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

Marie , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.

In April of 2022, I was cruising in my career as a personal trainer. I had been with the same company for almost 10 years, my schedule was as full as I wanted it to be, and nothing was really wrong with my professional life. However, I found myself wondering, “Is this it? Is this all there is?” I went on a retreat weekend, mostly to have a break from responsibility for a couple days, but also to spend some time reflecting. The first evening we enjoyed a cacao ceremony and wrote down what we wanted to let go of, what was no longer serving us. Then we made room for something new to come in and take its place. That night I pulled a card with the Sage on it that said, “You have more to offer than you’re giving.” The next morning, my scripture meditation was about how all of us use our different gifts to glorify God. In a group meditation that afternoon I clearly heard a voice say to me, “You have to be a life coach.” It was so strange because I don’t normally hear voices!!! I really felt like it was the Holy Spirit calling to me and I decided to be open and explore this calling. As you now know, I leaned into it and have not only earned my Health and Life Coach Certifications, I started my own business to encompass all my training and coaching clients, Golden Hour Coaching. That weekend changed the whole trajectory of my life. If you had told me 5 years ago, heck 18 months ago that I would have my own business, I would have laughed. It was never a dream of mine before and now look! I am so fired up and excited about it and work daily to help people build their best lives and be the best version of themselves.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I grew up in Memphis, TN, but have lived in New Orleans, St. Louis, and now Nashville. When I graduated college, I was a school teacher until we moved for my husband’s job and our first son was born. I stayed home with our first two boys, but went back for a masters in special education. The day after that graduation, I found out I was pregnant with our daughter! We had two more sons and our family life never has a dull moment with 5 children! They range in age from 20-8. After my kids were born, I didn’t want to go back to full time classroom teaching. I spent lots of time in the gym and decided I would get certified to teach fitness classes. That led to me getting my personal training and most recently, my Health and Wellness Coaching and Life Coaching certifications.

I think my background as a teacher and mother, as well as both a trainer and a coach, set me apart from other trainers and coaches because I can help you in both arenas. We know that our physical health and mental health are closely intertwined. It is the honor of a lifetime to be asked to walk with someone on their journey. I do not take it lightly and I strive to meet you where you are and help you discover the path to where you want to be. I have multiple training clients who have also been coaching clients and taken my Clarity Catalyst class. It is a natural flow between the services as they certainly complement each other.

In addition to in person and virtual personal training sessions, I offer Health and Life Coaching in a few different formats. The VIP experience is 1:1 coaching in my 12 week program tailored specifically to you. I also offer group health or life coaching. My most recent addition and the one I’m super fired up about right now is the Clarity Catalyst in all its variations. It is an eight week VIP or group journey based on a Stanford University masters level course developed by Dr. Michael Ray. This course is for adults seeking to cultivate creativity, authenticity, and self- expression. You will get a crystal-clear blueprint that will help you tap in your creative FLOW and intuition so you can achieve the greatness that you KNOW is inside you. There is a corporate version call the Culture Catalyst that helps companies boost retention rates, raise the bottom line, and increase employee satisfaction. This fall I will be starting an Insight for Life class which tailors the Clarity Catalyst course to kids and teens. The mindfulness tools taught in this course are like magic for tuning in to our true nature and helping us to take empowered action. I could not be more excited about these offerings!

I also love to speak at conferences and workshops. Collaborating with other coaches and complementary service practitioners is a wonderful way for me to grow as a coach and be able to offer varied services to my clients. I have workshops on a variety of health and mindset topics. I am in the development stages for my online course that I am hopeful will fully launch early Fall. It is called Energize Your Life! and is for working moms who are ready to prioritize their energy so they can be present with their families and feel like themselves again.

Whether it is through training, coaching, the Clarity Catalyst, or at workshop or conference, I would love to connect with you to discover how I can best support you!

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I had been teaching classes for a couple of years and had built some great relationships with my students when I got a most surprising phone call. I was being fired and would have to give up my regular kickboxing and abs classes that I was teaching. I was shocked, to put it mildly. I had never been told I wasn’t doing a good job and the only reason I was given was that they were “going in a different direction.” While this situation was certainly a blow to my ego, it didn’t knock me down for long. I am someone who sees this type of situation as a momentary challenge and not a forever answer. It was my getting fired that actually prompted me to get my personal training certification! As with many challenges, this one turned out to be a blessing in disguise. It set me on a career path that I hadn’t considered before then. I am so glad that I went down the training path because it led me to coaching and all the wonderful doors that have continued to open for me since taking that first step.

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

I think having a curious mind is so helpful in my field. I do NOT have all the answers. Once I embraced that attitude, it set me free to be curious and ask questions and find out lots of answers. As adults, we often don’t ask questions because we don’t want to appear silly or dumb. Or we think we already know the answers. My clients ask me questions about all kinds of things. If I don’t know the answers, I tell them that. I say, “I’m not sure, but I can find out!” I will whip out my phone and see if Google has a quick answer, I’ll ask an expert I collaborate with, I’ll do some research, or I will refer them out if it falls outside my scope of practice. It is only with curiosity that we can be open to new ideas and knowledge and that is the only way to grow and get better at what we do.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.goldenhourcoaching.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mygoldenhourcoaching/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mygoldenhourcoaching/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariesmith-goldenhourcoaching/

Image Credits
Kathy Thomas Photography Maria Brannon