Matt’s Story: From Burnout and Misalignment to Building His Own Path
When Matt started coaching, he was at an impasse in both his professional and personal life. After stepping away from a career job that no longer felt aligned, he knew he wanted to make a change and do something more self-directed – but he felt stuck around what that could look like, how to move forward, and whether he had the confidence to make it real.
Through our sessions, Matt explored what he wanted his next chapter to be built around: autonomy, self-sufficiency, free time, and making decisions that felt genuinely his own. Coaching gave him a calm, non-judgemental space to think clearly, build self-trust, and turn ideas into practical action.
By the end of our work together, he described feeling more confident, clearer on what he wanted, and more able to follow through. He reconnected with his drive, began seeing his path as viable rather than a “pipe dream,” and started building momentum toward a more self-directed life.
What were you hoping to work on or explore when we started coaching together?
When we started the journey together, I was at a bit of an impasse with my professional life and personal life.
I’d recently stepped away from a career job and had come to the realisation that I wanted to make a change and do something for myself, because I wasn’t feeling satisfied with the status quo of working in a career capacity.
I’d always yearned for something bigger, and I’d always thought that I had the capacity to do something for myself. But I was feeling a bit stuck as to what that would look like or how that would develop, and I was lacking a bit of the self-confidence to actually take it forward and do it.
I knew that having some kind of structure to discuss and explore options around what I actually wanted to do would help me get a framework together – both a framework of a plan to move forward, but also a framework in my own head about what I was going to do and why I wanted to do it.
It aligned with my personal goals: being more autonomous, more self-sufficient, having free time for myself, making decisions for myself, and ultimately being satisfied with the decisions I was making in the short term, allowing me to develop my longer-term goals.
What were your initial thoughts or feelings during the first few sessions?
At the beginning, it was difficult for me to really open up because I’m quite self-reliant, and I’ve always done my best to just get on with stuff independently.
Having the opportunity to share my thoughts and feelings about things that had happened, or things I wanted to do in the shorter term, was odd for me because I don’t normally do that with anybody.
It was that kind of vulnerability of almost exposing yourself to someone and saying, “I’ve struggled with X, Y and Z, but I think if I do A, B and C now, that might help me – or maybe it wouldn’t help me.”
Having that back-and-forth dynamic with someone was a bit of a weird situation for me, so that was a hurdle to jump over.
But I quickly appreciated how easy and calm it was communicating with you about these different aspects. The non-judgemental way we conducted ourselves, and just having a very objective conversation, was a really good sounding board for me to compartmentalise what had happened with my previous job, where I was currently, and what I might want to do.
You weren’t saying, “you should do this” or “you should do that.” You allowed me to really develop it myself quite organically, which I thought was refreshing, because I don’t like people telling me what to do.
It needed to come from me, and you offering that foundation and framework for me to be open and come to those conclusions was very, very helpful.
What breakthroughs, shifts or changes have you noticed as a result of the coaching?
There was definitely a big change in my self-confidence, getting clarity on what I wanted, and being able to action it.
I’m sure many people fall into the trap of having a realisation of what they should do, or what they want to do, and then having the follow-through to actually go for it is completely different.
That was the biggest breakthrough for me: being able to formulate plans and discuss ideas with you, but then have the conviction to actually see it through and do something about it.
The biggest win for me was definitely rekindling my joy for financial investing and trading. That’s quite an intense undertaking in itself because there’s money on the line, but I’ve absolutely jumped back into it. I’m enjoying it again and succeeding at it again.
The small wins build that confidence to take risks into new things, and I’m starting to explore other ideas and other endeavours that I wouldn’t necessarily have chosen at the start.
I feel more equipped to explore them now, and that’s both interesting and quite daunting, but it’s something I’m looking forward to trying out. I wouldn’t have done that if it hadn’t been for our sessions to explore those things together and build that framework to follow.
How did it feel to start seeing this path as something viable?
That was a very big positive step for me – being able to visualise it and see it in front of me as a culmination of the work I put in.
It was remembering to myself, “Yeah, I can actually do this, and this is a viable option. It’s not just some pipe dream.”
I think that’s a tripping-up point for many people: having the conviction for the next step. It doesn’t need to be a pipe dream.
Having someone in your corner who understands your position and wants to help you achieve it is quite empowering. I’m very grateful for that.
How has the coaching impacted your personal life, work and overall outlook?
It’s impacted it massively, to keep it blunt and brief.
I wasn’t in the best place when I lost that job. I was starting to feel frustrated and confused about where I wanted to take my life, and I wasn’t making the right decisions. I was having doubts – that self-doubt – and it really gets you down.
You think, “I’ve made too many mistakes, and maybe this is one mistake too many, and I’m not going to come back from it.”
That downward spiral can be quite toxic, but it’s been uphill since then.
I feel personally much happier. I feel like I have my purpose back. I feel like I have my drive back. It’s nice to not feel like there are no options, or like you’re trapped in a cycle of despair.
Having someone to talk to about why I was feeling certain things, why I thought this or did that, or just having someone who can give me an outside perspective, is so invaluable sometimes.
You can easily get trapped in your own self-monologue and convince yourself that what you’re thinking and feeling is the truth and reality.
All it takes is someone else’s point of view to make you think, “Oh yeah, that isn’t necessarily correct. Let’s try and explore a different perspective on that.”
It’s helped me immensely in that respect.
What would you say to someone who is considering working with Rob or thinking about coaching in general?
You have to trust the process and trust in the person you’re working with.
If someone was considering starting coaching with you, they’ve got to be open and trust it.
For me, it’s not a normal thing to be that vulnerable and open up about personal toils, personal triumphs, career problems, and all those kinds of things. That’s just not how I operate.
I’m glad that I did, because I’m better off for it.
People should be willing to take that risk and come to the table with anything they might need help with, and have someone like yourself who’s not going to judge, who’s unbiased and impartial, objective, and has very insightful and helpful perspectives on various topics.
Just see where it takes them.
You need to have the gumption to jump in and roll the dice, otherwise you never know what’s going to happen.
I think it would be extremely beneficial for many people if they had the time and willingness to put this work in, because it pays dividends.
I can’t recommend it enough.
Final Thoughts
It was a real pleasure to support Matt through this period of change.
What stands out in his story is the shift from feeling stuck, frustrated and unsure after stepping away from a career path that no longer felt right, to rebuilding confidence, reconnecting with his drive, and beginning to create a more self-directed way forward.
His story shows something important about coaching: sometimes people already have the capacity, intelligence and instinct to move forward, but they need a steady space to think clearly, challenge their own self-doubt, and turn possibility into action.
If Matt’s story resonates with you, and you’re navigating your own period of burnout, misalignment or career/life transition, you can explore Between Chapters, my 8-week coaching programme, below.