difficult and challenging your life has been, the more opportunity for growth
This is the life-experience I bring to share with my coaching clients. I’ve been there, alone, sensitive and shy, in the pits of loneliness and despair. I’ve suffered huge sadness and loss – loss of the loved-ones and financial financial loss and I’ve had to start again after losing everything. I understand. Most importantly though, I’ve emerged from the swamp, wiser and more resilient. I’ve survived, I’m happy and I’m here to help YOU conquer life too. I can help you meet these challenges head-on, with clarity and the confidence to move forward. As your Life Coach, I am here to guide you through this journey toward a purposeful life that is fulfilling, meaningful and filled with happiness.
My Motto
“Be the change you want to see in the World!”
Every day presents a different challenge, requiring a dynamic approach to cater for each individual’s unique circumstances. The look on a client’s face, when they reach that “aha” moment during a coaching course is what feeds and drives me in my work and in my continuous pursuit of personal development and growth.
Giving Back to the Community
I regularly volunteer with CANSA, as a support not only to their staff but also to cancer patients and their families during this emotionally fraught and highly challenging period of their lives. I have met and learnt incredible life lessons from the most amazing people during these sessions.
I look forward to working with you to make your Life Journey a successful and rewarding one!
