Without Direction

Have you ever felt a deep feeling of discontentment or exclusion?

Discontent

“I left a very stable 9-5 job that was perfectly fine…but inside I was miserable. I knew I had to leave. The pain of it was I didn’t know where I wanted to go instead. I started applying to other jobs, but it just felt like I was going to find the same unhappiness again. I was trying to rush to answer a question that I needed to wait for.”  

After making 2017 a year of reflection and reconnection, Leah Walsh found the answer to her calling. She became an embodiment coach and wellness consultant. Mercy Corps NW enabled her turn her coaching into a successful business.

“It had been so long since I had time to connect to things that brought a genuine sense of joy to my life. I started including more creativity: painting, writing, dance. I immersed myself in poetry and reading every day, rejuvenating friendships and starting new ones. I finished up a degree in ethnobotany, and hiked a section of the Pacific Crest Trail. I regained trust with the part of me that was so angry with me for not embracing more of my natural self.”

Action

Leah Walsh has satisfaction now as she makes a living uplifting and empowering people through her own coaching business. She adds,

“If eight months ago someone told me I was going to have my own business I would’ve said, ‘I don’t think so!’ I’m not from family of entrepreneurs.”  

Leah transitioned into entrepreneurship first by taking business development classes through Portland Community College. She then participated in Mercy Corps Northwest’s IDA Program (Individual Development Account matched savings grant). Leah is using her grant money from Mercy Corps NW to ground the foundations of her business. This includes support for video marketing, brand development, website upgrades, and two new creative research and product ventures. Leah views Mercy Corps Northwest as a community hub for entrepreneurs and frequently takes advantage of consulting sessions, speed mentoring, and business plan study halls.

Origin

Her inspiration for the coaching business stemmed from a concept that Leah has worked to reconcile since she was very young, a feeling that she just didn’t belong. Although she was similar to those in her community, she never felt like she fit in.  

“I’ve found that belonging is a core need of every being. Many times,  we explore what belonging is on the outside; like finding our community or joining a sports team and that is a wonderful part of being a human being, finding the ways our joy matches with other people’s but… I realized the belonging I had missed since I was a little child was an inner sense of belonging to who I was. I see today a lot of other people struggling with that.”

Leah has navigated depression during many periods of her life, but says it was invisible to those around her. In battling depression, Leah explored healing methodologies, asked questions of elders, began to honor her direct-spiritual connection, sought additional education, and constantly investigated how other people were finding belonging to their own life stories. Leah then wondered what it would be like to take all she learned to help others suffering or challenged in similar ways. She explains,  

“There must be other people who could learn from what I’ve navigated inside of myself. But the part of me that had very little self-worth thought, could it be possible that my story and what I’ve learned could actually touch one other person. I started to believe that was not only possible, but a part of why I am here and why all this happened for me.”

Embodied Change

Through her courage Leah is now helping others find purpose and new possibility in the adversities and trauma of their lives. Through this work, people uncover more time, money, and energy to be and do what they love while relieving stress and chronic conflict in relationships. They find a sense of belonging to who they are on the inside.

This is a harrowing journey because we have to surrender to something greater than ourselves.

People become leaders in their own lives. Leah’s coaching methodology centers on making change with our full bodies not just our intellect (hence her focus on embodiment). Her methodology, which is based on the wisdom of her own experience, values creative expression, storytelling, community support, and nature connection. Her tagline reads, “Come home to the power of your own story.”

Leah’s approach is unique in that she not only helps people reconcile the past, but also to achieve their goals for the future. We were inspired by her positive energy and gentle spirit. Our time with Leah Walsh left us feeling uplifted, and we can’t wait to see how many lives she touches in her career.  

Take a look at Leah’s website and see if her coaching and consulting might just help you reach your goals!