|
Client Case Study - How
I helped an ecologically sensible architect transform her personal
and professional life.
Client Introduction:
Name: Sigi Koko
Profession: Architect and owner of Down to Earth
Sigi is a bright, energetic woman who operates an architectural
design and consulting practice. As an architect, her area
of expertise is design that’s ecologically sensible
and sustainable, with a focus on creating healthy environments
that function in synchronicity with their larger environment.
She’s a respected authority in her area of expertise
with numerous publications in trade journals, as well as
mainstream newspapers and magazines.
Client Goals and Challenges:
When Sigi initially contacted me, she was recovering from
a recent break-up in her personal life. Professionally, she
was understandably unfocused. Her confidence was shaken,
and she lacked inspiration.
Although she had no problem getting business, she took on
whatever projects came along, and her workload was sporadic.
In her words, “it was either way too much or not enough.” Consequently,
she was struggling with the emotional ups-and-downs that
come with that type of environment.
She was also struggling to handle the day-to-day operation
of her business. She had a constant to-do list that never
got done. She was missing deadlines, and it seemed she was
always putting out fires. She was working 80-100 hours per
week just to keep up, while her income was nowhere near the
level she desired.
As Sigi put it, she was “just doing projects rather
than running a business.” Her practice was suffering,
her life was out of balance and she was exhausted - physically,
mentally and emotionally.
Her first three goals were to:
- Stop procrastinating and sabotaging herself.
- Regain self discipline, self confidence and time management.
- Find balance between her personal life and work life.
What We Did:
The initial focus of our work was to strengthen Sigi's confidence
and help her regain her inspiration. To do so, we utilized
a method called the Purpose Process to help her flush out
and overcome the limiting patterns of thought and action
that were driving her life.
We replaced those patterns with more effective and healthy
patterns based upon her passions, her values, a vision of
her ideal life and a more empowering (and accurate) sense
of her talents, creativity and core essence.
With a solid foundation of confidence and inspiration in
place, we began making changes in Sigi's personal and professional
life. In particular, we sharpened her skills in time management
and project management, with a focus on separating her work
life and personal life to create a more healthy balance.
We created short-term and long-term business plans for her
practice and began strengthening her skills to fulfill those
plans. Skills such as financial planning and budgeting, schedule
accountability, marketing, prioritizing, communication skills
and customer service. We also developed systems and structures
to make her day-to-day business operations simpler and more
effective.
Results Achieved:
Sigi has certainly stopped procrastinating and sabotaging
herself. She's working less (40-50 hours/week), while her
income has nearly quadrupled. She has more time to be with
the people she cares about, and she's more engaged and present
with her clients.
Everything feels much more natural and effortless for her,
and she's re-inspired about her life and her work. Her time
management is "infinitely better," and she states
she has "gone from constantly putting out fires to gracefully
navigating projects that are win-win relationships" for
her and her clients.
Clients Comments:
"It never occurred to me that as a solo-professional
I could have this kind of support."
"It was painful to see how poorly I treated myself."
"I [now] support myself instead of fighting myself."
"I [now] take better care of my clients as well as
myself."
"Helaine, you are a gift! You have truly brought evolution
to every facet of my life. I'm often overwhelmed with gratitude
that you are in my life . . . I feel more solidly grounded,
I feel present and connected in my interactions, and I have
been able to actualize goals that used to just swim endlessly
in my head."
"Thank you for sharing your remarkable ability to see
the positive attributes in absolutely any situation . . .
Thank you for graciously accepting and working with me exactly
the way I am at any given moment, without judgment. And thank
you for the simple yet extraordinary tools you share throughout
the Path of Purpose process. I often flip through my journal
from our sessions to read through some of your quotes of
wisdom to give me inspiration. Thank you, thank you, and
thank you!!!!!!!!"
|