(An interview with Lea Ungson on Haraya Pivot for MSP)

MSP: How has your business been affected by the current pandemic?

Lea: Like most other businesses, our coaching business slowed down during the lockdown considering that existing and ongoing engagement has to take a temporary pause given the quarantine restrictions and WFH set-up for most of our clients. Ongoing discussion regarding new and potential business partnerships in Q1’2020 has to be deferred given shift in focus and re-prioritization of companies toward people health & safety, business continuity and contingency plans. Our saving grace are the program proposals that we were able to close in the last quarter of 2019 and strong full year performance which gave us a solid head start in 2020.

MSP: What measures did you implement to survive this pandemic? How challenging was it?

Lea: First off, we focused on our team’s welfare – health, safety and well-being. We did a weekly virtual check-in to get a sense of how’s everyone doing, what resources and support is needed until such time everyone became relatively stable with the unprecedented situation. We made sure our employees continue to receive their full salary on top of availing the government subsidy and offered extra financial support to ensure our team is geared up for a WFH set-up.

Alongside, we also asked ourselves how can we be of value and service to the community during this trying time, how can we make a difference? This reflective inquiry gave birth to #UnangTugonPH – a collaborative initiative by our community of coaches who have come together and decided to support our frontliners by offering a service that we are uniquely poised to provide. We gathered over 50 volunteer coaches who have generously offered their time to take phone calls or host online dialogues at no charge. As certified professional coaches, we’ve been highly trained in the skills of showing empathy, active listening and helping clients take an empowering perspective. We aim to help alleviate some of the concerns our frontliners may have, to show care for their emotional and mental well-being. This is our simple way of showing gratitude and support to our brave frontliners. Simultaneous to this, we hosted learning session and #Tapatan – a support circle for our community of coaches as our way of caring for the carers.

Next stop, we kept an open line of communication with our valued clients to check every stage of their transition. For those who we have ongoing engagement at the start of the year, we made a recommendation to shift our sessions and work via online / virtual platform already to sustain the momentum. For all other clients we sent a message of support and giving value by offering #Ka-malayan – a deep dive process at no cost on their end through one-on-one interviews and FGDs to help them create an awareness on the current state of where their teams and organization are at, in terms of their well-being, dynamics and leadership during this trying time. A report will be submitted to them with recommended action steps which they may implement at their discretion. We believe that by partnering in creating awareness in them, they will be in a better position to optimize their performance over the long term and help them transition effectively into the new normal.

Finally, my partners and I went into an internal & creatively facilitated Re-imagination Workshop: Into the Better Normal, tohelp us pivot our business. As we pivot, we kept in mind to stay true to who we are, our why and what we value as a team and company. We objectively look into our people, process, clients and financials. We spent time to revisit who do we serve now and moving forward. Keeping ourselves in the know on various business reviews, forecast and economic outlook, we began to imagine what will the new normal look like and what are the potential emerging needs where can be of value in addressing them. Then we started to consider how to leverage what we have currently on hand – our tools, resources, programs, certifications, coaches’ community and existing strategic partnerships. The whole team started rethinking the way we do our business, the call for embracing the new normal, learning new skills, adapting to new technology, redesigning our programs to make it suitable for online delivery and developing new coaching models to facilitate heightening of awareness and deepening of learning.

It was challenging in the sense that when we started to regroup, the outer world noise is immense that one can easily be drawn to put something out there at once, to strike while the iron is hot, to join the bandwagon of online sessions and just become an expert suddenly on something to fill in the world’s needs. In our case however, we took a step back and chose to stay grounded on the why, what and how our company was built on. We used this time to reflect and reinforce the kind of work we do and value we bring to all our engagement and partnerships regardless of the conditions we’re in. All these, I give back the credit to the whole team ably led by our founder, Jackie Cañiza, the engaged partners, Nature Calderon, TJ Nadres, Cecilia Schrijver and the supportive team, Marge Martinez, Zai Diegor, Vanneza Cazil and Genesis Magno.

MSP: What made you say that your business is surviving or thriving?

Lea: As we speak, our #UnangTugonPH and #Ka-malayan programs have taken traction, select companies have signed up for it and a number of other companies are starting to inquire if we can extend this to their respective organizations. More and more companies now are recognizing the value of caring for their employees’ mental and emotional well-being that a professional coach can provide by their presence, active listening and acting as support system for self-care and managing stress & anxiety. In fact, in the new guidelines for General Community Quarantine, the government is now asking employers to provide access to mental wellness help lines.

The pandemic may have enforced physical distancing but more than ever it called for a different level, sense and depth of connection considering the impact on human behavior of the various changes it has caused like increasing need for contactless transaction, increasing levels of anxiety & depression brought about by isolation & uncertainty, business downsizing / closure, loss of jobs, less spending, increased entrepreneurial efforts, prolonged working hours and unclear boundaries between work and home life in a WFH set-up, to name a few. These changes created the need for wellness & self-care response, virtual presence, career transitions, agile leadership, engaging virtual teams / audience, new business model design, WFA (work from anywhere) adaptability and continuous learning, reskilling & upskilling. Coaching and training profession now more than ever will have demand in both local & international space and will play a vital role in addressing some of these emerging needs brought about by the new normal. As reported in the shifts in the Low Touch Economy by the board of innovation and business experts’ projection that the e-learning industry will be one of the flourishing industries in this period.

MSP: Do you think all SMEs will survive this pandemic? Why or why not?

Lea: I cannot speak for all SME’s as it may vary and depend on different factors. A case in point is the nature of business and industry type that an SME caters to. There are specific industries that will be burdened outright by this pandemic, those for example that thrive on mass gatherings, steady flow of walk-ins, group accommodations and mobility. The sudden drop in demand, cash flow & supply chain disruption, displacement of trained workers/employees, change in purchasing behavior & priorities of consumers, and additional cost related to compliance to new normal operations around health & safety as directed by the government, to name a few, may have a hard hit in the mid to long term, however, it doesn’t follow that said SMEs will not survive cause survival in itself has many factors to be considered as well. We cannot dismiss the perspective and mindset that SMEs have – the commitment to their purpose, the resolve, resilience and creativity to recover, pivot, diversify their business and the access to available resources and support to fuel their business.

MSP: Give at least three ways for businesses, especially SMEs, to survive this pandemic.

Lea: Putting out a disclaimer here, what I will share is based on my personal experience and perspective, these may be in no way applicable to others as circumstances may vary from one SME to another.

Stay grounded and have a clear understanding of what your company stands for – your identity, purpose and values that translates to the kind of work and value that your company bring to your clients and partners. Giving value & service first over making profit is key not only during this trying time. As the famous quote of Maya Angelou says “At the end of the day people won’t remember what you said or did, they will remember how you made them feel”

Hone in to the kind of mindset and perspective you hold around the business that you ventured into as that will drive the behavior and outcome of where the business will go. Having what it takes, for example, that mental toughness / alertness, physical wellness, solid entrepreneurial, determined & creative spirit to cease the opportunities behind any crisis. Openness to continuous learning, reinvention and humility to seek help from others (e.g. your partners, team members, credible mentors). Readiness to leverage what is in place so far in your business. Being on the lookout for emerging needs, upcoming trends, buying patterns and business outlook that your business may be able to pivot into. Having an honest and objective assessment of your business state (knowing one’s threshold and when to call the shot).

Keeping the faith and having an attitude of gratitude. I personally believe that challenges placed along our way serve as detour, a re-direction of some sort. We may not see the new long road ahead of us yet each step is a call for something new and better – a call for discovery, appreciation, acceptance, realization, learning, giving importance, reinforcement and many more. Gifts and blessings that we will look back to when we finally reach the end of that new road.

KKK as popularly known in the Philippines history is a revolutionary society which aimed to gain independence from colonials through a revolution during the 19^th century.  Similarly, my KKK story is more of a personal fight story.  Prior to COVID outbreak and ECQ implementation, I had my own share of personal battle “kaguluhan” and I was having quarantine moments already given a health challenge that forced me to pause, reflect and go for rest to recover.  A part of me thinks that am an invincible warrior who’s always on the go, able and willing to help, serve and be a source of strength for others until I was hit by a form of defeat in order for me to retreat.  My natural human reactions took over, non-supportive thoughts came in and disempowering emotions built up.  It was an on and off journey as I struggled to turn the denial to decision, fear to faith, anxiety to answer, hard to humility, pain to purpose, confusion to calm, panic to peace, grief to gratitude and trial to trust.  Amidst the roller coaster of thoughts, questions & emotions, I had to remind myself that God will not give me what I can’t bear. Hard as it is and armed with His promise, I gathered my senses and composure together.  I deliberately shifted my attention to faith and gratitude.  I took note of the small victories and blessings that came with it.  The unexpected circumstance that led to early discovery, the schedules that I need to re-arrange, the right people I encountered in my most vulnerable time, the unison in intervention, the timing of the decision, the travels that I need to forgo (not knowing that there will be a pandemic), the long-overdue move to a new place became inevitable for recovery purposes (not knowing that a mandatory indefinite “stay at home” directive will be implemented).  These and many more tell me that my loving God is with me all the time and has paved the way ahead of me. 

And so my recovery journey began, I reminded myself that this second lease in life must not be put to naught.  My attention shifted in nurturing my mind, body and spirit.  I developed new routines and hobbies.  I indulged in me and quiet times.  I pondered on prayers and reflections.  I chose the food I eat and the activities I do.  I allowed myself to be surrounded and supported by loving family and friends.  I slowly started going back to work remotely and be immersed with my Haraya family.  I remembered the team even set a holiday gathering in my place so I can be physically part of a mini-retreat and planning session.  It was the right time because it came with a practice of trust and vulnerability with the people I felt safe to be with as I slowly reintegrate myself back to the world that I got used to be in.  The reintegration though was short-lived because that world did not stand for long when the quarantine took over.  This time, it’s not just about me anymore.  In an instance, my “kaguluhan” became irrelevant relative to what’s happening around that world. 

The quarantine may have enforced physical distancing yet more than ever it called for a different level of connection.  That’s what I appreciate with our Haraya team, despite the challenging times that we are all in, we remain true to who we are and what we value as a team and company.  Our best practice of having “check-in” whenever we start our meeting was carried on during this period in the form of weekly light “Kamustahan” where we get to connect, check one another and simply ask “How’s everyone doing?” Apart from asking what are we feeling at the moment, we also check if there’s any support needed by anyone in the team.  Then from there, we started asking ourselves how can we help our community during this trying time?  As coaches we know we can give the gift of presence and connection, to listen and just being there for someone.  And that gave birth to Unang Tugon for the frontliners and Tapatan Circle for our coaches, both garnered favorable responses.  The quarantine gave us time to reflect and did reinforce the kind of work and service value we bring to our partners and clients.  That’s where “Ka-malayan” came about – it’s about partnering in creating awareness.

Unknowingly I went through the cycle of KKK myself, when my “kaguluhan” led me to check-in (kamustahan) with my own thoughts and feelings, making sense of what’s happening within me and having that awareness (ka-malayan) of what is it that am going through.  I am a work-in-progress, there are good days and at times I still catch myself haunted by my “kaguluhan”.  Looking back, I found myself asking ‘Where did my half of 2020 go?’ and “What’s out there for the balance of 2020 and beyond?  Indeed, it will be a memorable year not only to me but for many.  With the many twists and turn of events came along the teachings and treasures. Thrive, Pivot and New Normal are just some of the buzz words lately.  I agree that life will never be the same again, there’s no normal to go back to instead am looking forward to what this new life has to offer with a deeper appreciation of what really matters, gratitude for the many blessings that I easily take for granted, steadfast will to stick to the learning and trusting spirit to let go and let God.

Once again, it’s here – my most awaited time of the year: The season of Advent. Advent is the season of waiting, the season of hope, peace, love, and joy.  This season means a lot to me personally, and it may hold different meanings to others as well.

A season for planning
A season for review
A season for Christmas parties
A season for sale & shopping
A season for vacation
A season for reflection
A season for new beginning

My waiting begins as I join an annual inspirational event covering topic areas such as leadership, business, wellness and spirituality, to name a few. I look forward to attending this annually as it is a form of grounding, centering and simply coming home to myself and my God.  Here I get to learn more from the various speakers, get inspiration from stories shared and get a sense of how God moves in my life. Some of the highlights for me in this year’s event are the number of talks around mental health challenges — how increased awareness and intervention offerings can help address the life threatening impact.  I was reminded in another stream that my value is defined by something eternal versus something material.  An unshakeable self-esteem is anchored on the following:  Person – who do I depend on?  Price – what gives me value? and Purpose – why do I matter?  Finally, the call for service was reinforced in me.  In my life, do I wash hands or wash feet? Do I chase titles or pick up the towels?  How do I bring the upper room to the classroom?

This short four-day retreat is where I get to hit refresh and reconnect with my faith and purpose. As it is usually held on the last week of November, it serves as a deepening prelude for Advent and Christmas. As the year comes to a close, I make an effort to pause and reflect on the past year. An opportune time for me to take stock of what I have bravely embraced, proudly accomplished, curiously explored, deliberately chosen, sadly missed and happily learned along the way, as everything will help me become a better person in the coming new year.  I cannot help but to relate the experience with my being a professional coach.  The very essence of what I evoke from others, I also get to discover for myself, as I become more self-aware and introspective.

Our mindset determines how we see our waiting.  We can be restless in anticipation of what’s to come or we can be proactive in preparing for what is yet to come.  In my waiting I find comfort in knowing that I was designed to rest in God first and there’s a bigger plan in place for me.  I wait in trust and gratitude that it is done.  How about you?  What’s in your waiting?

My quest for holistic wellness began way back early 2008 when I was diagnosed with hyperglycemia and was given medication.  Following family’s advice given our medical history, I was on medication for 2 years.  During said period, my regular visit to my endocrinologist then is more of a conversation rather than consultation, as I would challenge my doctor on what’s the rationale behind the medicine prescribed to me, what are the side effects, and if there is why do they prescribe such.  I would ask how can I be off from said medication, what are my options and what’s the ultimate cure.  When my doctor said that it will be maintenance medication then it dawned on me that I will be on it for life and that’s not how I envision managing my health moving forward.  Armed with the belief that our body can heal itself naturally, that we were designed by God to function ably having defense and healing mechanisms, I started searching for natural and alternative ways of healing, made the decision to stop my medication and addressed my condition with proper diet and exercise.  Fast forward, 8 years after I have been off from medication and maintained normal blood sugar level.

This episode in my life inspired me to continue on what I have started and opened my consciousness more on preventive care, alternative form of healing and healthy lifestyle.  I began to read books, make lifestyle changes, attended wellness seminars and workshops.  It’s in the latter that I met my Naturopath Doctor-Mentor.  I personally set up a consultation time with her for general health assessment and natural ways of sustaining a healthy lifestyle.  It is during this time that she shared with me her vision of building healthy communities and disease free world.  And one of the many ways she does to make this vision a reality is to transfer her knowledge by training lay people to become health practitioners.  I resonated with the thought of becoming a health practitioner myself cause as a Certified Professional Transformative Coach, I help others to become more aware and deepen their learning about themselves so they are able take charge of their life and be responsible to attain sustainable results.  What I help to impart, I also learn to apply.  As a coach, I learned to live a more keen awareness life, making conscious and purposeful choices not only in health aspect but all other life areas. Further reinforcing in me my non-negotiable in life that is family, wellness and spirituality.  In line with these priorities, I realized that taking my passion for wellness to the next level will be a valuable complement to my coaching profession and can make a major difference in people’s lives.  By acquiring a more formal education in health and wellness, I will not only be able to help my family embrace a more holistic outlook and approach to living a healthy lifestyle, I will also help in spreading awareness and educating others on true healthcare. 

And so I began my journey on an intensive 20 weeks class on Integrative Functional Nutrition.  This is not your typical type of class as every meeting one has to be prepared for a situational quiz and specific topic research work for presentation on top of capturing all the salient points and wisdom nuggets shared in every lecture and class discussion.  Then the last day of class will be the final written examination – combined case studies and concepts application. Am grateful to make it through the 20 weeks course requirements in the midst of hectic schedule and now onto my practicum.

This journey opened me up to something revolutionary and exciting. More than the foreign sounding scientific terms and mind boggling technical concepts I learned, this course is encompassing as it touched on a new healthcare paradigm. Looking back to my 2008 condition, then it all made sense now what led me to it. Here are the top lessons* I find worth sharing, learning and applying:

1. Our definition of life, sickness and death will be the healing paradigm
2. ‘The best way to change the world is to change ourselves’ – I have to walk my talk. My passion for holistic wellness has to manifest in me first even before I help to spread this to others. 
3. The mystery of healing – when we help others heal, we are healed as well.  The same goes with the power of prayers – the one who’s prayed is also blessed
4. Our body can heal itself – our body is designed to have healing and defense mechanisms
5. Everyday is a new opportunity to build a new body – our body fully rebuilds in less than 2 years and 98% in less than 1year
   1. DNA renews itself every 2 months
   1. The following rebuilds itself in:
      1. Skin – 1 month
      1. Liver – 6 weeks
      1. Stomach lining – 5 days
      1. Brain – 1 year
      1. Blood – 4 months
      1. Bones – 3 months
6. Our DNA is not our destiny
7. Epigenetics tell us that our environment, what we do, how we live, what we eat and where we are can affect how our genes express themselves
8. Changing our state of consciousness can influence or even change the tendency for gene expression
9. Our genes do not define us. We are not the code, we are the writers of the code
10. The key and lock to nutritional healing is food and body respectively.  The biochemistry of these two allows for deeper healing
11. Let Food be the Medicine – food is information, it contains various valuable information in the form of nutrients that can answer the different needs of our body
12. There is no prescription but rather a process, framework and structure working together to achieve a personalized holistic healing
13. Holistic approach to health management
14. Understanding the root cause of the disease – acute conditions require acute measures, chronic conditions require holistic approach
15. Knowing the core dysfunctions like toxins, stress, unhealthy diet and lifestyle, malnourishment, traumas
16. Primal food is not only diet and food, this includes body movement, relationships, spirituality, physical movement, beliefs, mindset

* Reference – lecture notes from Dra. Christine V. Gonzalez, NMD, PhD and Dr. Ibarra M. Gonzalez, PhD – WII-ICRI FN Class 2018

In this fast-paced world that we live in, it gets harder and harder to keep up with the demands of day-to-day life. If there’s anyone that exemplifies this best, it would have to be a mother. Not only does she have to juggle the demands of motherhood, she resorts to multitasking to satisfy her many other roles such as being a wife, a daughter, a sister, a friend, a career woman – all that and more. Managing to balance all that is a feat in itself, not to mention her innate instinct to put her family first.  It is inevitable to feel overwhelmed every once in a while. After all, she is still human.

All mothers encounter a different range of problems in life. Some may experience making a big sacrifice in their dreams or desires to make way for the interest of their family. Some may experience trouble in striking the right balance between work and family. Some may be feeling burnt out and have lost their sense of purpose. Amidst all this, a mother will always strive to be her best, because she wants nothing less for her family. To help this special woman be able to realize her full potential, rediscover herself, harness her innate power and ultimately transform her life, having a coach would be valuable in keeping things in perspective. After all, every superhero needs some back-up from time to time, and who better to call than a coach?

Mothers, the gift of coaching is for you! Get in touch with us today and experience Coaching and claim the life that you envision for yourself.

“I have always found comfort in seeking my parents’ advice, and we make it a point to sit down and talk things over.”

One’s teenage years are definitely quite a ride. In my experience, I can say I’ve grown so much from both my successes and failures – and it has all added up to make me who I am today, and get me where I am today.

There are times now, being in college, that I find myself a little overwhelmed with things. Like anyone else, I have big dreams and goals I want to achieve; however, getting swamped with a heavy workload, chasing deadlines and losing sleep it sometimes feels like too much all at once. I have always found comfort in seeking my parents’ advice, and we make it a point to sit down and talk things over. They always remind me to take a step back and look at the bigger picture. It’s a much-needed reality check that helps me get back on track and see what I need to change to be able to move forward. I tend to overthink things too much, so it also helps to take a little breather and focus on doing things one step at a time.

After graduating high school, I realized that I didn’t get to do much for myself. As I was listing my accomplishments for my yearbook write-up, I thought back to all the times I didn’t grab an opportunity because I doubted myself and I didn’t want to risk failing. From then on, I promised myself that I’ll do more in college. I knew that I just had to set my mind on it and focus on the bigger purpose, so back in my first year of college my friends and I decided to join a competition and we came up with a business plan for a social enterprise which aims to help densely populated poor communities and the growing problem of plastic waste. Our group was chosen to be in the Top 12 finalists, and that in itself was a cause for celebration. I can say that it was pretty fulfilling to have been able to start something like that. I believe I still have a long way to go in terms of making my mark in this world – but I’m proud of the little ones I’ve made so far.

When I retired from corporate work 4 years ago, I was excited then with the thought of new discoveries that will come my way.  A lot of looking forward questions ran through my mind like “What opportunities are waiting for me?” “What can I now freely venture into without the pressure of being tied to an 8-5 schedule?” and “What are the new possibilities for me?  However along this excitement, it’s inevitable to be concerned with doubt and fear.  I had my share of “what if” questions and it was during this time that I seriously thought about what’s my core gift, calling and mission in life.  It was a combined physical, mental and spiritual journey for me.

Then I was introduced to the world of coaching. The basic learning sessions, workshop and actual applications I had helped me realized how coaching complements my strength in people management and interpersonal skills. This led to gratifying experiences seeing individuals, team and organizations become empowered and fulfilled through coaching.  It also taught me “how to be” and “what to value” in alignment to what I am awakening and inspiring in others.

And now I am happy to share that coaching has reinforced in me my mission in life of “blessing others with my time, talent and treasures”