Robert Leigh Pruitt is one of the coaches that we found this month and we did a little interview with him. He impressed us with his expertise and his client centered approach.

He has spent decades guiding others not by giving them answers, but by helping them discover the wisdom that already lives within. Through careful listening, gentle inquiry, and deep presence, he creates a space where clients can face their fears, explore their inner narratives, and emerge with clarity and confidence to navigate life on their own terms.

He believes that true transformation begins with presence, regulation, and the ability to meet life without reactivity. For him, every moment, whether in leadership, coaching, or personal growth, is an opportunity to practice conscious awareness, to understand the sensations of the body, and to return to center, no matter the chaos or uncertainty in the world around us.

He sees his clients not as followers or dependents, but as the drivers of their own growth. They return to him not because they need direction, but because they value a companion in the journey, someone who reflects back their highest potential and helps them uncover insights and tools that will serve them long after their time together ends. Here is what he said…

Meet Life Coach Robert Leigh Pruitt:

Name: Robert Leigh Pruitt, II

Pillar: The Mind, The Heart

Who is this coach for: Leaders, facilitators, and individuals in transition who seek clarity, regulation, and inner authority rather than external direction.

How they can help: By using various techniques and tools like Personal Achievement Contract, energy awareness, active listening, and presence, just to name a few.

First of all, how are you and your family doing after these Pandemic times?

I tend to pause with the phrase “crazy times,” because language shapes perception.

When we label a period as crazy, we often unconsciously justify dysregulation.

My only real assignment, regardless of circumstances, is to remain regulated, loving, open, and neutral.

When I observe governments in conflict, violence in the world, or division amplified through media, I do not begin with judgment.

I begin with inquiry…

What narrative am I engaging with internally? What conversations am I absorbing or rehearsing? How does that register in my body?

If I notice sensations such as disturbance, frustration, irritation, or confusion, I do not treat them as problems.

I treat them as information.

Those sensations let me know whether I am regulated or not.

They invite me back to center.

For me, effective coaching has never been about fixing others or managing the world.

It begins with my own inner stewardship.

I coach myself into breakdowns.

I coach myself into breakthroughs.

Those lived experiences, paired with skill, reflection, and humility, are what allow me to support others authentically.

So the world does not appear “crazy” to me.

It appears as humanity wrestling with itself, asking to be met with presence rather than reactivity.

How did the coronavirus pandemic affect your clients? Did it affect you at all?

The pandemic brought suppressed emotions to the surface for many people.

Goal orientation gave way to awareness.

Clients experienced sadness, fear, fatigue, grief, and uncertainty.

This period reaffirmed something I had long sensed.

Not every moment is a coaching moment.

Sometimes awareness itself is the work.

During that time, the language of “wisdom chats” emerged naturally.

It allowed space for exploration without urgency.

Personally, the pandemic intersected with my own transition from a twenty two year leadership role.

While the world confronted a physical virus, I faced a spiritual one.

It was the fear of letting go.

That season built capacity, sharpened my vision, and deepened my trust.

It also reminded me that breath and spirit are inseparable.

Regulation restores clarity.

Alongside loss, there was also reconnection, simplicity, and love.

The Origin:

Tell us about you, your career, how you started with your coaching career?

Coaching entered my life in 1998 during a transformational leadership experience.

At my core, I am a facilitator.

What immediately resonated was how coaching complemented facilitation, especially in small group environments.

I pursued certification in 1999 not to establish a traditional coaching practice, but to deepen my facilitation work.

During workshops and trainings, I noticed that questions participants asked often revealed personal vision, internal conflict, or a desire for clarity.

Those moments invited coaching rather than instruction.

My approach has always emphasized awakening a person’s internal wisdom rather than positioning myself as the expert.

I never wanted clients to rely on me for answers.

I wanted them to build internal capacity so they could navigate life with confidence and return only when they entered a new season or level of responsibility.

What was your biggest obstacle that you had to overcome in your life that made you who you are today?

My greatest obstacle was recognizing how often I attempted to love from fear rather than presence.

Choosing to live instead of merely survive brought every fear rooted pattern to the surface for healing.

Over time, I learned to meet those patterns without reenacting them.

I gently returned to center.

The past several years stripped away inherited narratives and false identities.

What remained was clarity, coherence, and alignment.

I learned not only how to return to center, but how to carry it forward.

What are the biggest lessons that you learned overcoming your biggest obstacle?

One core lesson is that agreement from others is not required for my knowing to be true.

I live from Plan A, paired with responsive listening.

Plan B implies distrust.

Fear can masquerade as wisdom.

Regulation reveals the difference.

Sometimes what has not arrived is not delayed…

It is waiting for coherence.

Lack of evidence is not evidence of lack.

The Coaching Style:

How do you innovate with coaching your clients?

I do not spend time comparing how I coach to how others coach.

Innovation, for me, is rooted in listening rather than technique.

I often draw on music as a metaphor.

In an orchestra or jazz ensemble, even when the same note is played, the tone, timing, and feeling differ.

Jazz, in particular, taught me the beauty of improvisation.

It taught me to listen deeply and respond authentically in the moment.

No one else has lived my life.

That lived experience informs how and when a question lands.

I listen not only to what is being said, but to what is withheld or avoided.

Interrupting a familiar narrative often opens space for deeper truth and self recognition.

What’s unique about your coaching approach?

My clients are the coach.

They are in the driver’s seat.

I am in the passenger seat.

My role is not to direct.

My role is to ask questions that support awareness and choice.

I support remembering rather than fixing.

Clients return not from dependency.

They return because they have entered a new season and desire companionship.

What benefits do your clients get after working with you?

I do not claim outcomes.

Benefits are natural results of presence.

Clients experience being seen, heard, and held in love while being regarded at their highest.

They receive clarity without force.

They receive accountability without pressure.

They leave with insights and inner tools they continue to draw upon long after our work together.

Do you use any specific tools to be efficient with your clients?

I use tools that support awareness rather than speed.

These include the Moment Marker journaling practice.

They include a Personal Achievement Contract.

They include energy awareness drawn from metaphysical principles.

The most important tools remain active listening, timing, and presence.

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 gentle with yourself.

Be gentle with others as you journey.

What is the greatest lesson you have learned in your life?

Days before my father transitioned in 1997, he said, “Let go of your anger and be God’s man.”

He also said, “You will be stronger and wiser than I.”

That message continues to unfold.

Strength rooted in presence.

Wisdom rooted in love rather than fear.

Speaking truth gently has the power to shift generational narratives… It establishes new foundations.

Your final thoughts?

Be gentle.

Gentleness is regulation.

It is a return to center.

From that place, coherence creates a ripple that touches every area of life.

When we listen to the inner whisper, clarity, alignment, and compassion naturally follow.

Where Can You Find Robert Leigh Pruitt, II?

If you liked this interview and if you would love to see how Coach Robert can help you find your answers, schedule a free 30 minute chat with him here.

Feel free to explore his website and see everything he has to offer.

If you’d like to peak a glimpse into his coaching, you can do that by following his Instagram or subscribing to his YouTube channel.

And if you’d like to connect more personally with him, you can do that through LinkedIn or by sending him a direct message to his Email [email protected]. It was an honor having this interview with him.