We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kate West. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kate below.

Kate , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?

I’ve always wanted to help people be the best they can be. In fact, I distinctly remember telling people in my earlier years that being the best version of myself was my greatest passion.

This drive to help people better themselves stayed with me throughout college, and I went on to pursue a master’s in holistic nutrition from the University of Natural Medicine in 2018. The food as medicine philosophy was very important to me at that time (and still is!), so the chance to help people achieve better health through making optimal lifestyle and dietary choices, was very interesting & exciting to me.

I started practicing in January of 2020 along side a naturopathic doctor who would refer her patients to me, to design a therapeutic meal & lifestyle plan that complimented her treatments. Very quickly though, I began to see where the real issues lied that were creating all of these physiological problems. First it presented as a poor relationship with food, but over time, it was apparent that even this relationship was a symptom of something deeper & more consequential – a poor relationship with themselves.

Once I could see the root of what was driving people to make choices that jeopardized their physical health, I knew the real problem was so much more than just the foods they were eating. I expanded my practice and became more of a holistic lifestyle and health coach. I ended my contract with the physician, hired a business coach and set out on the journey to building my coaching business. I emersed myself in personal development and was fascinated to learn and apply everything I could to teach people the importance of valuing and caring for themselves, on a deep level, because I could see the ripple effects this core relationship has on every area of our lives – And I mean every area. I began to see how friendships, goal achievement, physical health and even finances are all impacted by the fundamental relationship of the one we have with ourselves. I wanted to go deeper.

My practice expanded once again to becoming a spiritually focused life coach, because I had a newfound mission – to help people with big dreams reach their full potential, just like I have always wanted for myself.

To be honest, becoming an entrepreneur was never my goal or intention. Though I respected people who forged their own career paths, the instability and unpredictability of doing so felt very risky, and a little crazy, to me. However, life often has it’s own plans, and if I’ve learned one thing on this journey of being a student to life, it’s that what we tend to resist is often the very thing that we need to grow and evolve.

When I opened my private practice, I had no idea about the journey I was embarking on. Owning a business has been both my greatest teacher and challenge. It is a mirror, reflecting back all of me – the good, the bad and the ugly. Every effort I made in my business was reflecting back some quality about me I never knew existed. Whether I was making a post for Instagram, sending out an email or recording a video, the moment I hit send would catalyze a waterfall of doubtful thoughts for me to work through. And If my posts didn’t perform well, I wrestled with myself later – feeling like I was never doing enough, or doing it well. But I knew if I wanted my business to succeed, I couldn’t take any of this mind drama with me. So I went to work. My practice became an invitation to deep dive into my own healing – to uncover every area of doubt, lack, limitation and insecurity within me and transcend it. Building my business became so much more than just a service – it initiated the most significant transformation of my life.

Looking back I wish I could speak to younger me, and offer her some advice. I’d tell her not to take it all so seriously, that her passion & dedication alone would be enough to propel her all the way to the finish line, so she might as well lighten up and try to have some fun along the way! I would tell her she doesn’t need to copy and paste someone else’s business model, because there is no one way to do business, and it probably wouldn’t work for her anyway. Rather, she should choose a path that is the most enjoyable & authentic to her.

I would tell her to believe in herself more, and to know that she doesn’t have to have it all figured out before she would be “qualified” to help someone else. I would tell her to give herself permission to take her time, that moving at her own pace is important – It’s a marathon, not a race sweetheart. I would teach her how growing a business is simply a reflection of herself and looks different for everyone, so there’s no need to compare her path to anyone’s. I would tell her that her success is not a measure of how well one of her posts performs, how big her audience becomes or any other condition. Success is simply a state of being, and that she has the autonomy & power to step into that state anytime. Perspective is everything.

I would remind her that it’s not the words she’s saying that matters, nearly as much as the person she’s being while she says them. She’s not here to reinvent the wheel, but rather she is here to share authentically & genuinely. I’d tell her she doesn’t have to be an “expert” in her field before having something of value to share with the world, and that becoming an expert is something earned through time, dedication & experience.

And perhaps most importantly, I would lovingly tell her that her intrinsic value and worth never has, and never will, have anything to do with how productive she can be in a day, or is found in her accomplishments. I would invite her to slow down, take a deep breath and just listen…listen to her own inner guidance and to trust in whatever she finds – because nothing and no one knows better than she does.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I remember being a freshman in high school, sitting on the porch of my grandmother’s tiny, cramped apartment where I lived, having a deep conversation with my friend Austin. He was heartbroken over our mutual friend, and called me in tears, not knowing what to do. I spent a few hours chatting with him, looking at the stars and pacing around the porch, witnessing myself share insights and perspectives with him that felt wise beyond my years. By the end of it, he was calm and relieved, laughing at my periodic quips to lighten his emotional load. At that time, I would say these things would “just fly out of my mouth” and that I “had no idea where they came from”. Looking back now, I can see that I was channeling.

He wasn’t the only person who approached me with their problems. Throughout the years, I was commonly the person who friends would confide in and turn to for advice. Eventually, this stopped being only people I knew, but happened with complete strangers too! There was a repeatable pattern where very quickly upon meeting me, I was having deep dives with strangers as they would show me their inner worlds, often sharing things with me that no one else knew about. I was fascinated.

I went on to college and chose to study both psychology & complete the pre-med program to prepare for my career as a brain Dr. It seemed only fitting, given my lifetime of experiences playing therapist to everyone around me. As I prepared to take the MCAT, it suddenly dawned on me that I am incredible squeamish, and had zero desire to learn how to perform medical procedures. I quickly threw my plans of going to medical school out the window – thankfully.

Throughout this time, I’d also been very devoted to my spiritual practice, having started meditation at 13. I grew up in a very chaotic and challenging environment, where I shared a room with my parents and had very little positive influence. Because stillness and peace couldn’t be found in my surroundings, I quickly realized that I would have to find it within. I would go into the bathroom – one of the few places I could be alone – and open my chakras. It was there, sitting on the bathroom floor mat, often in the mid morning sunlight, where I first found peace.

I continued exploring spirituality – reading books, and cultivating a deeper relationship with myself through meditation. In 2017, this all culminated into my spiritual awakening, in which I was shown my true purpose in this life – to help awaken the planet and raise consciousness.

From that moment on, everything changed for me. It was like finding the last piece of a puzzle that you didn’t understand how it all fit together, and finally seeing the full picture. The entire collection of my lived experiences, all of the patterns and intuitive nudges clicked into place, and I could see that I came here with a very specific and meaningful purpose. It was the single biggest “ah ha!” moment of my life.

The style of spiritual counseling & healing work I practice is very much about healing our relationship with ourself, through the application of spiritual principals. The inner work is a transformational journey, and is all about shedding the identities we form around past traumatic events & limiting narratives, leading to a complete remodel of our self concept – to one of personal power & freedom. My work is very much rooted in the teachings of love’s wisdom, which I believe is our ultimate healing tool. Through self-compassion & forgiveness practices, emotional clearing & mindset work, I have found that my clients become a more clear, expanded and illuminated version of themselves. This process often facilitates huge breakthroughs, unlocking the depths of our capabilities, and brings the full potential of our purpose into clear view.

I love the work that I do, and I never take it for granted. Every time I get to witness a client setting themselves free from pain they’ve held for a lifetime, I am reminded of how blessed I am to hold space for such a transformational experience. It’s truly beautiful to see the smile of relief wash over their face, as they are finally able to move on and let go. Very often, other healers and people on the path of enlightenment are drawn to my work, and I find myself acting as a mentor and guide primarily for the spiritual community.

I’m thrilled to be expanding my practice yet again, and am in the process of writing my first book. I’ve been shown visions of taking my work around the world, hosting healing retreats in beautiful, tropical destinations – and I can’t wait. Simply stated, I am a proud yet humble conduit for source, here to help create a more loving, liberated and enlightened world.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

This is a great question, because I feel like my entrepreneurial experience has been a series of learnings and subsequent unlearnings – that has taught me a great deal about patience, and being guided by my own inner wisdom.

When I embarked on this journey, I had NO idea what I was doing – and I truly mean no idea. This happened to coincide with the beginning of the pandemic, so I graciously received my weekly unemployment checks, and dedicated myself full time to learning how to market my business online. At the time, I was living in a 1 bedroom studio with my former partner (who also worked from home), and my dog – who could be heard loudly chewing on squeaky toys in the background of my videos and zoom calls with clients. To call these times “humble beginnings”, felt like an understatement.

I spent most days frantically enrolling in every webinar that was advertised to me on Instagram, filling up my brain with as much marketing information as I could get my hands on. But the more I learned, the more overwhelming the whole process became – I had no idea how or where to even begin. Build a website with zero graphic design experience? Create a freebie to build a mailing list (where do I even store a mailing list)? Grow a following – where? Start a Facebook group? Invest in ads?! In my attempts to make some sort of coherent strategy amidst all of the information I’d gathered, I essentially tried a little bit of all of it and attempted the old “throw the spaghetti at the wall and see what sticks” method. Unsurprisingly to myself and everyone else, my chaotic strategy was highly, highly ineffective.

I felt lost. Drowning in a sea of noise, having no idea who’s voice to follow or what I even wanted from the whole thing.
That’s when I found my first business coach, Valerie.

She was the first coach I ever followed. She was very put together and spoke in a clear and organized fashion. This chick clearly knew what she was doing, and was succeeding at it. I wanted to learn everything she knew. She introduced me to an idea I’d never heard of – having a program to take my clients through that would facilitate an entire experience, culminating in a grand transformation that solved the root of all their problems, indefinitely. I was hooked.

I vetted her thoroughly – eagerly anticipating her nearly daily emails, stalking her posts & even managed to get in touch with some of the students inside her business coaching program, just to make sure it wasn’t too good to be true. I knew it wouldn’t be a cheap investment, but when I learned it cost over $6000, I froze. At the time, there was no way I could throw that kind of money down for my business…or at least, my then partner lead me to believe.

I chewed on the idea for a few weeks, while continuing my hap hazard attempts to apply the little bits and pieces I picked up from the various business pros I’d encountered along the way.

By June of 2020, I had separated from my partner, moved in with a random girl I met on Craigslist and was totally on my own. It was now or never – if I really wanted to take my business seriously, and create something that was “predictable and sustainable” – as promised by Valerie’s program, then I needed to put my money where my mouth was. I was ready, and had no one around telling me otherwise.

I took out a new credit card with a line of credit just enough to cover the cost of the program, promising myself I would have it paid off within 1 year before the interest kicked in. In July, I scheduled a consult call & joined the mentorship program, which had been 5 months in the making. I was thrilled! Finally I would have some guidance to getting my business off the ground.

To my delight, I made the money back for my investment in the program within just a few months! It was working! I was regularly implementing everything I was learning, and being hired as coach to help my clients achieve their health related goals. Everything was going according to plan.

At the exact same time, my former roommate (I’ll call her E) was going through a big job transition herself, and wanted to start her own pursuit, too. What started as an idea to create a money management workbook, soon blossomed into a coaching business as well. Coincidence? I don’t believe in those. In my world, I’d call this a divine appointment.

We would talk shop for hours, sharing podcasts, articles, posts & information from mentors back and forth. We held space for one another’s mind drama, and supported one another deeply as we both navigated the choppy waters of promoting yourself as a personal brand, into the vast void of the internet. I honestly don’t know what I would have done without her during those tender and vulnerable months.

By summer of 2021, I had pivoted and expanded my practice and had a very fruitful year, signing the most clients and making the most money to date. I was able to quit my part time job, and was fully self sustaining. I was loving the work that I was doing, and was eager to develop even bigger and better programs. I was mastering my craft, and doing my best to love the art of marketing and sales. It felt amazing.

But then, things began to slow down and trickle off. Just a year later, it felt like I was back to square one – no clients, no more money and no idea what I was doing. I was launched into a panic. Why had things suddenly stopped working? I hadn’t changed what I was doing and yet suddenly, it was like crickets every time I put out a post. Was it my message, my strategy, my mindset and energy? There were countless variables that could be at play, and I once again went back to work, trying to get to the bottom of what had shifted within me that was causing this to happen. But rather than approaching this with the curiosity I once had in the beginning, I was frustrated. I felt hopeless and stuck. It felt like no matter what I did, nothing was working. How could this have happened? I searched high and low for the solution, not only within myself but seeking as many resources as I could find that might shed some light on what was going on. It simply didn’t make any sense to me. I was devastated, feeling like the universe was constantly working against me for reasons I struggled to understand. I started feeling like maybe I should just give up entirely.

Though I am still dealing with the aftermath of the implosion of last year, I am beginning to see the 3 biggest ways I faltered during this time: I’d given up my authenticity, valued other’s opinions over my own, and didn’t listen when invited to move into another direction.

In the beginning, I was still showing up somewhat innocently – simply sharing thoughts and tools to help others navigate the complexities of their lives, from a place of passion & purpose. But over time, when I’d sit down to record a video, I’d have all of this business strategy running through my mind. “Don’t forget this, make sure to illustrate that!” and it became apparent in my energy. I started becoming wayy too fixated on my own personal agenda, and it detracted from the heart and soul of why I’d even created this business in the first place – to help people. I’d lost sight of the fact that I was speaking to actual people, when I was alone talking into my phone, with anxious thoughts of my own self preservation racing through my mind. That was issue #1.

Issue #3 is something I’m still working through – the invitation to go bigger, to take up more space and essentially, forget everything I’ve learned up until this point. I am a very intuitively connected person, and had gotten many signs throughout last year that it was time to pivot my practice yet again and expand. But I wasn’t ready. I stubbornly held onto the process and practices I’d learned that had been fruitful in years past. Week after week I would show up Monday morning, go through the motions and be burned out, upset and confused by Friday when nothing had changed, other than the balance on my credit cards. And yet, despite all of my failures, I somehow had convinced myself that I just needed to keep showing up and take consistent action – even though my inner guidance was telling me there was a better way, a more easeful and authentic way. I just refused to listen and doubled down on my resistance to change instead – fueled by the success stories of others and motivated by a deep attachment, that I’d completely overlooked.

4 years into this journey, I find myself at place where I almost wish I’d never learned a majority of what I have about business. Wish I’d never watched all those webinars, joined those courses or spent countless hours strategizing on how I could apply it all. Although Valerie’s program was monumental in getting my business off the ground, it also conditioned me deeply with fixed perspectives and absolutes, that I’m still trying to unlearn. And now, looking back, I can see the time I enjoyed my business the most was when it was the most simple – when I was just showing up as my curious self, with a dream in my heart to make the world a better place.

If you could go back in time, do you think you would have chosen a different profession or specialty?

This is an interesting question because I truly feel like my profession choose me, not the other way around. I feel as though the work that I do is so much more than just a “job”, it’s my soul’s mission in this life, and it feels much bigger than me. I’ve heard the expression that you can’t hide from your destiny, and I couldn’t agree more!

Looking back on the whole sequence of events that led me to my profession, it is very obvious that this was divinely orchestrated, and that I was truly led here. I don’t believe in coincidences. However, if given the choice – I would definitely have chosen to be here too. So, it’s a win-win ;)

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/guidinglight.healingstudio/
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@GuidingLightHealingStudio?si=L971-kIZetXqza6R
• Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@guidinglighthealing

Image Credits
Brooke Cagle Timothy Buck