POWERHOUSE GLOBAL MAGAZINE (PGMAG) INTERVIEW WITH: CATHERINE THIRY (CT)

I think that a lot of women have been conditioned to not think about what they really want to be, to do and to have in their life.

PGMAG: Thank you for granting us this interview - we are honoured!

CT: Thank you for offering me this wonderful opportunity to be featured in your Magazine- I’m very grateful.

PGMAG: Who is Catherine Thiry?

CT: I’m a French Career Transition Coach, I help ambitious women at 50+ launch a successful online business. I transitioned from teaching to coaching. After teaching German for 25 years at highschool and University mainly in France, but also in Luxemburg and Belgien, I quit my secured job as a teacher and I decided to reinvent myself and redefine my values and mission, how I wanted to serve and impact peoples’ life. I traded security of job for growth and fulfillment. I believe that we can find a new sense of security in expressing our new Self, in growing, exploring new avenues and contributing in new ways.

PGMAG: From what we gathered from our research, it appears to us that your main focus is to help women in their 50s to unleash their potential. Please tell us more about your mission.

CT: I think that a lot of women have been conditioned to not think about what they really want to be, to do and to have in their life. They

have been conditioned to not put their values and themselves first as a result they often compromise to please others. 50 is the stage in life where your self-awareness rises, where self-realization becomes your priority, where you can take the time to refocus on your desires because you have less parental responsibilities, you have raised your children, may be you also have less financial burdens, you have paid your mortgage and you know that your priority is to find a meaning to your life. Discovering your life purpose is a way of experiencing a new form of ambition.

PGMAG: If you knew what you know now, what would you do differently?

CT: I would value growth over comfort and security, value change as a powerful experience to discover possibilities and capabilities. Because when we settle for less than we are capable of being, we become deeply unhappy. I would make changes without being attached to a specific expected outcome. We often resist change because we are afraid of the failure, we would like to know the outcome, the consequences of our decision before making a change. That might keep us stuck in an unfulfilling job. When we learn to turn our fear of failure into opportunity of learning about ourselves, we develop creativity, agility and flexibility to reach our goals.

PGMAG: What is your message for those who are struggling to discover their life purposes?

CT: You do not have one single life purpose in your life, as your personality evolves it is not permanent, your life purpose will change too. The risk is being too attached to an old identity and trying to make a change from that place. It’s a process you can’t do alone, because your conditioning doesn’t allow you to see other possibilities, and to expand your vision beyond your familiar world. It was the case for me, school was my world, a safe but constrained bubble. It took me time to figure out a new life map and a new destination.

PGMAG: What are the five books that changed your life?

CT: The first book that helped me understand the process of change was” Finding your North Star” from Martha Beck. Change is a complex

You do not have one single life purpose in your life , as your personality evolves it is not permanent,your life purpose will change too.

mysterious process, you might have a vision for your life but you might not be ready to implement it .

I appreciated also “Start with Why” from Simon Sinek , you can not make a change if you are not clear about your why.

I would recommend also The Values Factor from Dr John Demartini - the key to living a fulfilling life is through living a life centred around your highest values.

The Code of extraordinary Mind from Vishen Lakhiani is a great book to help you question conventional truths that might have impacted your life choices and visions, and had prevented you from living a life aligned with your values, desires and your new evolving Self.

PGMAG: Who would be your ideal client?

CATHERINE THIRY

CT: An ambitious smart woman at 50+ who has a healthy sense of self-worth, self- esteem, a potential that she wants to unleash , a need to redefine success and ambition on her own terms. A woman who is not defined by her past but by a vision of the future ; a woman who is not afraid to start over and bigger

PGMAG: Looking at your message "late success is lasting success"; what do you mean by that saying?

CT: Late success is often a fulfilling success, success achieved early in life might not be aligned with your true values, desires and aspirations! It might be attached to money, status or tittle, which are external validation for success. Success without fulfillment is the ultimate failure as Tony Robbins said. Success is being true to yourself and with aging comes authenticity .

PGMAG: What would you say to your younger self?

CT: Be curious, experiment, learn, focused on growth, when you grow you are happy and you succeed in life. Success is making progress towards your goals even if it takes you time to reach your goals.

PGMAG: How do you create work/life balance?

CT: I set every day free time for self care activities like journaling, meditating, visualizing, walking in nature. They are part of my daily routine, training both mind and body every day is of utmost importance .

PGMAG: Thank you so very much for adding value to our publication through this interview. We are grateful and wish you success on your mission in life.

CT: Thank you very much for helping me voice my message through your publication. I do hope women at 50 will find inspiration, motivation, courage to venture into new territories while growing and contributing in new empowering ways.

PGMAG: Please share your links with us.

CT: You can visit my website expertise.tv/organizations/ ccareercoachingforwome