Bali, Bikinis & Breaking Up With The Coaching Industry
Originally written March 2024
I’ve spent a lot of time questioning why I do what I do
And whether it’s necessary to continue.
I’ve been working in the fields of mental health and transformation for 16 years now….
- Maybe in that time our our care systems have improved?
- Maybe the rapid rise of integrative therapies, of the coaching industry and of trauma-informed care mean there is no more problem for me to solve?
- Maybe the insane level of free/low-cost psycho-education people have access to now across social media, apps and podcasts mean people are happy, and free of anxiety, depression and burnout?
Over the months leading up to me moving back to Sydney I actually fantasied a lot about slipping back into my “old life” in many ways…
full-time employment in the social care sector
part-time uni for post-grad research
dating with the aim of long-term partnership, becoming a mother and creating a family.
My last 10 years were such an unexpected chapter in my life…
“what do the next 10 years get to look like?” I’ve wondered.
I believe it’s healthy to explore these things.
To ask yourself what your current desires are, and if they’ve changed…
To be willing to let go of things or ideas you have about yourself…
To be willing to disappoint others…
so you can align deeper with your truth
and walk the path you’re truly here to walk.
These explorations also came after my trip to Bali in October last year.
Where on paper…
I was “living my best life”
co-hosting a retreat I had fervently dreamed of co-hosting one day.
And yet…
in my heart
something felt profoundly off.
Somewhere in between swanning about in my bikinis and favourite kimonos, “opening people’s heart chakras”, and innocent children being bombed on the other side of the world…
I found myself in a fiery pit of honesty, desperately grappling with my place in the world.
“What the h e l l am I doing here?!”
“Is this actually my d r e a m…?”
“Didn’t I leave my career in psychology and social welfare on this grand adventure so I could find a new solution for mental wellbeing and t a k e i t b a c k?”
This all led to an unexpected 4/5 months off social media….
me traversing the most sacred passageway of my Hero’s journey yet…
while I contemplated,
while I conducted extensive research into Phd programs, the current state of the sector, the current needs of those who are seeking therapy or coaching services,
while I consulted with clients and non-clients about what they need, what’s working well for them, what’s not working well.
I’ve listened to people’s struggles in finding the right psychologist,
In being on a waitlist for months and months with no support,
In their financial struggles, cost-of-living-crises and inability to prioritise payments to a therapist or coach
In feeling overwhelmed by social media and the vastness of self-help resources, not knowing where to start.
In feeling embarrassed they done ‘so much healing’ like still feel trapped in survival and repeating patterns.
During this time I have humbled myself into deeper layers of service…
I have gotten back to the heart of what I love and what I’m good at (without all the hypey hype of the coaching industry).
I have recognised more clearly than ever the gaping hole between clinical mental health support and the coaching industry.
… and I have acknowledged that what I was guided to understand and create over the last 10 years (Open-Hearted Psychology) is what many people are exactly seeking now.
So I got to work on aligning more deeply with my unique path and part I’m here to play in the world.
This looked like:
- untangling myself from the coaching industry, and it’s misuse of power (acknowledging I am part of the problem)
- reimagining my business from the ground up…
- deciding to finally fully unpack my bags and set up my home in the space between the clinical mental health sector and coaching industry.
- laying the groundwork for the Open-Hearted Psychology Community Clinic
- exploring options for greater community integration (ie registering as an NDIS provider, hosting youth work/community services training)
- remodelling my level 1 program from a 4 month to 6 month program with increased levels of support, and new payment options (and all-year round enrolment)
- remodelling my level 2 practitioner training program from a one year to a two year learning and development pathway
- lowering my 1:1 session prices for my existing l clients who have done my level 1 program (one of the best things I’ve ever done)
This has taken months to work this all out…
And to be honest -
This last week I’ve been in a place of such deep awe…
Seeing it all *finally* come together 🥹
Enrolling new clients into Wildly-Authentic Superheroes (level 1),
Understanding that if I didn’t dare undertake my grand adventure into the unknown…
I wouldn’t have become the Wildly-Authentic Superhero of my own life first…
Nor be so well placed to be of genuine support and offer this transformative work to others long term 🤯🥹
To trust our unique path is truly an awe-inspiring adventure.
I love that no matter how much I dare to question…
I am always guided into deeper levels of *me*.
There truly is no competition when we are walking our true path.
For those ready to trust themselves,
to walk the path only *you* can walk in this lifetime,
and become the Wildly-Authentic Superhero of your own life…
Come find me.
Out beyond ideas of the mental health industry and the coaching industry, there is a field.
I’ll meet you there 😉
WILD-Authenticity (noun); a way-of-being in which one displays raw, untamed courage in embracing and expressing their truest self, heart's desires and intuitive calling for ALIVENESS.
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Wildly-Authentic Superheroes
Wildly-Authentic Superheroes is Tessa's flagship identity-work program within the Institute. The program unites Tessa's 15+ years of experience across worlds of psychology, health, coaching, creativity, spirituality and social work to deliver an unforgettable experience to participants to help them break free from their minds, open their hearts and transform their lives.
Please note: This program is no longer available as a stand alone offering. It is now offered as a self-paced option with community calls facilitated by Tessa as part of the 12-Month Open-Hearted Membership (available July 2025). It will also be offered as foundational education in The True-Self Expression Clinic (opening July 2025) where you will be supported 1:1 by a trained OHP Mentor.
Join the waitlist for Open-Hearted Here or The True-Self Expression Clinic Here.