Above all else, WHY I started Nick’s New Level Coaching was to authentically serve others in a way that helps people develop a growth-mindset, increase productivity, and walk with purpose to create short-run impact and long-run legacy.
Nick’s New Level Coaching is the culmination of a whole-hearted journey of self-development and service that started after I was feeling completely lost in July of 2023. I had just graduated from Furman University in May of 2023 where I dedicated my time and energy to being the best student in the classroom, and the best athlete on the track and cross country course that I could be. However, after completing my final exams and running my last races, my sense of purpose and direction became less and less clear. After all, my studies and playing sports at a high level had been my life since I could walk. So I embarked on a journey to discover my purpose and identity outside of “student-athlete”.
Initially, I planned to be a financial advisor, but while studying to get the necessary licenses for the career I could feel my heart wasn’t in it. It was around the time that I took my first crack at the Series 7 exam that I was reading the book The Alchemist by Paul Coelho and among the many influential and wise words from that book one line struck me above all else, “Remember that wherever your heart is, there you will find your treasure.” A few months later while reading Zig Ziglar’s See You at the Top I was moved by the line, “You can get everything you want in life if you just help enough people get what they want.” So, I stepped away from financial services with the goal of following my heart and serving others.
My only goal for the next year was to go and serve in my community. What I knew was that I loved working with younger generations, and I had experience in academics and athletics. So I googled “Non-Profits near me” and jumped on the opportunity to be a Middle School Soccer Coach when my old coach and athletic director from high school offered me the role following a post-alumni soccer game dinner at Carolina Ale House. Fast forward to the Spring of 2024, I was in full-swing at a non-profit called Boomerang Youth — an organization dedicated to helping students bounce back from out of school suspensions through social-emotional learning, academic tutoring, and goal-setting — and reunited with one of my role models and former high school track coaches as his assistant that I realized the 12 months from May of 2023 to May of 2024 had gone from the least promising to the most fulfilling.
Throughout all that time my personal-development journey continued. I was blown away by the wisdom I had learned from countless authors, speakers, podcast guests, and more. The more I learned and reflected the more I wanted to know. And the more I knew, the more I had the urge to share with others. My purpose became clear: to grow myself in order to serve others using the unique gifts and experiences I have to offer.
After figuring that out, I knew I needed a to elevate my skills and find a path as well as the training to start living out that purpose in long-run. Again, I looked to one of my favorite authors and personal development leaders, Jay Shetty, and found out he had a certification school for life coaching. After applying, interviewing and figuring out the finances, I was accepted into the Jay Shetty Certification School, and began my 6-month journey to becoming a Jay Shetty Certified life coach. I choose the medium of life coaching becuase of how accessible I can be to others, and the potential scale of the impact. In fact, Jay’s school’s mission is “to change one billion lives by teaching people how to use coaching to improve themselves and their communities”. After countless hours of studying, 12 modules, over 30 hours of seminars and practice coaching sessions, 2 months of weekly meetings with a mentor, and lots of reading, I fulfilled my goal and graduated. And this brings me to today.
Combining my new formal training as a life coach with my defined purpose, the impact I strive to make was more clear than ever: Help others develop a growth mindset, increase productivity, and walk with purpose to create short-run impact and long-run legacy.