As an Indigenous holistic coach, relational facilitator, critical friend and cultural navigator, there’s often a gap between what people think I do and what I would like people to understand about my work. These misunderstandings don’t just create confusion—they prevent the deep, transformational work that’s possible when we approach this with the right understanding.
Let me share what working with me involves.
Table of Contents
In this reflection, I speak to the common misunderstandings about holistic coaching, cultural navigation and relational facilitation offered by a dual heritage Inuk woman.
- I’m a Human Encyclopedia on Inuit Culture and History
- My Expertise is Limited to Being Inuk
- I’m a Plug-and-Play Expert with Ready-Made Templates
- This Is Just A Checkbox Exercise
- Coaching is the same as Therapy
- This Work is Purely Intellectual
- Growth Happens in Visible, Big External Changes
- Tools and Templates are the Strategy
- I Do the Work and Learning For People
- What This Work Really Offers
Misunderstanding #1
I'm a Human Encyclopedia on Inuit Culture and History
Common thought:
We have been conditioned to think that Indigenous people are the ones to do the work of truth, reconciliation and teaching people about Inuit, First Nations and Métis people . Along that line of thinking there’s a misunderstanding that I am the one to:
- teach people about Inuit culture,
- be a Google search engine with all the answers about who Inuit are, Inuit cultural practices, and traditions.
There’s an unconscious expectaction me to do the work of learning for them and spell everything out.
The reality:
My work is about cultural navigation—navigating between cultures and learning.
It’s about helping you know who you are and where you come from in order to know where you’re going.
The guilt and shame people feel about not knowing is by design—the system was intentionally built this way.
“My work is about cultural navigation—helping you understand who you are and where you come from so you know where you’re going.”
Misunderstanding #2
My Expertise is Limited to Being Inuk
Common thought:
Being viewed or assuming that the only thing I know or can talk about is being Inuk – one of my cultural identities. And that Inuit only live in the far north, in circumpolar Arctic and subarctic areas, not in towns and cities south of the 60th parallel.
The reality:
I bring expertise beyond my cultural identity. My work encompasses:
- holistic coaching,
- systems thinking,
- community development,
- learning design
- leadership development, and
- understanding how ecosystems influence and are influenced by the people within them.
Misunderstanding #3
I'm a Plug-and-Play Expert with Ready-Made Templates
Common thought:
The assumption I come with pre-packaged, prescribed templates and prescribed learning. That I have a pre-made plan and that I can be dropped into any situation. Where I’ll figure out what learning needs to happen and tell people what they need to do without any context.
The reality:
I’m here as a guide, listener, and co-creator. I identify what skills and strengths you already have, understand your prior learning and experiences, and walk that path and journey with you.
I do the work with you, learning and listening from you.
Misunderstanding #4
This is Just a Checkbox Exercise
Common thought:
My work has been viewed as checking a box—”Yes, we’ve had an Inuk/Indigenous woman come in to talk.” talking at them or to them, as a one-time event or ‘one-off’. Or what I refer to as ‘drive-by learning’, ‘drive thru learning’ or ‘sit and git’.
The reality:
It’s about talking with you, not at you. I create space for all of our stories—your stories, other people’s stories, community stories—to identify similarities, differences, and commonalities.
I help find that overlapping space in the Venn diagram where we can work together toward a common vision.
This is a collective experience, not an individual one.
Misunderstanding #5
Coaching is the Same as Therapy
Common thought:
That coaching is like therapy, where someone external will tell them how to fix their problems or be responsible for their growth and development.
The reality:
Coaching is about being present and listening—to what is coming up, what is being said, what wants to be said. It’s about growing:
- self-awareness,
- social awareness,
- cultural awareness,
- cultural intelligence, and
- emotional intelligence
I’m not responsible for your learning or growth, but I help create space to clear the noise and clutter so you can listen to what’s wanting to be said and what needs to be felt.
Misunderstanding #6
This Work is Purely Intellectual
Common thought:
Coaching, facilitated learning, strategic advise and authentice engagement is purely intellectual, cognitive work focused on strategies, tools, and templates.
The reality:
I don’t just focus on the head. I focus on connecting our minds with our hearts and our bodies.
It’s holistic and embodied work that understands the whole person and the ecosystems we move through.
We influence and are influenced by our surroundings and environment.
“I don’t just focus on the head. I focus on connecting our minds with our hearts and our bodies.”
Misunderstanding #7
Growth Means Visible, Big External Changes
Common misunderstanding:
Looking for big events and big signs that growth and change has arrived. Wanting external transformation and results that is separate and disconnected from the internal growth and change.
The reality:
Learning is about growth and change externally, but also internally. I hope people do the inner work—that personal work of change, transformation, and growth—so it can influence the collective work.
Transformation happens through small shifts and changes in daily habits and practices. That’s what builds the muscles and muscle memory for lasting change.
Misunderstanding #8
Tools and Templates Are the Strategy
Common misunderstanding:
The thought that tools and templates used in change management, strategy planning used are the strategy itself—that these are the solution. The focus being on the technical aspects of leadership, change – the what – and solving clearly defined problems.
The reality:
Tools and templates are not strategy—they’re just things to support the work being done.
Strategy is how things are put into action, how you are living your values and beliefs and mission. Strategy is about how you choose to be in order to do the work.
Tools and templates are tools to support and navigate complex issues with no obvious solutions.
It is the how and why we adapt to challenges that asks for:
- curiosity,
- inquiry,
- new learning,
- to lean into our values, beliefs
- understand our behaviours to collectively try something different and
- reflect on what we are learning from it.
An iterative process.
Misunderstanding #9
I Do the Work and Learning For People
Common thought:
As an Indigenous woman/racialized woman, I am ‘the expert’ who will have all the answers when it comes to doing the work of decolonization, equity, justice, inclusion. And that I have a pre-determined plan where I have done the learning, growth, and development work for them.
The reality:
You have agency over how you choose to be, where you want to be, and how you want to be in spaces with others.
The common phrase “the knowledge is in the room” is true—everything we need to know is here—but the work is in harnessing that belief, practicing it, living it, and embodying it.
I support you in:
- being comfortable with being uncomfortable,
- in noticing and naming your feelings, and
- in taking care of your needs first so you can be more present.
“The knowledge is in the room, within us. The work is in harnessing that belief, practicing it, living it, and embodying it.”
What Holistic Coaching and
Relational Facilitation Really Offer
My work is about cultural navigation, holistic coaching, and co-creation. It’s about connecting minds with hearts and bodies. It’s about understanding the ecosystems we move through and how we influence and are influenced by our surroundings.
This work requires your active participation. It’s about doing the inner work—that personal work of transformation—so it can influence the collective. It’s about small shifts in daily habits and practices that build the muscles for lasting change.
It’s about being present and listening. It’s about creating space to clear the noise so you can hear what’s wanting to be said and feel what needs to be felt.
The knowledge is in the room, within us. Everything we need to know is here. The work is in harnessing that belief, practicing it, living it, and embodying it.
This is a collective experience. I walk that path and journey with you, learning and listening from you as we do the work together.
Is This Work Right for You?
This approach is for you if you’re:
✓ Ready to do the inner work that enables collective transformation
✓ Willing to be uncomfortable and sit with what emerges
✓ Committed to the journey, not just the destination
✓ Looking for partnership, not predetermined answers
✓ Prepared to practice, not just understand intellectually
This approach may not be for you if you’re:
- Looking for quick fixes or ready-made templates
- Expecting someone else to do the learning for you
- Focused only on external changes without internal growth
- Seeking a one-time workshop to check a box
- Unwilling to navigate discomfort
Ready to Explore What's Possible?
If these realities resonate with you—if you’re ready for work that’s holistic, relational, and transformational—let’s talk.
For individual leaders:
Explore holistic leadership coaching that tends to all of you, not just your professional goals.
For teams and organizations:
Discover relational facilitation that centers relationship, not just outcomes.
For strategic partnerships:
Learn about working with me as a critical friend and strategic adviser.
For authentic involvement:
Understand more about how we can partner with each other to engage communities with integrity and authenticity.
Not sure where to start?
Book a free 30-minute clarity call and we’ll explore what you’re navigating together.