I’ve recently had the privilege of working with Ella, a young professional early in her career, who when we started working together had stepped into a challenging new role, fresh out of university, straight into a fast-paced workplace.

In this space, Ella often found herself questioning her abilities and place in her new environment. Through coaching, she experienced a transformative journey, shifting from self-doubt to self-assurance and finding her voice both professionally and personally.

Initial Challenges

Before engaging in coaching, Ella recalls the early weeks of her job as overwhelming. “I’d just started, and I kept thinking, ‘should I even be here?’” or “I’m not as good as them”. Ella was constantly analysing herself and felt like she wasn’t contributing much during meetings, in her words “I just simply couldn’t, I didn’t have anything to say or give”.

Her self-doubt extended to how she approached learning. “Back then, if I didn’t contribute, I’d think I was useless. I’d sit in meetings thinking, ‘What am I even doing here?’ instead of taking in what was being discussed.”

Mindset Shifts Through Coaching

Over the course of her coaching engagement, Ella experienced a profound shift in mindset. She moved from feeling like an outsider to recognising her value and ability to contribute meaningfully.

Now she says “I’m actually there for a reason” and realises active listening has as much value as contributing and has the confidence to take away learnings from new situations rather than berating herself and overthinking the situation.

Ella’s also experienced a huge shift in self-belief. She’s gone from asking, ‘Can I do this?’, instead saying ‘I can do this,’ or ‘How can I make this happen?’. She says these more positive thoughts are “constantly ticking in my head. If something uncomfortable happens, it's like that automatic change in mindset [to a more positive one], which is really cool, because I feel like before I was quite easily capable of just shutting myself down”.

Personal and Professional Growth

Beyond the workplace, the coaching journey positively influenced Ella’s personal life. “It’s been great for me…not even just in work, in my life… how I go about things with my family.”

Her professional growth was also recognised during a recent review. “My manager told me he’s noticed a huge difference from day 1 to where I am now…. I believe that I know more, that I’m capable”

A most recent standout moment for Ella was how she handled a high-pressure situation presenting at a conference. “We had tech problems when we were presenting. The slideshow wasn’t working, usually I would have gone blank and been like ‘this is too much’” but instead but instead of panicking, I stayed calm. I just thought, ‘Okay, the screen’s not working—let’s keep talking.’ Before coaching, I would’ve shut down completely. I trusted myself to adapt, and it worked.”

Most Valuable Aspects of Coaching

Ella found the sessions uniquely impactful because they went beyond surface-level strategies.

“The longer sessions were great for diving deep. I loved how we connected current challenges to past experiences—it helped me understand myself better. Plus, the group sessions were awesome for connecting with colleagues. It made me feel like I wasn’t alone in facing challenges.”

She particularly appreciated the somatic aspect of coaching “Those moments were powerful. It felt like my body guided me to answers I didn’t even know I had. Trusting that process led to some really cool breakthroughs.”

Ella also valued the practical somatic tools provided, “it’s amazing how something so simple can make such a difference.”

Biggest Transformation

For Ella, the biggest change was realising how she could tap into her innate potential in a way that was right for her, “Everyone’s like ‘go with your gut’, but I feel like a lot of fear lives in my gut….I loved all the parts where we connected to my body…and my body would guide me to the answer…once you actually trust that, some really cool things come out of it…understanding I’m strong, I can do this…it’s a huge thing”.

Final Thoughts

Ella’s journey reflects the profound impact coaching can have on mindset, behaviour, and confidence. “I’ve noticed a huge difference….so powerful for me starting a new job to have this new change of mindset rather than a few years down the track”.

Would Ella recommend coaching with me? “Any day, in a heartbeat, yes. You’re so skilled in what you do and have this amazing ability to connect. Honestly, thank you so much for changing my life and the whole mindset thing…..it’s a very strong skill of yours to be able to create this amazing safe place”.

Ella’s story is a testament to how a tailored, supportive coaching approach can empower young professionals to thrive in their careers and beyond.

If you’re a forward thinking organisation looking to support your young workforce with personal development so that they too can start their career off powerfully, contact me today to book in a call.