Audra Peterson discovered OolaLife after a particularly difficult time in her life, and the life planning technique has prompted her to share her story and help others who may be struggling with their own life goals.
“I had seen [an Oola presentation] about two weeks after I lost my baby. It was the most inspirational thing I've ever been to at the most devastating time in my life,” said Peterson.
A few years later, Peterson shared what she knew about Oola with a group of other women and got a positive response, so she decided to take the course to become a life coach.
“I knew it was meant to be that I had to take this course and teach it to other people,” said Peterson. “It made me feel so good to share my personal story about how my own plates have crashed and fallen and how I could rebuild them, and it felt so good to help other people and inspire other people.”
Peterson became an Oola Life Coach in 2019, after researching and utilizing the program’s tools herself, and is now eager to begin taking clients interested in refocusing their life’s goals.
The Oola method focuses on creating a balance between the seven key areas in one’s life, said Peterson. Those areas, known as the 7 F’s of Oola, are fitness, finance, family, field, faith, fun, and friends.
Each area is a balancing act of its own — which Peterson described as a plate spinning on top of a rod, like at the circus — and so keeping all seven in perfect balance can be an extremely difficult task.
Using the Oola method, clients are asked to set specific, realistic goals in each area and keep tabs on which goal, or spinning plate, needs attention and when — to help focus energy efficiency, reduce stress, and live life with purpose.
The idea is to define what success in each area would look like to you, and then to actively pursue that goal with the support of Oola’s tools and a life coach.
“It's not what I think your life should look like, it's what do you want to do in life? And I just help you figure that out,” said Peterson. “It is about self-awareness and self-improvement and those kinds of things, and what I like about it is that it’s personal.”
The method’s name comes from the phrase “ooh-la-la,” and the well-known feeling that most often accompanies those words.
“They say it's like when you put on your skinny jeans and they fit and you find $5 in the pocket, you're like, 'ooh-la-la.’ It feels good, and that's what Oola is about, is feeling good in your life,” said Peterson.
The lifestyle technique is based on a best-selling book written by two chiropractors from the United States, titled Oola: Find Balance in an Unbalanced World by Dr. Troy Amdahl and Dr. Dave Braun.
Oola originally took off in the U.S.with the goal of changing people’s ideas about personal success and has only recently expanded into Canada. Only seven Oola life coaches are certified in Canada, with Peterson being one of only two here in Saskatchewan.
As an Oola life coach, Peterson can offer 10-week and three-week courses for those interested in utilizing Oola in their life, as well as smaller weekend workshops. Peterson’s role, as a life coach, is to provide accountability as well as support during the journey.
Although Peterson began this journey with the idea of helping other moms with their goals, she says the Oola method works for any demographic.
“What I like about Oola is that it applies to everyone. I'm in my thirties, a mom with kids, but someone in their 20s would still have these plates also, or my mom can relate to all of it and she's in her sixties,” said Peterson.
For now, Peterson is organizing free presentations in the Moose Jaw area to share the word about the Oola method and offer her expertise to anyone looking to get involved.
“For me, I just want to be a cheerleader for other people in their life because I just think everybody should live a good life,” said Peterson.
Her next presentation in Moose Jaw will be on Feb. 9 at the Comfort Inn at 3 p.m., and anyone interested in learning more about the life-planning method is welcome to join.
Peterson is also available to be contacted through her Facebook page, which is currently titled No Perfect Mom but will be soon changed to Imperfectly Perfect – Oola with Audra, or by emailing [email protected] for more information about OolaLife.
