Like every entrepreneur, I’m keen to grow my business.  My friend and fellow coach Heather Markel, founder of The Bullbuster Café, asked me to attend Monica Shah’s Money 2.0 event in Atlanta and I jumped at the chance.  Thank you Heather!

Monica is a business coach specializing in entrepreneurs’ relationships with money and teaching others to “Love It. Make It. Grow It.”.  She and her team at Breakthrough Revenue have developed a very savvy, and street-smart approach to keeping business owners on track to reach 6-figure revenue and beyond.

Monica’s money secret-sauce is a come-to-Jesus coaching exercise around the life-long beliefs we hold about money and the stories we tell ourselves.  These stories – like the looping audiotape of our inner lives – can unconsciously control us like robots and lead to unwanted disaster.  Getting straight about old beliefs, they are formed by the age of 7 (!!!), and replacing them with a more empowering, adult belief is critical for success.  You can also figure out your money archetype and its associated behaviors by reading “It’s Not About the Money” by Brent Kessel.

The money exercise was a yet another reminder of the power of telling my story.  Earlier this year, I decided to tackle dating with renewed enthusiasm.  As part of my self-commitment to successful dating, I hired a dating & love coach.  My coach Trenia Parham patiently listened to my entire love history during an all-day one-on-one session; starting from first kiss to latest and greatest ‘dis. 

It was a profound experience to have another human being fully hear my personal love story and more importantly see and call out what I clearly cannot see for myself.  I kept making the same mistake over and over, but no more!  I learned that I’ve never figured out what I wanted in a relationship, I just went with the flow (what he wanted), and in order to be truly happy in love I need to know what I really want, go look for it, and then express it with my partner.  Whew!!

The great news is that the power of storytelling is not limited to Love and Money (and wordsmiths from the PR industry).  These same unconscious patterns run our work lives and determine the trajectory of our professional careers.  You too can break free.

I listen to all my clients’ work stories from top-to-bottom.  We take a fresh look at what’s been at play for a very long time and how it’s still playing out today for better or for worse.  It’s an incredible feeling to be freed from your old rules and punishing behaviors once there is clarity around why and how we do the crazy things that we do.

Don’t be shy in sharing your work story. 

What are your old beliefs around work and career?