You are receiving this newsletter because you have somehow impacted my life or opted in to receive it. Even if we haven't talked for a while or it's been years since our last communication, I want you to know that I'm grateful for our connection.

“Coaching isn’t about giving you the answers. It’s about creating the space for you to hear the answers you already carry..."

Have you ever worked with someone who listened so well that you walked away knowing exactly what to do — and you came up with it yourself?

That's coaching. And it's different from everything else you've probably tried.

So today I want to break down what coaching actually is, how it works, and why it might be the missing piece for nursepreneurs who keep hitting a wall they can't quite name.

Let's walk through it.

The coaching partnership

The International Coaching Federation defines coaching as "partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential."

In practice, that means supporting you in moving from where you are now to where you want to be — and helping you identify and work through whatever is standing in the way.

That might look like clarifying your vision, understanding where you are in relation to it, becoming aware of the mindset and emotional patterns that are either supporting or limiting your forward movement, and identifying concrete actions and timelines to close the gap.

How coaching is different

Coaching is often confused with therapy, mentoring, consulting, or teaching. They're not the same thing.

Therapy seeks to bring resolution to the past — why you are the way you are. Counselling supports processing of grief, trauma, or life circumstances. Mentoring shares knowledge from personal experience: here's what worked for me. Consulting imposes a system and expects it to be implemented. Teaching imparts knowledge and theory — usually with a right answer.

Coaching does none of those things. It draws out your own wisdom and self-knowledge instead of telling you what to do. It's the only approach that starts from the belief that you already have the answers inside you.

You already know more than you think

Here's something most clients discover early on: you have more self-knowledge than you realize. You just haven't always had a space to access it.

Coaching gives you that space. Not to be told what to do — but to think out loud, be heard, and find the clarity that's already inside you. There is real power in speaking something aloud to someone who is fully present and listening.

Clients often walk away realizing they knew more than they thought they did. The coach's role is simply to help you access it.

Coaching the who, not just the what

You might come to coaching with a specific problem to solve or a goal to reach. That's the external goal — what I call the Goal Line. But lasting change rarely comes from fixing the what alone.

What shapes your actions — what you do, what you avoid, how you show up — is the who. Your beliefs, values, emotions, patterns, and worldview.

Coaching the who means I may ask questions that go beyond the surface problem:

• What does this situation bring up for you?
• What do you know about yourself that might be relevant here?
• What would need to shift for this to feel different?

You always have a choice about how you respond and what you'd like to explore. Nothing is required. Everything is an invitation.

You are a whole person

We often separate ourselves into "work me" and "the rest of me." But your values are your values. Your beliefs travel with you across every context.

Even if you're coming to coaching for a professional challenge, I may ask about what you know about yourself outside of work — because the wisdom you need is often already present in another area of your life. You just haven't connected the dots yet.

For nursepreneurs especially, this matters. The empathy, the precision, the commitment, the care — everything you brought to the bedside — is already inside you. Coaching helps you connect it to the business you're building.

Finding your own answers

I won't give you advice. I won't hand you a list of things to do. That's not coaching — and it's not what leads to lasting change.

What I will do is ask questions, offer observations, and create a space where your own answers can surface. Your way of doing things is going to be more sustainable and more motivating than anything I could prescribe.

The direction always comes from you.

With love,

Karen

P.S. I have 2 spots open for 1-on-1 coaching. If anything in this email resonated and you're curious what it would look like to work together, just hit reply — I'd love to hear where you are and what you're navigating.

CONNECT WITH ME

P.S.

Thanks for reading. If you loved it, tell your friends and encourage them to subscribe by forwarding them this link: 

https://www.karenretardo.com/newsletter-opt-in

Facebook

Instagram

LinkedIn

Medium Blog