We were lucky to catch up with Andrea Isaacs recently and have shared our conversation below.

Tell us the story of a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big, life changing risk or a small risk. Either way, paint the picture for us, tell us the backstory and all the relevant details so we can fully understand the context and circumstances around when and why you took the risk and tell us how it turned out.

My first night in college, I was tormented with questions I couldn’t answer — questions like, “Who am I?, What’s the meaning of life?,” and “Why am I here?”

So I what seemed the most rational thing at the time.

I dropped out and got a job to make money to travel. I worked for the head of the dance department, a world I never knew existed. As an employee, I had the opportunity to take classes. So I did.

The improvisation class in particular was an incredible experience. I felt at home in my skin for the first time ever. I felt connected to something outside myself. I felt like a vessel, and that something was coming through me. I felt like I belonged in the world.

The time came to start my travels. So I stuck out my thumb (it was 1970 when it was a lot safer to do that kind of thing), hit the road and went into the mountains, to be in nature, and find answers to these compelling questions!

Hitchhiking was a bit reckless, yes. I climbed vertical cliffs without ropes, which in retrospect was not only reckless, it was quite stupid! At least I was lucky! However, when I had the most spectacular feeling when I got to the top and looked out at the world. It was empowering!, and made me feel that I could do anything.

And I did find answers to my questions.

I’ll never forget the moment it all came together.

I was meditating on the top of a mountain overlooking the Pacific Ocean. And it came to me that I could combine the things I had been doing — the creativity of yoga, the exhilaration of jogging and the inner peace from meditation — and and now this may seem like a big leap) — it seemed THAT was the feeling that doing modern dance had given me.

And then I thought, I can’t miss the boat. I MUST do that. Because to live with the inner feeling created by doing those three things, would be a life worth living.

It wasn’t so much about “being” a dancer. It was about having that inner experience.

So I went back to talk with my boss, the head of the dance department, and told him my story. I had to pass an audition to get in, and we both knew I wouldn’t have worked!

As I told him my story, he got curious and said, “We should be able to teach you how to dance; that’s what we do here! And your humanitarian qualities should be as important as how well you point your toe!” So he let me in on a trial basis. And the rest, they say, is history.

I joined the dance department and after graduating, started my own dance company.

That inner experience was always my “North Star,” guiding me as a choreographer, and later as an embodiment and empowerment coach. Always wanting that inner experience for myself my students and my clients.

The next risky and scary thing I did was speaking on stages. It was much scarier than dancing and performing on a stage. Because speaking was being me. Performing was taking on a role of some sort.

I know for a fact that in the beginning, I spoke so quickly just to get it over with as soon as possible, that nobody could understand a word I said.

Somehow I overcame that, and am so glad I did. Since then, I’ve been an award-winning speaking 30 countries and on 5 continents.

Each of the risks were turning points in my life, and I’d have it no other way!

For folks who may not have read about you before, can you please tell our readers about yourself, how you got into your industry / business / discipline / craft etc, what type of products/services/creative works you provide, what problems you solve for your clients and/or what you think sets you apart from others. What are you most proud of and what are the main things you want potential clients/followers/fans to know about you/your brand/your work/ etc.

Please provide as much detail as you feel relevant as this is one of the core questions where the reader will get to know about you and your brand/organization/etc

After 25 years, my dance career ended because of a bad injury after which I could barely walk for several months.

Synchronistically, at that time, I came across a book on the Enneagram (“ennea” means nine in Greek), a personality system that describes the predictable gifts and challenges of nine different personality types. I discovered why I had been so shy for all my life and wanted to know more about this system. So I dove head first and attended a week-long training program where I sat on my butt for 12 hours a day, getting fascinating information poured into my head.

I wanted to DO the different types. I knew from my background as a choreographer, that it was possible, so I knew HOW it could be done. I thought it SHOULD be done as a kinesthetic, bone deep and lasting way to learn this system. And i was sure that it DID exist. But . . . it didn’t.

And so I created a method for embodying more of the gifts and less of the challenges of all of the types.

And what happened next surprised me.

I started to change.

Confidence became a part of me. I didn’t have to try to “be” confident. When I wanted or needed to be, it simply happened.

That’s when I knew I was really onto something. My work was not just about learning this system. It was about increasing your emotional capacity, range and flexibility. It was literally increasing everyone’s emotional intelligence.

And people started to ask me to be their coach. Reluctant at first, I finally relented.

And now, my clients call me a “master of change” and a “spiritual teacher extraordinaire.”

I have the tools for easy, deep and lasting change which I’ve been teaching for another 30 years now!

Now, the founder of the Emotional Mastery Institute, I have several programs and trainings and offer both private and group coaching.

My work is about healing the old wounds that bind you and hold you body, so you can embody the next version of you and create the relationships, business and life you want and deserve.

I’ve saved marriages. Helped people divorce and preserve their friendship.

I’ve helped leaders improve their communication with their teams bringing them into alignment and taking action towards their shared vision.

I’ve helped entrepreneurs step into 6- and then 7-figures by guiding them to a mindset for success. I do this by going back to the early life imprints that could still be holding them back from their greatness.

This becomes a healing journey, and then, there’s “room” for a new imprint and a new mindset. They find the freedom to be all that they are, and that allows them to soar even more, expanding their reach, impact and income.

All while being guided by my North Star, and having the same inner feeling of being at home in my skin, and at home in the world.

Now, my programs include: 

• The Entrepreneurs’ Mindset Experience: Level 1, The Choice Program – the introductory program where you combine the language of the body with the language of emotion and learn how to have a choice in your emotions so you can choose your mindset)
• The Entrepreneurs’ Mindset Experience: Level 2, The Deep Dive – the more advanced program with a deeper dive into expanding your ability to choose a mindset for success
• The Entrepreneurs’ Mindset Experience: Level 3, The Inner Circle
• The 5Cs to Tango with Tough Topics: The Art of Communicating: for teams, entrepreneurs and anyone needing a plan to initiate, navigate and resolve challenging situations. 
• The Key to Happy No Matter What
• Relationships from Good to Great

And my services include:
Group coaching
Private coaching
Keynote speaking 
Event speaking
Workshops

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

There have been several, some minor and some major, pivots in my life.

The pivot from being a dancer to what was evolving (and unclear at that point) included a huge letting go. Letting go of my identity. My friends, all of whom had been in the dance world. Letting go of what gave meaning to my life. My job and my home had to change. Everything in my life changed.

I still wanted to live a meaningful, happy life, which I had in the dance world. And I had no idea — yet — how to have that again.

I was following my inner guidance, my North Star, when I went to that Enneagram training decades ago. This was huge in inspiring me to create a whole new body of work, now called “The Isaacs Method for Emotional Mastery.”

There’s no way I could have created that without having had — and left — my dance career.

The next major pivot was more of a mindset pivot which a part of me greatly resisted. Though I had been an entrepreneur for over two decades, I hadn’t yet really defined my niche, my “avatar,” my ideal client, contrary to all marketing advice.

There was fear, flirting with the idea, sort of claiming it but not following through on consistent copy that reflected the pivot; so much resistance.

I finally owned the truth. Though I do love working with EVERYbody!, I finally pivoted to and claimed my avatar! I now proudly state that I serve entrepreneurs who want to soar even higher. I love breaking their resistance, as I had broken my own, so we can all stand in the power and the value of being ALL that we are. It was thrilling, to say the least, to finally take a stand!

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

A leader must create an environment of high morale or the team loses focus, doesn’t “own” their responsibilities, may not follow through or make deadlines.

The essential ingredient is Emotional Mastery which includes respectful, quality communication so everyone is seen, heard, understood and honored.

Teaching this is one of my passions. Not having grown up in a home where quality communication existed, motivated me to want it! But earlier on, I didn’t know how. Until creating this Emotional Mastery body of work.

Emotional Mastery is essential for a cohesive, productive team. Yes, it’s a “soft skill,” and — soft skills are needed in hard times.

I teach and coach leaders “The 5Cs to Tango with Tough Topics: The Art of Communicating.” This builds morale because using these The 5Cs, everyone is seen, heard, understood and honored.

People open up. They talk to each other. They all know what’s going on. This builds trust. It creates a more mutually supportive environment. People step in their own leadership, taking on new kinds of tasks when asked or needed. They stretch themselves and feel good about what they accomplish. And they’re in alignment, moving forward towards a shared vision.

I’m told that working with me is “rocket fuel for their trajectory.”

Morale of any organization starts at the top and is determined by the leader’s mindset, what, when and how they communicate with their team, how they deliver feedback, and of course, how they manage difficult conversations.

Another component of Emotional Mastery is understanding different communication styles. When the leader understands the different communication styles of their team members, and becomes fluent and flexible in each of their communication styles, everyone feels more seen and honored.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Andrea-Isaacs.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andreaisaacseq
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/andrea.isaacs
• Linkedin: https://www.instagram.com/andreaisaacseq https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreaisaacseq
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AndreaIsaacs1
• Other: https://andrea-isaacs.com/eqtoolkit