About
How I Became a Life Coach for Third Culture Kids (TCKs)
My Origin Story
Growing up as a first generation Chinese Canadian, I was never a stranger to feeling out of place – I had cultural differences with everyone around me, including my own family! I was a comic-loving, adventurous tomboy and artist with a vivid imagination. As you can imagine, my resulting lack of self-esteem from this experience made me an easy target for bullies.
When I reached high school, I decided it was a chance to “start anew”. I was tired of not fitting in – so I changed the way I look, stopped playing sports, and did everything I could to not stand out like a sore thumb!
Because of this, I lost myself – trying to fulfill my family or society’s views on success but never content, I was left constantly searching for something.
To escape, I left my family home as soon as I was able to – living a life of adventure spanning parts of Canada, Mexico, and Vietnam. But, despite all of this moving around, I could not run away from myself and my inability to connect with myself.
You can only walk so far in someone else’s shoes before your feet start to hurt. They just don’t fit!
Things didn’t change until a chance encounter led me to discovering the name for the cycle I was stuck in – codependency. A REVELATION THAT CHANGED MY LIFE. This began my journey to heal myself. I finally had a name for my problem, and started working on strategies to overcome it.
I did copious amounts of research, began a mindful meditation practice, joined group coaching and started therapy. I was determined to get to the bottom of my unhappiness and get back in touch with myself. I learned to silence my inner critic, a combination of all the voices of the bullies throughout my life. I finally started to feel like myself again and like a phoenix, I rose from the ashes and came back to life.
My mission in life is to help others like me – Third Culture Kids, those who’ve become lost in all the noise from family, media, and society.
I’ve found my calling – helping others find the happiness and fulfillment I have reached.
Now it’s time to find yours.
It takes time and guidance to get there, but I am here to help!
Contact Me for Your Free Discovery Call!
Together We Can Find Your Authentic Voice!
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What does Third Culture Kid mean?
“A third culture Kid (TCK) is a person who has spent a significant part of his or her developmental years outside the parents’ culture. The TCK frequently builds relationships to all of the cultures, while not having full ownership in any. Although elements from each culture may be assimilated into the TCK’s life experience, the sense of belonging in relationship to others of similar background.”
2. What is coaching?
Coaching is a profession that is very different from consulting, mentoring, advice, therapy, or counselling. During the coaching process, we will address your specific personal needs, general conditions and transitions in your personal life, relationships or profession by examining what is going on right now, to discover what your obstacles or challenges might be. From there, I help you to reflect and choose a course of action to make your life what you want it to be.
My skills as a coach are to know the right questions to ask and to have the right tools and techniques to empower you to find those answers within yourself. You are the expert of your life, who truly knows who you are and what you need. Therefore, you are the only one who can recognize what is absolutely best for you. I am simply an expert in the coaching process and there to help you discover what your own personal “best” might be.
3. How long does coaching take?
The duration of a coaching journey differs from person to person. I ask for a minimum time commitment of three months, with at least four sessions during this time, as it takes time to manifest change and overcome old habits. Throughout the process we will discuss your progress and once you feel like you have obtained the confidence and clarity you came for you will know when you are ready to continue on your own, knowing that you can turn to me for support in the future whenever you need it.
4. What is a discovery session?
The first step in your coaching journey is a 30 minute ‘discovery’ session free of charge. Here we will dive into what you want to achieve during your international journey and how I can help you get there. If you are calling on behalf of your child, we will discuss their needs as well as your concerns and how we can work together to make sure these are met and addressed. In addition, we will discuss what you can expect from coaching and agree on the best path going forward.
5. How can coaching help Third Culture Kids?
Coaching can help Third Culture Kid (TCK) teenagers grieve the losses derived from their relocations. What’s more, it can allow them to embrace the identity challenges that surfaced during their adolescence which were amplified by the expat lifestyle, in order to enhance feelings of self confidence and self awareness. Coaching can also help young adults explore what they truly like, what they are looking for from their university experience, and make decisions about which types of schools will serve their needs.
In addition, coaching can also help Adult Third Culture Kids (ATCK) to acknowledge the behaviours and habits they developed as a result of this lifestyle that may be blocking them from feeling the strongest versions of themselves. Moreover, just as with TCK’s, coaching can help ATCK’s explore identity and grief issues that surface as a result of this lifestyle.
Are you a TCK or ATCK and feel you want to find some clarity? Or are you raising your children as TCKs and not sure how to help them?
Schedule a 30 minutes FREE Discovery call and let’s discuss how I can support you!
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