I have had such an amazing experience with Ama La Vida. From the very start when I first talked to…read moreJustice Lawson, I knew this was the right move. Justice talked me through the whole process and was so honest and easy to talk to. I am so thankful to Justice for making the decision so easy. Not only was I able to build a professional online presence, but also build my confidence and self-love as well. Coach Peggy Wu is amazing, she brings her background as a life coach into her career coaching. When I started with Peggy I was struggling to see myself as a professional. We talked about more than just my job experience and she helped remove some of my mental blocks. Peggy has been such a great source of support in the past few months. I would email her on some of my lowest days and her words always put me back on the right path. I even did two celebrity sessions with Lisa Allie. With Lisa, we went through line-by-line of my resume and she told me what was good and what needed improvement. My resume has never looked better and people are often impressed. Lisa also helped me with LinkedIn and taught me useful tools for how to get the most out of it! on top of all of that, I have completed many helpful modules. The modules are like career-focused therapy. I really feel that everyone at Ama La Vida is focused on you as a human being. Your mental health and well-being will be prioritized. I can not put a value on the experience I got out of this service as I don't know where I would be today without it. I know this post is super cheesy but I wasn't paid to say any of this and have been sincerely blown away by my experience with Ama La Vida. When I first joined I didn't expect much but at EVERY step of the way I have been met with so much positivity and support.

Unfortunately I had a bad experience with Alma La Vida. I complied with all the exercises that were…read moregiven to me (personality tests, SWOT analysis, etc), and the coach I had most of the time did not read anything I submitted until the day of the session. I realized most of these things they could just have had me fill out before my sessions started instead of using my money to go over tests available online. My coach was not at all prepared to speak with me when our sessions started. The sessions ended up me helping her catch up on what she had missed. I thought regardless, she must have some ideas of what path I could take and could lay out a plan via email to help me through. No, she said I would have a hard time finding a job (even though it's literally her job to help me find one!). My last session in what I'd pre-paid for ended up being ignored. After asking around to a few other career coaches on LinkedIn, one of them actually gave me some free advice on next steps to take and said I'd been scammed. It's all about marketing yourself, and she suggested some fields where my specific skills could be really valuable. ALV said they would offer my last session to someone more suited to me, but my question was, why wasn't this person offered to me in the first place? Isn't it their job to pair you with someone who is professional and understands your skillset? I asked them if they would address any of the wasted sessions that didn't help me at all, maybe in the form of sessions through this better career coach. They said no, and said it was my fault for not knowing that I had a bad mentor. I was really upset. They said it's not typical of them to issue refunds, but they'd refund for my last session if I didn't want to use it. Really a complete waste, and they are indeed very expensive. They do not go the extra mile for their clients.

I wanted to see Sheila because I was unhappy in my practice area but I was unsure of what steps to…read moretake next. With just a few sessions, we were able to find a career path which was more suited with my personality traits, values, and life goals. I would recommend Sheila to anyone seeking direction in his or her career.

Sheila Nielsen came to me highly recommended by two co-workers. One sought her out while still in…read morelaw school and considering dropping out of the program. Sheila helped her sort through what she liked and didn't like, gave her suggestions on paths that would best suither, and this girl is now a superstar at work. If only I had been lucky enough to have that guidance during school! The other was a lawyer who left the practice to get a masters in education. These two examples, plus their rave reviews of her skills, led me to believe that the cost of seeking career counseling from Sheila would be one of the best investments I would ever make- she clearly wasn't prejudiced one way or the other on keeping her clients in practice of law! Having practiced law for quite some time, she's obviously very familiar with the ups and downs Her work centers around attorneys and helping them find the best career path, either within the law or outside of it. She offers more than career counseling- including what I would probably describe as training for the often socially incompetent people who fall into this profession (I know just as many painfully awkward lawyers as I do smooth talkers). But since my experience with her has been with counseling alone, I'll limit my review to that She is incredibly thorough in getting you to open up about what you do and don't like, both about your job and in other areas of your life (talking about your hobbies and interests as well). You work through exercises that essentially give you a chance to describe your ideal work and life. She identifies trends in what you say that you probably don't pick up on, or perhaps actively try to ignore (guilty as charged). She has given me suggestions that I would never have thought up for myself, and insights about myself that I would have tried to not pay attention to if I was not forced to view them up close. (many of which mean I'm a terrible fit for my current position- well not shocking but at least nice to know I'm not imagining it!). The bonus that I would think makes her counseling different from general career counselors is her legal experience- she knows what is out there and has practiced in a few different areas of the law. Now my law school didn't really encourage nontraditional paths- pretty much the only career support you got was the push towards big firms) so her knowledge in this respect is invaluable to me. I wouldn't have the first clue of how to find something different. Perhaps most importantly to me, she provides an objective outside opinion- even if you know deep down that you're on the wrong path and all you need is to hear it confirmed out loud, this can make a big difference. For me, it has been extremely hard to deal with the expectations of the people around me, making it almost impossible to productively bounce ideas off of anyone. It seems like when you're in the position of facing decisions, everyone's got an opinion, and everyone's opinion is different (not to mention based on their own notions of what would be good, not really yours!) I'm still in the middle of my work with her and will have to come back and update this accordingly as I finish up, but for any others in my position, I truly think its worth the time and financial investment

This review is long overdue. I worked with Jody 10 years ago, and the experience still leaves a…read moresour feeling. I would not recommend her to a friend. She exploited my vulnerability, tearing me down instead of building me up. Maybe that approach works for some, but I found it to be rather cruel.

Jody is an excellent executive coach. I attended her Mind-Mastery and Accountability Mirror…read moreworkshops followed by a 6 month-ish coaching engagement. Just the workshops alone made me see and think differently, better. With the personalized sessions, I had Jody in my corner as my coach, cheerleader, and critic (in a good way). And it all made a real difference, not just professionally but also personally. I feel different. And people who know me have commented about that - I'm less stressed, more present. But, if you want empirical data... she does a 360 review with managers/peers/reports at the beginning of the coaching engagement and then at the conclusion, and I can tell you that she helped me move the marker to demonstrate my improvement in my skills including communication, engagement and leadership. All round excellent experience. Thank you Jody!

I took InnerBrilliance's 3-day workshop, "Thriving without Burnout," and probably the best way to…read moredescribe the outcome is transformative. Rosie's approach and frameworks allowed me to grow and shift my mindset to a place that is focused on my values (as opposed to fear or what others want), allowing me to achieve results in a way that simply feels so much better. I also very much appreciated that the workshop was actionable - we came away with specific plans to ensure that what was learned could and would be put into practice. Rosie truly is a gifted coach, and I highly recommend!

I recently attended Rosie's "Thriving Without Burnout" 3-day, motivating and inspiring virtual…read moreretreat, after my previous seminar with her. I met many attendees who were in similar situations as me. In a "state of transition". As they told their stories, they very much resonated with what I was feeling. Rosie provided solid insights and guidance on not being too hard on yourself, and gave the tools and inspiration that will help in achieving my "new me", and to not only survive, but thrive while doing so, WITHOUT burnout. She is an amazing person and coach!

I was struggling with transitioning from one career field to another. Although I had years and…read moreyears of experience in the field, I just could not get the mental blocks out of my head when it came to putting it onto paper. So grateful to have found Clay. His experience and professionalism really showed through the whole experience, even when my schedule put us back weeks. He was incredibly patient. He even helped with my LinkedIn profile. After a few tweaks to my resume, when I took a step back and looked at it I was BLOWN away. I couldn't believe how he had pulled my experience all together and just from a few conversations-far better than I could. He is well worth the investment.

I have been working with Clay for the past 14 years toward the beginning of my career in Chicago's…read moremultifamily industry. Clay has created and updated my resume several times over during that span of time. He crafts and customizes a resume that will make employers want to talk to you. Every single move forward in my career has been preceded by a telephone conversation with Clay and an update to my resume. Clay is amazing and hands-down the best in the business. He is an extremely good listener, very well-qualified, hyper-focused, courteous, poised, professional and always patient. He is just an amazing human being and genuinely cares about you as a client. Clay makes you feel like you are totally the top priority whenever you are communicating with him. He is extremely generous with his time and always gives you his undivided attention. His work is top notch and please know that his fees are extremely reasonable. Clay also acts as your personal career coach and gives you superior career direction. His suggestions are always dead-on. I cannot recommend him enough for resume creation and writing. I would never use anybody else!

Okay, I read a bunch of stuff on their website, and spoke to a woman at the center who was really…read morevery nice. But once I see stuff like "Where is God in your job search" on a website I back away. Well, nowhere, thanks. No faith based orgs. need apply.

I highly recommend this organization! In fact, I will tell anyone about Career Transition Center…read more(CTC) that will listen to me! I have utilized the services of this great organizations several times over the past few years after my lay-offs. In fact, CTC, was the first place I reached out to! Between the programs, presentations and the job coach, it made a big difference in my search and in finding my ideal position.

TLDR: I accepted a new offer at Capital One. The time I spent with Wilma gave me the confidence I…read moreneeded to know I would nail the interview process. Details: I highly recommend Wilma if you are prepping for job interviews and feeling nervous, discouraged or any of the other feelings that come along with the search for a new job. I was a few months into my job search. I was getting quick responses from several companies just based on my resume which was encouraging. I'd talk to the recruiter and they'd quickly pass me onto the next stage (interviews with the lead or team). I always felt they went well but didn't materialize into an offer. I had an opportunity at Capital One that I really wanted to nail so I called on Wilma who was referred to me by my husbands business networking group. When I knew Wilma and I were going to be spending an hour drilling mock interview questions, I was very nervous. But it was anything but. Shes incredibly thoughtful and direct, while also building up my confidence. She also provided a sheet of interview Qs to ask beyond the typical "why do you like working here". I asked everyone I spoke with the culture Q she shared -- "whose leadership style in the organization inspires you and why" -- and EVERY single person paused to say "that's a great question" before giving me very different responses which made me feel good about the company to hear great things about very different people at Capital One. I will keep your information on hand for the future and would be happy to recommend your services to anyone I know!

Thank you so much to Wilma and Life Working for guiding me through such a big transition in my…read morelife. As a teacher for the past 12 years with many (what I thought to be) niche skills, I did not think I had many options for a new career. With the help of career assessments and coaching services, Wilma helped me figure out the value of my transferable skills. Wilma's personality, confidence, and humor are contagious. I believe that without her, I would not have gotten the first job for which I applied and interviewed. She was so understanding and supportive of me from the very beginning. I had to pause my career search so that I could focus on my mental health while working at my previous job, and Wilma was very patient with me. She maintained the same high level of understanding, support, and patience as I navigated taking career assessments, job searching, coaching, resume/cover letter writing, networking, interview preparation, and negotiation. Wilma made herself available to me, she listened to me, and provided me with great advice and insights. She was open, honest, and judgment-free. She is a breath of fresh air, and I was truly impressed with her and her company from start to finish. I highly recommend investing in yourself and hiring Life Working to help you at such an important time in your life. You will learn so much about yourself along the way! Thank you, Wilma, and thank you, Life Working!

This business created a new business profile likely to avoid the negative views it was incurring…read moremany years ago. Returning to ensure this low rating is captured. Similar to last time, this business will appeal to Yelp to take it down claiming it's fraudulent but that's just the cut throat business acumen behind Jody Michael. To summarize, you will waste your money using a proprietary career rating matrix that is likely to tell you nothing new by the end of your session package. If you're desperate to find a path forward, consider upskilling, get a career coach (not whatever Jody claims to be) and focus on positive mindset. For these brief sessions, you will be charged hundreds of dollars and sometimes Jody will take calls while on vacation and cut them short! She offers little empathy given the context of a client needing career support and having come from stock exchange into six figure social work she will brag about, you're paying into someone's fortune while taking from yours. Save your time and money!

This place is clearly a grift to wring as much money out of suckers as possible. When you first…read morecontact them, they tell you only about their $5k package, and you have to ask for the les expensive options (which are still too expensive).

I have been seeing John for about a year and a half now--he has been paramount in my self discovery…read morewith his Life Coaching sessions and I only see further benefit from continuing to see him in my journey through life. John is also my first therapist and along with that my first hypnotherapist...I never really understood what hypnotherapy was until I had a hypnotherapy seasion for anxiety and general mental well-being with John and I was extremely impressed with the effectiveness of this therapy. Thanks John for being an amazing person and talented at what you do!

When I first met with John, my life was riddled with anxiety and depression. I used to be on…read moremedication back in high school, but have since wanted to try alternative methods such as yoga, counseling, hypnotherapy, etc. Since meeting with John, my anxiety has subsided and I have found [healthy] ways to cope. John is intelligent, kind, and very personable. I appreciate John's ability to be upfront and honest about irrational thoughts, anxieties, and validating my feelings. He is a wonderful guy and would definitely recommend if you are looking to ease your spiraling thoughts and develop healthy mindsets.

Shane and everyone else on the team that helped me were fantastic. They listened to what I wanted…read morein my next software development position and helped me find it--next time I'm in the market for a new job (hopefully in a long time!) I know who I'll be calling. They really listened to what I was looking for and didn't send me out for things I could actually be up for.

Kyle Shaw @ Job Springs has been helping me grow an analytics team in the Chicago area. I couldn't…read moreask for me. Incredibly qualified candidates, professionalism, trust, transparency, and access 24/7 (or whenever I need them). I would highly recommend Kyle and the folks at Job Springs to represent those looking for a new positions as well as those looking to fill positions.