I started my life coaching business a few years back while living in Uganda. It was a very natural thing for me, as it was just an extension of what I was doing all the time anyways- meeting one-on-one with women for coffee and hearing their stories. It was a seamless transition that seemed like life had been leading up to that moment.
Fast forward 2 years later. I move to the US after living 17 years in Africa. Although we were “leaving” the international community, I was determined to keep serving the people that had become so important in my life, even if that was from another continent and several time zones away.
However, when I made the commitment, I had no idea what that entailed. Business in the U.S. is VERY different than business in Africa. There was so much for me to learn- US law, taxes, forms of advertisement, culture. All the while, my brain kept offering me the story (with plenty of evidence, mind you), “You can’t do this. You are failing miserably. You don’t know how to have a business in the US. You’re too far away from the people you want to serve. Etc. Etc. Etc.”
Now, just because I am a change coach doesn’t mean that I don’t have a human brain. My brain offers me the same types of thoughts we all have in times of uncertainty and change. But asking myself this one question, “Why are you choosing to believe that story?” was a game changer for me.
I reminded myself that I get to choose what story to believe. No matter where I am living or what change I am experiencing, I get to choose!!! And I chose to say, “Of course I don’t know what I am doing. How could I? This is all new. BUT, I know how to figure out new things. I have been doing that for years. That’s what a “third-culture adult” does!”
So, here I go. Showing up everyday for people like you who also have a human brain.
What story is your brain offering you that is holding you back from what you are wanting for you life? What other story could you tell yourself instead?
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