"Marnee’s website says, “She meets each student wherever they are in their journey.” When I started meeting with her, the place I was in my journey, was stuck.
I needed to make significant changes in my life and those changes required decisions I knew would be very consequential. Indecision, doubt, & fear are a toxic concoction and in my case, resulted in procrastination, inaction, and life-paralysis. I read Brené Brown’s book, Daring Greatly, a few weeks before I contacted Marnee. The book led to many ah-ha moments and ultimately to Marnee, since she is a certified Daring Way facilitator.
Before I called her, I wasn’t even sure what a life coach did. I had a vague idea though—it was likely a cross between a fortune-teller, a “motivational speaker”, and a Buddhist monk…with the credibility of a carnival barker. I was skeptical of coaching, but not about the Daring Way program. Daring Greatly really resonated with me and I wanted help putting what I’d learned from the book into practice.
Marnee explained what coaching was and was not during our first phone call. There would be no carnival barking or crystal balls. She asked what my expectations were and why I was looking for a life coach. Her non-judgmental approach and genuine desire to help immediately eased my fear and uncertainty.
I needed transformative change in all aspects of my life--professional, personal, and interpersonal. It was a tall order and Marnee was up for the task. During our first coaching session, she helped me identify goals I wanted to accomplish. I’d had none. In the months that followed, she taught me about self-compassion & mindfulness. I’d had none. And about shame resilience--none of that either.
I chose to work with her in regular coaching sessions, private Daring Way sessions, and participated in her MBSR class. She seamlessly integrated all the concepts while using skill and acumen to identify thought and behavior patterns that were holding me back. Then she helped me reframe the destructive thoughts into self-compassionate and productive ideas. Because she taught me how to shift my thinking mindfully, she was not simply slapping a Band-Aid on a wound. She gave me tools to use for the rest of my life that will help me avoid becoming stuck in the future. She teaches and encourages her clients to be true to themselves, to live their values, and to practice mindfulness. She is a great coach because while she teaches and encourages these things, she also lives them. She has told me her work is important to her and that she enjoys helping others. It is clear she genuinely means it. Sincerity is laced throughout her character and proven by amazing results.
After only a few months, I am so much further than I ever thought I’d be. And I’m headed in a completely different direction than I ever thought I’d take. I’m thinking and planning mindfully, practicing self-compassion, making decisions aligned with my values, and implementing those decisions.
I found that private Daring Way sessions, rather than with a group, gave me an experience tailored specifically to me. Individualized sessions also allowed scheduling flexibility that would not have been possible in a group. Brené Brown gave me a lot of the insight I needed to understand why I was stuck. Marnee and the Daring Way program gave me the tools I needed to break free.
Before working with her, I rarely ventured into the arena of life. When I did, and life punched me in the mouth, I would run out of the arena, try in vain to stop the bleeding, blame myself, and vow to avoid that again. Now, the arena looks different. Being punched in the mouth still hurts but I’m prepared when it inevitably happens. I pull the tools out of my toolbox and I smile with bloody teeth in the face of my fear. I smile because what once was a debilitating experience is now an empowering one. Who knew? What started as life-paralysis and expectations of snake oil vials, turned into a phoenix rising from ashes."