Here's a little of my story....

I spent my whole life trying to fit in, trying not to make waves, trying not to be seen.  I believed that it wasn’t safe to be seen, and I grew up having a lot of evidence that this belief was true.

I’m a Black, Canadian woman, born in England, with Jamaican parents. My husband is French Canadian. My son is mixed race, perfectly bilingual. My bonus son and daughter-in-law live in Greece on the island of Crete.

I’ve lived in Derby, England; Montreal, Amos & Gatineau Quebec and Toronto & Ottawa, Ontario. And I’ve worked virtually with hundreds of clients from the US and world-wide over the last fifteen years.

All that said, I see myself as a global citizen. I’ve never felt that I fully belong anywhere – except maybe Mexico.

The theme of my life is pretending to fit in while knowing that I don’t.

I’ve always been an observer of human nature. I was painfully shy and didn’t speak much until I was eleven. I’ve always been fascinated with what makes people tick. And, most often, I’ve felt like an outsider.

Except for my family, I grew up in an all-white environment, an immigrant and a person of colour. While I appeared to fit in well, I knew that I was different. And after university when I started working, I felt like I was an alien, because I always ended up in the wrong work. I knew that my work needed to be “helping” people, but it never paid enough. So I started down the corporate path – but could never fully express myself, or find the meaning and purpose that I needed in my work.

In fact, I only felt like my real life had begun, when two things happened – I had my son & I was downsized from a job, that I struggled to quit – but couldn’t.

That’s when I dared to decide to do my sacred work – being a mom, coaching, facilitating groups & helping people to see the beauty of who they are. 

Until I was in my thirty’s my only motivations were to try to fit in, to not make waves, to do things well, to avoid being criticized and to be good to people.

But that didn’t stop the divine discontent, the nudges of my soul, trying to guide me towards the life I was meant to live. I had to get SO, SO miserable to start listening. 

I learned some important lessons that I share with all my clients now:

• When you cope with misery you never find your right, life direction;
• When you spend your whole life fitting in, you forget who you truly are;
• If you aren’t congruent, the same on the outside as you are on the inside, you’ll never discover your sacred work.

I did all these things for years. I struggled to find my purpose because I was told that I had to fit in. It's  a rule in Pirate World.

Black people don’t make waves.

It was dangerous for a Black person growing up in a white society to stand out when I was growing up. Hell, it’s dangerous now. You’d be targeted.

As bell hicks famously said:

“Sometimes people try to destroy you, precisely because they recognize your power - not because they don't see it, but because they see it and they don't want it to exist.”

I think that so many of us have been gaslit to question our own value and worth, and so we haven’t ever embraced our dazzling brilliant light.

When I began to fully see who I really was, beyond my camouflage, I realized that NOT doing my sacred work would be betraying my soul.

I embraced my light and started doing what I was born to do – helping YOU to stop being invisible, to see yourself and to embrace your light.

It’s what I can’t NOT do, and that’s you get from me as your Coach, Teacher, Mentor or friend.

In 2016, I changed my business name to the Soul's Calling® Academy - to underline our commitment to coaching, training and mentoring helpers, healers, teachers, leaders & guides - women who know they have a contribution to make to the world and need help to shift from their survival work to their sacred work. Soon after that Nicole Croizier started working with me - to help me bring my business vision to life. (You can read more about Nicole below.)

Here are my professional (Pirate World) credentials, experience and training:

• a Master’s Degree in Psycho-Education;
• a Graduate diploma in Brief and Strategic Therapy;
• Graduate training in Career Development and Group Facilitation;
• Past membership in the Professional Order of Guidance & Career Counselors of Quebec;
• Life Coach and Master Life Coach Certification from Dr. Martha Beck;
• Certification as a Myers Briggs Type Indicator user as well as a variety of other self-assessment tools.

I’ve worked at the management level in quasi-government organizations - creating national programs in Disability Management and Organizational Transition, which required obtaining funding, training and staffing. On First Nations Reserves (both Cree & Algonquin) I've run healing, organizational & professional development & coaching and training programs. In addition, as a Sessional Instructor for the Indigenous Studies program, at the University of Quebec, I taught courses in Management, Human Sciences, Career Development and Education - always receiving mention for my teaching excellence. I was a Master Coach Instructor who taught in the Martha Beck Wayfinder Life Coach Training program for 10+ years and consistently received positive feedback again for my leadership, authenticity, teaching and compassion.

In addition I've run my own on-line business specializing in Career, Business & Life Coaching, mentoring & training since 2008. (I'm not a newbie). I’ve created and led retreats, workshops and training programs and I've helped hundreds and hundreds of people finally find their direction in life and get on their own soul's calling journey.

And I know it’s possible to shift from your survival work to your sacred work.

We're here to support you as you do this. Because that's how we change the world....one person at a time.