About

What is BUTTERFLYWHEEL^® Life Coaching and Where Did It Come From?

Life is change. Change is all-inclusive, and the fact that everyone will eventually experience it is inevitable. It’s not that we experience change, but how we experience change that determines whether we soar or sink. When life hits you with change, there is always a choice to be made. Ladies, you can choose to become the butterfly emerging from her cocoon, or you can choose to sink like the The Titanic.

I chose the butterfly. In each of us is a beautiful butterfly waiting to emerge and we all go through some pain during our growth, just like the butterfly does as it pushes through the veil of its tight chrysalis to go from caterpillar to fully formed butterfly.

BUTTERFLYWHEEL® Logo
Side view of butterfly
within a circle within a square

BUTTERFLYWHEEL^® is the combination of two symbols that represent change and transformation to me. The butterfly represents internal growth, while the wheel represents shifting out of destructive patterns and mindsets, learning healthier, more empowering habits and building momentum toward success as the empowered, independent, successful woman you were meant to be.

My life coaching is a reflection of this, in that my clients are able to achieve internal and external growth simultaneously, maximizing their level of success.

When I was little, my grandpa called me “butterfly crutches”. When I would play outside on my braces and crutches, butterflies (which I love!) and other critters would end up landing on my clothes and on the shiny metal of my crutches. I would carry them inside with me, and they would flit around loose in the house until we opened the screen door or window to let them go.

After I transitioned to the wheelchair full time as an adult, I was trying to come up with a business name that reflected powerful growth and I realized that the butterfly and the wheel were two very powerful symbols for me and transformative symbols in general. They both represent personal and world transformation. Both symbols are perfect for me and what I do for others in my work, because coaching can have an impact on us inside and out — sometimes simultaneously.

I was thinking about my grandpa one day, missing him and remembering him calling me “butterfly crutches,” and it all came together. I could give him a nod and shift from butterfly crutches to “butterfly wheel.” Instead of two words, though, I wanted to mold it into one powerful compound concept to represent the powerful changes I want to see happen in my clients’ lives inside and out.

When I was creating the logo, I kept thinking about how people with disabilities and other labels sometimes feel like square pegs in round holes, and how we are labeled and put in boxes that don’t really fully define us as able, valuable people in society, while still honoring the struggles we go through as valuable lessons. With some focused action and confidence building, along with the refusal to let obstacles and others’ misconceptions get in our way, we can rise out of that limiting box. We can rise and reach for a Life Beyond Limits (share the #beyondlimits hashtag on social media!), gaining the momentum to transform our lives and the world around us into a world of opportunities that appreciates our value and abilities as vibrant women and full citizens of humanity.

Did you know BUTTERFLYWHEEL^® has a theme song? Here it is! Click here to download the lyrics and click below to give it a listen!