From Egg to Butterfly

Just like a caterpillar that transforms into a beautiful butterfly, we all have that possibility lurking within us - all we are waiting for is for the proverbial egg to be laid. So long as the conditions are right, that egg will go through it’s various stages of growth and emerge a beautiful butterfly. A similar process with a beautiful outcome can also transpire within us, as long as the right conditions are present. All transformation begins with a thought, a need, or desire for something to be different.

The Egg

For the vast majority of my adult life, I worked in a career in the finance industry. Upon reflection, it was the service aspect of my job that fed my soul for so long. I hadn’t known anything else other than banking for the longest time. I was very fortunate to have worked with some incredible management and supportive teams while in the banking system.

There was always opportunity for growth, and it was always encouraged by all - I was surrounded in growth culture which was most likely responsible for planting the seed that has driven my thirst for knowledge. I loved learning, and seeing the impact our knowledge and experience can have on others was very exhilarating.

The Caterpillar

As I shifted my career a little to the private sector - still in finance - I was able to focus more on the activities that I felt gave me more of a purpose. Not only was I able to provide the same level of service, coaching, and education to my valued clients and trusted colleagues - I was now a part of something.

This was the season where the growth really switched in to high gear. I was on a never ending quest to not only educate myself in my industry, but to really feed my hunger for knowledge on how we can use all of this to bring forward lasting change within ourselves and inspire others.

At this point, I had yet to truly see the vision for myself and what was to become the most fulfilling career I could imagine. There was this part of me that had been conditioned to stick with the status quo, playing safe, and living up to expectations that had been set out by not only myself, but those around me.

This was where the spark was ignited. There was a part of me that still felt like something was missing in my life - and I found it in the Health & Wellness Industry - part-time. I cannot overstate how much joy it brought me to help others along their wellness journey. Being a Personal Trainer was my hobby, my passion, but just a side-gig. I could not imagine how I would be able to shift from a full-time career in mortgages to something that is so much fun - and still earn a living. Deep inside, I knew that change was on the horizon. This was where the hard work began.

The Chrysalis

Could a girl ask for much more? I was still working in my job that paid the bills (mortgages) and was working in my passion (muscles) to fill my cup. The problem was two-fold however. My time was getting spread very thin working a full-time job and building a business, and my mental resources were also being taxed considerably. Both of these required time, attention and a financial commitment in order to grow and expand. And then it came - the decision to focus my attention on one career, to use all of the growth and knowledge and build something incredible for myself and a legacy for my children.

It was time.

It took about one year to bring everything together. The education, experience, experimentation, successes, failures, second chances, hopes and dreams - all of this came together in a beautiful symphony.

While all of this was happening below the surface - or inside my cocoon - I was being protected and supported by the job that I was very dedicated to and had worked hard on for a very long time. It provided me stability while I was inside growing and transforming until I was ready to emerge as a big, beautiful butterfly ready to spread my wings and fly.

The Butterfly

After a long stay in my cocoon, here I am. I have emerged and have shed the parts that are no longer serving me. All of the long days, the courses and training, the sacrifices, the personal and professional development have finally paid off.

The times of self-doubt, and my critter brain shouting at me to stick with the safest route - have been silenced. I may not have known it all along, but this transformation was my destiny.

The primary job of an adult butterfly is to lay eggs and mate. How fitting is it that now that I have made it through my own transformation, that I am here to help support and guide others with their own?

You are in it for yourself, not by yourself.

- Coach Wendy