Susan C. Martin, Ed.D., PCC, CAPP

I specialize in the unique career and life challenges faced by
women with PhDs and other doctorates .

How I Went from Doing All the Right Things to Creating the Right Life

For decades, I followed all the rules. I worked hard, rose through the ranks of higher education, and built a respected 35-year career helping students succeed. I checked every box: degrees, promotions, professional recognition. But somewhere along the way, I lost touch with myself.

As a first-generation college student who lost both parents before the age of 18, I had learned early to be self-reliant, responsible, and achievement-oriented. These patterns helped me survive—and even thrive—on the outside. But inside, I was exhausted. I felt invisible in rooms I had once been proud to be in. I longed for more joy, more freedom, more alignment. And yet, I stayed—because I was good at my job, because I cared deeply, and because I didn’t know what else was possible.

Then 2020 happened. A global crisis collided with a personal one, and for the first time in years, I slowed down enough to hear the whisper inside: This life is no longer working. Once I heard it, there was no turning back. I had tasted what life could be like when I wasn’t constantly proving, striving, or sacrificing myself. I finally admitted that I deserved and deeply desired something different.

That moment of truth set everything in motion.

With nothing but a general sense that coaching might be my next path, I submitted my retirement papers. June 1, 2022 was the true beginning of my transformation.

I enrolled in and completed coach training, earned my ICF PCC credential, and completed a 9-month certificate in Applied Positive Psychology.

Still, even with these accomplishments, old beliefs clung tightly: I’m not ready. I need more credentials. I can’t mess this up. These were echoes of the internalized patterns I had carried for years—the need for certainty, safety, and control.

The deepest shift came through my training in women-centered coaching. For the first time, I uncovered the hidden stories I didn’t even know were running the show: I’m not enough. I have to do it all myself. I can’t relax unless everything is perfect. Releasing these unconscious patterns allowed me to reclaim a truer, freer version of myself.

I also became part of a learning community and small practice group of women that saw me more clearly than I could see myself. Their reflections, feedback, and shared wisdom helped me identify my blind spots and recognize the brilliance I had long discounted.

Today, I define success on my own terms. I no longer strive to meet external standards or prove my worth. I trust my inner compass. I ask for help. I take aligned action even when I’m uncertain. I live with more joy, more meaning, and more power than I ever thought possible.

And now, I guide other women with PhDs and other doctorates to do the same.

Through Smart Career Design, I help awakening women with PhDs and other doctoral degrees—brilliant, capable women who feel stuck in roles that no longer fit or who are forced into a career pivot by circumstances beyond their control—reconnect with their true selves, release what’s holding them back, and co-create the fulfilling life and career they were always meant to have.

My LinkedIn page provides more details about my work experience, career accomplishments and education.

I intentionally continue to grow my skills and capacities to empower women to transform their lives and careers. In addition to earning my doctorate in Higher Education, I am an ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC) and a Certified Mentor Coach (CMC). To achieve this level of recognized life coaching credentials, I completed 140 hours of coaching training through MentorCoach LLC, successfully completed their rigorous written and coaching performance evaluations as well as the ICF Credentialling exam. To expand my toolkit, I completed a 9-month certification program in applied positive psychology, CAPP, with Emiliya Zhivotovskaya through The Flourishing Center and a rigorous year-long training program focused on women-centered coaching and facilitation techniques with Dr. Claire Zammit, Founder, The Institute for Woman-Centered Coaching, Training & Leadership. I am continuing my training, being mentored and coached as part of the Women-Centered Coaching, Training & Leadership community through the summer of 2026.

Let’s talk about how we might work together.