looking for the link to book a coaching session? here you go!
Meinrad Craighead. Dogs at the Entry. 2000.
Hello and welcome. I’m so glad you’re here.
Do you have questions about this whole coaching thing? Let’s talk!
First off, why coaching with me?
I’m not going to pretend to really understand the mystical breadcrumb trail that brings us to the help we’re looking for…but I’ll make some guesses!
My guess is you’re tired of your patterns and willing to try something else. And today that “something else” happened to bring you here.
But also because you want to show up for this life. You’re longing for more, longing to cross a wisdom threshold you’ve been scared to cross (the dogs in Meinrad Craighead’s art above are here marking this sacred threshold for us).
And this is not just another personal improvement project (I don’t do that kind of coaching).
When we consciously walk our path and take responsibility for the life we’ve been given, we become a nourishment to our world.
That’s the kind of coaching I do.
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So, how do you know if this kind of work is for you?
That’s something only you can really answer, but I’ll tell you how I knew this kind of work was for me and you can see what resonates or doesn’t.
I am a natural-born seeker but for a long time I had this “seeker” antenna focused on trying to fix and perfect myself—endless searching for the right to-do list, the perfect teacher/workshop/retreat/program, the right job, the right degree, or the right person. I had an exaggerated sense of responsibility for others and I treated myself like I was a problem to be solved.
Sometimes I tried doubling-down and focusing everything on my kids, my partner, my work.
Other times I gave up and numbed and coasted.
Shame. Fear. Shame. Fear.
Back and forth. On and on.
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So what shifted?
Of course it’s not a linear line—it’s more like “a slow-motion miracle” as they say in 12-step rooms—but I credit annoyance as one of the big tipping points (healing religious trauma was another one, but that story is for another day).
I was on a walk, obsessing again over the same old things and I felt the biggest surge of annoyance—it felt like my chest and throat was going to explode.
I yelled out: I’m so fucking sick of this story! I threw my hands up in the air and said I’ll do anything just to be thinking and talking about something different!
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And I meant it.
Thankfully, I was drawn/led to the ancient wisdom teachings on offering and surrender and they helped me see a much larger picture: It wasn’t about fixing and polishing myself up; it was about offering up that very self I’d been working so hard to perfect and tapping into something even deeper.
And when I read that, everything in my body softened.
I knew about letting go. I’d been on a journey of letting go of my religion and I’d recently quit what I thought was my life’s work. And then my marriage ended.
I’d lost a lot of primary identities in just a few years and so it didn’t feel like a huge stretch to just keep going.
What if I let go of the part of me that I’d been endlessly polishing? What if I tried plowing it all back into the earth? Would something deeper emerge?
I’ve been working with this invitation.
And it turns out there is something in me (us) that lives from a place beyond surface personality and outer circumstances, that trusts and moves and flows and is able to receive and be of service in this world—and we can access this part and even live from it! What begins to emerge is a deeper, sturdier selfhood.
Of course I don’t live from this place all of the time, or even most of the time. But I’ve really tasted it. And I know that this is a path we can take, and that it has profound and practical implications. And so many of us don’t even know about this larger vision of our selfhood.
And that’s how and why I’m here doing this kind of work—resetting my antenna to catch a deeper wisdom channel—and it doesn’t happen by grim determination and you don’t have to do it alone (thankgod).
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So, how does listening to deeper inner wisdom (aka coaching sessions) actually work?
We meet for one-hour sessions, usually every two weeks for at least 3 months (but my clients often want to keep working with me because it’s just that helpful in their lives!).
1st session is $155 for 90 minutes and ongoing sessions are $111 for one hour.
You tell me what you’d like to focus on for that session: the longing you can’t seem to trust, the resistance you feel when you sit down to write, the dread that makes you want to crawl back into bed, or the neighbor who keeps parking in front of your driveway (the little things are the big things).
I use my coaching intuition to sense into what you’ve brought to our session, and based on that, we proceed with some coaching tools and exercises.
What are these tools? First, I offer an untroubled, stable presence holding you in high regard (this is actually so rare in our culture that it’s a potent medicine all on its own). Then I ask questions and listen deeply (again, rare and potent medicine). Later I might invite you to access your right-brain creativity to move past the limited, rational mindset, or we’ll do a visualization and talk to a scared part of yourself or a part of your body that needs to be heard. Sometimes I’ll introduce you to or remind you of wisdom teachings on owning and expressing your own reality, boundaries, shame, your inherent preciousness, etc, and then we’ll move through the mechanics of how to apply those wisdom teachings in daily life. Other times we’ll explore a metaphor you used to describe the situation (you’ll talk about “sweeping it under the rug” and so we’ll do a visualization where you’ll lift up the rug and discover what’s under it and the wisdom it has to offer—always so much!). And these are all collaborative, co-creative experiences, by the way. We work together and adjust as we go.
In all of these exercises, helping you access inner wisdom and tap into a deeper selfhood is my foundational perspective. We might talk about the different names for this wise part of us: In IFS it’s "Self with a capital S," Thomas Merton calls it "True Self", Martha Beck calls it "integrity/essential self," GI Gurdjieff and Cynthia Bourgeault call it your “second body," Pia Mellody calls it your "functional adult self," 12-step tradition talks about being restored to the “sane” part of us, and Clarissa Pinkola Estés calls it “second world.” (Yes, these are some of my primary teachers.)
Toward the end of the session I’ll check in with you to see how things are going. I’ll ask you to share what this process has been like for you or what you want to remember, and we’ll talk it through.
Sometimes I’ll ask if I can share an insight or a powerful moment I experienced in the session (I always learn so much from my clients!).
Then we’ll close the session. Later, if you'd like, I’ll send you an audio recording of the session and invite you to email me any thoughts/questions between sessions.
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How does it all add up? What kind of things might shift?
Living from a deeper selfhood is a life-long conscious choice, but it can also bring tangible clarity and relief right away. Here’s what my clients have found in our work together…
leaving careers that no longer fit and starting new ones that do
one hour at time, heart, body, and mind begin to see that it’s safe out there and begin to come “online”
healing old money beliefs, old body/health beliefs, old relationship/love beliefs (these three areas seem to be the trifecta of stuck-ness)
feeling less scrambled and distracted and more sturdy, stable, and present
putting creative work in motion, making art, and writing and publishing books
loosening the hold of perfectionism, shame, white-knuckling, boundary issues, people pleasing, and codependency
negotiating better salaries and entrepreneurs raising their prices/rates
less black and white thinking and more capacity for being a human full of contradictions/paradoxes
letting go of relationships that no longer fit and discovering ones that do
finding a mature and embodied spirituality
practicing a posture of trust and gratitude that is independent of circumstances
moving out of a disempowered mindset and into empowerment and choices
This might all sound like a lot, and it is!
Because coaching happens at the tipping point, at the intersection where people are willing to make real change and want support doing it. It’s a potent space.
Lastly, I want to end with a reminder that this is not just another personal improvement project. It’s about taking conscious responsibility for the life we’ve been given.
So, what do you think?
If you’re ready to cross the threshold and begin, sign up for a coaching session. And if you wanna chat a little first and make sure we’re a good fit, sign up for a free consultation or send me an email.
All the details…
I am a certified Martha Beck Wayfinder Life Coach and a graduate of The Center for Action & Contemplation’s Living School founded by Richard Rohr
1st session is $155 for 90 minutes and ongoing sessions are $111 for one hour.
Wondering how to book? See my calendar and sign up for a session here
Sessions are done via phone, zoom, or in-person sessions in Fort Collins, CO
I offer a set number of reduced-rate (50% off) coaching spots for those experiencing financial hardship. No explanation needed—just send me a message and let me know that you’re interested in one of my reduced-rate coaching spots. I’ll let you know if there’s availability to start right away or I’ll put you on the waitlist.
what clients are saying…
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"When I first signed up for coaching, I wondered if I was too type A, too "go-go-go" and project-manager-minded for it to really be effective. What I found is that Brianna has such a gentle and insightful process that I could bring anything to the session, including the “go-go-go” part of me. Brianna excavates but doesn’t use heavy machinery. She helped me look at what's under the rug in all kinds of different contexts and created a space where I was comfortable to go there, to look it in the face, and to work through the limiting beliefs and the sticky emotions with courage and compassion. I’m braver in my life (and made a huge, life-giving career change!) because I've been brave enough to stand with this stuff in session with Brianna."
—Steph K.
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“Thank you Brianna for the encouragement and proposing a way of doing this whole ‘trust’ thing differently. Before this, I surely haven’t given a shit about trusting myself. Maybe even ever. Thank you.”
—Matt G.
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“Before working with Brianna, I had never tried life coaching and I had no idea what to expect. I began sessions right after my mum died and I was amazed by how open and vulnerable I could be. This opened me up to a world of self-discovery. Brianna has a gift of lovingly coaxing my inner self to the surface. Her guided creativity framework, especially the visualization exercises, has been transformative and helpful during many tricky life transitions. Each session leaves me feeling anchored, empowered, and ready to ride the wave of the wild card!”
—Liesa O.
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"I sometimes fear being judged and I was a little nervous about that with coaching. But Brianna’s approach is kind, relatable, and non-judgmental—she’s multi-faceted and comfortable with herself, which allowed me to be more comfortable with myself and all my facets, too. Our coaching work leads me deeper into whatever topic I am looking at or gives me a complete about-face. Most recently in a session, I saw that I am, in a sense, the CEO of my own health journey and not a victim of my healthcare providers, which was a giant turnaround for me and my attitude about my health and my doctors—I'm feeling comfortable asking questions, sometimes demanding answers, and I just feel completely different in my approach to my own body and health.”
—Rosemoon M.
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“Brianna is such a warm and present coach, guiding you to open your eyes. I learned a lot about myself and found ways to tackle things I had been stuck around for a long time.”
—Morana K.