Coach of the Month: Suzanne Lynch on Obliterating Overwhelm

In this Coach of the Month interview, Cate chats with Suzanne Lynch about her personal evolution path from yogi to Catholic chaplain to yoga studio owner and finally to yoga health coach.

Suzanne began studying Iyengar yoga in her 20s, but found herself struggling mentally and emotionally. She began meditating and describes the experience as going from seeing her life in black and white to seeing it in color. Meditation improved her family life, and she eventually found her way back to yoga.

She studied Anusara yoga and opened a yoga studio after working as a Catholic chaplain after the World Trade Center bombings. She ran the studio for 11 years and closed the studio right before starting Yoga Health Coaching.

Cate recalls talking to Suzanne about the community building she had done at her studio, her love for the deeper student, and the frustrations that went with studio ownership. She encouraged Suzanne to start the business course so that she could utilize a different business model that included more depth and less frustration. Suzanne had already been teaching some shorter online courses, but she needed a better model. There’s a different set of skills that goes with teaching online, and Suzanne had to learn and grow into those. She now enjoys connecting with people in this way, and the payoff has been a creative, life-enhancing schedule.

What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• Why you don’t have to be a tech genius to take your business online.
• Why taking your business online doesn’t mean sacrificing the human connection.
• How the habits of Body Thrive obliterate overwhelm for both coaches and clients.

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Body Thrive Book
• YHC Have a conversation
• Living in Alignment: Identity Evolution and the Art of Connection
• Do you have a fixed mindset about your career growth?
• Suzanne’s FB
• Suzanne’s website

Show Highlights:

• 1:00 – Suzanne began studying Iyengar yoga in her 20s, but found herself struggling mentally and emotionally. She began meditating and describes the experience as going from seeing her life in black and white to seeing it in color. Meditation improved her family life, and she eventually found her way back to yoga.
• 5:05 – Suzanne met Cate in 2005 at an Ayurveda workshop Cate was teaching. That was her first introduction to Ayurveda. She studied Anusara yoga and opened a yoga studio after working as a Catholic chaplain after the World Trade Center bombings. She ran the studio for 11 years and closed the studio right before starting Yoga Health Coaching.
• 9:30 – Cate recalls talking to Suzanne about the community building she had done at her studio, her love for the deeper student, and the frustrations that went with studio ownership. She encouraged Suzanne to start the business course so that she could utilize a different business model that included more depth and less frustration. Suzanne had already been teaching some shorter online courses, but she needed a better model. There’s a different set of skills that goes with teaching online, and Suzanne had to learn and grow into those. She now enjoys connecting with people in this way, and the payoff has been a creative, life-enhancing schedule.
• 13:00 – The habits of Body Thrive create more harmony throughout one’s life. Even though Suzanne’s husband’s work is extremely stressful, their practice of the habits has enhanced their relationship created a sense of ease in their lives.
• 17:30 – Initially, learning the technology necessary for taking her business online created a sense of overwhelm for Suzanne. She now knows that overwhelm is a choice. Despite a series of family illnesses, she felt she was able to surrender and calmly be available to the crisis at hand. Consequently, she felt she was able to be of better service.
• 24:00 – Suzanne’s clients have seen similar shifts towards ease as opposed to overwhelm.
• 25:45 – It takes about a year to automate the habits. Changing from a 10 week program to an annual ticket takes the pressure off course members and gives them time to work through personal resistance as well as issues in relationships.
• 31:20 – The integrity of thrive is stronger than apathy. If one person in a family is practicing the habits, the rest of the family will likely follow suit eventually.
• 33:45 – Suzanne is currently excited about transitioning her business model to the annual ticket. She is working on building her online presence so that it will be easier for her future clients to find her.

Favorite Quotes:

• “Yoga has this detoxification process. And it loosens energy in many ways, and it loosens karma to process. It loosens stuck patterns.” — Cate Stillman
• “I love that I work from home. I make my schedule. I can create a very supportive, life-enhancing schedule. . . . And then I can connect with people. . . . I’m so much happier!” — Suzanne Lynch
• “We start to realize that our habits are not our own. Our habits are communal.” — Cate Stillman
• “I’m in the time of life when I’m actually a valuable teacher.” — Suzanne Lynch

Guest BIO:

Suzanne has been helping people get out of pain, and live happier, healthier lives for over 25 years. She has a special talent and affinity for habit evolution and deep listening. Suzanne loves helping clients feel better than they have in years.

Suzanne has been a meditator for 30 years, and was certified by the NACC as a Catholic Chaplain in 2001. She worked for the Red Cross after The Trade Center bombings, as well as in hospitals, and in Hospice. She’s a long time student of yoga and started back in 1989. Suzanne lives in Saratoga with her husband, Bruce and her dog Argos. She is a mother of two grown children. Connect with Suzanne on her FB page and get more info on Suzanne’s website.