Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Laura Lee Paha. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Laura Lee, thanks for joining us today. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

I believe there’s a formula for success… it’s not just one thing that makes you successful, but a combination of factors. Personally, I wouldn’t be successful without support. I believe support is a key ingredient for success. I have an extremely supportive spouse who has supported me both emotionally and financially on my path as a business owner. Being a solo entrepreneur involves a lot of risk, a lot of uncertainty, a roller coaster of financial and emotional ups and downs, and I probably wouldn’t have persevered through the downtimes without having Stephanie’s support.

I think it’s also essential to be supported by a community of like-minded people. I have a tribe of healers, coaches and creatives who are walking similar paths as me. Some have been in this industry longer than I have, some are newer entrepreneurs, and some are in very similar places as I am. regardless of where we are on our journeys, having this community of women who share similar beliefs and values and who understand the ups and downs of this industry has been invaluable to me. No matter what I’m going through, I know I have someone who I can bounce ideas off of, someone to brainstorm with, someone who’s inspiring me and encouraging me. I also get just as much out of being able to help and support my fellow practitioners and facilitators, sharing what I’ve learned or just being a listening ear. Sometimes being able to help others allows me to see just how far I’ve come, and it means a lot that my peers seek and value my advice.

Asking for help when you need it is also a key to success. I’m very open about the fact that I feel extremely confident as a healer. It’s my calling, and nothing brings me greater joy than supporting my clients as they heal from past pain and trauma. For me, that part is effortless. But being a business owner? That doesn’t come naturally. Early on in my career, I tried to figure that part out on my own, but I quickly realized I would be much more successful and would save SO much time, money and effort by investing in coaching from an expert. Having support from a professional who knows business strategy, who knows and understands how to grow a business… that’s something I can’t put a price tag on. It’s given me the time and freedom to focus on what I love and do so well, knowing that I have that support in my corner.

In addition to support from my spouse, my community and a business coach, the other key piece to success for me is courage. I believe we can only grow, expand and be successful when we take risks, when we face the unfamiliar, when we do things that make us uncomfortable, nervous, or even scared. This requires courage. If we allow the fear of discomfort and uncertainty to keep us stuck, it’s almost impossible to grow and be successful. Finding the courage to take action in the face of fear is where growth and success begins. Michael Jordan is one of my all time favorite athletes, and I always come back to his quote, “I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” For me, courage isn’t about blind faith. It’s not having unreasonable expectations that if I take risks, things will magically work out. Instead, I’ve chosen to embrace that I could very well fail by taking a risk, but I don’t allow it to stop me. I’ve resolved to learn from my mistakes and failures, but I don’t ever allow them to define me. Instead, I persevere through them and grow, trusting and knowing that if I just keep trying, keep showing up, keep learning and evolving, that ultimately I will succeed. To me, that’s what courage is, and I believe courage and support will take you as far as you want to go.

Laura Lee, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’m a healer. I primarily help my clients heal from generational pain and trauma, and my real niche is helping women heal from their mother wounds.

For almost a decade I was a wellness coach, and towards the end of that chapter, I found myself in the midst of overlapping life crises. I was in an emotionally and mentally abusive relationship, and my mom was dying from breast cancer. At that point in my life, I hid from my emotions as a way to protect myself. Subconsciously, I felt that if I wasn’t vulnerable — with other people or myself — I couldn’t get hurt. This was a protective mechanism I had used almost my entire life, after being given up for adoption at a very young age. But when I was in my early 30s, those series of major traumas broke my heart, and I couldn’t help but feel the pain.

Because I was so unfamiliar and uncomfortable with emotions at that time, I knew I needed support. I began going to therapy, but after a year of meeting with my therapist weekly, not much had changed. I felt like there had to be more. There was something within me on this deep, soul level that needed to be seen and healed. I didn’t know much about spirituality or soul work at the time, but I was drawn to a woman who I knew was a healer, with this strong intuition that she could help me. My intuition was right. I worked with her for just a few months, and my whole existence transformed. I was able to leave the abusive relationship. I felt at peace with losing my mom and was able to be so present and grateful for the last year we spent together before she died.

Once I was in a better place, the healer who helped me encouraged me to explore becoming a healer myself. She told me she felt I had the gifts to help people, just as she had helped me. Something about that felt so true, and I leaned into it. I had been in the business of supporting and helping people for years, but something had always felt missing… I knew there was an opportunity to go deeper, to help people on an ever deeper level, and this soul level healing was it.

I see so many people who are struggling and are unhappy with their relationships, with their careers, with themselves. Most of us are searching for answers outside of ourselves. We’re looking for the quick fix. We’re looking for the “right” job or the “right” partner to make us happy. We’re in constant pursuit of trying to fix ourselves. I used to be in the same boat. What I realized is that everything we’re searching for already lies inside of us.

So much of what causes us to stumble and to struggle is unresolved pain and trauma from our pasts — things that occurred in our family of origin. When we can see it and acknowledge it, SO much healing occurs. There is SO much freedom and joy that can come from untangling that stuff. And that’s what I help my clients do. I help them to see what’s causing them to struggle, and I have a gift of being able to do that in a way that makes them feel so safe and so seen.

What sets me apart is the way in which I work. I help clients find the answers, the healing they’ve been looking for…. and I help them see and resolve things that they might have been scared or intimidated to look at on their own, but they feel really safe and held when I support them through it. And I help my clients discover that THEY are who they’ve been looking for. They are the answer. And I have a way of helping them discover a new level of self acceptance and self love that leaves them with a deep sense of inner peace. And I think I’m able to do this because I’ve walked that path and made it to the other side. I know healing and freedom and self love is all possible, it’s something we can all have, because I’ve been there.

So if you’re feeling stuck, lost, hopeless, please know that you are not alone. Know that it won’t always be this way. There is absolutely light at the end of the tunnel. And you are the light.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Not too long ago, I thought I was in a place where my business was about to really soar. I had just invested in new business coaching, I had all of my offers in place, I had really inspired content that I was sharing consistently, and I was gaining SO much traction.

Within a few months of starting the new coaching model, I realized it wasn’t what I expected. I was looking for something that was really going to take me to that next level, but it was feeling like more of what I had already tried up to that point.

At the same time, my wife and I were trying to get pregnant, and we did, and I had a miscarriage. It was one of the hardest things I had ever been through. I knew I needed to give myself space and time to grieve and process this major loss. My work and motherhood were and are the two most important things to me, but in that moment, I knew I wasn’t in a place to keep pushing and focusing on growing my business. I needed to focus on myself and my wife and just give ourselves space.

It was a very difficult time, but I gained a lot of clarity. I realized I had been trying to make something work (the new business coaching) that just wasn’t working. It wasn’t the right fit for me. Regardless of the money and time I had invested in it, I knew I needed to change directions and pivot, even if it meant taking a temporary loss.

This meant that things temporarily slowed down financially in my business, but that time gave me so much information, wisdom and clarity. I allowed myself the time to fully process my miscarriage. In the months that followed, I was then able to do a lot of reflection and dig into what was and wasn’t working in my business. I was able to find coaching support that really aligned with what I wanted to accomplish in my business.

If I hadn’t gone through what I went through, I think I would have just kept pushing through with something that wasn’t working. Taking that time to pause and do some deep introspection and reflection is what gave me the clarity to make that pivot, and even though it meant I took some steps back, it was worth it in the long haul.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

I think because of the deep, personal nature of the work I do, I build lasting relationships with my clients. The work is intimate, personal, and truly life-changing, and when I take on a client, I know it’s not just for that brief period of time we work together. Most of my clients stick with me long term, and a lot of them become dear friends.

I do a lot of typical things to stay in touch with my clients: connecting on social media, keeping in the loop through my newsletter, hosting regular, in person events in the Nashville area. But I also keep up with my clients via text and let them know my door is always open.

I coach my clients on how to set boundaries, and I of course keep tight boundaries in place personally, but it’s important to me that my clients know they can reach out when they need support. Sometimes a past client might not need a full-blown healing session… they might just need a fresh insight, a different perspective, or a listening ear. Being that person for my clients is what I believe has fostered loyalty and trust between my past clients and myself.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.theconn3ctioncoach.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coachlollipop
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laura.l.gilliland/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCV8-8qthzlfa6UZqBvEcV6A

Image Credits
Shannon LeBlanc