Early in my coaching journey, I thought my job was to fix things.

If someone came to me stuck, I leaned in with solutions. If they were overwhelmed, I offered strategies. If they were hurting, I tried to make it better—quickly.

And sometimes it helped. But often… it didn’t last.

I remember one conversation that changed me. A leader sat across from me, carrying frustration, pressure, and self-doubt. Everything in me wanted to jump in and solve it. But instead, I paused. I listened. I stayed present.

And something shifted.

They began to process out loud. Clarity emerged. Ownership grew. By the end, they didn’t need my answers—they had found their own.

That’s when I realized: real leadership and coaching isn’t about fixing people. It’s about holding space for them to grow.

Holding space means:

• Listening without rushing to respond
• Resisting the urge to rescue or control the outcome
• Trusting the other person is more capable than they feel in the moment

In the real world, this matters more than ever. People don’t just need direction—they need to feel seen, heard, and safe enough to think clearly again.

You don’t need to have all the answers. You need the courage to stay in the moment long enough for insight to emerge.

At Certified Flourishing Coach, we teach that transformation doesn’t happen through pressure—it happens through presence. Check out our ICF-accredited pathway right here: https://discover.certifiedflourishingcoach.com/icf

 

From the Tla’amin Nation on the Sunshine Coast in B.C., to the Mi’kmaq peoples of Atlantic Canada, to James Smith Cree Nation in Saskatchewan, to the O-Pipon-Na-Piwin Cree Nation in Northern Manitoba, to the Samson Cree Nation and Sucker Creek First Nation, and over thirty others, Abe Brown has been fortunate to work with First Nations communities from coast to coast to coast. Abe Brown, MBA, CMCT, CPHSA is the Coach’s Coach and is an Entrepreneur, Professional Speaker, International Best-Selling Author, and High-Performance Leadership Coach. He is the founder of Certified Flourishing Coaching™ and the Flourishing Coaching Program™, and the CEO of Wellness Innovate Corporation. Abe is also the author of the Certified Flourishing Coaching™ Programs, which is an accredited ICF Coach Training Provider. Abe is known as the Coach’s Coach and is people-first. He is passionate about supporting people, entrepreneurs, businesses, and non-profits to thrive. Flourishing people produce flourishing relationships, businesses, and workplaces, along with high performance and profound positive impact. Abe is also passionate about workplace mental health and changing the world by changing the workplace. Along with the team at Wellness Innovate, Abe is the creator of Flourishing Workplace™. Abe has started or led several businesses and non-profits into the tens of millions of dollars and has worked in the entrepreneur space, corporate space, and non-profit space at Senior Executive levels. As President of one of the largest Life & Executive Coach Training and Certification organizations in the world for 13 years, Abe trained and certified thousands of Life and Executive Coaches in over 20 different countries. Abe is focused on coaching leaders, executives, and entrepreneurs towards high-performance, resilience, and over-the-top results in both life and business. Abe has also been a professional speaker for over two decades, having spoken in 4 continents and over 20 countries, to audiences of tens of thousands. Abe and the global team are pioneering the very first evidence-based coaching model that taps into the psychology of flourishing with a certified coaching practitioner lens. Abe earned a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Calgary Haskayne School of Business and a Master in Education and Counselling. Abe is also a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) with the International Coaching Federation (https://coachingfederation.org/) and was a registered therapist for 9 years.