The Letters You Fight For: PhD, PCC, and the Power of a BHAG

There are credentials that decorate your name, and then there are credentials that

reconstruct your identity.

For me, earning a PhD and achieving my PCC credential through the International

Coaching Federation were never just professional milestones. They were deeply

personal markers of something I had to rebuild—piece by piece, thought by thought,

belief by belief.

This was my BHAG—my Big Hairy Audacious Goal.

And like all true BHAGs, it demanded more than effort. It required transformation.

The Other Letters: TBI

Pursuing a PhD is cognitively demanding under the best circumstances. Pursuing a

coaching credential like the PCC requires precision, presence, and mastery in real-time

human interaction.

Now layer in a traumatic brain injury (TBI).

There is a quiet grief that comes with not being able to rely on your mind the way you

once did. Memory becomes inconsistent. Focus becomes fragile. The simplest cognitive

tasks can feel unpredictable and it can change day to day.

And yet, I chose a path that required more from my brain than ever before.

Not because it was easy.

Because it was necessary.

Every paper, every coaching session, every recorded evaluation became an act of

neural resistance training—pushing, stretching, and sometimes failing, but continuing

anyway.

Why These Letters Mattered More Than Prestige

PhD. PCC.

To the outside world, these letters signal credibility.

To me, they represent restoration and grit.

There were years—important years—where my decisions were not driven by ambition,

but by responsibility. As a single parent, I didn’t have the luxury of chasing every opportunity. I made the decisions that ensured stability, safety, and provision. The TBI

made me uncertain at times in my ability to go for big dreams.

And I would make those same decisions again.

But there is a cost to deferred ambition.

This journey was about reclaiming that space.

Not from regret but from readiness.

It was a declaration: I can choose differently now.

The Myth of Balance—and the Reality of Sacrifice

Let’s be honest: there is no clean, elegant way to pursue something this demanding

while holding multiple roles. It was messy and exhausting and hard on my loved ones.

This was not about balance. Balance is a myth.

It was about:

• Sacrifice — time, energy, social space, and sometimes ease

• Constant experimentation — testing schedules, workflows, cognitive strategies,

and routines

• Adaptive discipline — recognizing that what worked yesterday might not work

today

• Energy management over time management – I had to prioritize taking care of

me. Sleep, eating well, taking breaks and building stamina could not be

neglected.

There were seasons where things aligned and reading hundreds of pages in the

bleachers at a volleyball tournament worked, but also many where they didn’t.

Success didn’t come from having a perfect system.

It came from a willingness to keep adjusting until you finish.

What a BHAG Actually Does for You

We often talk about BHAGs as bold goals that stretch us.

But what we miss is this: A true BHAG doesn’t just test your capabilities.

It reshapes your identity and goes beyond what you thought you could

accomplish.

It forces you to confront:

• What you believe about your limits

  
  

• How you respond to failure and fatigue

  
  

• Whether you are willing to stay in the process when outcomes are uncertain

It asks: Will you keep going—even when the version of you that started this no longer

feels sufficient?

And in answering that question, something shifts.

Capacity Is Not Fixed

If there is one thing this journey reinforced, it is this:

Capacity is not something you have. It is something you build.

Sometimes slowly.

Sometimes painfully.

Sometimes in ways no one else can see.

But it is buildable.

Even after loss.

Even after interruption.

Even after years of choosing survival over stretch.

More Than Letters

PhD. PCC.

Yes, they represent expertise.

Yes, they matter in rooms where credibility opens doors.

But more than anything, they represent:

• A brain that learned how to work again

• A life that made space for ambition again

• A woman who decided that “responsible” and “possible” no longer had to be in

conflict

These are not just letters.

They are evidence.

For Those Sitting on Their Own BHAG

If there is a goal you’ve been carrying quietly, silently or skeptically, consider this your

invitation.

You don’t need perfect conditions.

You don’t need certainty.

You don’t even need to know exactly how it will work.

You need willingness.

You need endurance.

And you need the courage to begin before you feel fully ready.

Because the goal isn’t just what you achieve.

It’s who you become in the process.