I started my life in the “land of Anne”, having grown up in PEI, the island of Green Gables and strawberry socials. Now I live and work in Montreal, the island of the 5 à 7. Of course, like you, my life’s more than a tale of two cities (or two islands in my case). To pass on the details of my journey from there to here, skip ahead to my professional path as business woman and coach or see me larger than life in this Gazette article When to call the coach.

If you’re still reading, it tells me you’re curious. I like that. Curiosity is a cornerstone in coaching. And so, from PEI to Montreal with several stops in between:

• London, England (1991) – I learned to like beer, to live with nine Canadians in a very nice townhouse in now trendy Islington and to do mindless clerical work at Barclays Bank.
• At least 15 other countries and then Chaco, Argentina (1993) – I love Argentina but Chaco is the armpit. I was lonely and underemployed in my teaching English role. I lived with a cappi barra and not by choice. I didn’t dance tango (that came later). I found out recently that I worried my mother by going in the first place. The upside is that I now speak passable Spanish which has served me very well.
• Guelph, Ontario (1993-95) – I studied adult education and wrote about the importance of locally grown food in my master’s thesis. I’d developed a general dislike for “arrogant, young, BMW-driving couples with Ontario plates” while working summers in the PEI National Park. My time at University of Guelph quickly changed my mind. Today, some of my closest friends are Ontarians.
• Toronto, Ontario (1995-2006) – I was so surprised by Ontario that I stayed and bought a cottage-like house on the real DeGrassi Street! I was an award-winning sales person for a marketing agency and later directed the sales team. After doing a lot of consultative sales, I got tired. I finally learned tango, figured out a way to transfer my work to Montreal (on a flight back from Buenos Aires after two weeks of tango) and haven’t looked back. Chandler Coaches is celebrating its 2nd birthday.

Montreal is a multicultural, entrepreneurial, tango city. I feel at home here. Here’s a nice photo of me taken recently in Montreal by Marc Olivier Bergeron. He has a great name. One of the reasons I moved to Montreal was to be surrounded by people with great names who also speak French. I like languages a lot.

When I am at my best, I approach my business and life as experiments in the test kitchen of life. My professional path is best described on my Linkedin profile. Many years in planning, project management, marketing, sales and sales management helped me find my way to coaching. I trained with The Coach Training Institute and received my certification from The International Coach Federation.

These days, the things I care about most are coaching high-aspiration people to create the businesses and lives they want, my friends and family, learning about business/coaching as well as international women’s issues through my book club, cooking and eating great food, and tango.

So, that’s me. Now, what are you all about?

P.S. My friends say I make the world’s best chocolate chip cookies. I wanted to mention it above but it didn’t seem to fit anywhere. Although I am a serious business woman and coach, I have been known to put cookies in the mail for special people. Perhaps if we get to know each other, someday you will find cookies in your mailbox.