Client Spotlight: Kim Levesque

Kim Levesque is the President of SPI Health and Safety. She found out about Frame of Mind Coaching™ when Martin Tremblay, the Owner of the national company, shared how much he loved his experience of being coached with us.

“He described it as a holistic approach, and that’s what got my attention,” she says. “Then I was promoted to the role of COO and had to manage my colleagues, some of whom I’d worked with for 15 years. It was the right time in my life for FOM Coaching™.” Kim then reached out and, following a very productive intake call, was matched with FOM Coach Chari Schwartz.

Chari said something that really resonated with Kim as she started managing her colleagues: “Why would it be any different? If you think it’s going to be different, it is. If you continue on with the same relationship, it doesn’t have to be different.” “She was right,” says Kim.

Most of Kim’s employees on her team have received coaching through FOM as well, which gives them a common vocabulary to use internally. “We understand each other and we have an easiness to challenge each other or get the story,” says Kim. “That’s powerful. When we say ‘get the story,’ people don’t see it as threatening because they’ve been through the process. It has brought us closer and stronger as a team.”

Coaching also helped Kim see that we can’t control anything except ourselves. “That was eye-opening for me as I have two teenage sons,” she says. “Chari coached me to be able to manage my job and be a mom to teenagers.”

Chari always ensured that Kim had clarity on what she was learning, and Kim has been able to put that into practice. “The steps Chari gave me were easy to apply, and I’ve passed along her learnings to friends and colleagues,” says Kim.

Kim learned to hold a vision for her kids, especially when they’re not holding an ideal vision of themselves. “We all have seasons when we’re lost and searching for answers,” she says. “When you have a person holding that vision for you, it’s like having a North Star.”

After coaching, her oldest son told her, “You’ve changed, you listen more, you try to understand and you try not to put me in a mold.” “I have my moments, but he knows I’m trying and he felt the difference,” she says.

Chari helped Kim in both her personal and professional life, including her personal relationships and changes in management. Chari also coached many of the people on Kim’s team. “Chari has a great sense of who we are as a company because she has coached different people in the organization,” says Kim. Chari was able to coach them individually on their work relationships as well as their personal ones, which in turn strengthened them and provided clarity. 

“If there’s an organization that was thinking of doing FOM, I would tell them that they should do it for themselves as an Owner or President, and if they really connect with their coach, try to have the same coach for their team,” says Kim. “In our case, it worked well. Everyone on our team loves Chari and connected well with her.”

Kim describes Chari as passionate, giving, and a great listener. “You always feel that she’s there, no matter what,” says Kim. “And she’s not afraid to challenge you. She has built that rapport, credibility and trust with you that you’re OK with her challenging you.”

Overall, Kim found the Frame of Mind Coaching™ process to be eye-opening, revealing, and helpful for learning about herself. “Now I have more tools to deal with life in general,” she says. “And any time I need someone to listen and coach, Chari is available.”