I Got Paid to Help a Woman Beat the Hell Out of a Cushion
I wasn't certified. I didn't feel ready. I said yes anyway.
People love sharing stories about their first high-ticket client.
And I could tell you about the time I sold two $8K programs in one month. (It was really cool!!)
But when I sat down to write this email, I kept thinking about my first $300.
I met her at a Radical Forgiveness retreat weekend while I was still training to become a Radical Forgiveness coach.
She told me she’d had a dream that if she didn’t start clearing her resentment from the past, she was going to get cancer.
So she asked me how much I would charge to spend a few hours with her in person.
I had no idea what to say.
I wasn’t certified yet.
I didn’t know what to charge.
I didn’t feel ready.
My brain immediately started looking for reasons why someone else would be a better fit.
But I blurted out, “$300 for three hours.”
And she said, “Perfect.”
I remember setting up the room like it was a VIP Day, with water, fruit and snacks.
And then we started diving into her past pain and anger.
Eventually, we pulled out my favorite tool: the big red cushion and racket.
There was so much unprocessed anger there because, like many women, she had never given herself permission to feel it.
She had spent years telling herself that anger was wrong.
That anger was bad.
But that’s kind of my specialty.
So I basically got paid to do one of my favorite things in the world: rage out.
I guided her into her anger and rage and let her move it out of her body through that racket while she beat the hell out of that cushion.
And honestly?
It’s still one of my favorite memories.
Not because I made first coaching dollars.
Because of what happened in that room.
Because I got to witness someone finally give herself permission to feel something she’d been carrying for years.
And that’s also one of those moments when I knew I was hooked.
That I was going to keep walking down this path as a healer and coach.
I’m so grateful that she chose me.
And I’m so grateful to past me for saying yes even though I wasn’t “ready.”
Reflection questions:
Where in your life have you been waiting to feel “ready”?
Is there a part of you that already knows what path you’re meant to walk?
What would happen if you trusted yourself before you had all the credentials, certainty, or proof?
Happy journaling!
Much love,
Essence
P.S.
If you're a woman with a purpose in your heart and you know you're here to help others heal, create, teach, or lead but your nervous system freezes when it's time to take action…that's exactly the kind of work I love doing.
You don't need more credentials. Sometimes you need more safety in your body. If that speaks to you, reply and let's set up a time to talk today.