Today we’d like to introduce you to Camila Hanisch.
Hi Camila, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I was born in Chile. There I went to school, got married to a great man I deeply love and admire, and had two wonderful children.
In 1998, my husband got the job offer of a lifetime, so our tiny family made its way to the USA. I didn’t even speak English! However, since then I have lived successfully between two countries, two languages, and two cultures.
Driven by a strong call to service, I volunteered in so many organizations doing so many different things that I lost track of it all. However, a nagging voice in my heart kept telling me that I haven’t found my life purpose yet.
I love people and for as long as I can remember I’ve been listening to their stories and tribulations. Sometimes I’ve been able to help in a concrete way, other times all I could do was listen. But it wasn’t enough. I still felt the need to do more, so I decided to go back to school, my long-postponed dream. Furthermore, education would give me the tools to help more and help better.
I’m always joking that I’ve lived many lives in this lifetime, and at every new beginning I’ve felt excitement, curiosity, and joy. Yet, this was the first time I was creating the change and it was my choice. It couldn’t be more exciting! My initial plan was to be a therapist, so I got my Associate in Arts degree at the Community College at 54 years young.
I transferred to the University to pursue a bachelor’s in social work… but right before jumping into the program, I did some soul searching and I recognized to myself that therapy wasn’t really what I wanted: I didn’t want to duel on people past and pains, I wanted to help them to move forward, to grow and evolve, to build dreams, and that’s a Life Coach’s job.
In 14 months, I became a Certified Fearless Living Coach under the mentoring of Emmy Award-winner, and four times Bestselling author Rhonda Britten. Then, during the pandemic, I coached myself to become a workshop facilitator, an especially ambitious challenge for an introvert like me.
After I broke my shell, I started having fun when talking to the camera (who knew?!) and now I post videos on Facebook and Instagram where I share some tools, knowledge, and my personal journey. I even created a YouTube channel to share relevant material with my Spanish-speaking clients. Additionally, I just finished another intense training, this time as a Positive Intelligence (PQ) Coach.
As a Life Coach, I’m able to help people move forward and saved the obstacles that are holding them back. I support my clients in overcoming fears, excuses, and seeing the possibilities and opportunities to ultimately create the lives they’ve been craving for themselves. There’s nothing more rewarding than to be part of their transformation.
I’m finally fulfilling my life purpose!! And to wrap it all up, for each of my clients living a happy and fulfilled life, there are countless others benefiting from it, spouses, children, co-workers, etc. As a Life Coach, I have the certainty that I’m contributing to making the world a better place.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Let’s say that the road has been smooth, yet a very intense climb.
Studying in a language that I learned as an adult was not easy. Fun, and exciting, yes, but not easy. Imagine learning statistics in a second language! Drafting papers, researching sociology, discussing ethics… yes, it was difficult and intense and I’m immensely proud of myself for not giving up and even aced it.
Then the Life Coaching training was just as tough because at the same time I was learning tools and techniques, I was practicing and applying them to my life, so I was learning, growing, and evolving, everything simultaneously.
Then on top of all this, I had to develop a business, and when I was getting some traction, we got hit by the pandemic and everything stopped. Yet, today, I’m grateful for the difficulties because the closed doors made me open windows and explore rich and fascinating business avenues that otherwise I’d have never seen…
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a Transitional Life Coach, which means that the people who hire me are closing a chapter of their lives and they want to create the next one.
More specifically, I support empty nester stay-home moms to go from feeling confused and irrelevant to feeling joyful and excited about their own lives. I’m passionate about helping these women to find and express their powerful voices, create a future for themselves by themselves, and feel excited about their lives.
I’m about to turn 60 years young, I’ve lived and survived a lot.
I’ve reinvented myself a few times too. All my life experiences, studies, tools, and techniques are here to serve my clients. My training in Fearless Living allows me to understand my clients’ fears while the other hand, my training in Positive Intelligence offers simple and practical tools to overcome any obstacle.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
In the next 5–10 years? Everyone will have a Life Coach! As one of my clients says, “A Life Coach is essential to one’s growth and moving forward.”
Today, more and more people are working with Life Coaches and sharing how great is their experience, thus more and more people will feel comfortable adding a Life Coach to their support team*.
*Support team: could be parents, spouses, friends, mentors, etc.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coach_camilahanisch/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/camila.j.hanisch/
