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I've been asked a lot recently, about Life Transitions Coaching, and was given a great example. A young woman becomes a nurse, then marries and has a beautiful big family of babies. At some point, she makes the break from one vocation (nursing) to another (motherhood).
This example reminded me of my dear Mum and Dad. When they got together, Mum was training to become a nurse, and Dad had started his business as a painter. Dad's business had it's share of hurdles, which I'll leave for another story.
It was important to both my parents, that Mum finished her training and graduated, which she did before they married in 1951.
In those days, a woman was expected to stop working when she married. This wasn't so much a societal thing, as the prevailing belief of the nuns who trained my mother and her colleagues.
It blows my mind, that the barrier to Mum continuing her career was a group of other women. Nuns!
When Mum was nursing, she lived on campus at what was then the Mater Misericordiae Hospital, in the nurses' quarters. When someone was dying, Matron (who was a nun, and would be called the nursing unit manager nowadays) would call on Mum to tend to that person in their final hours.
Mum always retained her nursing knowledge and expertise, until her own death. She used it raising a tribe of children and caring for elderly parents. And, she knew when her own end was near, exactly what to do.
Mum had what we all need, when feeling pain or fear.
So, when my parents married, Mum had a serious choice. It brings to mind a tarot card called "The Lovers", which tells of a heart-heavy choice between two or more equally heartfelt life-paths.
That card really epitomises the choice my mother faced: the vocation for which she sacrificed so much, or the new love of her life. The choice was thrust upon her from external forces, but only she could choose.
So, what did Mum do? Well, she chose to marry Dad, but she also began nursing people in their homes who were - you guessed it - facing death.
She cared for those people, without prescribing rights and without the benefit of morphine pumps, and she gave them dignity in their last hours. My eldest sister remembers helping Mum, and witnessing death first-hand too.
What a privilege.
Consider, if Mum was living as a middle-aged woman now, with the kids all grown up and living their own lives, what do you think she would do? Well, Mum actually did all the bookwork and secretarial duties for Dad's business, had executive positions on non-government organisations, and studied theology. Among other things!
Mum wasn't afraid of starting something new and different. And she didn't shy away from tough situations. She had skills that she could apply in multiple roles.
Nowadays, though, her choice as a former nurse who was not University-trained, and who was not registered, would mean she couldn't just go back to nursing.
Whatever she did, she'd probably need to investigate training. Would she want to go back into a nursing field? She might not want everything that comes with nursing these days, but could she be an enrolled nurse or assistant in nursing?
What if she decided that, if she had to spend any time studying, why not study something completely different? She might start an arts degree and become a famous author!
The thing with life transitions coaching, is that it helps to figure this stuff out with someone else, and that someone can support you to do the research you need to make your next step. The research also provides you with inspiration for things you never considered.
Life Transitions Coaching isn't just for vocational/ career/ job changes, it's for life changes. Divorce and death of a loved one can make you rethink your own life, as much as illness and injury. Retirement can be a tricky transition. Changing where you live can bring all kinds of challenges.
So, you (or someone you know) could be going through a life transition right now. You might need just one session, or a few, and we can work that out together, or you can make the commitment to you and your new life by choosing an 8-Week Breakthrough Results Program (because you are your own boss, aren't you).
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