About Gesine Schaffer

My name is unusual and is pronounced "guh-Zee-na," and it comes from the Frisian Islands which are located along the coast of Germany and Denmark. Coaching is my 5th career in a life characterized by rich experience in finding new choices and new directions.

I am a perfect example of finding a new calling in mid-life. I was born in Germany at a time when women were not encouraged to get an education, and learning was equated with certain spinsterhood. I was encouraged to train in a vocation, and became a translator and interpreter for 3 languages (German, English and French), as well as acquiring solid secretarial skills (my first career).

I married an American in my mid 20's, just escaping the "old maid" image, and I spent the next 10 years of my life living in several foreign countries, raising 2 sons, and being a full-time home-maker and social director, mother and wife (my second career). Adjusting to different cultures (Hong Kong, Argentina, Indonesia and the U.S.) and learning more languages became an ongoing adventure.

When we finally settled in the U.S. my husband, who came from a family where all the women were college graduates, encouraged me to get an education. Overcoming fear and trepidation I enrolled at Brandeis University in Massachusetts and graduated 4 years later at age 39, summa cum laude, with a B.A. in Psychology. Graduate school followed a few years later, all the while I juggled multiple roles while pursuing my doctorate. It took me quite a while to fulfill my dream of becoming a psychologist, as I was still doing all the things of my second career, being mother, wife, home-maker, and social director. I now added full-time student, while working half-time as a teaching assistant to put myself through graduate school. I also was lucky to find work in counseling centers and at the Veteran's Administration. This was my 3rd career. My relatively advanced age and rich life experience as a basis for learning about psychology and therapy certainly helped enormously in being present for my clients and counseling with them.

I graduated from Clark University in Massachusetts with a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology in 1991, and I turned 50 a few months later. I was ready to embark on a new career (my 4th) at this crucial mid-life turning point.

At this time we moved to California, another adventure. I began working at Kaiser Permanente for 1 year, and then I embarked on the precarious and scary path of starting and developing a private therapy practice after I received my California License in 1993.

Over the years of doing therapy my natural inclination to think of people as competent and masterful led me away from the typical problem-focused therapy toward a more positive and solution-focused approach. This builds on the clients' inherent knowledge and strengths which enable them to gain control over their lives. This approach naturally led me to coaching. I truly enjoy seeing clients take an affirming, positive and goal oriented approach to move forward, feel in control of their lives and achieve their dreams.

I am now launching my 5th career as a mid-life coach in my own advanced middle age.

About Gesine Schaffer

My name is unusual and is pronounced "guh-Zee-na," and it comes from the Frisian Islands which are located along the coast of Germany and Denmark. Coaching is my 5th career in a life characterized by rich experience in finding new choices and new directions.

I am a perfect example of finding a new calling in mid-life. I was born in Germany at a time when women were not encouraged to get an education, and learning was equated with certain spinsterhood. I was encouraged to train in a vocation, and became a translator and interpreter for 3 languages (German, English and French), as well as acquiring solid secretarial skills (my first career).

I married an American in my mid 20's, just escaping the "old maid" image, and I spent the next 10 years of my life living in several foreign countries, raising 2 sons, and being a full-time home-maker and social director, mother and wife (my second career). Adjusting to different cultures (Hong Kong, Argentina, Indonesia and the U.S.) and learning more languages became an ongoing adventure.

When we finally settled in the U.S. my husband, who came from a family where all the women were college graduates, encouraged me to get an education. Overcoming fear and trepidation I enrolled at Brandeis University in Massachusetts and graduated 4 years later at age 39, summa cum laude, with a B.A. in Psychology. Graduate school followed a few years later, all the while I juggled multiple roles while pursuing my doctorate. It took me quite a while to fulfill my dream of becoming a psychologist, as I was still doing all the things of my second career, being mother, wife, home-maker, and social director. I now added full-time student, while working half-time as a teaching assistant to put myself through graduate school. I also was lucky to find work in counseling centers and at the Veteran's Administration. This was my 3rd career. My relatively advanced age and rich life experience as a basis for learning about psychology and therapy certainly helped enormously in being present for my clients and counseling with them.

I graduated from Clark University in Massachusetts with a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology in 1991, and I turned 50 a few months later. I was ready to embark on a new career (my 4th) at this crucial mid-life turning point.

At this time we moved to California, another adventure. I began working at Kaiser Permanente for 1 year, and then I embarked on the precarious and scary path of starting and developing a private therapy practice after I received my California License in 1993.

Over the years of doing therapy my natural inclination to think of people as competent and masterful led me away from the typical problem-focused therapy toward a more positive and solution-focused approach. This builds on the clients' inherent knowledge and strengths which enable them to gain control over their lives. This approach naturally led me to coaching. I truly enjoy seeing clients take an affirming, positive and goal oriented approach to move forward, feel in control of their lives and achieve their dreams.

I am now launching my 5th career as a mid-life coach in my own advanced middle age.