657. Valuing Strengths by Keeping Them in Balance

Christie Garcia

Christie had a great career, but she noticed how many of her clients put all their eggs in the career basket. She saw the same tendency in herself. She decided to find ways to create a life of balance, both for herself and her clients.

Christie Garcia is a leadership coach and founder of Mindful Choice Coaching. She helps fast growing companies maximize the impact of their leadership and management teams through self-awareness, ownership, communication and alignment. Some of the companies she has worked with include Airbnb, Twitter, Sunrun and Oakley. Christie’s latest project is focused on building programs, masterminds and adventure retreats for men to help them step up their leadership, maximize their career, improve their relationships and live a more successful life.

How Did You Start Using Your Talents?

“I grew up thinking I was going to be a kindergarten teacher. In my junior year in college, both my grandfathers passed away and my parents got divorced. So, I watched how life unfolded for three women who’d had men in their life, who were stable and grounded. It really dawned on me: what do I want my life to look like? I had always wanted to travel, but it just wasn’t an option in the small California town where I grew up. So, I decided to do a semester abroad and it changed everything! After I earned my credentials and did my student teaching, I thought, this just feels a little claustrophobic, and I realized the classroom is not where I am supposed to be.”

The Most Impactful Turning Point?

“I had a good career, but I was on a path toward waking up one day, without the things that I wanted most, which is a family, not just a great career. Over the years, working with a lot of men who were my clients, I had seen how they put all their eggs in one basket—their careers. They may have a family at home, but how much are they investing in them? So, both for them and for my own life, I wanted to find a way to be truly investing for the long term to be able to say at the end of the day, ‘I am fulfilled.’ For them, and for me, to be able to look back and say, ‘That was a great life!’ and to say that the career, the family, the friends, the personal side of life—all are healthy and good. With no regrets.”

The Most Powerful Lessons Learned?

“As I build out my business, I want to keep practicing what I preach, keeping a balanced life. I’m looking to start my own family in the next year or two, so keeping that balance in my own life will be crucial as I also help my clients. I want to make sure that I, and everyone I come into contact with, will know how to be able to create a life where they can wake up and say, “My life is good! I don’t need to do it over.”