Fiora Touliatou is one of the coaches that we found this month and we did a little interview with her. She impressed us with her expertise and her large toolbox of holistic practices.
Her journey from holistic therapist to fitness instructor, and eventually, a catalyst for personal growth and empowerment, spans over 17 years of introspection and evolution. Listening keenly to the narratives of clients navigating through life’s challenges, she found herself bound by limitations, eager to extend a helping hand beyond the constraints of conventional therapy.
She discovered her resilience amidst rebellion toward limited mindsets, forging a unique path toward self discovery and enlightenment. Today, armed with a holistic approach that harmonizes ancient wisdom with modern methodologies, she pioneers a transformative coaching style that integrates mind, body, and spirit.
Her story is one of an individual who transcended conventional boundaries to carve a path of holistic well being. Here is what she said.
Meet Life Coach Fiora Touliatou:
Name: Fiora Touliatou
Pillar: The Spirit, The Mind, The Body, The Heart
Who is this coach for: Anyone who wants to transform themselves spiritually, mentally, physically, and emotionally, and live a life they love to live.
How they can help: By using various tools and techniques like Mindfulness exercises, meditation techniques, pranayama exercises, EFT, Ayurveda and other holistic practices.
First of all, how are you and your family doing after these Pandemic times?
My family is still recovering emotionally and mentally as they were very affected in regards to what was and is still happening in society.
On a personal level, my whole life turned upside down.
However, the whole experience of the pandemic was transformational for me in all levels.
It was what the shamans call the “dark night of the soul”.
I had my lows which gave me the momentum to discover new potential and bring myself up again.
I can now say that I am doing a lot better than pre pandemic times.
How did the coronavirus pandemic affect your clients? Did it affect you at all?
I was affected financially and emotionally as the pandemic had a huge negative effect on my business.
I lost all clients and income very abruptly plus I had to use all my savings and stay in temporary accommodation.
Although I had moments of anxiety and uncertainty, that didn’t stop me from moving forward.
I used online platforms and kept myself busy by making new connections with community groups, offered free coaching, received free psychology and business coaching.
By learning to work online, I discovered new opportunities and expanded my services and clientele.
Moreover, I used the quarantines as a time to focus, start my blog, rebuild my website and improve my social media content.
The most important also was that I discovered my coaching niche, which then led to creating my coaching packages and expand my vision.
What are the biggest lessons that you learned in this pandemic?
Be more resilient and always find a way to do everything, find solutions for every problem, minimise complaining and don’t sink into a negative mood.
At the most challenging times, you can discover new ways and opportunities.
We grow when we are challenged.
As long as we are alive, we can do better and explore new ways of living.
Moreover, constantly investing into your self growth is of one of the most valuable things you can do as for building resilience in life.
The Origin:
Tell us about you, your career, how you started with your coaching career?
Initially, my career started as a holistic therapist and a fitness instructor 17 years ago.
Due to the nature of my jobs, I was always listening to my clients when they were talking about their problems and challenges.
However, not only I had limited time to talk with them, but also I was only allowed to discuss or advise them about certain topics in regards to their wellbeing.
And because of my empathetic nature, I always wanted to help more and make a greater positive impact, so I felt limited in my capabilities.
However, after my coaching training in 2018, I realised that I could help even more, which made me feel so excited.
During the first days of the pandemic, I realised my niche is holistic wellbeing which made everything make sense, as all my different activities, skills and professional training came together under the same umbrella.
Therefore, I realised I could incorporate my holistic expertise as extra tools to empower my clients in their coaching journey.
What was your biggest obstacle that you had to overcome in your life that made you who you are today?
The biggest obstacle that I had to overcome in my life was growing up in a conservative family and a narrow minded culture.
As a youngster I was questioning everything as I was feeling out of place and suffocating.
As a teenager I rebelled and my breakthrough led me to a transformation.
Since then, I constantly keep learning, exploring and evolving.
Being the black sheep is a heavy burden to carry when you are young and you still haven’t discovered who you are.
But it is also a blessing in disguise as you learn to take risks, try new ways, discover your potential, do innovative things, not having the need of approval or external validation, walk a solitary path and build resilience.
The Coaching Style:
How do you innovate with coaching your clients?
My innovation is incorporating holistic therapies and practices with the intention of living a more happy, healthy, mindful and meaningful life.
Integrating ancient knowledge into our modern lifestyle is catalytic and deepens our human experience.
I treat each client as a unique individual who may have not discovered their full potential yet.
During our coaching journey, I assist and guide them giving them the keys and then it’s up to them to unlock the different doors.
Furthermore, the tools that I teach them can be used in everyday life, not only during the coaching journey, but for a further personal growth and discovery of a new life perspective.
What’s unique about your coaching approach?
My unique approach to coaching is a holistic approach, which comes from personal inner work and experience plus professional training and expertise.
These tools and practices that I have used for personal growth and self empowerment have further helped me personally to who I am today.
So what is a holistic approach?
Let me explain in more details…
First of all, the word holistic comes from the Greek word “holos”, meaning “whole”.
So the holistic approach is that as humans we are a whole unity: mind, body, and spirit.
As we know, in order to make changes in our lives, we need to be challenged mentally by changing our habits, mindset and develop new neuropathways.
But in order to do that in a more efficient way, we need to work on the emotional and physical aspects too.
According to holistic practices (such as Ayurveda, yoga and holistic therapies), negative emotions can get stuck in our energy system and seriously cause blockages to our overall wellbeing.
By incorporating holistic practices as tools into coaching, we can unblock our energy system, accelerate our growth, ignite our potential and fulfil our purpose.
In brief, it is possible to transform yourself and your life, as long as your take responsibility, be disciplined, be consistent, and do the inner work.
What benefits do your clients get after working with you?
Generally, my clients say is that after every session they go away feeling empowered, peaceful, joyful, inspired and optimistic.
One client specifically said: “every coaching session with your is a trigger for creating a life the way we want it!”
Do you use any specific tools to be efficient with your clients?
Mindfulness exercises, meditation techniques, pranayama exercises (traditional yogic breathing techniques), affirmations, tapping (EFT), somatic exercises from yoga, Ayurveda and other holistic practices.
The Impact:
If you had a super megaphone that, when you speak into, the whole world will hear your message, what would you say?
Be humble and stay humble.
Don’t take anything or anyone for granted.
Don’t let money, success, fame, arrogance or hate blind you.
Life is unpredictable and can be cruel.
From your lowest you can go to your highest and vice versa.
By staying humble, grounded and in your centre, you stay balanced.
It is in this inner balance where you can find peace and create positivity in your life.
So cherish every moment and be grateful for everything and everyone.
Be kind and help when you can.
What is the greatest lesson you have learned in your life?
I have two lessons to share.
One positive and one negative, which can be turned into positive.
The positive lesson is that I discovered my potential is unlimited.
Having a rigid and limited mindset can keep you living a linear life.
But that is just a mental block that can be lifted and then a whole new world of living is discovered.
The negative lesson is that life is unpredictable and everything can change from one moment to the other.
We are not able to control or hold on anything or anyone.
But what we can do is stay centred in ourselves, accept the changes and become resilient.
That’s why staying humble and being grateful on a daily basis is crucial.
Your final thoughts?
In this time and age, we should all focus on creating a better society and world.
If we can see the pandemic as a learning experience, that should be to be better humans with respect to others and the environment.
As coaches, we have the power, tools, technology and platforms to help people discover themselves and transform.
To change the world, we need to change ourselves first.
We need to take responsibility and do the inner work.
Be the change we want to see in the world.
Where Can You Find Fiora Touliatou?
If you liked this interview and you would love to work with Fiora on all of your pillars and create a life that you love living, go to https://www.backneckshoulders.co.uk and see how she can help you do that.
If you’d like to peak into her coaching, follow her Facebook and Instagram accounts.
And if you’d like to connect more personally with her, you can do that through LinkedIn or by sending her a direct message on her Email [email protected]. It was an honor having this interview with her.
