Meet Carolyn Jarecki | M.A. & Board Certified Life Coach

We had the good fortune of connecting with Carolyn Jarecki and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Carolyn, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
The idea to start my own business began as a need to fulfill my purpose of helping others. My thought was never, “Should I start my own business?” but rather, “People need this and I am just the person to help!” I would describe the decision as a fire in me that only burned hotter as I became a board-certified life coach. I have had my master’s in counseling since 1996, but coaching energized my desire to help more people. The global pandemic hit at about that same time, so the idea that I could coach people via an online business seemed like a perfect formula for people who could not get out due to COVID-19 or had no help due to the drain on traditional forms of mental health assistance.

What should our readers know about your business?
I would love the world to know how amazing it feels to be coached by a good life coach. So often, a client will say how surprised they are that they feel better after our very first conversation. Coaching is a relatively new field and there seems to be a bit of mystery surrounding what happens in a session. Coaching is simply a goal setting conversation where my client finds answers as to how to improve their life. A series of my powerful questions brings about new awareness on their part.

I am highly trained in deep empathy and reflection, and together the client and I find their path to an improved life just one small step at a time. Specifically, they find a weekly goal that is important to them and a way to remind themselves often of that goal each day. The key components of coaching are a safe and trusting space for our conversation and that the client finds a goal that is important to them. Each of us has a sense of what we should be achieving on any given day. But for a goal to be attained, it is necessary that the objective be personally meaningful, or it will not be achieved. I am surprised by the magic of every session with a client because it feels like a metaphor for life—it is a gradual process with extraordinary results.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I currently live in Wisconsin, but I was lucky enough to visit Southern California often when I lived and worked in Silicon Valley in my late twenties. My favorite experiences were record crowd and heat days at Disneyland, the studio tour at Universal Studios Hollywood, seeing the Hollywood sign, and off-the-beaten-path sites in Beverly Hills such as a drive past Lucille Ball’s house. In addition, Bloody Mary’s on the water in La Jolla and shopping at Fashion Valley outdoor mall in San Diego were fun group activities. Southern California is full of such a variety of beautiful experiences. With perfect weather, a variety of cultures, and more to do than you can fit into one visit, travelers will never forget such a wonderful time!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would love to send a shoutout to my family and friends. I am surrounded by amazing, supportive people who inspire me to reach for the stars! When I shared with them that I wanted to write a book to help families (Your Best Kid in 21 Days on Amazon) they had no doubt that I was the person to help the world in this way. Along the way, they reminded me that I could do it, even when I doubted myself. In particular, my lifelong friend, Robert Harrison (www.senecaauthorservices.com) was instrumental in helping me get my book published. Families need help more than ever, and I knew my book could help parents immeasurably if they understood the coaching process. I had this idea of how to help parents learn to “coach” their own child by learning a bit each day and working a 3-week system together. Bob made that dream a reality. I had written a manuscript in the form of a fun, daily guide for parents and their children, but I had no idea how to get it into book form. Bob had written and published multiple books, and he offered his help. He edited and proofread my manuscript, formatted the interior pages, created my cover design, and guided me in uploading to Amazon’s KDP platform. He was encouraging and patient throughout the process. Bob made me feel like a good writer despite many edits! I doubt that many people can say it was fun to publish their book, but he made it that way for me! He is a wonderful person helping others by doing good. What a world it would be if we all did our part to help where we could in our little corner!

Website: https://www.icarecoach.com

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Image Credits
Christine Wesling