The most inspiring & interesting three-year journey of my life so far!

Before signing up for the Certificate in Professional Coaching Practice in 2016 I had been working as a Sports Coach and Physical Education Teacher for a combined 10 years when I discovered coaching. My interest in sport, wellbeing, high performance & developing people drove me to research various training courses so that I could learn how to be a coach.

After coming across FCG I met with Gillian; her knowledge and supportive manner coupled with the course being accredited by the ICF made the decision to train there easy, and it was the best decision I ever made as it has sparked the most inspiring & interesting three-year journey of my life so far!

Firstly, I absolutely loved every minute of the training course. There was a perfect mix of theory and practise and I found the practical experience of coaching and being coached uplifting, powerful, exciting and I was in awe of the results within my self and others. The learning environment was challenging, supportive and friendly from all staff and I felt fully supported throughout the course and assessment process.

The course not only teaches coaching skills it also provides an opportunity for personal growth and development. Therefore on completion of the course I left with the ability to coach others but also with a big personal goal to leave my teaching career and build my own coaching practise.

So over the year I worked towards obtaining my ACC Credential with the support of FCG, which meant I was coaching private clients and working part time as a teacher too. The course also inspired me to find out more about coaching so I decide to read everything I could on the subjects and signed up for course in Positive Psychology & Coaching, which combined my interest in coaching and wellbeing.

This was a challenging year as I knew I wanted to coach full time but as the months rolled by I felt that maybe it just wasn’t possible for me. At times I felt very disheartened but I continued to work towards it.

Then something wonderful happened! I was delighted to land a job within an organisation as a Coach where I was able to combine my interest in Wellbeing with Coaching. I was able to leave teaching and become a full time coach! Woohoo! I was halfway there!

The job allowed me to coach everyday whilst still working towards my goal of having my own coaching practise. I therefore continued to coach outside of my full time job and over time I created contacts and more opportunities.

So with the coaching skills that I learned from FCG and after 3 years of working towards my goal that I set all that time ago I managed to build my own client base and I am now a self employed Coach with my own coaching practise and clients.

I reached my goal!

My days are now spent coaching mainly managers, senior leaders and teams within organisations. I also coach athletes and sports teams where I am able to bring the skills of a professional ICF coach to improve wellbeing & performance in a sporting context. I adore having my own clients and working with people the way that I want to. I also spend my time creating wellbeing strategy plans for organisations and then creating and delivering workshops and activities for this to improve employee wellbeing, engagement and performance.

The most interesting part for me is working with athletes and sports teams makes me feel like I myself have come FULL CIRCLE in these three years, having spent the first 10 years of my career in sport. I feel so grateful that I have achieved the goal that I set for myself and I love my work every single day.

I found the experience of training with FCG so valuable that I had to go back for more! So I completed the Certificate in Team Coaching and The Certificate in Executive Coaching this year, which has allowed me to further develop myself as a coach to ensure I do the best for the people I work with. I am now able to offer these services, which I feel are valuable additions to my coaching practise for the organisations I work with.

I have faced lots of challenges on this journey; mainly feeling like things were not moving fast enough, learning how to set myself up as self employed and the changes and challenges that brings, and having doubts whether I would reach my goal or not but the 3 most valuable lessons I have learned and will continue to remember is to stay patient, keep learning and to just be myself.

My coaching journey isn’t over, I feel like its only just starting now, thanks to Full Circle Global I have reached this goal and I know they will continue to champion me throughout the next part in my coaching journey."

Lorna Harkins - Certificate in Professional Coaching Practice, Edinburgh.