Moving to a new city, and especially to a new country, can be exhilarating, but it also can be frightening. Now a Beijing life coach is offering a workshop which promises to help people turn that fear into fuel for creativity and success.
Carnisa Berry
“There is a loneliness that often accompanies the expat lifestyle,” Carnisa Berry told us (her forename is pronounced “Caneisha”). “I’ve been an expat for over eight years, I understand this lifestyle from personal experience and from the experience of many of my clients. I’ve learned that the deep longing for connections that most expats have is a longing for self-connection and purpose. Life Coaching can provide that.”
Originally from Raleigh, North Carolina, Berry came to Beijing four years ago, but it wasn’t the first time she’d had to move because of her husband’s job.
“As a trailing spouse, it can be easy to lose one’s identity,” she said. “Many have left careers and family, which is how we often identify our worth and purpose. When a parent has disengaged from their own life, it’s easy to get lost in our children’s lives. I know, because, I’ve been there. I found this to be very dangerous for my relationship with my children. I was trying to live through them, with hopes of avoiding my own loneliness and non-fulfillment. This created stress for everyone in my household. Years ago, it was a Life Coach that helped me connected to myself and my purpose. This in turn help redefined my relationship my children and I’m now able to help them connect to who they are with confidence.”
Inspired by this experience, Berry trained with the World Coaching Institute, and became a Certified Relationship Life Coach in 2012.
“As a Life Coach, I help my clients gain clarity about who they are so they can create the life they truly desire,” she said. “I do this by assisting them with setting a clear vision, encouraging them to challenge thoughts and beliefs that are obstacles, and support them in developing an action plan that moves them towards their life’s vision, while holding them accountable to their decisions.”
We asked her to tell us more about the workshop.
“Friday’s workshop is designed to help people to understand that fear can be a useful tool and not just an overwhelming feeling. When you are able to identify the truth behind fear, you can reprogram your brain’s reaction to it. I will share strategies to shift your relationship with fear from powerless to powerful.
“I’ve learned that when a person understands themselves fully, their thoughts, values, and needs, which are the driving forces to their decisions, they are more empowered to make decisions that leads them to the destiny they really want.”
Turn Fear Into Fuel, Friday August 25 2017
Adults. RMB 150. 7pm-9pm. ILotus Space 1st Floor, Shang, 20 Xinyuanli West, Chaoyang District. (Email: carnisa@berrythoughtfullife.com, WeChat: BerryThoughtfulLife) www.berrythoughtfullife.com. 朝阳区新源里20号金尚1层.
Photos: courtesy of Carnisa Berry
