Welcome to our blog series profiling the winners of the 2021-2022 Beautiful You Coaching Academy Awards. The awards aim to uplift and honour our worldwide community of coaches and the incredible work they are doing through their coaching, events, programs, books, products, podcasts and more. Get ready to have your mind and heart blown wide open and be inspired by an incredible round-up of coaches.

Today we’d love to introduce you to one of our 2021-2022 Trainee of the Year Award winners, Jean Jing Yin Sum. The Trainee of the Year Awards is a personal award given to the trainee that Lead and Senior Trainers Julie Parker and Jo Parker judge as the most outstanding trainee of the year..

Jean Jing Yin Sum is an award-winning transformational life coach, maven of change, speaker, space holder and dancer. She guides women in their 20s and 30s transform through major life transformations. Jean is the Creatrix of Asian Women Rising, a circle for Asian Women to be seen, heard and felt. Celebrated as YWCA’s Feminist of the Month, and Trainee Coach of the Year with Beautiful You Coaching Academy, Jean serves her community with love, courage and presence. Jean has an insatiable curiosity for humanity and brings a holistic approach to her work through meditation, movement and feminine energy practices.

What inspired you to become a Beautiful You coach and how did you feel when you graduated?

Ever since I started working with my first coach 8 years ago, I wanted to be a life coach. After 7 years of mentoring Asian Women from Australia and Hong Kong, I felt it was time to transition into becoming a life coach. I was looking for a heart-centered course that went beyond the vanilla and corporate approach of goal setting and finding clients. I wanted to be in a course and community that aligned with my approach to life and to support others. My menstrual life coach and another coach recommended BYCA at the time and the rest is history! 

I feel so much appreciation and gratitude for receiving a scholarship as this enabled me to study the course at the right time. Julie and the trainers are incredible – right from day 1, they welcomed us into the academy and took us under their wings. It was clear that no one will be left behind.

At graduation, I felt a mix of huge feelings and emotions. I felt pride that I had completed such an intense course, I felt relieved that it had finished, I felt goosebumps, as I looked at my trainers and colleagues knowing that we will be out in the world creating the change that we want soon.

I laughed, I cried, I danced, I blabbered! 

I felt amazing.

How did you make the very most of your time in training as a life coach and how do you think that is benefiting you now?

Oh Geeky Jean came out big time during my training! I dedicated my time and energy to studying the modules, as well as diving into the workbook and online portal questions. A part of me really wanted to be a ‘straight As’ student, and another part gave me permission to fully feel and be taken apart. It was clear to me early on that in order to be the life coach that I wanted to be, I needed to treat the BYCA course as both personal growth and professional development.

I asked questions each class (sometimes raising my hand the second time!) I was a little slow in taking the pro bono test due to fear, until Julie said she noticed I hadn’t taken it! (of course she did!). And I’m so glad she gave me that nudge, as taking on pro bono clients during the course was like having my training wheels on – everytime I looked back while wobbling on my bike, Julie and the trainers were always there waving and cheering me on (and sometimes a stern comment or 2 to keep me on track)!

I am so glad that I dived in the way that I did during my training, as the trainers modelled what a good coach is – always encouraging, knowing that they have my back and knowing when to let go and allow the client to take off those training wheels and to soar. It’s incredible.

What amazing tips do you have for anyone who is about to begin studying in the Beautiful You Life Coaching Course or may be doing it right now?

I have so many! Here are my top 3:

*   Ask questions – it’s amazing what you’ll learn. Even if you haven’t got your question fully formulated, put your hand up. Not only does it help you with your own learning, it also enables you to practice asking powerful questions – a skill that is incredibly useful as a coach. If asking questions in front of a group feels edgy, the more the reason to step out of your comfort zone!

*   Do your pro bono test early – trust me, you already know the answers. Do it early so that you can be supported during your pro bono coaching.

*   Say yes to the buddy offer! Learning with a companion enriches the experience so much more, and also opens the door for you to do some live coaching (scary and enlivening all at the same time)

Bonus tip: Be *open*. I mean really. really. open. This course will literally change you – if you allow it.

What’s been the most unexpected benefit or take-away from your training with Beautiful You?

I would say the amazing community that I am now part of. The Beautiful You Coaching Academy Community is filled with so many inspiring and amazing heart-centred coaches – all doing such different things and making great changes in the world. The individuals this course attracts and the coaches that it creates is really unique and special. Knowing that I now have a community of coaches to call upon – whether it be to bounce off ideas, to ask questions or to say hello while travelling is so comforting to know, in particular as our world moves through this challenging and exciting period.

On a fun note, it’s been a surprisingly great conversation opener on LinkedIn – I’ve had previous Beautiful You graduates and current students congratulating and reaching out to me after reading that I am Trainee Coach of the Year!

What’s on the horizon for Jean Sum? We’d love to hear about any upcoming goals you have for your business!

Oh I have so many expansive and amazing goals for my business. Presently, I am reclaiming my full name, Jean Jing Yin Sum which is the name of the second evolution of my business. I reclaimed my middle name Jing Yin after turning 40 recently, as I step (and drop) more fully into my power (new website coming!)

As Maven of Change, my vision is to support women in their 20s and 30s move through significant life transformations – from owning and speaking their truth, through to career changes, relationships, life direction or relocations. Having gone through major transformations of 5 successful career changes, death of a sibling, divorce, 2 city relocations, 2 sabbaticals and now, living a nomadic life, I am here to guide others who are truly ready to step into their power and move through their amazing soul aligning changes.

At a community level, my vision is to continue to hold women’s circles through Asian Women Rising – a space for Asian Women to be seen, heard and felt. I will be bringing these circles to smaller cities and regional areas of Australia and I’m so excited to be holding my first in-person circle in my hometown, Canberra in April, 2022.

I am also writing my first book based on my current journey as a nomad, and highlighting the themes of transformation through this creation. It will, I hope, take the reader on a daring and rebellious journey!

Weaved into all this, I am completing my Biodanza Facilitator training – Biodanza roughly translates to ‘Dance of Life’, and it is my desire to bring movement and embodiment to support my clients through their incredible life transformational journeys!

Watch this space!

Find out more about Jean’s work at Jean Jing Yin Sum

Photography Alise Black