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Full Testimonials
Enhance Your Current Work
Self-Worth & Money Coaching
"I
recently had the pleasure of working with Susan Bernstein to
complete a number of sessions on the subject of money
coaching. I believe that it is imperative for one to look at the
blocks or “stuff” in areas of our lives so that we can truly
experience growth and connection with ourselves. I found the
recommendation of the book,
Money
Magic to be both helpful and interesting. Although it’s
quite possible to simply read a book to attain information, I
feel that the growth I achieved was in great part due to Susan’s
listening abilities, insights, and recommendations. I was amazed
at how many of my parents’ patterns and beliefs around money
that I was carrying in my life. I also found the “Inventory of
My Life” exercise to be amazingly revealing. Knowing that Susan
would listen attentively without judgment and that she would
provide important feedback was invaluable in my process. I would
not hesitate to recommend working with her to help uncover your
specific tendencies around money in order to create
expansiveness and abundance in your life. " - Christina Williamson,
Radiant
Light Productions, Napa, CA
"I found working with Susan with her recommended book “Money
Magic”, very useful. Susan's coaching ability is very
thoughtful and insightful. She directs the flow of the sessions
well, which allowed me to process the keys to the insights that
helped me to understand my money issues. We all seem to have
patterns derived from childhood, family influences and perhaps
difficult life lessons around money. Susan helped me to see the
strengths as well as blocks in a nurturing environment. Susan
is very talented in seeing where a person needs to go in order
to move ahead. I highly recommend her services." -
Rose Hodges,
Rose Hodges Photography, Mill Valley, CA
Visioning Sessions for Entrepreneurs
"I planned to
jump from being an employee to being small business owner. This
was both terrifying and exciting. I needed a clear VISION for my
new business. I wanted someone to create a safe space to help me
dream, brainstorm, and get in touch with what is in line with my
values. To find the COURAGE to do things differently from my
competitors and to live MY OWN DREAM. For all of this I needed
Susan's help.
Susan is both
pragmatic and creative.
Something unique about Susan's approach is her belief in
"checking in" with the body's reactions as a way of seeing
what's "true" for her client. As a physical therapist and
bodyworker,
I instantly responded to her way of coaching. When I shared an
idea, Susan asked "How does that feel in your body?" I knew that
if I felt tension in my neck or jaw, that idea was probably not
connected with my deeper self. If my body responded with a full
and natural breath from my diaphragm then I knew the idea "felt
right." Susan also suggested activities to do between our
meetings. Although at times difficult, these activities again
made me focus on who I am and what is important to me. If my
business was going to be fulfilling to me (otherwise why take
the risk?) it needed to be a reflection of who I am. Armed with
all of this new information about myself, my beliefs, and how my
new business was going to reflect these beliefs, I felt
energized to finally make the leap and start my own business.
Quantum Physical
Therapy in Mill Valley, California, has now been open since
February 2006. When you walk in, the colors and decor reflect my
warm personality and create a professional, nurturing
environment. In the waiting area you'll find health magazines,
products for sale, and business cards and brochures of other
complementary health care providers in the community. We also
have inviting treatment rooms and a gym, including a Pilates
Reformer, exercise balls, foam rollers, and weights.At Quantum
Physical Therapy you receive quality care with personalized
attention to not only address the pain you may be experiencing,
but the reasons why the pain began in the first place. You will
receive a comprehensive evaluation on your first appointment.
Then you'll be treated with various modalities will receive a
home exercise program. I'll show you how to use your body
correctly. Educating you about why your symptoms began allows
you to change how you do things and prevent future problems.
This process has
been an exciting one. And I thank Susan Bernstein for helping me
to find the courage and vision to make it all possible."
-- Ravi Sekhon,
Physical Therapist,
Quantum Physical Therapy, Mill Valley, CA
"I contacted Susan because I had a business idea but was
scared to actually create it. Before meeting Susan, I had
taken courses on entrepreneurship -- in fact, a whole year-long
learning experience, including creating a formal business plan. Still, I felt really stuck. A friend had recommended
Susan, saying that she could help me get unstuck and could get
me moving. Even though I was skeptical, I called her. I felt her energy and enthusiasm for my business idea, and I
sensed that she understood my fears. Susan lead me through
lots of innovative activities together that helped me to recover
my enthusiasm. Susan also helped me to get organized in a
way that worked for me as a more creative type, less analytical.
I tend to have lots of ideas, but I don't know how to follow
up on them. Susan made it fun! Since working with
Susan, I found a commercial kitchen to produce my jams and
jellies,
had custom labels made, started exhibiting
my products at farmers' markets, and I even my job, taking a
part-time job that will give me exposure to potential clients
while letting me learn about food-related startups. Susan
inspired me all along the way, helped me work through my
anxiety, and got me jazzed again. I know that I will be
taking the right steps to move towards being a full-time
entrepreneur very soon, thanks to Susan's help. That's
big!"
-- R. Saunders,
Oakland, CA
"Susan's approach
is awesome -- she supported me look at my career and my life
inside-out. After three successful startups (two of which I
founded), I had no desire to start anything for a while.
However, the corporate world did not look appealing at all.
Susan helped me understand what my heart was saying. She helped
decode the DNA code that makes me tick. I moved from being a
startup entrepreneur to a hi-tech evangelist during the day, and
an evangelist for non-profits in education, health and happiness
during evenings & weekends. What more could I ask for?”
--
Shankar Hemmady, Entrepreneur, Mountain View, CA
Discover Your Calling - Career Transition Assistance
"
I was feeling very anxious about doing a career switch. The more I
thought about doing a career transition, the more I knew it was time
for a big change. I was not satisfied with my current
organization that I had been working with for the last eight years.
On a day-to-day basis, I began to recognize that my own personal and
professional growth through my Master’s of Business Administration
could not be reflected in my current work situation. I needed a
change, yet wasn’t sure where to start. I started working with Susan
in April 2006. Susan helped me identify that transitions in their
very nature are uncertain. Through talking with Susan, instead of
being anxious, I was able to take steps to identify what I needed in
the process and be able to breathe. Susan and I worked on my resume
and did mock interviews. Susan helped me bring my voice to
fellowship applications. I am happy to report that I just received a
competitive fellowship and will be moving to Germany in June. What a
difference a few months can make! Thanks, Susan!
--
Amity Balbutin-Burnham, MBA, Bosch Fellowship Recipient, Berkeley,
CA
"I began working with Susan out of extreme frustration for
the job (as a Hollywood assistant) that I was in and the lifestyle
that it forced me to lead. In the beginning, I expected that I would
speak with her a few times and then be on my way to the next
fabulous job/career path. I actually worked with Susan for four
months. The journey that you led me through was an extremely
positive life change. Susan is full of such a wealth of
information and extremely skilled in her profession! She showed me ways to find the answers that I need from within myself.
That was the most surprising of all - that the answers to the most
important questions were not going to come from her or from anyone
else - but from me. Susan was my guide. I am now on my way to
becoming a physician and could not be more thrilled - in spite of
the workload! I thank her so much!"
-- S. Kalra, Los Angeles, CA
"I definitely benefited from working with
Susan. In fact, I just accepted a job offer for a position of a Business Development Director in the Southeast Asian Business Unit of a major Fortune 500. This position is responsible for negotiating commercial agreements in the region (including Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia). My wife and I will be moving to Bangkok. I am extremely excited and also glad to let you know that I followed your advice to follow my passion. My job search was unfocussed and lacked a clear goal. I was quite frustrated with the inability to find a successful path to what I wanted. Yet at the same time, I had a hard time defining what it was that I wanted. I worked in a very stressful job that was opening some future opportunities, yet I was not certain that I wanted to pursue those opportunities or wanted to change everything all together. I appreciate the opportunity to get guidance on how to understand what I want and to narrow the frame of my search. The focus of the sessions was on discovering what I was passionate about rather than on how to fit me onto the post-MBA-job-search assembly line. My skill set, background and aspirations are "out of the mainstream" relative to most MBA students. Working with
Susan allowed me to focus on my own thoughts rather than on pre-defined expectations suitable for someone else. I now know that discovering what I want requires me to listen to my own heart. In order to do it, I have to get into my body. Following my heart requires courage and it can only be found in feeling the strength in my own body.
Susan's entire approach, rather than any specific activity, allowed me to stop, listen to myself, and get the courage to pursue what I wanted and then go forward. From our coaching relationship, I have a constant reminder that finding my own path requires me to listen to myself. Work from Within coaching helped me to stop pursuing a vast number of opportunities, focus on few, and make choices when opportunity came up. I am about to move from one continent to another to follow what I believe is a dream job.
Susan's coaching was key in making this a reality!"
—O.M., Bangkok, Thailand
Authentic
Self-Expression
"When
I started working with Susan, I was totally stressed out in my
job. Somehow I was always getting into arguments with
colleagues, and I knew I needed to change that pattern or I
would lose my job. Susan was really supportive and quickly
helped me to see something -- that I was setting up situations
for confrontation. Now, I have a handle on it. Susan
gave me new ways to handle conflict. They're simple and
really powerful. I was going to leave my job, and now
management really wants me to stay. I'm amazed and happy
at how much I've learned and changed in just a couple of months.
It's really great."
--
J.M.,
San Francisco, CA
Enhance Your Current Work/Create Work-Life Balance
"I work for a
biotech company in San Francisco. It’s a fairly small
company that hired a new executive to oversee the commercial
operations in preparation for growth. There has been a
change in the way that the company feels and operates as a
result of this new executive. I decided I needed input
and support from Susan when my boss of almost two years, who
had been the only other person in our marketing department,
left to run another part of the organization. At that time,
I got a new boss that didn’t know the therapeutic area that
I was working in and within three months, my new boss left
to have a baby and I got yet another new boss who was brand
new to the organization and had no experience in the
diagnostic area and I was left to meet all of the immediate
marketing needs by myself. On top of that, my company is in
the process of changing the organizational structure of our
commercial operations and there are a lot of new processes
and procedures that have not been explicitly laid out. I
felt like there was no support from a leadership perspective
to help navigate the change and no support from below with
the amount of work that was being asked of me. At this point
I was referred to Susan. Susan helped me remove
some of the emotional charge that I had associated with the
changes occurring within my company and provided me useful
tools for how to navigate through the change. What I have
appreciated perhaps the most from our work together, is that
we were able to explore two separate paths in tandem:
staying at my current company through the uncomfortable
period and learn to navigate the change while also exploring
my overall life priorities and a career/job that might be
more in-line with my goals outside of work. It has been
three weeks since my last session with Susan and I’m still
assimilating all that I learned. I consider Susan to be an
invaluable resource that I plan to use throughout my career
as needed—whether in my current job or in my future
endeavors. I feel like she provides a very practical,
tangible set of tools, recommendations and perspectives that
have already helped me immensely. I feel like I'm in charge
of my career again—and that I'm a more productive member of
my company. "
--
Allison Kaiser, Product Manager, San Francisco, CA
"I have never fit into a neat category, like “accountant” or
“lawyer” but possess a lot of varied skills and interests
that make me an asset to many companies who can understand
someone with a wide variety of experience. During the past
few years I have worked at many companies, each one trying
to pigeon-hole me into a position that used some of the
skills I had, but not the ones I really wanted to be using.
I was in an endless loop of being hired and laid off a few
months later because my technical skills made me a desirable
hire, but the industry of technical manufacturing was not a
stable one. I was never very happy at any of the companies
either and knew that I needed to change my career direction.
At the suggestion of a friend, I called Susan Bernstein.
During our first meeting, she was able to articulate the
type of work I was both good at and interested in, and we
set about positioning me towards that goal. It was a great
relief to know that people actually needed people like me
with varied technical and strategic skills beyond the
specific manufacturing industry I had been stuck in. Over
the next couple of months, we worked closely on rewriting my
resume, repositioning myself to attract the type of work I
wanted, and identifying the industries that might employ me,
but we also talked a lot about what a good job meant to me
and how to identify such a job. It meant a great deal to me
to know that someone understood my predicament and was as
able to help.
Having a new resume in hand, I was able to have several
informational interviews with both new contacts and old ones
I didn’t realize I had. We started to narrow the focus of my
searching and pinpointing specific companies that I would be
interested in.
I applied for many positions, made many calls, talked to a
lot of people, hit the pavement, etc. I was discouraged a
lot of the time, but Susan kept me at it, kept a positive
outlook, and helped me continuously. I had even set a
specific deadline of September 30th just to keep
me focused. Just when I thought that no company anywhere,
ever, would hire me, I got a call from a previous employer
begging me to come back. I started contracting with that
company to make some money, but never lost sight of my long
term goals. And when I least expected it, a position I had
applied for a couple of months back called and wanted an
interview.
The company was a world-class design firm, and one that I
had actually wanted to work at for about 15 years! I hadn’t
thought about it much since I initially applied because I
thought it was a long shot. But sure enough, I had a great
first interview, was genuinely interested in the position
because it contained every one of the requirements I had
identified months earlier, and about 4 hours after my second
interview I had an offer in hand!
With Susan’s coaching, I was
able to negotiate a higher salary too, and the
following week I accepted the position! My start date was
September 25th, five days ahead of my deadline.
I can’t really articulate all the myriad of things that
Susan did for me that helped. But I can speak for the
results. I came in feeling lost and vulnerable, discouraged
and frustrated, and left feeling confident and full of
energy for finding meaningful work. Within a few months of
having a new resume and a new outlook towards finding
employment, I had a job with a company I had always wanted
to work for. Those are impressive results for anyone, but it
was Susan’s knowledge, coaching skills, gentle nature and
good humor that helped me achieve them. I can't recommend
her strongly enough."
-- Brad
Niven,
FrogDesign, Oakland, CA
"I was unhappy in my current job and was at
a point where I felt that I needed to make a change. I felt
stressed, frustrated and discouraged. I feel calmer about
what I am doing now and the fact that I don't have to figure
everything out all at once! Susan is a good listener,
sincere and trustworthy. I felt comfortable sharing my
thoughts/feelings with her. I had an opportunity to talk
through my concerns and feelings of frustration and it
helped me to sort things out and gain some perspective. It
really helped to talk with someone who is completely
objective, vs. just sharing this with family/friends. Susan
helped me connect mind and body, so it gave me a new way to
process and think about things. She took me through some
activities that helped make the connection between what I
was worried about and how I was feeling physically. With
some, I felt a little awkward or uncomfortable at first
during the session. But then I thought about them later and
they helped give me a different way to think about the
issues I was having with work and life. I'm very thankful!"
-- BG,
San Rafael, CA
"When I signed up with Work from Within to be coached by Susan Bernstein, I was in a state of not knowing or able to discover what I will do next to generate income by work; and I want work that makes my heart sing. One of the benefits I received from being coached by Susan Bernstein, Work from Within is to have compassion and to love myself, and through this she guided me to write a simple list of what I love to do. That list is my list of possibilities that assists me in keeping in reality of what I can and want to do. The type of coaching I received from Susan taught me to integrate using and connecting my body, mind, and my spirit such that now I feel whole and complete, and solid in knowing what's right for me when make decisions and having the choice to stop myself when I feel I would be compromising myself. Before being coached by Susan, I realize I would choose to compromise myself in spite of my feelings. Through new found self love and compassion I now follow my intuition. Susan had taught me a simple meditation, guiding me in connecting my body and mind and spirit that grounded me in reality, and brought me to a state of wholeness and peace. When I choose to do this meditation on my own I receive the same benefits. The greatest result I received from Work From Within coaching is to be grounded inside myself, feel my body sensations when making choices in my life, and really listen to my intuition and naturally follow my own passions."
-- Laurie Parle, South San Francisco, CA
"I found Susan fun to work with, extremely versatile and flexible to the specific coaching I was looking for.”
— RJ, Oakland, CA
"Susan allowed me to set the pace of our work together.
She was sensitive to what I needed to experience for the
work to be effective. She was excellent at mirroring and
reflecting back to me what I may not have remembered
afterward. I always got some nugget of insight or helpful
suggestion out of every session."
- P.H., San
Francisco, CA
Strategize for a New Job
"I worked with Susan during my career transition from academic research into the business world and found
she was able to support my career ambitions not only with inside knowledge from the business side, but also through coaching and support when considering a significant, seemingly 'no return' career decision. I believe
her success as a career coach is based on your many experiences: I know
she was working for years in business settings (including in management consulting and marketing),
so she has made major career transitions her, and she regularly coaches students at top business schools, including UC Berkeley. In addition,
Susan is just a nice person, driven by the deep desire to help others to succeed. Working with
Susan increased the confidence in my career choices and helped me to make my career dreams come true."
—F.M., San Francisco, CA
"Susan Bernstein coached me over a 3 month period. I recently landed a job inside my company for a new division being started. I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincerest thanks and appreciation of Susan's services. Susan helped me every step of the way and was instrumental in preparing and coaching me. I started out not knowing, exactly what area I should focus on. Susan, through a series of in-person meetings and exercises, helped me tremendously in figuring out, where my strengths and interests lay. This enabled me to look at different career options objectively and thus focus and tailor my search. In addition, she is an extremely patient and responsive person. What amazed me the most was that she had almost instant recall about the different issues (right down to names of the people) I was facing and had great advice on how to deal with them. Thanks for all the help!"
— D.V.
Resume, Cover Letter, and Interview Assistance
"I found
Susan's advice on how to make my resume more palatable for a non-technical audience most beneficial. While my current job search focus is a position with a technical background, the changes
Susan suggested certainly help make my resume target a wider audience looking for similar skills. I appreciate
her help and advice."
— U.P., San Jose, CA
"I found the mock interview session with Susan very helpful for putting me at ease for my interview, and particularly appreciated the suggestion
she made about adding illustrative examples of any statements I made. Also, I enjoyed the practice in terms of the case questions
she gave me."
— MG, Berkeley, CA
"I genuinely appreciated
Susan's honesty and the fact that she did not sugar coat her opinion - that happens too often in these situations - it definitely helped me to hear the good, the bad and the ugly. I also appreciated how specific
she was in her feedback; I think her diligent notes allowed her to quote me and recall certain statements that were of interest in giving feedback. Finally, I felt that
Susan was really enthusiastic and played the role of interviewer very well, which helped me focus and imagine myself in a real interview situation."
— B. Leslie, Dallas, TX
"Susan's interview coaching is sharp, real-life and absolutely will place you in the hot seat before you encounter it for real... making you that much more comfortable when you're in the interview that counts. I found her fun to work with, extremely versatile and flexible to the specific coaching I was looking for. Whether it's resume or cover letter work, career counselling or interview coaching, I think a few sessions with Susan would strengthen most people's pitches...it certainly contributed to my getting an offer from McKinsey."
-- F.M., San Francisco, CA
"In terms of feedback, I have only positive things to say:
1) Susan did a great job of asking a number of different types of questions, and also making them relevant to the company and the job that I was interviewing for.
2) Susan did a great job of lifting my confidence. I was very nervous about my upcoming job interview before I arrived at your office, and felt quite a bit better once I met with
her.
3) Susan's feedback was also very balanced, with some constructive criticism. Everyone you meet with is probably different and reacts to criticism in different ways, but
Susan had suggestions for things to improve on as well as suggestions for ways to improve/practice new techniques."
— S.R., Alameda, CA
Workshops
"The Embodying Self-Confidence Class was great. I especially liked how you explained the actual connection between physical and emotional feelings of confidence, which most people don't even think about."
— Lisa, San Anselmo, CA
"When I took the Embodying Self-Confidence Class, you gave each participant a lot of individual attention to their our own experience. When it was my turn, this helped me to learn a lot about myself. And I also learned about myself by watching others. It was a different and fun way to learn."
— A.D., Novato, CA
"I attended the Discover Your Next Career or Life Move workshop because I felt I needed to clarify some aspects of my career planning. I was feeling overwhelmed with confusion. I could sense the need for some inner search, as well as some time to relax and listen to my body. During the workshop, I learned techniques that are helping me understand myself better. I learned the simple but important ways of breathing, moving, and feeling my body again. I discovered that my body is constantly telling me things, regardless of the nature of the issues at hand. As a result I understood that even though company research and networking are important, doing inner investigation is equally important, so I know myself better. I am now using the practices from this workshop to pursue my job search in a more powerful, controlled, and healthy way.”
— Rodrigo Hetz, HR Executive
"The Discover Your Next Career or Life Move workshop has calmed me, activated my energy to change, and rewarded me with positive results. Through increased awareness in my physical body, I discovered what my mental resistance to change felt like in my body. By using physical movement, I accessed new ways to move through that resistance, especially my mental blocks to change. Now that I recognize -- physically -- what my mental resistance feels like, I can move my body to free my mind when resistance comes up again. I would recommend this workshop to anyone who wants to discover and use new tools -- already within themselves -- to make the changes they are seeking in their lives."
— Hana Levin, Massage Therapist,
Melt Massage,
Oakland, CA
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