“In the middle of difficulties lies opportunity,” quotes Albert Einstein. Our modern lives are full of them. Both difficulties and opportunities. All you need to succeed both personally and professionally is a caring and compassionate guide or a world-renowned Certified Life and Business Management coach like Ute Pfeifer, who will help you turn your challenges into choices.
Because success means different things to different people. However, for Ute, “Success means the same to me today as it did in the past.” She looks back on a long career as an entrepreneur, with a company that started small and grew.
“What Defines Success?”
What can be considered success depends largely on the goals you have set for yourself and whether, to what extent, and how you have achieved them.
This is the list of goals she discusses with her clients, especially when they start a new business. Strategic goals, image goals, financial goals, project goals, customer goals, employee goals, process goals, corporate goals, environmental goals, and, last but not least, aspirational goals, which are the most important for further development.
In general, it is always important to Ute that clients ask themselves who they want to be in this world. Then they can move on to self-assessment and clarify their position, celebrate what they have already achieved, and work here and there to increase their success.
This applies not only to her clients but also to her company, PfeiferINTERCOACH. As a company, you are always subject to a continuous improvement process.
Setting and Successfully Achieving Goals
It’s more about personal success in this question. “It’s not much different from what I wanted back in my youth. Health, happiness, loving people around me, a happy marriage, a good relationship with my children, grandchildren, relatives, friends, a nice home, stability and security, including financial security. I think it’s perfectly fine to talk about money openly. I even give coaching sessions on this topic sometimes, and it liberates people when they allow themselves to do so.”
As far as titles in the sense of qualifications are concerned, Ute considers them very important. They give customers confidence, “E.g., in my abilities.”
The fact that she no longer has to strive for titles is a clear advantage of getting older. But she is still proud of having achieved them.
But we went far ahead in our saga of Ute’s. Let’s go back.
A Quest to Shape the World
From her teenage years, Ute was driven by a potent mix of curiosity and idealism. She had a strong desire to do something valuable for the world, convinced that her actions should have an impact beyond herself. This was coupled with an inner drive to make visible the immense potential of women, asserting that “we don’t have to stand in the shadows but can be the light ourselves.” This powerful self-image was the foundation for her journey, fueling her ambition not just to learn, but to comprehend and ultimately, to shape things.
The Bitter Realization
Her first major professional step was an intensive, two-year commercial training program where she excelled. However, a “bitter experience” followed. She saw that “the more attractive positions” went to the young men. Not because they were better or more committed. Simply because they were male.” This was a painful and sobering lesson for Ute, who had believed in equal treatment. It was a stark reminder of the patriarchal structures still prevalent in society, despite her best efforts.
The Rebellion Within
This personal disillusionment occurred during a time of significant social upheaval in Germany, where laws were changing to give women more autonomy. These legislative reforms and a growing women’s movement ignited a silent “rebellion” within Ute and countless others. “A new self-image grew, quietly but surely,” she reflects. This defining moment of realizing her own power and potential in the face of systemic inequality would carry her forward for decades, fueling her unwavering purpose to empower others.
The Architect’s Calling and the Art of Inner Power: The Spark
A deep sense of unfulfillment marked Ute’s early professional career in a purely commercial environment. She longed for a career that would allow her to use her creativity and sense of purpose. The spark that ignited her path came from a seemingly ordinary moment at a hairdresser’s, where she read an article about Empress Farah Diba of Persia and learned that she had studied architecture. A beautiful woman in a male-dominated industry, such as construction, was groundbreaking at this time and made a big impression on her. This revelation led her to a new calling, as she realized architects don’t just design buildings but “have a major influence on social interaction, shape entire cityscapes and are responsible for people’s quality of life.” Facing the obstacle of not having the required school certificate, she worked and studied tirelessly at evening school. This experience gave her a profound insight: “You can overcome obstacles and even grow from them!”
Finding Power in Balance and Creativity
Today, Ute’s guiding philosophy is centered on the art of staying “in your own power”—a state of inner balance that supports you even when chaos reigns. She believes this involves consciously choosing what nourishes and strengthens you. For her, this has always included intuitive painting, a practice also known as “expressive painting,” that allows her to gain distance from challenges and return to work “with renewed strength and, above all, with new energy, ideas and enthusiasm.” She also finds grounding in nature, feeling that the old trees in the woods remind us that we are part of something bigger. Today, she shares this wisdom with other women in retreats, mostly with outdoor sessions, helping them to pause, recharge, and remember what truly matters.
A Crossover of Logic and Emotion: The Coach with a Blueprint
Ute’s coaching journey with a client often begins with the “miracle question,” a powerful tool that shifts focus from paralyzing problems to inspiring possibilities. She believes coaching is a “way away from your problems” and a “way towards new solutions”, toward a new reality, where clients discover “clarity, inner freedom, and the discovery of their own inner treasures.” The transformation she witnesses is both verbal and physical, as she sees a client’s posture straighten, their face become more vibrant, and their voice gain confidence. This holistic change, she believes, is a testament to her philosophy that stress and personal issues cannot be separated from professional life; a person must be seen and coached as a whole.
The Architect’s Analytical Empathy
Her coaching style is distinctively hers because it is shaped by her lived experiences in the corporate and technical world. She credits her architectural background for her precise, structured, and clear way of working, a trait that made her “the exotic, but highly regarded one” in her coaching training group. This analytical rigor, however, has proven to be a valuable asset, particularly when coaching men in engineering, as it earned her immediate respect and credibility. She has since perfected a crossover between logic and emotion, allowing her to adapt her approach to any situation, combining her deep business expertise with an empathetic and non-judgmental style.
The Journey to Balance and Fulfillment
To help others find their own version of balance, Ute teaches them to “listen to themselves and not only recognise their own needs but also take them seriously.” She utilizes a unique method of “poetry coaching,” a form of creative writing, to help clients clarify their thoughts, overcome repetitive ruminations, and expose limiting beliefs. Simple exercises, like a “list poem” about what annoys them, can be profoundly therapeutic, allowing them to find solutions and create healthier habits. Ute believes that this process is vital for clients to find clarity and take responsibility for their own happiness, ultimately leading to a more harmonious life.
A Legacy of Self-Belief and Flow
Reflecting on her long and impactful career, Ute offers a final piece of advice for the next generation of women: “Don’t give up. Keep going. Setbacks are part of life.” She also shares the wisdom that “if you wanted chocolate and life gave you gummy bears, it may be for your own good,” encouraging people to find joy in the present moment. Ultimately, her deepest wish for her clients is that they learn to trust their inner guidance and dare to follow it. She envisions a powerful ripple effect, where her clients can lead themselves, remain flexible, and stay “in flow.” Ute hopes to be remembered as the guide who helped people find confidence and optimism, and to live their lives fully and joyfully.
The Future of PfeiferINTERCOACH: A Personal Touch on a Global Stage
PfeiferINTERCOACH is embarking on a new chapter, yet its foundation remains deeply rooted in a personal, people-oriented approach. While Ute Pfeifer is considering expanding the company with a co-coach, she assures clients that “direct, trusting contact with my clients is and remains the focus of my work.” With the support of an administrative assistant, she is able to dedicate more time to what is most important to her: genuine development. Building on her previous international experience, she now looks to widen her impact further on the global stage, with a vision to share her knowledge and expertise with women around the world through retreats, workshops, and digital conversation circles.
She is achieving this expansion by working internationally, as she is actively creating, participating in, and empowering digital women’s groups worldwide.
Her International Networking Format Now Available to You: Start the new week with enthusiasm
Harness positive energy in good company, supporting each other, learning from one another, and feeling connected – it does you good. “I can offer valuable suggestions and tips.”
Ute Pfeifer invites you to join the conversation with interesting topics:
- What decisions are coming up next?
- Put an end to procrastination.
- Formulate, pursue, and achieve goals.
- Get out of exhaustion.
- Getting out of exhaustion.
- “I should, I must, I could” – getting rid of mental blocks.
- Unmasking time thieves.
- More charisma, more personal magic.
And, of course, your desired topics will be taken into account. “Our meetings thrive on their own dynamic, and your concerns in the here and now. I give you the time and space to talk about the things that move you and, where necessary,” she assures.
A Legacy of Empowering Women
In this next phase of her work, Ute is driven by a powerful mission: to support women through both personal and global upheavals. She wants to encourage them to “shape their path with clarity, compassionate self-care and self-confidence so that they can reach their full potential.” This vision is a culmination of her life’s journey, one that began with a silent rebellion against inequality and evolved into a movement of empowerment. Through PfeiferINTERCOACH, she aims to ignite the same powerful self-image in others that she discovered in herself, leaving behind a legacy of self-belief and profound personal transformation.
