When We First Met Madi

 

We met Madi in January 2023, when she was 17. And funny enough, she wasn't the reason her dad originally reached out to us.

He had contacted us about coaching for Madi's younger sister. She wasn't quite ready at the time, but Madi overheard them talking about Extraordinary Purpose and told her dad, “I want to do that.”

We still love that part of her story. Sometimes the person who's ready finds their way to you in a way you never expected.

When we first sat down with Madi, she was quiet, emotional, and carrying a lot. She was unhappy in high school and didn't feel connected to the people or environment around her. She was struggling academically, having a hard time getting herself to school some mornings, navigating challenges at home, and feeling deeply uncertain about her future.

At 17, six months can feel like forever. And when the world you're living in doesn't feel like a place you belong, it can be incredibly difficult to imagine that life could look different on the other side of it.

So that's where we started. Not with a five-year plan or figuring out what Madi should do with the rest of her life.

We started with the next step.

 

Getting Through the Next Six Months

 

Madi had six months left until graduation. Our first goal was simple: help her make it through those six months while beginning to see that high school was one chapter of her life, not the definition of it.

Week by week, Madi worked on becoming more aware of her thoughts and emotions, noticing the inner dialogue that could keep her stuck, and creating enough space to choose what she wanted to do next.

There were hard weeks and there were tears. Sometimes what she needed most was simply someone in her corner reminding her:

Keep going. There is more waiting for you on the other side of this.

Slowly, Madi began to see that too.

 

Looking Beneath the Surface

 

At the time, Madi was working at a tanning and beauty salon, and she told us she loved her job. That could have been the end of the conversation.

Instead, we got curious.

What do you love about it? What makes you feel good when you're there? What parts of the work feel most like you?

As Madi explored her values, interests, strengths, passions, and curiosities, something started to emerge. She loved the independence and responsibility her boss gave her. She loved connecting with clients and getting to know them. And she loved the beauty industry.

But underneath all of that was something deeper.

She loved helping people feel good about themselves.

She noticed how much it meant to her when someone walked out feeling more confident than when they walked in. What looked on the surface like a teenager enjoying her part-time job was actually revealing something important about who Madi was, what mattered to her, and the kind of life she might want to create.

She just needed the space to see it. 

This kind of self-discovery is at the heart of our identity-first coaching approach.

 

Finding Her Direction

 

As Madi began understanding herself differently, we started exploring what life after high school could look like. Not the life someone else thought she should create, but her life.

She began exploring possibilities based on what she was learning about herself and imagining a future that actually felt exciting to her.

And along the way, Madi graduated from high school on time. She even went to prom.

Those moments might seem small compared with what came next, but we remember how much they meant. There had been a time when simply getting through high school felt enormous.

Now she was beginning to ask a very different question:

What could I create next?

 

Turning an Idea Into Something Real

 

One of Madi's first ideas was to become certified as a lash technician and eventually open a small studio of her own.

Her dad works in construction and was purchasing a building for his business. Madi asked whether he might build a small space inside it where she could begin working for herself.

But she had a bigger dream: someday, she wanted her own spa and salon.

Someday arrived sooner than she expected.

As Madi became clearer about what she wanted and more committed to creating it, her dad began to see the vision too. Together, they decided:

Why wait?

Instead of building the small studio, they began creating the spa and salon Madi had imagined for her future. Suddenly, the vision wasn't just an idea anymore. It was becoming real.

And that's when another chapter of her growth began.

 

Becoming the Person Who Could Lead It

 

Opening a business at such a young age wasn't a fairy-tale ending. It was hard.

Madi had to learn how to make decisions, solve problems, communicate differently, work alongside her dad as a business partner, build a team, navigate uncertainty, and keep moving even when she didn't feel confident.

There were moments when the people around her believed in her more than she believed in herself. That's part of growth, too. Sometimes we borrow belief from the people who love us until we build enough of our own.

Along the way, Madi continued developing practices that helped her stay connected to herself: journaling, mindfulness, morning and evening routines, time outside, reflection, and intentional small steps forward.

Those habits didn't make the hard parts disappear. They helped her become more capable of meeting them.

Little by little, the teenager who once struggled to imagine life beyond high school was learning how to trust herself, take ownership, and lead a life she was creating for herself.

 

Where Madi Is Today

 

Today, Madi is 20 and the owner of MM Beauty Bar.

Watching her journey has meant more to us than we can put into words. But when we think about Madi's story, the business isn't actually the part we're most proud of.

We're proud of the young woman behind it.

The Madi who kept going when things felt heavy. Who became curious about herself. Who discovered something she cared about. Who allowed herself to imagine a different future. Who took one small step, and then another.

And who continues to grow.

Because Madi's story was never about becoming someone different. It was about discovering more of who she already was, believing in what was possible, and learning how to create her own way forward.

That's what this work means to us.

Not creating a path for a young person.

Helping them discover their own.

Madi's story is still being written. And that's exactly the point.

Here's to Madi, and to everything she's still becoming.

With love,

Erin & Chris

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