Life Coach Spotlight: Christian Lopez

Coach Spotlight is our chance to shine a light on some of the amazing graduates of Lumia's coach training program!

‍Name: Christian Lopez

Instagram: http://instgram.com/clopey

Christian is a former professional athlete, the eldest sibling of three of Cuban immigrant parents who made a home in Miami, Florida where he grew up.

Being raised in a Latino household and spending much of his life in a sports environment, Christian was taught that as a man you have to be tough and handle everything life and sports throws at you with strength, never exposing your weakness, never getting emotional.

When his sports career came to an end, he felt the weakest he’s ever felt. Struggling to find his identity and his purpose in life.

Through much reflection and self-inquiry, he has embarked on a life-long journey of growth and self-development that has led him to the worlds of life coaching and motivational speaking.

Through his mentoring, coaching and speaking, he has realized that it isn’t your fears, failures and insecurities that define you, but how you face these negative thoughts and limiting beliefs that really define your life and who you really are.

Christian is on a mission to challenge others to dig deep, tap into their full potential, find out who they really are and bring that truth to the world with courage, honesty and vulnerability.

1. What was your biggest takeaway from Lumia's coach training?

The sense of community. I’ve had a lot of hesitation around explicitly saying that I am a “life coach” for fear of judgement and the thought that people may laugh and say that it’s not a real profession. (To be honest, I was one of those judgmental people thinking it was not a real career before I immersed myself in it.)

Part of what has given me the courage to refer to myself as a life coach is the amount of people I met through Lumia that have similar interests and also want to make a positive impact on the world with their story and experience. Now that I’ve actually begun to work with clients and put myself out there vulnerably, I see that this is undoubtedly a legit career path (and life path) with the possibility of deeply impacting others, and myself, in a profound and positive way.

2. How did you transform personally during the program?

It helped me discover me.

One of the biggest benefits that I got out of the program was being encouraged to tear down my walls, vulnerably and courageously share the dark parts of myself and tap into who I really am. Hearing and sharing stories with my cohort on a weekly basis filled me with a sense of togetherness, gratitude and strength that I’ve never gotten out of anything else quite the same. Going through the program aided me in continuing to tap into who I truly am and what I really believe in and stand for, and continue to relinquish the need to seek approval from others and the need to be liked by everyone.

I believe that finding out who we truly are is one of the scariest and most difficult thing we will ever do, but undoubtedly one of the most rewarding and beneficial.

3.  How are you practicing coaching today?

I just recently began working with two clients. To be honest, I was scared sh*tless going into my first few client calls and coaching sessions. I had to battle those convincing voices that say “you’re not good enough… who are you to coach someone? No one is gonna listen to you… people are gonna laugh… you can’t even get your own life in order, how are you gonna offer life coaching?”

But, my first few calls ended up going better than I imagined they would and every call since has slowly continued to build the confidence within me that I can do this and I can make a deep impact in people’s lives. Apart from working one-on-one with these clients, I am building my coaching program, doing daily Instagram Live videos during the work week, practicing public speaking at Toastmasters, writing on my Medium blog and continuing to search for ways that I can deeply impact the lives of others.

4. From a business perspective: What did you gain from completing the program?

The business aspect is still something that I need a lot of work on. I have always been scared of anything that had to do with marketing or selling anything—let alone myself and my services—but I know that it is something I am going to have to learn and be comfortable with if I plan on turning this into a lucrative and impactful career.

The biggest business lesson that I learned is to narrow your niche and focus on your target audience. You may think that narrowing your niche is counterintuitive to making money and growing your business, but the more you focus on who your ideal client is and the more you focus on speaking directly to them and their struggles, the more they will be able to resonate with what you say, tabbing you as the expert that can probably help them. If you’re a generalist, it will be hard to really connect with others.

Although the clients I am currently working with are women because I am looking to practice my coaching skills and build my confidence, I narrowed my niche to men.

I want to help men get comfortable in their own skin, find out who they truly are and cultivate the courage to share that with the world. I want to do away with the cultural norm and societal expectations that say men are supposed to act a certain way, we’re not supposed to cry, we’re not supposed to get emotional and talk about our feelings, and a slew of other damaging expectations and ridiculous rules that are not only damaging to men, but to women and children and the world in general.

5. What would you say to someone who’s interested in taking Lumia's coach training?

Listen to what your heart is saying. Don’t do this just because it sounds cool or interesting or because you just want to learn something new. Don’t do it because you think you can make a ton of money, that won’t be enough to sustain you in the beginning when you’re not making any money and possibly doing things for free.

You have to have a strong “why.” Why do you want to do this?

This is an industry and a program that can really benefit you and so many others if you are willing to put your heart into it. I hesitated for a while because of my own fears and limiting beliefs, but what finally made me pull the trigger on applying was my heart telling me that it was the right thing for me to do… and I’m so glad I listened.

If you take that leap of faith, know that you will be met by the instructors and by your cohort with open arms, zero judgement and no expectations. You will be able to come in exactly as you are and you will be encouraged to speak from the depths of your heart, two things that are crucial to getting the most out of this program not just for yourself, but for all those that you will go on to inspire and impact.

If you’re reading this, your heart and the universe have undoubtedly and un-accidentally led you here, there are no coincidences. Listen to you heart, turn down the volume on your ego.

6. Anything else you’d like to mention about yourself or the program?

The program helped me on the quest to rediscover who I am. By discovering who I really am and not having to hide behind a mask of conformity, I can be an example to others of how they can do the same in their lives.

After I retired from my professional baseball career, I lost my identity and my purpose. I didn’t know who I was or what I wanted to do without baseball.

It’s been a long, arduous battle ever since, but that battle has strengthened me and has led me to exactly where I am right now, which is talking directly to you through this message hoping that you will be another loving soul that will impact the world with nothing other than your authentic self.

Who am I? Not just a baseball player. That was something I did for a long time and was good at.

I am a kind, caring, fair, grateful, empathetic, loving, affectionate, goofy man who also has deep fears, insecurities, flaws, failures and limiting beliefs… and that is more than okay. I am good enough exactly as I am.

I am on a mission to let men know that it’s okay to be scared, it’s okay to not have all the answers, it’s okay to ask for help, it’s okay to cry and it’s okay to get emotional and feel things, it doesn’t make you weak or unmanly, it makes you a human being just like the rest of us.

Ready to Become A Coach?

One of our values at Lumia is that we dare to be different. Our life coaches ignore the expectations society tries to impose on them, and seek to live from their own truth instead. If you are ready to step into your power and you’d like a partner in the process, come check out Lumia Life Coach Training. Grounded in science, our ICF accredited program features authentic instructors, a robust curriculum, and business instruction to prepare you for liftoff.

‍Lumia Coaching: Vibrant community. Evidence-based life coach training. Lifetime support.