We braved working life on our own at first; here is a little bit of our story on how we came together.
What Angela says about Alex
First there was one…
From the moment I saw Alex, I knew she is one of these women that radiate charisma effortlessly. Even when she had an infant to take care of, she met me with this melange of openness, genuine interest, warmth, and acceptance that made me instantly feel glad to have met her. When we first met, Alex was embedded in a high-flying career, her professional development ambitions, juggling young children, school runs, and home improvements. Alex had stepped on the path of motherhood a few years before me, and she was the best resource for compassionate advice on children and how to also be a great success at work. If you needed to know how to have it all, and how to do it with grace, beauty, strength, and seemingly unfazed, she was the one to talk to. My admiration knew no limit.
I, meanwhile, went through a messy phase of re-thinking everything that was important to me. I had just moved countries, was pregnant with my first baby, and had no paying job. My nagging sense from childhood that I never quite fit in anywhere resurfaced. And whilst I loved puzzling over other people and their ways of being I didn’t seem to relate to people in the same charming way that Alex could. I had great insights into people and situations that never seemed to come to anything. And while my parents were always fostering my sensitive side and taught me how to question things, the voices of my childhood surroundings that I needed “to toughen up” and “accept the way the world is”, became very loud in my head again. I grew very annoyed with feeling torn between worlds that seemingly couldn’t be bridged. I just wasn’t the get-it-all type of person, like Alex, I told myself.
And then the most important walk happened. Alex and I met, in sweltering heat, the babies in tow. We spoke about a coaching programme she had completed. It is difficult to explain coaching to someone unfamiliar with it, but the way she described it, the way her face lit up and revealed a passionate longing, made it instantly recognisable to me. Something in me ignited because somewhere deep inside I just knew this is what I had been waiting for, this was my chance to square all my desires that seemed so incompatible with each other. Within days I had signed up to the same programme and became a coach, which gave me a career, a passion, and a way of being. Her enthusiasm was a catalyst for my spark, which is something I have seen her do over and over again with other people in other contexts.
But one of the most important changes that unfolded slowly over the following years was the friendship with Alex. Over time, as our ‘defences’ lowered, and we began to let the other see beyond the surface, I came to realise that wonder woman doesn’t exist. Instead, I started to get to know this brilliant woman, who had the intense longing to offer so much more to the world than editing legal documents. Whilst her strong practical focus on the realities of a situation and her consideration for concrete outcomes speaks to her intelligence and experience, her natural inclination to see the best in people, to champion their strength, to cheer them on and support them in any way she can, to let her enthusiasm be infectious, and to share a different view on apparent obstacles, is the most inspiring examples of female leadership I have ever seen. Once I saw past wonder woman, she came alive in full colour. In her presence you believe that anything is possible.
What Alex says about Angela
Then there were two….
It’s funny how sometimes decisions made on instinct lead to unexpected meetings.
I remember it was sunny and bright that morning. And, my son was one month old. My resolve to hunker-down, rest, retreat into myself and save energy was strong. I was sleep-deprived, physically healing, tired, slightly disconnected from myself, and without the close post-natal circle of support I’d enjoyed after the birth of my daughter.
But stronger was my instinct that I needed to put myself in that room. On that Wednesday morning. And, after years of burying them, I was – slowly – learning to hear (though not yet fully trust) my instincts. So I acted. I put myself in the room.
I remember the first time I saw her. Gloriously pregnant with her first daughter, engaging with the other new mums and enjoying with them their first moments of motherhood even though she was still waiting for her time to arrive.
Though sadly I no longer recall the detail of the conversation, I remember how it felt to be speaking to Angela. She was warm and challenging, engaging, questioning and reasoned. Intelligent, fiercely well-informed, articulate, and able to hold debate. There was no hiding with this woman, but there was also a warmth and compassion, and a great deal of joy and humour. Imagine depth, truth and heart rolled into one. I’m not ashamed to admit feeling a little intimidated by her quick intellect, fluency of thought and eloquence. Not least of all as I subsequently found out that she was doing all this in her second language as though she was an English native speaker. In my post-partum haze I felt less than engaging and very much lacking in coherence.
Yet, there was clearly something about this woman. So, we stayed in touch, sharing the highs and lows of parenthood over the following months, until we went on ‘that’ walk.
In addition to being a loyal and deeply caring friend, Angela taught me a valuable lesson in her decision to pursue coaching. Never underestimate our capacity to positively influence others. I had had no idea in the moment when I’d shared with her my enthusiasm for positively impacting others through coaching that this had resonated so deeply within her, nor that she would go on to take action based on these feelings.
In taking action, Angela showed me that when we show up as ourselves, without filtering our radiance, we’re capable not only of profound change for ourselves, but also of eliciting it in others.
Coming together…
We always thought it would be nice to one day work together, but it took years before we crossed paths professionally again. And then, in an unexpected, weather-wise gloomy, January meeting, we finally sketched out what we long to see in the world and our passions converged.
Depth, wisdom, compassion paired with fire, strength, and meaning. Every woman standing in a place from where she can create a path that works for her beyond the type casts of the ‘wonder-woman’ who has it all or the ‘wall flower’. We realised that for one reason or another, we had, at one time or another, been sitting on the fence. Being too doubtful, too worried about judgement, or sometimes simply too unequipped (whether that be mentally, spiritually, financially, physically) to take the leap forward.
And in that moment, we jumped off the fence together, and have, ever since, been igniting the flame of path-making in anyone who is drawn to us.
Yes, we braved it on our own at the beginning. But we have been glowing and growing together ever since we got off the fence. Come join us…. it’s a joyful place over here.
CV’s
Alex is a dual-qualified lawyer and certified coach with a particular coaching focus on life & career, creativity and women’s leadership and wellness. She has over 8 years’ experience of coaching individuals to recognise and value their uniqueness and, through deep curiosity, creativity and courageous action-taking, to make changes congruent to the life they consciously choose for themselves.
Her past clients have obtained promotions, relocated, re-orientated their careers, and overall felt happier, and more positive and capable than before.
People describe Alex as astute, emotionally sensitive, a deep listener, distiller of knowledge and someone who provides a compassionate coaching space where clients can unpack, unravel, and recalibrate, to successfully navigate tough challenges and make strategic decisions.
In addition to coaching, Alex delivers workshops on creativity and women’s leadership, and is a board member of Ladies in Luxembourg Association (LILLA), an organisation dedicated to the promotion of women in the legal field in Luxembourg.
When she’s not working, Alex enjoys making music and spending time in the great outdoors!
Angela grew up and studied in Germany and holds the equivalent to a master degree in political science, public law, and economic history. She lived in Canada and the UK and worked in Human Resources and Compliance before qualifying with the Coaches Training Institute in the US to become a fully qualified CPCC coach in 2016.
Since then, Angela has focused her coaching on Emotional Intelligence Leadership. She works together with individuals and organisations in single, team or group sessions to enhance awareness, competencies, and skill-sets with regards to Emotional Intelligence thereby supporting ownership and leadership in any area of life or work.
Clients describe Angela as insightful, compassionate, sensitive, analytical, articulate and as a fierce champion of her client’s dreams who is able to open doors to new thinking.
In her free time, Angela enjoys spending time in nature, visiting art museums, and reading.