Crystal Davis went from being in an abusive relationship and raising two daughters to being one of the most highly sought-afterbusiness strategists, coaches, mentors, and direct sales leaders in the world. . It didn’t just happen overnight, as Davis struggled with emotional trauma from years of neglect and mental and physical abuse. She was able to come away from her experiences a stronger woman, but Davis had to rediscover herself and her authentic purpose to find out who she really was.
Davis took the lessons she learned and transformed them into strategies for other people. She now helps women and men struggling with life post-abuse. However, Davis doesn’t just focus her work on abuse victims as she works with businesses, company owners, and direct sales leaders to make them the best they can be. By helping them understand themselves more, these individuals and groups go on to do great things in the business world.
A No. 1 best-selling author, Davis has led an extraordinary life with plenty of twists and turns. From being an ice skating prodigy in her youth to being a victim of abuse, Davis has created a successful career when many women who would have not thought it possible. Now, Davis wants to share her secrets to success with others.
Crystal, can you tell me about yourself and how you got started as a coach and mentor?
CRYSTAL DAVIS: My first experience with coaching began at the age of 11 as a competitive ice skater. At a young age, I learned the value coaching brings to your life and profession when you are being mentored by an elite coach. Early on, my mom realized I had a talent for ice skating, but she couldn’t afford to get me lessons with a top coach. However, the world-famous ice skating coach, Carlo Fassi, saw potential in me and volunteered to mentor and train me. At the time, he was coaching four Olympic gold medalists: Dorothy Hamill, Scott Hamilton, Robin Cousins, and John Curry. Carlo coached me and those four champions every morning and afternoon six days a week for many years. With him, I learned the values of consistency and persistence while showing up at 5 a.m. to an ice rink to practice and become the best version of myself in a four and a half minute program on ice.
In addition to working with Carlo Fassi, I also had a mental coach who helped me understand the importance of the subconscious mind and a positive mindset. I mentally went through my program. As the music played on headphones, I visualized skating the perfect program. I went on to take a gold medal for the state of Colorado, earned many silver and bronze medals, and competed at the 1977 Junior Olympics.
Although my skating competition days ended at the age of 15 due to an injury, I did go on in 1981 to become the ice skating coach at Western State College. That is where my love of being a coach began, but it wasn’t until later in life, when I had been literally and figuratively beaten down and my self-esteem had been completely shattered, that I truly learned how coaching can take you from the depths of hell to the top of a beautiful mountain.
Davis’ youth wasn’t a happy, serene experience. She experienced both physical and mental abuse from her father and dealt with abandonment issues. Later in life, Davis repeated some of the relationship mistakes of her own mother and married a man who settled his problems with harsh words and physical violence as well. Despite the trauma she endured, it was all a learning experience that Davis had to go through at the time to get where she is now.
On your website, it explains you were the victim of abuse. How did this situation occur and how did it influence you to help others?
CRYSTAL DAVIS: I was subjected to emotional and physical abuse and experienced domestic violence with my parents as a child growing up. My father wasn’t around much, but when he was around, there was a lot of fighting. I remember the welts, the blood, and my brother and I screaming. Once while briefly living in Australia, my parents left me alone with my younger brother one evening. I remember collecting snails on the beach, tracking sand into the condo, and cooking the snails on the stove because we had nothing else to eat. When my parents walked in, there was a lot of screaming, and we both got a whipping with a leather belt from my dad for just trying to make sure we had food in our stomachs.
My dad was not in my life from age seven to 15 and provided no child support. My childhood was a struggle, moving quite a bit with my single mom and brother. I remember our car being repossessed and having to move constantly because my mom could not afford rent. I was held back in first grade because of all the moving. In the summer of 1973, my brother and I were sent to my grandmother’s bird farm in Pensacola, Florida. Let me tell you, it was eye-opening and horrific. The rats the size of small dogs (blown up all over me with a shotgun), being forced to eat rotten eggs and chicken feet soup, cockroaches and ants crawling all over me while sleeping. The emotional trauma from that summer, along with feeling abandoned by our parents, made a huge imprint on my life. I understood why my mom left home at the age of 16 and married my father.
The problem is that when growing up in environments like this, we tend to think it’s normal to a certain degree or worse, continue to put ourselves into these same types of situations later in life. My mother had done it, and that’s exactly what I did. I married a man who turned out to be very similar to my father. For 23 years, I survived a life of abuse with my ex-husband. There was a lot of silence, a lot of fighting, and a lot of jealousy with him. I ignored it because I kept thinking I could fix him. Even though there was fighting from the start, we ended up getting married, and we had our two beautiful daughters, Alana Lynne and Kailynne Paige.
They are my why, my light, and the reason I knew I had to make a change and stop living in fear. Through my journey, they have helped me to realize that I am worthy and deserving of living an extraordinary life despite losing my self-esteem, confidence, and sense of identity. I knew I had to get out of this abusive relationship and make a better life for myself and my girls.
The day that my now ex-husband found out that I filed for divorce brought out the worst in him. “You’re going to be so lonely. I’ve seen a lawyer, and I’ve decided you’re not getting this house. You need to move out. Pack up your things and get out of here. I’m going to get the house. I earned it.”
I told him, “We’re not discussing this. You will get everything tomorrow from my lawyer. I’m going to bed.” I went to go upstairs, but then he grabbed me by the arm. I said, “I’m not discussing this.” He picked me up and threw me down on the floor. I was so stunned.
I went to grab the phone to call 911, and he grabbed the phone out of my hand, ripping my bracelet off my arm in the process. He said, “No one is calling 911.” It got out of control. The violence escalated, and one of my daughters, who was nine-years-old at the time, snuck into the basement to call 911. Ding-dong, the doorbell rang, and three cops were at the door. That evening, my daughters witnessed their father getting handcuffed and taken to jail.
Even years later, after I had gotten away from that situation, I was a shell of my former self. I was not only battered down physically but also emotionally. I was a wreck and had lost my own identity. I lived in a constant state of fear. Fear that I was not good enough, that I was going to lose my children, that my house was going to be taken away from me, and that my life was in danger. I had lost all my confidence. I didn’t feel like I was living my own life. It was a far cry from being one of the top figure skaters in the US, skating and training with four Olympic gold medalists, like earlier in life.
Nine years ago, my life changed when I hired my life and business coach, Steve Q. Wiltshire. We looked at my whole life, rather than just my business. The realization that the two are deeply connected was transformational. I was able to make incredible progress with my business while also creating meaningful improvements in my personal life.
As a reclaimed my life, I realized how many other women, and even men, had been through such similar situations, but they were still stuck in fear without hope of ever reaching their true potential. I realized through my own journey that this did not have to be the case. So, I began making a difference by coaching and mentoring other trauma survivors to live healthier lives. Since then, I have surrounded myself with some of the top mentors, leaders, and coaches in the world. I have educated myself through their programs, books, webinars, live events, and one-on-one coaching, and have received many certifications in my quest to become a high-level coach.
I discovered my purpose and calling in life is coaching, mentoring, and training. . I know that’s why I have been put on this planet. I now have multiple certifications in personal development, life and business coaching, consulting, and am a certified masterclass practitioner. I am so grateful for this journey and gift that has brought me to where I am today.
Davis hopes to help women with the lessons she has learned. The coach and mentor has a plan to help women overcome their obstacles and her programs have already helped thousands. Through her strategies and programs, Davis is giving women the tools to break through the barriers that exist in their lives.
Crystal, your programs are to help women overcome obstacles in their lives. You have stated you want to help one million women. What are your programs like and what can women expect from them?
CRYSTAL DAVIS: My mission is to help one million women bust through the obstacles standing in the way of their success. I do this by helping them create their vision and purpose as they chart their life’s course towards a truly authentic existence. We start by discovering what their mission and purpose is in the world. This is essentially creating a roadmap for their life and business. We look at what their authentic message, unique gifts, and stories so that they can share with the world.
Then we move on to rebuilding confidence. Confidence is necessary to face the challenges and difficult situations that life and business throw at us. Even top business professionals and leaders waiver in their confidence. It’s not really talked about much because on the outside everything looks great, but on the inside, many are struggling to keep the confidence alive that got them to that place of success. Maybe they had a bad year, or maybe they are trying to figure out how to grow but keep staying at the same place in their life or the same income year after year. That eats away at one’s confidence. The Unshakable Confident You program takes the student down a path of self-discovery to regain and rebuild confidence from a strong, authentic foundation.
From desire to destiny and beyond. It’s so important to live your destiny, yet so few actually do. In the Design Your Destiny Program, students identify the essential thing that inspires them to jump out of bed every morning. When one is in alignment with one’s destiny, things fall into place. New opportunities present themselves that seemed like only a pipedream in the past.
Through my programs and coaching, I’ve been able to assist driven entrepreneurs, authors, and direct sales leaders to identify, celebrate, and market their unique gifts, which has exploded their incomes in the process. I’ve had clients on the brink of suicide not only reclaim their lives through my programs and coaching but go on to live happy and thriving lives full of purpose and joy.
You have written a book called The Authentic Driven Life. Why did you decide to write this book?
CRYSTAL DAVIS: After being inspired by my own unexpected challenges and experiences, I realized that my journey had become my destination. Much of my life was spent comparing myself to others and making choices based on what I assumed was acceptable and what other people expected of me. I wasn’t living an authentic or driven life. The years of yelling, screaming, fists in walls, abandonment, fear, self-sabotage, and therapy have all been gifts that have taught me the biggest lesson of my life – to rise up for myself and my daughters and to never tolerate anyone trying to take our power away. It was a hard lesson to learn. It was time to shed the masks, discover my voice, and find out who Crystal really was. No more living in silence.
It took over 11 years to discover, test, and refine what I teach in my book. I found that there are 12 ways to go from being overcome with fear, self-sabotage, and procrastination to building unshakeable self-confidence, self-esteem, and discovering your authentic self and purpose to attain a lifestyle you love.
It wasn’t just those 12 ways, but how those twelve ways worked together. I thought, “If people just understood this authentic process and how it ties together, it would change their lives forever!”
So, I sat down and put together an entire book that goes through my 12 Ways to Authentically Shift Into Your Highest Self, page by page by page, what happens first, what happens second, what happens when you hit a roadblock, and so on. Everything is here in the book. Not only does it explain all the different concepts, but it takes you through the process I take my one-on-one clients through so you can make your shift for yourself.
This book is one of the most valuable things I have ever created. The people who have had a chance to read it have gone crazy for it because it helps them understand this authentic process. If you understand this, everything else will change. It will change your business, it will change your life, it makes things so simple and so easy, and that’s what this book is about.
It isn’t just business people that Davis coaches. She has worked with a number of celebrities and athletes as they compete in cutthroat industries. Davis works with individuals from all walks of life, and her reputation as a coach and mentor continues to grow thanks to the success of her clients.
There are numerous comments on your website from celebrities, authors, direct sales leaders, and athletes. How does it make you feel to impact someone’s life, such as United States national soccer team player Mal Pugh?
CRYSTAL DAVIS: That is what lights me up! So many clients share that they would not be where they are today without my mentorship and programs. When I have this outpouring of support and recognition from my clients and have them reaching out to say I made a difference in their lives, I know that I am following my own destiny. That’s what brings me to a place of gratitude and joy, knowing I am complete and living my life purpose to my fullest potential.
Your coaching programs are limited to just eight people at a time. Why do you work with smaller groups?
CRYSTAL DAVIS: I developed a unique process for working with my clients called The Authentic Way™. My one-on-one clients are successful business owners and direct sales leaders who understand that the inner world affects the business world. I help them discover their purpose, develop unshakable confidence, and design their destiny. My process with these types of clients works best one-on-one. It’s very personal and private. A group coaching or live event environment would not be appropriate since we wouldn’t be able to go as deep as we need to in order to get the results we are looking for.
Being in service to a limited number of clients helps my clients to achieve results much quicker. With more one-on-one attention and focus, we can dive deep into the heart of the matter and develop a life and business by design. It expedites the process, and clients are getting significant results within months instead of years. I see transformation, manifestation, shifts, and results much quicker working intimately with smaller groups and one-on-one. My transformation took 11 years to fully be realized, whereas my clients tend to see results within months of
working with me.
Davis somehow manages to find time to complete a laundry list of appearances,engagements, and one-to-one coaching sessions. Her ability to multi-task and accomplish so many jobs is part of why her strategies work. Davis follows her own methodology on life and business, and without it, she wouldn’t be able to be the coach she is today.
What do you see yourself doing in the future in terms of books and speaking engagements? Who will you help next?
CRYSTAL DAVIS: I have global speaking engagements, television appearances, radio, and podcast interviews booked into next year and I have a new TV show coming soon called “The Authentic Driven Life.” I have a new book I’m writing coming out next year. In the meantime, I’ve been helping my clients get their books written by connecting them with the team that helped me with my book. I’ve been called the “Connecter to Millions,” and I’ve been blessed to meet many of the top people in their industries. I’m always looking for ways to connect my clients with the people I know who can help them with their businesses because those connections to the right people can save someone hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars and hundreds of hours of wasted time by getting it right the first time.
The number one issue that business owners face is sleep disorders. When you get that solved, everything changes. I’ve been using a stress management tool with my students that allows them to relax, recharge, and radiate daily.
It uses light, color, and audible frequencies to promote optimal well-being. It allows you to get the sleep you need to function at peak performance in all areas of your life. With the right set of tools, I believe anyone can overcome life’s most difficult obstacles. If you struggle with insomnia, stress or energy visit: https://www.radiateyourlife.com
to find out more.
What are some key strategies you recommend in your program?
CRYSTAL DAVIS: In my coaching program, we work on the internal and the external elements of our personal lives that end up affecting our business lives. So many times, clients come to me looking to grow their business to the next level thinking that I’m going to give them a new tactic or strategy to implement, such as running advertising or re-branding themselves. Sometimes, that is needed, and we do address the tactics that will help them, but more often than not, the thing that is holding people back from growing their businesses to the levels that they want is
themselves. We have to find our true authentic self in order to grow our businesses to the levels that are currently out of our reach. When you do that, and you surround yourself with the right people and the right team who can help you get there, that is where the magic happens.
Before I discovered this authentic process, if someone told me back then that my business would grow by giving more time to the other areas of my life, as well as by making quality business decisions based on being the most authentic version of myself, I would have told them they were crazy. But my life became richer and much more fulfilling as I worked on my own authentic self-discovery. My business grew and continues to grow. I built million dollar sales teams, and I learned to distinguish which roles were most important in my life and what I desired
to experience in each role.
One of my favorite strategies to boost your confidence is what I call The Reflection Technique. It’s a strategy where you are reflecting love back at yourself while implanting positive messages into your subconscious. Although it is a very simple technique, it can make a profound and positive impact on your life.
Here is the four-step process:
1. Think of a time when you felt really happy, really loved, or were really loving. It could be the birth of a child, or the first time they told you they love you, or it could even be a moment with your high school sweetheart. Embrace that feeling and hold onto it. Then stand in front of a mirror and look straight into your eyes.
2. With that feeling of love and happiness filling you inside, say to yourself, “I believe in myself, and I’m getting better and better each day.”
3. Keep repeating this phrase while staring into your eyes with love and compassion, and do it until you feel your self-confidence build up.
4. Repeat this every day for one minute, and notice how much better you feel about yourself.
Sometimes we are tempted to ignore or dismiss simple strategies like The Reflection Technique because they seem too simple or because we aren’t seeing a significant change but have only been doing it for three days. You have years of programming in your mind to overcome, and everybody is going to have a different time frame to build their confidence. Thankfully, it doesn’t have to take years to see results, but you need to give it a chance to take hold. By committing to doing it on a daily basis, you create a habit that eventually becomes a part of your normal thought process.
Are all your lectures tailored differently to the people you speak with or do you drive home one key message?
CRYSTAL DAVIS: It’s a bit of both. I speak and teach to the audience I am there to serve. Sometimes, I speak at events that are all focused on the internal, and we go deep into that. Other times, it’s much more business strategy focused, and I bridge the gap between the business strategies and how the inner world affects those strategies. The core of who I am and my message of being authentic does serve as the foundation for most of my speaking engagements and programs.
What exactly are your private coaching client programs and how do individuals get involved with you on that level?
CRYSTAL DAVIS: I have a six-month and a twelve-month program for my private, one-on-one clients. Almost all lives and business can get significant results in those time periods, depending on where you are at. My goal is not to string you along for years and years. It’s to get you results in as little time as possible. We determine which program is best given your situation on our no-obligation discovery call. The discovery call is by application only at
https://crystaldaviscoaching.com/coaching
Through this coaching program, together we develop a step-by-step blueprint to take you from doubt and self-sabotage to authentic power. You become the architect of the dream business and lifestyle that you so richly deserve!
Davis is proof individuals can overcome the life they have been dealt. She rose from the ashes of a childhood and marriage that saw untold levels of physical and mental abuse. She took the lessons learned from those years and built an empire that is dedicated to helping coach, mentor, and train women and men in the business and direct sales world.
Those lessons took time to understand and build on, and Davis had to go through experiences she would never wish on anyone else. However, without her past experiences, she wouldn’t be able to help so many people in the present.
Crystal has graciously offered to give our readers a hard copy version of her book The Authentic Driven Life for free at https://www.TheAuthenticDrivenLife.com
Journalist and author. Contributor
