How Lara Overcame Cancer, Regained Her Health, and Launched Her Business

Lara Quie had the perfect life, she was a successful businesswoman, with a devoted husband and three beautiful daughters. And then she found a lump. She was only 45 years old. And in late 2019 Lara was diagnosed with cancer. This must be the most depressing news you could ever imagine your doctor telling you. Things were looking very bleak. But not one to wallow in self-pity, or outsource her health to someone else, Lara decided to act.

Not only did Lara make a full recovery she also found the courage to quit her job, and start her own business in Singapore. Lara kindly offered to grant us an interview to tell us her story that we hope will be a real inspiration to those suffering a similar plight and how one can turn adversity into opportunity.

Lara: Hi Alex. I am Chair of the British Chamber of Commerce’s Startup, Entrepreneur and Small Business Committee, and as part of that, I attend a lot of their events. I happened to attend the webinar you gave on healthy living and was interested in the Holistic Lifestyle Coaching programme that you were offering. It struck a chord with me as I had just finished 7 months of chemotherapy treatment for breast cancer and was looking to make changes to my lifestyle. 

Lara: I was originally a lawyer in London but then became an entrepreneur, and later went back into the legal industry. For the last five years I have been APAC Head of Business Development at an international law firm in Singapore. I had to take time off for chemotherapy and not wanting to waste any time, I took a course in executive coaching and got my International Coaching Federation (ICF) Associate Certified Coach (ACC) accreditation. 

Lara: The shock of having a cancer diagnosis at 45 made me really reevaluate what I was doing with my life. With 3 young daughters, I needed to make some major changes to my daily life to reduce the stress and fatigue that had contributed to my cancer. I felt that my life would be over so soon and that I still wanted to do so much. With no history of breast cancer in my family, I was really surprised to get the diagnosis when I looked and felt so healthy. 

Lara: I decided to take action and start health and lifestyle coaching with Levitise looking at nutrition, sleep, hydration, breathing, fasting, stress management, exercise, and weight control. As a coach myself, I knew that I had to invest in myself by getting you as my Holistic Health Coach to get me back to health after the ravages of chemo. It literally kills all your new cells and makes you very weak and ill.

Lara: I discovered that although I liked my job, it was a big regional role with a lot of responsibility, and I had pushed myself through fatigue one too many times. Quite often I would be ill but still need to get on a plane or host an event. I would get fatigued and need to recharge but I wasn’t able to do so in my last role. I think the cancer got me during a time of low immunity due to fatigue.

After my treatment I went back to work part time but when you have a near death experience you begin to see the world differently. You get irritated by the importance that people place on really trivial things. I realised that mentally I had moved on and needed to do something else that would give me the ability to work on my own terms.

Doing the coaching course made me realise that I had been coaching people all my life, and that it was my true calling. I would be able to be an entrepreneur again and work for myself. I could create the kind of life I wanted with total freedom to work when, where and with whom I chose. It was very energizing. Coaching with you also contributed to the journey. Gaining more insights into how to stay healthy and seeing how you run your business so mindfully helped me to see that I could set up on my own too.

Lara: So, in September 2020, after being back at work for three months, I decided to take the plunge and set up my own boutique business consultancy. I quit my job and launched Lara Q Associates and have not looked back since. I advise law firms and lawyers on business development, and I also offer transformational executive coaching to lawyers, leaders, and founders.

Lara: Like you, Alex, I help people who want to live their best lives. Rather than concentrating on the health side, I focus on mindset and motivation. I help high performing executives and lawyers, who want a trusted advisor. Someone who they can share their thoughts with confidentially and act as a sounding board. I also help women leaders and people who feel stuck or who want to achieve big dreams. Most people are living into a default life. They don’t take the time to give themselves the time and space to be true to themselves and understand what they really want. Often, they have a goal behind the goal they tell everyone else. They have ambitious secret desires which they are afraid to tell the world. I help people with these and challenge them. I hold them accountable and help them to move forward. It is extremely rewarding work to see how my coaching changes their lives. 

Lara: Thank you for helping me discover a healthier lifestyle. 

Lara is offering Levitise readers a complimentary opportunity to experience her coaching. If you are interested to meet Lara and experience a 60-minute coaching session on Zoom, please click here: https://www.laraqassociates.com and click on the “Book Chemistry session” button, which will bring you to appointment bookings.

To your health, happiness and longevity,

The Levitise Team

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