Samantha is an American Certified Coach originally from Seattle Washington, an ex-pat splitting time between Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, and Bellingham, WA. Sam is a force at 6’2” tall, she is considered “THE” Life Coach for Leaders, as their Confidant, Protector, Sounding board, Ultimate counsel, and Trusted advisor. She is transparent, direct, and down to earth. As well, she has an incredible sense of humor. Her deep belief is that life is meant to be fun! She is super effective and passionate about providing a structure of support and helping people design and live lives they love. In October 2019, Sam released her first Book UNS*UCK YOURSELF – The Guide to Designing a life you love, gaining AMAZON Bestseller status in 4 categories. Her company is perfectly named “A Designed Life, LLC”
Samantha Buckley-Hugessen, A Designed Life, LLC
Introduce yourself! Please tell us about you and your life, so we can get to know you better.
Well to start, I was born and raised in Seattle, Washington. Met my husband in 1999, moved to Whistler, BC, Canada in 2000 and became a Canadian Citizen in 2005. Fast forward to 2007 and after having a great career and giving birth to 2 babies, I really wanted to spend time raising my kids, so we moved down to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico where we still live today. My Kids are now off at university and my hubs Alex and I are each both business owners and semi-retired. WOOHOO!
What inspired you to start A Designed Life LLC, and what is the primary mission or vision behind your business?
Great question! It’s my true belief, ok not just a belief, but a true knowing, that we have a choice to live life by design. I mean, so many people out in the world are unhappy and unfulfilled just allowing life to happen to them, like they have no say over their circumstances. I know it’s totally in their thinking, so I don’t buy into it. I have decades of evidence and hundreds of clients that’ll tell you your life is your own to design.
But you asked me what made me create my business right? There were several reasons, actually. I wanted to help people love their lives. I wanted to work hours I enjoyed while earning enough of an income that I could comfortably raise my kids, travel, and continue to date my husband. I wanted time a lot more than money when I left the corporate world. So, becoming a coach, and helping people design their lives from anywhere in the world became my jam way before most people realized they might also be able to work remotely. I’m a trailblazer! Hee hee!
Could you tell me about the range of services or products offered by A Designed Life LLC and how they benefit your clients?
I offer a free 30-day from good to great daily motivation that delivers straight to your inbox.
I also offer an independent, online – weekly ‘Life by Design Course’ that is monitored by my team to make sure the participant stays accountable and completes the course. I mean, It takes work to design your life and some people, many people, will buy a course and forget about it. I’m not about selling programs that end up lost in people's inbox. I’m about transforming lives.
Now let me tell you about the work I am really passionate about, which is the 1:1 private coaching and the live group coaching. Yummy, yummy, yummy! I work with women and those who identify as women, in my group coaching where I get to mentor, motivate, coach and together we become a mastermind. It is magical to have women in business, talking all aspects of life from Business strategies, to kids, to spouse, aging parents we talk life and support each-other without competition. I mean wow, it is just so incredible.
How do you ensure that your services are tailored to meet the unique needs and preferences of each individual client?
I do discovery sessions where I ask tough questions. Well, let me rephrase that, I ask real questions expecting real answers. I only work with people who are willing to lean in and put on their new life by their design. It can get messy, and a huge part of the process is moving past what many women suffer from which is: perfectionism. My clients must be ready to do things imperfectly, since that’s where the magic happens; That’s where the old paradigms get squashed, and their new vision comes to life. Some people I invite to 1:1 coaching and once they’re ready, I invite them into a group. I am VERY PROTECTIVE of my groups, just saying. Not every client gets that invite. And like I said, not everyone in a discovery session with me gets an invite to work 1:1 with me. Remember, I am semi-retired now (WOOHOO) so I only work with a small number of clients.
What sets A Designed Life LLC apart from other similar businesses in the industry? What makes your approach special?
I think I kind of answered that with your last question, right? I mean, I’m not for everyone, and that is OK. I do real talk (I tend to swear a lot!). I do real live, intuitive and experienced coaching and expect real results for my clients. That’s why I am cautious with who I invite to coaching, my clients must really want to design their lives, they have to be committed. So just affording my services is not a guarantee to work with me.
Can you share some success stories or testimonials from satisfied clients who have utilized your services?
Lucky me! I have a ton; some are on my website, and here is one that I think really describes my relationship with my clients;
Sam is the one thing that stays consistent in my life! Her mentorship ensures that I have a solid sounding board, and her support makes me feel that I have a partner in achieving my goals. As a leader, she holds me accountable for staying true to my heart goals, which ultimately allows me to be a better manager and human. Doing the work is in my own hands, but Sam’s continuity forces me to set clear trajectories for personal growth and keeps me accountable for moving forward. Her perspective sharpens my innate style, and her exceptional level of emotional intelligence reminds me to operate above the line for my team, and the people in my life. Having a coach ensures that I don’t allow life to run me, and instead, I invest in personal aspirations for the life that I deserve. Tell us about your greatest career achievement so far.
I raised 2 amazing kids, I’m happily married and, I wrote an Amazon International best seller! The book was a pretty big deal to me since I was not only a high school dropout, but a college dropout as well! So to have written a self-help book at all was pretty awesome! But for it to make become a 1 best seller in 4 categories back in 2019 was really FU^%$*@ cool. Oh can I say FU^%$*@? See I told you I swear…laughing. If you could change one thing about your industry, what would it be and why?
I think honor and certification. I know that’s 2 things, but there are so many people now calling themselves coaches who are just selling high ticket programs online and it appears, they are not caring if the buyers are getting results. It pisses me off, frankly. There are plenty of legitimate coaches out there that people can work with. I want people to find someone who took the time to learn, to pay for their education and to serve people. Coaches that have skin in the game so to speak. Tell us about a pivotal moment in your life that brought you to where you are today.
Good question! I write about it in chapter one of my book UNS*UCK YOURSELF – “The Guide To Designing A Life You Love”. it's when I realized that I had the big title, the big desk and the big paycheck… and I was miserable. That was the moment I decided, I was going to design my life. And I did!
