by Cristina Burca (Romania)
‘Follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.’ (Joseph Campbell, famous mythologist)
- How often do you hear your inner voice telling you this?
- How often does your support network tell you this?
- How can holistic coaching support you to achieve this?
If any of these questions spark a light in your mind/heart, keep reading, as we talk with Jo Ritchie, London-based Personal and Business Coach, who tells us what 3 key lifestyle habits each of us can integrate to upgrade our lives. Jo has an impressive and varied background so can draw on many different tools to help support her coaching clients. She credits her ethos to Joseph Campbell’s concept of ‘Follow Your Bliss’ and also makes use of Susan Jeffers’ concept of ‘Feel the fear and do it anyway’. Enjoy reading and check the gift Jo offers at the end of this article!
Cristina Burca (CB): Hello Jo and thank you for your time! Let’s kick off with some insights about yourself. What is it about coaching that you are passionate about and what drove you to become a coach?
Jo Ritchie (JR): For me, it is about people’s capacity to change the way they think and to therefore make great changes in their lives, because we truly create our world in our minds first. I have a science background and my previous career was in medical/healthcare communications. I am, therefore, somebody who likes to understand the mechanisms behind things. Reading the research into neuroplasticity (the brain’s ability to change itself), studying applied neuroscience and psychology lights me up because it proves to me that the structure of our brains is not ‘hardwired’, but that the development of our neural pathways can actively be changed by us. That is amazing! We are fully in control of our minds and, therefore, our behaviours and our lives! This is why coaching works so well and why it’s such a rewarding vocation. I know what it feels like to take control and transform your life because I have done it myself. I am living proof that it CAN be done. To be able to pass this on to others and to know that it works fills me with a sense of passion and purpose.
Source: iCN Issue 22 (Wellness & Holistic Coaching); pages 32-34
About Cristina Burca
Cristina has contributed to the iCN magazine since 2014, by interviewing coaches around the world to shed a light in this fascinating personal and professional development field. Cristina worked as journalist in Romania (2006-2008) and then moved to Brussels to work in EU affairs. After an international journey in PR, education and tourism, taking her from Germany to Malaysia and back to Europe, she is now managing the brand of a renowned business and life coach in Romania.
