who is Leah?

I am a Master Coach, coach trainer and workshop presenter.

 

I have been coaching people  just like you since 2002.  

 

Because my clients gain so much from our work together,  I founded the Jerusalem Coaching Institute in 2006 to pass on my coaching system to a select group of students.

 

I have trained over 15 classes of life coaches in the most ethical, holistic and effective system there is. I have dedicated my professional life to honing this system so that it works quickly and effectively to empower every single one of my clients.

 

My coaching is based on "Potential Based Coaching" which I studied in 2002 with Dr Harold Koning. Using this system I have helped individuals, couples and groups go from merely "surviving" to THRIVING.

 

I live my life according to my core belief that "each and every one of us was born with limitless potential" and my sole aim is to help YOU live into your potential.

 

building a career

My early career began with my training in Clinical Psychology. I have studied psychodynamic, CBT and couples and family therapy and have done ten years of research on depression, alcohol addiction and other subjects at Cornell University/New York hospital, Columbia Presbyterian Psychiatric Institute and Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

 

People often ask me why I changed careers and left Clinical Psychology.  The story behind this is SO complex but I will share some highlights with you so that you can understand some of the process that I went through and see if it resonates with you!

 

If you are familiar with the field of Clinical Psychology, you probably know how competitive programs are.  My PhD class had only 6 people and there was several hundred applicants!  If getting in to a program is difficult, getting out (finishing) is even harder! The coursework and practicums are grueling but I really loved being in school and doing what I had wanted to do for as long as I can remember!

 

When I was deeply ensconced in my doctoral program, I read a book called "Against Therapy" by Jeffrey Masson. Jeffrey is Freudian analyst who left the field because he felt it was not ethical.  I read the book very carefully, and proceeded to read several other writings that described potential ethical and procedural failings in various schools of therapy.  I myself was particularly concerned with the fact that therapy often creates a dependency on the therapist in the patient.  I was already practicing as a student therapist at that time and saw that happening in the clinic.  I wasn't excited my patients depending on me-I wanted them to be more INDEPENDENT of me and in general.  

 

That being said, I kept going and finished my degree in time for my son's first birthday.  It was a huge achievement and I learned so much in the process.

 

This is where it gets very personal:

 

Less than a year after graduation, I had a medical emergency that required hospitalization. After getting out of the hospital I went to recuperate at a spa on the coast of Southern Florida where I first met Dr Harold Koning.  He was on staff at the spa and I signed up for some sessions with him there along with numerous massages and classes.  I wanted to do ANYTHING that would help me feel better!

 

When I arrived at the spa I didn't even know what a coach was.  By the time I left there was a little voice in my head that said "I want to help people like HE does!

 

I returned to NY to resume my life and career but the "coaching seeds" had been planted.

 

In 2002 I finally had a chance to nurture desire to be a coach. I researched the various programs in New York and New Jersey and they weren't what I was looking for.  To be honest, they seemed so superficial!  

 

So I traveled back to Florida to train with Dr Koning and get my coach certification.  And that, my friends was a DEEP training in a system that was so holistic and effective that it "knocked my socks off!"  

 

When I completed my training with him I opened my private practice as a coach in Manhattan and then in 2005 moved my practice to Jerusalem, Israel.

 

I bring all of my experience and training to my work but I don't do therapy any longer.  I feel strongly that coaching is a more ethical and effective way of working with almost every client who comes to me for help.  And if I don't think that I am the best person to help a potential client-I do my best to help that person find the person who IS.

 

I have helped hundreds of clients in 6 continents achieve their goals-from feeling more self confident to curing themselves of depression and anxiety. I love working with a wide range of clients-from busy parents to "big ideas" clients.

 

I would love to speak with you to find out how I can help you live a better and more joyous and fulfilling life.

Please schedule a chat with me HERE.  

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