Case study: Should I stay or should I go?
E. was craving change.
As a business owner in the town where they grew up, they were feeling stuck in a location that no longer aligned with their current desires—wilder landscapes, deeper connections, and greater adventures.
E. arrived at coaching wanting to make a decision: Stay put and focus on expanding their business, or move to a new location and start over?
They wanted help developing trust in themselves and their choices so they could make this decision (and future ones) with confidence.
Internal and external moves
Over three months together, E. and I explored the internal experience that was contributing to their indecision about where to call home.
What was getting in the way of trusting their instincts?
Was it smart to make such a big change in midlife?
How could they begin anchoring new ways of being that allowed them to take more risks and feel more confident in their choices?
Our sessions investigated these questions through discussions ranging from work to money to relationships.
Here are some of the things E. uncovered:
Greater awareness of when habit and fear (versus conscious choice) are driving their decisions.
Limiting beliefs that diminish self-trust.
Ability to create new, more supportive beliefs around deservedness and financial abundance.
Permission to explore new locations and job opportunities without knowing the “how” of it all.
Understanding that their perspective is both their biggest ally and biggest blocker.
Willingness to let go of the pressure to make a decision within a certain time frame.
These internal shifts allowed E. to take powerful external action as well. During our coaching engagement, they:
Identified their top values.
Established boundaries in uncomfortable social situations.
Read a book about money and did the suggested exercises.
Submitted an important application related to their financial future.
Changed a long-standing policy in their business.
Established new rates in their business.
Researched options for expanding their business in its current location.
Gathered data on their profession in five different states.
Got licensed in their profession in a new state.
Initiated conversations about life and work in a new state.
Booked a trip to visit a new state.
Eliminated a once-viable location based on their values.
E. is still living in the same place. And they are still open to that changing—when the time is right.
Coaching helped E. come into a new awareness that trying to force a decision was draining their energy and preventing them from enjoying their present life.
Heading into 2025, E. is committed to less pushing and more allowing.
