Story

“If I ignore something, does it go away? Does it not, in some way, make its subterranean appearance and affect my behviors, my choices, how I feel about myself? ” James Hollis, A Life of Meaning

When I was about fifteen, I started wondering what I could do to keep myself busy (mind you, this was long before the Internet Age). Lo and behold, learning a new language by myself seemed like a really good choice, so I gave the French language a try. My attempt was destined to fail.

The desire to learn Spanish lasted until I saw the inverted question marks at the beginning of their sentences.

My last choice was English. I used to stare at the English phonetic symbols, head in my hands: what on earth did they mean? Somehow, I cracked the code. I studied English for a year as if my life depended on it, then I told my parents what I wanted to study at university.

In a communist country like Romania in the 1980s, the decision to study any foreign language must have sounded quite apocalyptic and, given that it was a self-taught language, utterly idiotic: my parents gasped for air.

Bless them, they ended up supporting me.

In a few years’ time, the unimaginable happened: communism collapsed, Romanian people turned the page (or so we believed) and my eccentric decision paid off: now everybody wanted to study English.

I became a teacher of English, a job that offered me great professional and personal fulfillment.

I attended several drama courses and I began to teach drama in English. I wrote original monologues and adapted plays collected in a book called Masks On! I started my own theatre group, “The Irresistible” and, as a playwright and director, I involved my students in numerous county and national drama competitions where we won fantastic prizes: Best Actress and Actor in leading roles, Best Show of the Festival, Best Script (to mention only a few).

I’m proud to say that my three children got first and second prizes at national drama competitions in English.

In 2010 I decided to do something that had never been done in my county, namely to participate in a theatre competition abroad. Despite many difficulties, The Irresistible and I made it to The World School Theatre Festival in Sanremo, Italy, where my students presented my own adaptation of The Twelfth Night.

When the winner of the competition was announced, it took us a few seconds and a nudge from an Italian organizer to walk onto the stage and get the prize.

What made those moments especially memorable was the fact that my daughter was the leading actress in the play.

About fifteen years ago on my birthday, knowing that books make the best gifts for me, my mother gave me Jeffrey Eugenides’ famous novel, Middlesex.

Little did I know then that the book whose odd title intrigued my mother was going to be part of the research for my doctoral degree.

How could I have known then that I would emigrate just like the characters at the start of the novel?

Writing my PhD thesis in English literature involved hard work and numerous sacrifices. Needless to say, I couldn’t have done it without the support of my family.

Moving to England in 2013 proved to be a life changer.

I continued to teach mainly English as a first language (yep!) and drama to secondary school students. I also started working on a novel in English while attending a great creating writing course in London where I lived for almost seven years.

The coaching course appeared in my life after the first lockdown in England, when the highlight of my days was watching dozens of swans gliding nonchalantly on the lake near my place.

“I know something that’s going to change your life.”

This is what my sister, who had just finished doing an amazing coaching course, told me one day.

Yeah, sure, I thought first. What was coaching anyway? I’d never heard of that.

And yet, her conviction resonated deeply with me. I trusted her.

And she was right: being a coach opened the door for totally unexpected, radical changes in my life.

Obviously, it started with a new process of self-discovery (I’m telling you, this is no picnic).

My clients come to me because they are stuck. They see their limitatins.

Instead, I see their potential. I support them wholeheartedly to discover their limiting beliefs, negative patterns and fears: anything that holds them back from moving forward and living meaningful, fulfilling lives.

Being part of my clients’ journeys of transformation is incredibly rewarding.

No wonder I love coaching: it keeps me excited and makes me want to become better and better for myself and my clients.

I know for a fact that coaching can change your life.

I want to return the favour.

Other details about myself if you’re still interested:

• My three children are the most precious gifts of my life.
• If coffee hadn’t been “invented,” I would have done it myself.
• I sometimes become nostalgic remembering the times when I did ballet and rhythmic gymnastics. I’m sensible enough not to make the same movements again.
• Until recently, I had never had a pet (I won’t count the golden fish that my young children had to take care of and which, sadly, died). Now I have three dogs: how wonderfully chaotic.
• The only place I am willing to give up my high heels is the beach.
• Swimming is about healing and freedom.