From Assistant Principal to Successful Business Coach
Quang Nguyen, 36, pivoted to become a successful business coach "lucky enough" to live in New South Wales' "beautiful" Terrigal with his wife and two energetic, amazing boys.
Before becoming a successful business coach, I was an assistant principal in the public education system. I’d like to think that I was quite good at teaching and was making a difference in the lives of young people.
However, as I progressed and climbed higher up the education ranks, I discovered that I was beginning to fall out of love with teaching.
I was beginning to notice an internal conflict within me was brewing, and I felt that my personal values were starting to misalign with the education system’s values.
My wife could see that I wasn't really being stimulated or challenged on a mental level. She encouraged me to pursue a course of action that I was passionate about.
"I think it’s fair to say that there was not one key monumental moment that led me down this coaching path. It was more the series of discussions I had with my wife about what my strengths and passions were, which were my communication skills and my ability to support and lead with them."
One of the key reasons I got into coaching was because in my teenage years I was part of a Vietnamese youth group that helped me and others, who were torn between two worlds. They found a bridge for us.
It always stuck in the back of my mind how helpful they were, and how they respected our pasts but also showed us how to assimilate to the new world we were in.
I really enjoyed studying human behaviour and I did an undergraduate degree in psychology so naturally, coaching was the path I went down.
The Coaching Institute opened that doorway for me in May 2017. I had an idea, but they showed me where I could go with it, through their learnings and resources.
"Having resources on tap was a main thing that I took away with me. The key to coaching is being one step ahead of the client and by having that access, I was able to do that and have confidence in helping them."
I enjoyed Meta Dynamics™ and other trainings with The Coaching Institutute's great facilitators, like Dan and Matt. It’s an experience hard to put into words, but you go away with a different appreciation not only of what you’re bringing to the world, but of yourself.
The best experience is the connection that I now have with the people that I’ve met in the room at trainings. We’ve stayed in touched, supported and championed each other. That is so valuable, if not more so than the resources that The Coaching Institute gave me.
You can’t put a price on that. The spin that others have on the resources has broadened my view: it’s all about perspectives and learning from people. Having a really good sounding base that I can reflect ideas off of has been phenomenal as well.
Along this journey, I have achieved some key milestones such as leaving teaching and hitting certain financial numbers in my own business as well as helping my clients achieve their financial targets.
Right now, my future is clear. It is within reach and I know that it comes down to how much effort I am prepared to put in. To be able to not only provide financial security for my family but to also live my family values as true as possible is something that I truly look forward to.
This includes being present at every event and milestone that is of significance for my family, things like being able to attend my eldest son’s birthday and his first day of school this year.
"On this journey I have come across several challenges, but the one that was difficult to shake was the ability to have faith in myself in a business capacity. Through my journey and working with The Coaching Institute, I have come to the realisation that this is a reflection of my parents’ cultural expectations of me and through coaching I have dissolved this within me."
