My story in a nutshell….CJ Liu is a woman on a mission: She wants to fire people up and awaken them to their full potential. She lives life passionately and at full throttle. Drawing deeply on her personal and professional experience, CJ has evolved into an original thinker and trail blazer who wants to inspire others to live life courageously.
As a dutiful Asian daughter, CJ blindly followed her parents’ wishes and diligently pursued an education that gave her a successful career in corporate America. But motherhood and her dad’s sudden death snapped her out of her corporate sleepwalk. She began to question everything. After much soul searching and internal strife, CJ unplugged from corporate America and her self-imposed “prison of the mind,” a decision that ultimately led to a personal and professional rebirth.
As CJ’s old persona dissolved, she emerged from her cocoon with new energy and focus… and with a new passion: CJ applied all she had learned to become a life coach.
This radio show is for those who, like CJ, are looking to bring out the best in themselves.
Dutiful Asian daughter plays it safe…
After years of being a hard-working student and earning a degree in math at Duke University, CJ’s first jobs were in corporate finance, fulfilling her parents’ dream of working for big companies that offered stability and respectability. First, she joined the elite financial management program at General Electric. Later, she joined Clorox, where she cranked out spreadsheets until she earned the title of CFO of one of its newest divisions. Gradually, however, she lost her zeal for finance.
Determined to pursue her passions, CJ earned an MBA at UC Berkeley with an eye on marketing. Only one prospective employer saw her unique “non-finance” potential: an up-and-coming company called Microsoft.
High Tech high…
At first, CJ found Microsoft buzzing with the energy of people who believed they could change the world. Her work felt meaningful and she was at the forefront of some of Microsoft’s most exciting early businesses. Each job held new adventure, and CJ worked long hours honing her entrepreneurial spirit and skills.
Then, within five years, CJ’s life turned upside down. Her beloved father died; she found her soul mate; and she gave birth to two wonderful sons. The demands of family life shifted her priorities as she juggled a challenging career job with a seemingly endless stream of changing diapers and negotiating household chores.
Living a whole life…
After four years of trying to balance family, personal and corporate life, CJ began to heed an inner voice: “How did I get here? What am I doing? Is this really all there is?” She had a gnawing sensation that another version of herself – one more attuned to her inner being, passions, and priorities — was waiting to be revealed. So CJ left Microsoft, jumping into uncertainty, forsaking the security of a successful professional career for a new, more uncertain life, but one full of passion and purpose.
By letting go of corporate life, CJ opened the door to an entirely different world. She found a spiritual mentor who exposed her to new ideas and life paths. CJ eventually realized that her mission was to be of service to others. She decided to pursue a coaching career to help other people overcome struggles similar to what she had faced. By training in the wellness techniques that had helped her, CJ developed skills to help a wide variety of clients find and use their inner compass to navigate their lives.
At the same time, CJ continued to follow her own path using her inner compass, which led to interesting destinations. Over the last two years, she has studied mediation, yoga, and facilitation training. She was even elected President of her neighborhood association. It soon became clear that these seemingly different pursuits were indeed connected, with each experience building a new foundation for her next adventure. While sometimes exhausting, the rewards of following her inner compass were undeniable. CJ felt freer, more alive, and had more fun than she ever imagined.
A radio show was born…
CJ wanted to help more people, beyond her usual one-on-one coaching sessions. She told her husband she wanted to play with a new medium, perhaps radio. Two weeks later, she was invited by Dr. Pat to be a host on Transformational Talk Radio. “The Fire it Up with CJ” show was born, proving once again that you are the creator of your own life.