Testimonials

Before I started coaching I had a lot of anxiety and stress-related to my job. I had a very negative perception and it was hard to get tasks done. I was not thinking clearly about my future and thought that I could possibly stay in my role regardless of being unhappy. I'm proud of the progress I've made with my stress and anxiety through meditation and mindfulness, and positive perception and outlook on my situation and life. I'm also proud that I've finally admitted to myself that I will not stay in this role in the long term, and have been making strides to find another role that benefits me internally at Facebook The Self-Compassion exercise (how would you treat a friend vs. how do you treat yourself) and also finally realizing that no one cares if I leave the team. I need to do what is right for me! What behaviours and practices do I hope to maintain? Morning meditation, self-compassion, positive outlook. Are there any ways in which my coaching journey feels incomplete? No, I know what I need to do to move forward in my career and find a new role Is there anything I might regret not bringing it up in the remaining time? No, It's on me to figure out what else I like and to do the due diligence of exploring what other roles are out there. Thank you for everything!!!

I am less judgemental of myself. I am not bullying myself as much. My water, my food and my time is my healing. It's ok not to know - you can say " Now I Know". What progress am I most proud of? That I am accepting my thoughts and experiences - and they are only that I am ok, and I not just surviving but thriving Staying with the negative feeling - use my hands to make myself feel better Finding a hobby - collecting Art Helping one person a week What were the most meaningful "aha" moments? You'll know what you need to know when you get there Label your thoughts and emotions for they are - only thoughts and emotions Fear manifests in life Don’t figure out everything at the same time Change my attitude towards things If my stressor is repeating - what am I not learning What behaviours and practices do I hope to maintain? Meditation and Yoga " That everything is ok" Box Breaths " I am getting better, better and better" Write down my achievements every day Take moments and walk away Are there any ways in which my coaching journey feels incomplete? I believe my sessions became ritualistic and I looked out for Monday However - I do not believe it is incomplete - it gave me the steps I needed to open my mind, forgive myself and be nicer to myself My journey with Vibha came at the perfect time in my life - where I have gone through so many changes and adjustments - I needed tips and tools to work through these objections

I know myself better. I learned to identify my strengths and skills. I know my worth. I understand my environment better. I feel more confident about what I bring to my workplace. I feel a sense of belonging or fitting within my group. All these changes have allowed me to feel empowered and confident. I am most proud of working on my strengths. It takes work to identify them, acknowledge them, develop them and manage them. Some are stronger than others but I can figure out ways to improve any of them. Q: What were the most meaningful "aha" moments? A: Realizing a lot of people go through the same situations I go through. Q: What behaviours and practices do I hope to maintain? A: Healthy habits like balancing work and personal life. Prioritizing me, my health, and my career. Q: Are there any ways in which my coaching journey feels incomplete? A: No, there isn’t any way my couching feels incomplete. Q: Is there anything I might regret not bringing up in the remaining time? A: I may regret not talking more about personal life issues but I also don’t regret it because I intentionally wanted to focus on my professional development and how this coaching would help me have a better experience at work.

My awareness has increased. I enjoy life more. I stress over the little things less – or if I do stress about them, it is for less time. First and foremost, I am most proud of choosing a coach that I probably would not have chosen even a few years ago. It was the most perfect fit for me and am so grateful for Vibha. She provides such wisdom, and I am proud that I took action no matter how big or small. In addition, I was much more open than I ever have been with anyone outside of the family. What were the most meaningful "aha" moments? (1) Do your best. (2) The energy in which you do things is so very important. (3) Add your own flavour to things – that is your superpower. (4) Stay in your power. What behaviours and practices do I hope to maintain? All of the items were noted in the previous question along with staying in the ‘neutral’. Are there any ways in which my coaching journey feels incomplete? I would love to continue. It feels incomplete because it is – there is no destination and this is always needed. Is there anything I might regret not bringing up in the remaining time? No.

From being reactive, jumping from task to task without thinking to be able to step back and be more prepared (both mentally and physically). I am now able to recognize my personal state and adapt accordingly. Being able to institute a "moment of peace" before my meetings - 5 mins of no talking or thinking, just clearing my mind and readjusting posture so all participants can be in a relaxed state before talking. Taking mediation/breathing break in between tasks. Understand I need time to transition from one thing to another. Getting a 5-minute head start won't really help, but taking 5 minutes to get extra clarity and mental preparedness helps much more. Being grateful for the things I have accomplished, vs spending all the time worrying about the things I still have not completed yet. Recognizing I need to "be" in addition to "do". I work on a lot of things, but I use to not evaluate whether that was the best. Recognize that before embarking on a complicated task, I need to be mentally and physically prepared so I am in the best state to handle what is coming. What behaviours and practices do I hope to maintain? Continue to do breathing exercises Listen to my body more Be able to recognize I am stressed and need to de-escalate Be able to recognize negative energy is being generated, and either stop that or turn it into positive energy Are there any ways in which my coaching journey feels incomplete? I don't really know what I don't know. When I started the journey, I kind of laid out all the cards on the table, and Vibha was able to pick out the things I need to work on and point me in the right direction Being able to accept and act on feedback is going to be the next step for me Is there anything I might regret not bringing up in the remaining time? I don't think so. Personal wellness is a long journey, and every one is unique. I think having someone guide you and point things out is a good start, and it will be something I can continue to work on and improve once I identify areas of improvement

I have a better understanding of where I want to go with personal development. I feel more confident, have a better perspective and I feel good about my journey. I feel really good about my work/life balance as I was known as a workaholic, always available, putting work before family, on my laptop on weekends and answering emails while on vacation, etc. I have learned to balance my day by starting it with a routine and ending at an appropriate time. I longer work over the weekends, put my phone down more often and make more time for myself and my family while still being very effective during my working hours. When I started to be more aware of my conversations, listening to learn, and being more present. I learned so much more about my peers, leaders and direct reports. Active listening is so important to me and being in the moment...as It is something that I need to continue to work on. I will continue to reflect before and after having effective conversations.

How is my life different from when I started coaching? Conscious focus on ways to mitigate stress- meditation (prayer is saying, meditation is listening), exercising, time alone for reflection, more time going to church & sleep Centering myself- make a plan & put it on paper Make time for me to recharge- Hallow catholic meditation app & attending daily mass What progress am I most proud of? Being more mindful & helping my kids centre themselves while focusing on their strengths & blessings, focusing on thanking people & surprising others with kindness How I handled the discontinuation of OBP as an opportunity and recognized the team for work well done (Bamboo tree story)- ultimately this resulted in a career opportunity I had never considered before in global product supply & the best possible outcome for my team 4.5/5 stars on overall assessment & likelihood to recommend my Owning Your Career Workshop, follow-up workshop & national program request Received Top Performer Award for 2020 (only 1-2% of employees get this recognition) Completing strengths training with kids Compensation assessment with HR Completely unplugged during Christmas break What were the most meaningful "aha" moments? Assessment that revealed coaching was my biggest strength- thinking about my perfect role and how I could use this strength while also dreaming big Doing nothing is the greatest activity; Meditation is not about doing anything, it's about undoing everything Authenticity has power Perfect Role Activity & 1:1 feedback from leaders & people that know me outside of work Never think that you aren't ready yet to be a coach: Either you have it or you don't- you make a difference in other people's lives Byron Katie's activity- Is this true? Is this really true? What are your current perceptions? What's bothering you? Determining a PhD would likely distract more than it would help You need to stop trying to figure out things- need to be in a place where you can access universal intelligence- don't try to make things happen Radiate love, don't absorb negativity- pray for God to help guide you Practice more acceptance- love people with all of their flaws & shortcomings Wherever you are focusing your attention, your energy is flowing We are becoming human doings not human beings Think about what you want to create in your life & go to sleep Depression is a lack of expression express- cook, paint, be quiet & listen to your soul reflect on things you have done contemplation is the greatest activity- all inventions happen because of contemplation (#1 step to create anything) What behaviours and practices do I hope to maintain? Meditation, exercise, unplugging for family time Continuing to coach others through 1:1 mentoring, workshops, sports & community activities Deep breathing activities Releasing you from making me feel_______ I will let you go the way you want to be________ I will release my expectation Are there any ways in which my coaching journey feels incomplete? Moving into a global & a people management role without having Vibha as a consultant scares me Having help & an outside perspective personally is also a concern, but we’ll connect again 🙂

How is my life different from when I started coaching? More confident at work much less stress and agony over everyday work more confident about my own skills Acknowledging and understanding that I will always want more, try to reflect on where I was and how far I've come Feeling ok and better about improving a little at a time, I don't need to go from 0 to 100, 0 - 5 one day, 5-10 a few days later is ok and progress! Relationship: Just spending time is good enough, doesn't have to be some big planned thing Spending more time playing with son Health: Working on mindfulness, breathing a little each day Working out twice a week! What progress am I most proud of? Feeling confident about my work, I didn't think I'd be able to do this! What were the most meaningful "aha" moments? Acknowledging and understanding that I will always want more Improving a little at a time is good! I'm too hard on myself (inner bully vs friend never tell me that), no such thing as perfect What behaviours and practices do I hope to maintain? Everything (haha) When I have negative thoughts, write out my negative thought, why, and why not (CBT) When I am stressed, be mindful, meditate and breath To try not to be so hard on me too much (think about what I'm telling myself as my inner bully vs what I would tell myself as a friend) When I feel like things aren't enough, to look at how far I've come To celebrate wins Are there any ways in which my coaching journey feels incomplete? No, we talked about how it's normal to keep working on these skills and we slide back a little and we keep working on them Is there anything I might regret not bringing up in the remaining time? No 🙂 It's been a truly great time and I've learned and grown so much

Our last session was very productive and helpful for my energy levels and mental health while working on the job. January is an extremely busy month with my full-time job so it is easy for me to feel stressed out, overwhelmed and tired with little energy to dedicate to my second job. Instead of focusing on getting ALL of the things I want to get done for my second job done every day, I really have been focusing on my energy levels and doing things when my energy feels positive. Now, this doesn't mean that I can put all of my tasks on the back-burner, it just means that I am more aware of how I am feeling when I am doing them which has made a difference so far. I have felt more inspired to keep showing up for myself, which in turn helps me inspire others and get more creative with what I am posting about. I wrote down this phrase from our session last week and I think I need to make it into a permanent sign! " Because I enjoy this and sharing about it, it does not work! The more I detach myself from the outcome, the more positive my energy will become and the easier it will be for me to attract new clients.

It has truly been life-changing to work with Vibha as a professional coach. There are too many things to choose from to select just one… developing a vision, personal transformation, self-awareness, transformation within my whole family, overall sense of well-being, goal to attain self-enlightenment, and productivity and clarity in my professional life and career path. What were the most meaningful "aha" moments? Bringing energy to myself How to handle stress Removing ego from interactions Experiencing oneness Hearing the low continuous sound of AUM during meditation Connecting with and supporting my father through important transitions Putting people first before achievements, especially in work-life What behaviours and practices do I hope to maintain? Daily meditation and building life energy Achieving purpose aligned with divine plans Continuing to maintain a family connection Are there any ways in which my coaching journey feels incomplete? No. I feel fortunate that I was able to have more than a full year of coaching from Vibha. Vibha's guidance and answers to my many questions always provided me with more food for thought than I could digest during our sessions. Is there anything I might regret not bringing up in the remaining time? No. I was sure to bring up all the questions I had during coaching. This was an amazing and enlightening experience for me. I learned and grew much more than I had ever anticipated. Vibha answered questions I did not realize I had. For that, I am immensely grateful. This was truly a life-altering experience that I am forever changed by for the better! Thank you so much Vibha!! Your legacy will live on through me.

Working with Vibha is such a positive experience. I am more in control of my emotions, more self-aware more mindful and more confident than n myself. I am most proud of removing my self-doubt blinders to see my life as others see it without fear. A meaningful ‘aha’ moment for me was recognizing how badly I beat myself up by focusing on my shortcomings as opposed to recognizing my accomplishments. I do the latter daily now. Additionally, I am amazed at how effective daily meditation helps my ability to focus. I will continue will expanding on self-awareness, mindfulness, meditation and recognizing successes daily to improve my positive vibes along with exercise and healthy eating habits. I have grown to look forward to my sessions with Vibha. I have felt so at ease speaking to her weekly. I would not say it is incomplete more melancholy it has to end.

I have changed in so many ways working with Vibha. The biggest difference is that I have way more confidence in my skills and know my self-worth. New Manager coming into the picture shook that for me, and I had been feeling like I wasn’t good enough or spinning stories in my head that I wasn’t valued. I know now that I bring unique skills to the table and that other person cannot do what I do. I have stopped spinning stories in my head about what other people are thinking/saying. I don’t preoccupy myself with that as much. I feel more at ease and confident in my abilities in both personal and professional life.

“ I had a lot of anxiety when it came to interacting with my boss. I would feel physically ill before a meeting with him due to his aggressive and demanding nature. I would feel constantly defensive and felt unable to support my thoughts and ideas when talking to him. I was quite frankly scared of him. Working with Vibha, The biggest lesson here was learning to stay calm and stay in my power. Before meetings, now I make sure I'm as prepared as I can before talking to him. I've also incorporated meditation and yoga/working out into my daily routine to help me stay grounded and secure in myself. When talking to him, I've learned to pause before speaking and to not let his loud and aggressive behavior come off onto me.  Outcome: This has been the biggest improvement in my day to day both in and outside of work. My self-confidence has increased so much and I feel so much more at ease when communicating with my boss or really anyone that I feel anxious to talk with. I no longer get that physical pain in my stomach before meetings and if during meetings, he gets aggressive, I am able to stay in my power and sit back. Learning to stay in my power has also greatly helped my personal life as I know I do not need the approval of others to be happy and fulfilled. I can do that myself. By putting less expectations on others and being satisfied with what I can do myself makes me feel so much more happy as a person and less dependent and reliant on others.”

"Going home and spending time with my mom was always a challenge for me and I was anxious. This time I was taking my boyfriend home for the first time to introduce him to my family. And my boyfriend was taking me to his family the first time and I wanted everything to go well. With the help of Vibha's coaching, I did 'the inner-work and prepared myself for the trip. Outcome and the notes about my experience:   The month I was traveling and was full of wins. When with my family, I was able to only hold expectations for myself, and by doing so, everyone surprised me. My family was more than welcoming to my boyfriend, they cared about getting to know him and gave me amazing feedback on him as a person. When thinking about my relationship with my mom, I only focused on how I could be the best daughter to her and in return, she was more open and honest with me than she ever has been. I was able to successfully regulate my emotions and whenever I began to feel slightly overwhelmed or out of control, I went to my room to prioritize "me time" which always helped calm me down. When I was at my boyfriend's house, his family was great. They were sweet and welcoming and gave me and my boyfriend a lot of space. I walked away from the week feeling like I know his family and they know me. This entire month was a huge success, everything went better than I was hoping for and I am extremely grateful for this experience. I feel closer to my boyfriend, I feel closer to my family and it's more than I could have ever imagined!"

"These are my wins based on our coaching: Self: I believe I exceeded expectations for the Self leader mindset in large part to the coaching experience, which has been transformative in making me a better leader and Boxer. Holds self-accountable Better preparation for internal and external conversations allows me to anticipate objections, pivot quickly, control emotional reactions and ultimately be more likely to achieve my goals Champions new ideas and learning with a growth mindset Active participant and learner in Tom's XLT SE Summit CFO activities/bingo - "what can I do better to make this work next time?" Presents as open to feedback Weekly coaching has helped me identify areas of opportunity and improve on them, including: Delegate to empower my team Control my time to prioritize where I can have the most impact (I can't be everywhere) Rest and recharge with the team's help  Consistently sets and attains long term goals Weekly coaching has helped me set goals around executive presence, work/life balance, and focusing on solving problems that are "mine to solve"

“Vibha has been an excellent coach for me. She has met me where I am without judgement. During our session she creates a sacred space for me so that I am comfortable enough to share. With her metaphysical background she is able to inspire me and help to move me forward in all aspects of my life. As I continue my work with her, she continues to help bring me into a place of peace and gratitude. In addition, outside of our weekly sessions Vibha always sends me affirmations and quotes that motivate me and raises me up. There is a level of uplifting of my vibration and I feel like I can do anything that comes my way. Thank you for continuing to inspire me and level me up!”

“Vibha Sharma has a very calming and relaxing voice and her coaching skills are effective and so needed. She also has a deep knowledge of spirituality/metaphysics and her meditation coaching sessions have helped me focus and quiet my mind. I particularly like the Self Cleansing Chakras meditation which I do just before going to bed (https://cosmicways.com/7-chakras-of-the-physical-body/) as well as 2-3-5 Minutes Mini Meditations which I do every time I have to present or speak in public. I also approached Vibha when my son was having some struggles concentrating at school, especially around test times and I was desperately looking for a solution. Fortunately, Vibha has customized a series of audio meditations for my son to help him calm his nerves. He immediately saw (and me too) a change in his state of mind and behavior at school. I highly recommend Vibha's coaching methods not just for adults but for children too. Thank you so much for all you do Vibha."

“I am frankly surprised I’ve made it as far as I have without the concepts and tools I’ve been learning and practicing with Vibha.  I’ve added thousands of hours of worry, anxiety, concern, frustration, upset, and preparation to my journey. I’ve lost hundreds of hours of sleep, I’ve had unnecessary disagreements (both at work and at home) struggling to change others to my way.  I’ve added volumes of unneeded and controlling negativity, my inability to accept myself for who I am, my inability to accept others for who they were. All this time I could have invited in and allowed the possibility of a greater and (simultaneously) easier outcome.  I could have been in FLOW. If I’d had the tools Vibha has shown me in my toolkit from day 1, I am fully confident I’d be more successful now.  I’d have better relationships both at work and with my beloved family.  I’d have been happier living the moments I’ve lived, instead of always concerned about the moments to come.  I’d have a higher title.  I’d be making more money. I’d have added more value in my life to others – both personal relationships and job relationships.  Life would have been easier for me, I’D HAVE ENJOYED MY LIFE MORE.  I am focused on feeling grateful and lucky to know about these principles now. To be looking at my life differently going forward. I am extremely blessed. Thanks Vibha!”

“By working with Vibha: I am more in control of my emotions - trying not to get perturbed by everyday issues at work (acting with maturity) - gaining more confidence in dealing with difficult people and situations - thinking more clearly and coming up with more structured ways to communicate - acting with authority - showing up with confidence in meetings/speaking up more/presenting my POV without the fear of being judged. Being in your power and showing up with confidence no matter what - being positive and seeing the good things as that shapes your perception and what you project on others - self-awareness - looking at a more well-rounded view of things and break down issues in a structured approach - tackle stress more effectively - be more prepared for all types of meetings/discussion - applying to new roles. I want to continue building a muscle for all the things I have started to achieve and make it a part of my being. Instead of getting flustered by every situation at work, deal with it holistically by keeping all the advice/learnings in mind and acting with emotional maturity."

“How is my life different from when I started coaching? - I have a greater perspective on how I can remain calm in the midst of a storm, including how I can take control of my emotions when I face these situations. - I’m also thinking about what I need to change on the inside in order to impact my life on the outside. To this end, I am spending more time visualizing the outcome & feeling that I want to experience as a way to help set myself up for success. What progress am I most proud of? - Mediation has become one of my normal practices and I do this 3-4 times a week. I use this practice to centre myself in the mornings or to bring calm to my life in the evenings. I’ve introduced this practice as well as others that Vibha has shown me with my children and it has had a significant impact on my relationship with them and I am teaching them helpful habits at a young age. I am able to also help them take control of their own emotions in a positive way. What were the most meaningful "aha" moments? - In one of our sessions we discussed approaching work in a way that creates “mutually beneficial” relationships. That dialogues created a mindset shift where I now am thinking more about what I am also getting from work, projects, etc., and not just what I am pouring out to help the company reach its goals. - The discussions related to visualization were also extremely powerful."

“Vibha has helped me turn everything around. Opportunities within my career have opened up that were not there before, and it includes a chance at a promotion. I am focused on what really matters in life; my relationships with my husband, children, grandchildren, and how I  can enrich and make that life better. I am grounded and happy and don’t let others shake my reinstated self-confidence. Soon, we will be starting a new life in VT, living in my ideal home, and maybe even starting my ideal job. I am unstoppable now!!"

"I have worked with Vibha for a few months now and can attest that she is a fantastic coach. From the start, she has invested time in understanding my goals and each session, she guides me through exercises, reflection and action plan to help me work towards them. Vibha is always able to help me see things from a perspective that encourages me to reflect on my performance in ways that help me grow as a leader and a team member. Since our sessions, I have found that the objectives we set in class translate to improvements in how I work, both operationally and in my relationships with my coworkers/team. I have become more efficient, more confident, and more focused on how I approach things. I am very thankful for Vibha's guidance and our continued sessions."

“Vibha empowers her clients to find their strengths & embrace challenges as opportunities. She has helped me to have more clarity while also giving me the confidence to lead with authenticity during some of the biggest personal & professional challenges that I have ever faced.”

“I chose Vibha as my coach to work on personal growth and to “better know myself”. Vibha is a warm and personable coach, easy to connect with and with a wealth of knowledge and personal experience. My coaching sessions with Vibha over the past 3 months have been life-changing. My life has more balance, I have greater clarity on what is important and a clear focus on where I am heading. There is more work to be done, but I am very happy with the progress and positive changes so far. I highly recommend Vibha as a coach”

“ I never expected to connect with my coach on Coaching as I have with Vibha! The energy and positivity she puts out and exerts at every session inspire me to keep going and work on myself every day. She always helps me focus on what I want to work on and to implement actual action steps to work towards my goals. I know I have made tremendous progress because of my weekly sessions with her and I look forward to continuing our progress that we have made together! Vibha has been an excellent coach for me to have the privilege of working with. I’ve never had a coach before but this experience with Vibha has opened my mind to the power of letting somebody into your life to give you solid direction. Vibha has truly taken the time to understand how I think and what motivates me. This allowed me to put a plan in place that has achieved things in my life that I’ve never thought I could be achieved. I could not be happier with my experience and I look forward to what the future has in store for me, now that I feel I can reach my true potential in life. Vibha has been very instrumental through our weekly coaching sessions in helping me build my executive presence.”

“I only started working with Vibha a few short weeks ago and my communication skills and confidence has grown exponentially. VIbha has guided me to think more inwardly about what my intentions are when working with cross-functional and direct partners which have allowed for more honest, upfront and clear communication. Collaboration amongst teams has been more efficient with proven success. Personally, I have been able to apply everything that we've practised in my personal life as well. Vibha is the best! Vibha teaches authenticity which can be tricky in the workplace, but she teaches you to master it so well!!”

“The sessions with my coach Vibha were helpful in many ways. For our first session, after sharing my concerns and goals, she encouraged me to make use of a few mindful tools to help with stress relief. I was feeling overwhelmed with coursework and life responsibilities. The mindful techniques that were most helpful were taking self-compassion breaks and mindful breathing at the end of my day. Taking time to take self-compassion breaks allowed me to be more focused throughout my day. Using mindful breathing (body scanning) at the end of my day allowed me to sleep better and not constantly process thoughts that once kept me from sleeping well. I was able to get better rest at night, which was helpful and relaxing. During our second session, I was able to share that the tools that were provided in the last session were very helpful. I appreciated the mindful breathing mostly. I can say that this experience with my coach has allowed me to reflect on past courses and the lessons previously learned on self-care. I do practice self-care in general. However, while feeling overwhelmed with coursework this semester, I was not doing it as often as usual. Research indicates that it is important for counsellors to apply self-care techniques and maintain they're well being (Evans & Ward, 2019). Additional research also explains that school counsellors are responsible to practice wellness and monitor their emotional well being so that they can be effective in their work (American School Counseling Association, 2016). I really enjoyed this experience. My take away from these sessions is to remember to always be mindful of continuing to practice self-care because it is extremely important."

“Since starting the coaching sessions, I've been able to learn how to be more self-compassionate. I've been able to reflect on how I am doing and take breaks when I need to, knowing it'll make me more productive. I've been able to change my outlook on myself, improve my confidence, find my voice and power to be more of an authority figure and take back control over my work and projects. I've been able to learn how to better regulate my emotions when things don't go the "right" way and quickly adjust my mindset. What notable milestones, achievements, or learnings have you gained since starting your Coaching coaching journey? I've experienced several big wins since I started this journey. My relationship with my boss is no longer a point of stress and anxiety. I am leading very productive projects that are seeing excellent results and have lots of momentum, which has garnered lots of praise by the executive team. I've been able to be seen as a respected leader within the organization. Where would you like to go to the next stage of your personal and professional growth? I would like to continue focusing on how to change my mindset and handle stress when pressure is put on me. I'd like to continue working on how I can present myself as a respected leader and authority figure within the organization especially to those who are older than me but do not have seniority over me.”

“So far, I've begun to understand myself and my interactions with others more clearly. My awareness has been raised. Going forward, I need to work on: A DAILY MINDFULNESS PRACTICE: of all I've learned to date, this has been so helpful. Staying present at work has slowed down my speech, helps me to listen more, helps me to focus better. This is something I still have to consciously think about, I'd like to practice this so much it becomes who I am. SELF-LOVE: I need to be nicer to myself. I am very critical and judgmental of my own capabilities and work product, which likely extends out to others'. I'm learning that by appreciating my own unique self, authenticity and contributions I'll be more able to do the same for my co-workers and colleagues. All stems from this. GETTING FEEDBACK: I've been able to shift my feedback style when giving feedback, but I am still challenged (in my stomach) when receiving feedback - for fear I'm not good enough. I understand intellectually why I should value receiving honest feedback as much as giving honest feedback - but I still need to work on taming my visceral reactions of rejection and hurt and apologies. I need to work on developing the confidence and courage and self-worth required to take constructive feedback more constructively and less personally, right there at the moment. It "hurts" when it shouldn't. I'd like to work up to directly and boldly and frequently soliciting feedback from my supervisor. Overall, it's extremely easy for me to fall back into old patterns. I understand intellectually what I'm learning from and with Vibha, but I must keep working to integrate these principles (e.g. mindfulness and centred presence) deep into my core internal value set. Currently, I have to practice and consciously think about "being". I'd like eventually to just "be". (Does this make any sense at all? :)) I hope to get continued support from Vibha as she serves as an amazing coach and guide, and has resources and tips and tricks that don't come naturally to me and that help me move forward. I'd deeply value the continuation of my coaching with Vibha beyond the current end-date for more direction, guardrails, support and practice/exercises. I’m not sure if this is an option. THANK YOU! “

“I have changed and grown in many ways since starting my Coaching journey. One of the most important things that I've learned from my coach, Vibha, is the importance of centring myself and self-care. I've learned the importance of meditation and cultivating a practice of emotional and spiritual well-being. I've also committed myself to physical fitness and well-being goals such as over 120 days of exercises since August and establishing a more thoughtful bedtime routine. After a short sabbatical from my office, I have returned with clarity of focus, dedication, commitment to goals and confidence in my perspective and understanding of my role and impact. I attribute my growth to the benefits of coaching, therapy, and practice.”

“Over the last six months, I have been able to take power and ownership over myself, my actions, my emotions, and my future. I have learned and developed skills that have enabled me to better define who I am and what I'm capable of. Six months ago, I was feeling powerless at work, over my emotions, over my career, and over my development. I struggled to speak my voice and showcase any confidence which translated into stressful work relationships with my colleagues and boss as well as a major lack of self-care and self-compassion. I didn't know how to prioritize myself or my needs, because I quite honestly, never focused on what they were. In the same vein, I struggled to find my power, because I was convinced it wasn't me who controlled any aspect of my own life. Now of course I know that couldn’t be further from the truth. I recognize the extreme and total power that I have and I've used to it to completely transform all aspects of my life. My relationship with my boss changed in every way, I no longer was anxious and nervous around him, I feel capable and strong and he, in turn, acknowledges my successes publicly and praises me regularly on my work. I have deeper connections with my coworkers. Instead of fearing what my new role and new authority what do, I've found ways to connect with them and show my value and worth which has enabled them to show their best value and worth to me as well. Although negative energies are still around me, I am able to see them more clearly and shield myself from absorbing any effect. I feel myself shining brightly, bringing more positivity into my life and into the lives of those important to me. I recognize the strength of my thoughts and feelings and have witnessed first hand the miracle of thoughts becoming circumstances. In my personal life, I have been able to attract a strong, nice, thoughtful, independent, and deeply reflective person when in the past I've always attracted weak, and dependent people. Although I have always held the power of control, I am now able to utilize it every minute of every day. Of course, not all moments or even days are perfect, but I am able to spin any negative into a positive with the flip of a mental switch. I can change my perspective, I can better explain my thoughts and feelings, and I can feel free. There is so much growth that has occurred over the last 6 months, it's hard to imagine how dark of a place I felt I was in before. But I use that as motivation to keep using my power and the law of attraction to stay in control for my present and for my future. I can't wait to see what the next 6 months bring, but I know for sure it will be filled with happiness, excitement, fulfilment, joy, and love.”

“I started my coaching journey with Vibha in a challenging place in my life. Under the difficult circumstances and challenges of the pandemic, I was frustrated with all the changes and stress in my personal and professional life. Throughout my sessions with Vibha, I have been coached kindly and thoughtfully about the power of meditation, self-reflection, affirmation and mindfulness.  With each session, I began to look forward to sharing my progress with the practice of meditation with Vibha. I also began to see the benefits of my mindfulness journey and started goal setting for more progress. I’ve always been open and receptive to the practices of mediation and other mindfulness techniques, but I never committed to doing “the work” necessary to see the benefits of it. In Vibha, I found a coach who would helped me commit to it and reaffirmed the key principles and benefits of the practice. Vibha has consistently impressed upon me the importance of incorporating daily meditation in my life, provided resources and responded to my inquiries with support, understanding and knowledge.”

“When I first started my coaching sessions with Vibha, I was not in a pretty place. I was frustrated that I couldn’t get to where I felt I deserved to be in the company I work for. I began doubting my own self-worth and capabilities. I was angry because I felt that I was being held back and pigeon-holed into a level below where I aspired to be. And, I was sad because all of this was making me feel as if I was never good enough, no matter what I did. All these career-driven emotions were also spilling over into my personal life as well, tainting everything. I was constantly on an emotional roller-coaster. In the early weeks, Vibha had me focus on building my confidence back up. She had me list things I was good at and journal about what I was very confident about and what I didn’t feel confident about. She stressed that I do these activities so that when I focused on confidence, I do so with positive energy and intent and when I focused on those things I wasn’t confident about, to do so with neutral energy, stressing that we get back what we put out to the universe. It was not something I had really paid much attention to before. She also gave me some links to further these learnings. We continued our work. We worked on emotional regulation, but unlike others who tried to get me to deny negative (“bad”) feelings, Vibha asked me to allow myself to accept whatever I was feeling, letting go of it and taking my power back when I was done. This attitude resonated more with me than blocking or locking those emotions away. It also validated that it is normal and ok to feel sad, bad, angry – we just shouldn’t dwell on it and live in that state, because that puts us into a state of negative energy. She also asked me to list out what contributes to my misery at work and what I could do to address that. The benefits from this activity were 2-fold: one, I learned that if I cannot change it, I had to just let it go and focus on what I can change, and two, that the misery was really rather minor in comparison to the big picture of everything in my life. In doing all of this she was setting the groundwork for me to learn to be kinder to myself; to treat myself with more self-care, as I would act towards a friend. This helped me to reverse the negative self-talk and energy and replace it with more positive, optimistic messages. Six months later, I am in a much better place. I am empowered, believing in myself and my power and not letting others define this for me. I am stronger and more confident than before. I am stable and calmer; I am focusing on me and my well-being (meditating, exercising, etc.) rather than purely on achievement. I am happier and more content.”

"My outlook is different in so many ways due to the coaching Vibha has shared, but at its most basic - my whole life I’ve looked for gratification from the outside, from others. My parents, my bosses, my husband, my son, my ex-boyfriends – am I doing things that make them love me, make them see me? (Whatever I was.) Vibha made me understand that I have to be centred, to go within. I have to know who I am and find self-satisfaction for my own gifts. I have to love and trust myself first if I’m ever going to find happiness and personal power and be able to love and trust others. I can’t build my entire life around serving outside external forces and waiting for external love to make my life worthwhile and to make me “enough”. And I can’t run through life mindlessly, not checking in with myself. I have to be in the moment, aware and listening. I’ve also learned that the perfectionism value I’ve held so close all these years is not only not great, but can actually be destructive because I’m always shooting to deliver to someone else’s expectations. This goal can be deceiving because perfectionism was very effective at making me teacher’s pet, at landing jobs and earning salary increases, at being the “go-to” daughter and friend. But it was unsustainable and, ultimately, unfulfilling. It was an effective way to lose my compass, to lose connection to my inner self, to my own unique contributions, to my own personal, true-only-to-me passions and joys, to what I have to offer. I’m learning from Vibha that everything I need comes from me. That external drivers are fake, messy and offer rickety foundations. By centring myself, breathing, calming down and speaking from deep inside my humanity, my core, not from my eyeballs, I’ve been able to stay more even-keeled. This has even ironically helped me to listen better to others. I’ve been able to gain control over how I was showing up in meetings or with my family – to temper my over-eager and overly energetic approach into something much more approachable. This centring and mindfulness have made me better able to manage the litany of individual symptoms I sought to fix originally. I’ve found that if I can step quietly into my own truth – this automatically slows my speech and my flailing hands. Like a miracle. It’s hard to explain, but if I can let myself rely on me, on my years of experience and my earned education – if I can relax into the things I know I uniquely bring to the table, then I can calm down and trust and let those things hold me up. I don’t need the extra 24 x 7 googling and memorization I used to seek before I entered a big meeting. I can enter the room with a deep breath and some quietude – reaching into the calm and listening confidence that comes from knowing I, indeed, belong in that room. All I need to do is show up with my mind and my heart and my good intentions. I’ve learned I just need to enter a room with me and take it respectfully from there. This has been life-changing." ?

Coaching has helped me better understand my own strengths as a manager and how to use them to enhance the strengths of my team. It was nice to talk through thoughts, ideas and opportunity with someone who can provide clear and confident feedback. Meditating has helped me so much and I am so thankful for Vibha and showing me how to make my life more balanced and find positivity in everything. She has also shown me the importance of visualizing positive outcomes and I now do this in my personal and professional life. I’m proud of so many things throughout my journey but mostly proud of how I can also use the coaching guidance to coach my own team. The idea of coaching and mentoring has helped me build a better relationship with my older team and helped me grow better understanding with my new one. An aha moment was when I was able to link my strengths to a more manager mindset. It’s so helpful to understand your own goals so you can be positive and confident to your team and this is something that has really helped me link the two. I hope to maintain all the learnings I have received as I think they have helped me be a better manager and person. I hope to maintain everything I have learned and to continue to grow and use the skills given to me to provide a positive working environment for my team as well as for my own life and family. THANK YOU so much for all your help, guidance and positive energy! You have helped me professionally and personally and I am forever grateful.

Magic "AhHa" Moments The biggest - I can only work on ME and what I do, and must learn to work around others that I feel are obstacles because I cannot change them, only the way I react and interact with them. I was operating from a stress-based fight or flight mode after my failed attempts at the next promotion and the way this made me feel. A realization that it's not so much about the exercises and such that I have done but it is more about the exercises prompting a change in my attitude; focusing on me and not what others think, focus on positives instead of negatives, etc. In doing "Weekly Wins" - many things I don’t see as a big deal may really be bigger than I think Even without a promotion - I have "power" I have to be consistently working on all aspects of myself to sustain feeling good about me. If I only focus on one aspect & feel stagnant in other areas, I can get down in the dumps and then don't want to work on any of it! Then I get "stuck". So, I need to be hyper-aware that I'm not slipping into this complacency, because complacency can easily turn into non-motivations, leading to depression where I don’t work on any of it. I need to keep my finger on the pulse of belief in myself, because if I don’t believe in me then how can I expect anyone else to believe in me! I can have a natural negative explanatory style and I need to keep this in check, especially in my self-talk.

I've been working with Vibha for a few months now and she's been incredible! She takes the time to really understand my goals/needs and helps to provide a thorough action plan of how to achieve success. Vibha is able to provide a thought-provoking perspective that enables me to think through things in a much more comprehensive way; every time we talk I have a new realization! I truly enjoy working with her, she has a strategy for everything. In a short amount of time, working with Vibha has enabled me to make major developmental strides and provided lots of laughs along the way!

I have been working closely with Vibha as she mentors me through my Leadership Development program I am currently in. Throughout our connections, she's provided such professional guidance and support that has truly helped me grow as a Leader. She's also introduced me to Mindful Meditation, which was new as I have never meditated before, and I must say it's a game changer. Her soft tone and relaxing demeanor has allowed me to really refocus and changed how I approach and view certain situations. I have since introduced this to my team and it has really changed the overall engagement and improved our team dynamic. I definitely recommend Mindful Meditation and Vibha as a professional coach, mentor and life coach!  

Over the last several weeks, I've been drastically able to develop in my professional area. I've been able to feel comfortable and confident with the implicit authority my role has. I've been able to be seen as a strong leader throughout the organization. I've been able to establish more connections with my peers which has enabled more trust. I've also developed a more positive relationship with my boss. I no longer am worried about his criticism but rather welcome it and doing so, have received more praise for my performance than before. I've been able to better regulate my emotions as it relates to self-compassion and stress. I have solid tactics to use to combat these feelings and still stay productive and confident. I've also improved in organization and planning so I don't feel overwhelmed by constantly changing project scopes and timelines. Lastly, I feel very more in tune with my strengths and weakness than ever before. I've been able to realize how some strengths can be over-used and how I can better balance all the skills I have to utilize.

I've learned how to give better feedback and how to be more open to other perspectives. I've read great articles from my coach on how to interpret when someone needs more reflection or processing time, and that's been very helpful. Thanks to Vibha for being responsive and always energetic about connecting and coaching with me.

Working with you, Vibha has been such a wonderful experience, in every aspect. You are taking the time to understand me and my pain points but then, through your knowledge and experience, are able to identify things that I may not have even thought of. The resources being provided to me based on our conversations have helped support my leadership skills in a more clear perspective. I'm so pleased to work with you and am thankful for your coaching and guidance!!!

I'm so pleased with our sessions! I'm extremely grateful I have the opportunity to work with you each week. I appreciate your habit of revisiting my initial coaching goal statement (from weeks ago) so I stay focused on pursuing them. You're very kind, supportive and extremely easy to talk to. I trust the confidentiality of our sessions and I look forward to seeing your smiling face each week on my tiny little phone screen. 🙂 I also value the homework you give me. The exercises are (mostly) concise and enjoyable, and are helping me chip away at unveiling the *new* me. I know you craft the homework to make sure it's considerate of my time (uh, lack thereof), which helps me to maintain my practice - instead of procrastinating and brushing it off. With your help, I've actually made some progress in 5 short weeks/sessions. I've begun to understand a couple of things more clearly - and because my awareness has been raised I know continued sessions and practice will help me dig even deeper to adjust my behavior: I see more clearly that my high level of stress comes from within me - a lot due to my interpretation of the situation. I have begun to check myself going into and coming out of stressful meetings/encounters. It's not perfect, but I'm becoming more aware of how I feel and that I can control how I feel when working with especially political or unreasonable colleagues. Your relaxation exercises are wonderful for me - they slow me down, help me to go inside. These are the one thing I feel will help me achieve a multiple of the goals I listed - stress release, executive presence, the strength of character, trust in myself and what I have to offer, etc. Admittedly, I have much more work to do in this area - but I'm just beginning to understand why I should value honest feedback from my colleagues over the fear I feel of the criticism. I know our sessions won't last forever (sigh), but the good news is that I have already started to feel some confidence in being able to continue my intra-personal growth on my own once we're done. I've taken notes on all of our sessions and exercises and hold those with me. For now, I look very forward to the rest of our sessions and am hopeful for the production of much more growth and peace. Thank you, Vibha!