Hi, my name is Miglena

I am a Qualified Personal Performance Life Coach from The Coaching Academy in the UK. I was born and educated in Bulgaria, where I gained my Ba degree in Theology. For over 10 years I have managed and participated in various social projects, working alongside different Nonprofit Organizations – teaching, counselling and mentoring people one to one and in group settings. My years of professional experience in the social area and extensive studies since 1992 have given me unique insight and understanding of human nature, relationships, needs, values and purpose in life.  My passion and goal have always been to inspire and empower people to develop their full potential as I support them overcome any personal barriers and adopt a new mindset which helps them to grow and achieve no matter the circumstances.

Why would you choose to work with me?

I am passionate about making positive changes in people’s lives and I am 100% committed to my clients’ success.

Here is what my DISC profiling says:

“Miglena enjoys interacting with and helping people. Although she is calm and controlled, she still projects enthusiasm and optimism.

Her natural supportive, listening and empathetic behaviour makes her a good coach. Someone people turn to when they need help or advice.”

My personal story

I grew up in a culture where relationships and social interactions were in the centre of our daily life. We all had our jobs, work, families, house duties and responsibilities, but in the midst of all that, somehow we could always find time to sit and drink a cup of coffee with a friend. This time was very special and became one of my favourite moments of the day. We could speak about everything, sharing the day’s events, telling stories, laughing together, sometimes giving advice or encouragement. Following a rough day, feeling stressed or overwhelmed by problems, sitting down in a nice environment with a hot drink gave me this special moment to slow down and relax. Soon after having a pleasant conversation with a friend, I felt better and the problems suddenly seemed more manageable.

The ritual of drinking coffee (tea) with a friend has a therapeutic effect. You can allow yourself to forget about problems and worries and to enjoy the beverage, the conversation and the company. This positive experience strengthens us and empowers us to manage better with the stress of our daily lives.

When my family moved to England, I experienced cultural shock facing a different reality. I encountered a culture with different values; a fast-paced world where everyone was more focused on work, careers, business or personal development, while social contacts were limited. Although, I am sure that there are places in England where people might enjoy better social life and are happier, my experience living closer to the capital is that most of the people are struggling to find work-life balance, working long hours, enduring lengthy daily commuting and returning home too exhausted to maintain healthy relationships with friends or family members. The stress, the financial problems and the isolation causes many people to suffer from anxiety, depression, relationship problems and emotional breakdowns. As a result, more and more people seek the professional help of psychotherapists, counsellors and life coaches.

Moving from Bulgaria to the UK with my husband and our two teenage boys, was the toughest life-changing experience of my life. We all suffered a great loss and separation from our friends and family, home and belongings, our comfort and security. Placed in a new environment with a different dynamic, culture, language and food, caused us tremendous stress and shook our entire world and identity. Each of us experienced their own crisis. Adding to that the challenges of parenting our teenagers in this new environment, proved too much for us to cope with.  I felt like my whole world is collapsing.

It took a few years for us to overcome the crisis, to settle and to be restored emotionally. The process was slow and painful, but eventually, I came out of it much stronger and more mature. There were two factors that helped me out of the crisis: my faith in God and life coaching. Today my family and I are in a much better place and I can look back with gratitude, because of the invaluable life lessons and principles that I learned from it all.

Trying to find my own path in the new environment, I was introduced to life coaching through The Coaching Academy. I found that life coaching was a natural continuation of all my years of experience in social work and interacting with people—counselling, supporting and mentoring. I found life coaching very effective as an intervention, as it raises people’s awareness of their own motives, attitudes and actions, without giving them direct advice or suggestions, and in that way empowering them to take responsibility and control of their own life.

Today I am a Qualified Personal Performance Life Coach. Ever since I have worked with many clients and have facilitated over 100 coaching sessions in my private practice and as a Volunteer Life Coach for charitable organizations such as Spurgeon and Barnardos. I am also a MAPP (Ma in Applied Positive Psychology) student and currently developing a programme for people experiencing trauma/loss/abuse.

As a result of my coaching, my clients have been empowered to follow their dreams and to take practical steps towards achieving them. They have overcome fears and obstacles which have been stopping them from moving forward in their lives. They have learned strategies to simplify and prioritise their lives. They have improved their relationships as they learned to set boundaries for themselves and for other people. And most of all, through the whole process of coaching, my clients have adopted a new positive mindset that helps them in a long run to become proactive in managing any problems or challenges they may face in the future.

It would be an honour to be your personal life coach!