LESSONS FROM A LIFE COACH
Get more of what you want
Wanting to live a bigger, better life is nothing to feel guilty about, says life coach Emily Gallagher. Although she confesses she was “a huge partier” from ages 18 to 24, she always dreamed of becoming the CEO of a multinational organisation. Not one to shy away from setting challenging goals, the now 31-year-old Kiwi studied life coaching, trained with iconic leaders in the field (including Tony Robbins and Gabrielle Bernstein) and went on to create Conscious Boss Clique, a growing network of 2000 wellness entrepreneurs who come together to learn and connect as a community.
A form of talking therapy that has grown exponentially thanks to the likes of Tony, Gabrielle and even Oprah Winfrey (have you listened to her SuperSoul Conversations podcast?), life coaching helps people to meet and exceed their personal and professional goals through private sessions, group coaching and events. Being the CEO of a huge international company turned out not to be Emily’s exact destiny, but starting a business and travelling the world sharing her passion and skills isn’t too far removed. Through life coaching, she helps people to “reconnect with the flame inside”, so we picked her brain for tips on how to ditch that feeling of being ‘not enough’, and instead harness happiness, confidence and energy so you can kick your own goals with chutzpah.
The first steps to living fully and creating more of what you want
1
Identify the domino. Find the areas of your life that will have the biggest impact on your overall happiness should you seek to create change. For me right now, it’s health — the healthier I am, the more energy I have, the more my confidence builds, and the more I can create. Identify a key area for you, and plan how you’ll enhance it. Consider your support networks and how you’ll stay accountable, but remember that expecting every area of your life to undergo monumental shifts at the same time could be setting you up to fail. Like Oprah said: “You can have everything, just not all at once.”
2
Come from love. You’re with yourself 24/7, so start by knowing that you’re enough, right now, as you are. Ask yourself why you really want the things you want, see what comes to the surface and practise leaning into it daily. You can’t guilt and shame your way into change, so approach it from a place of love, acceptance and presence. The results that come from here are the only results you want.
3
Shake up your environment. This is ultimately going to shift everything in your life. If you’re surrounded by people whose lifestyle and goals don’t align with your own, then your expectations of yourself will decrease. On the flipside, the more healthy, happy and all-round epic the people you spend time with are, the more of those qualities you’ll take on yourself. It has been proven that your relationships have more of an impact on your health than your genes — yes, really! — so don’t take this lightly. Shake up your social setting and surround yourself with people living the life you want for yourself.
4 Take action. This part is pretty crucial but is a step I often see being skipped. Identify some core people to support you, make a plan about what you want to create, then get on with it. In my mind, imperfect actions are always better than perfect ideas. Get in the game, then pivot and shift as needed along the way.