On Life’s Greatest Pleasures, Healing, and Empowerment
Leslie Gustafson is a transformational coach and licensed marriage and family therapist with over 30 years of professional experience. At nearly 62, Leslie reflects on a life deeply intertwined with creativity, faith, and the pursuit of empowering others. Her journey began at 18, fueled by a transformative spiritual awakening that set her on a path to discover her true purpose.
For the past six and a half years, Leslie has dedicated herself to coaching women through whole-life transformations, blending her clinical expertise with a deep spiritual foundation. Her work helps women explore every facet of their lives, from emotions and relationships to careers and life purpose. Leslie’s unique approach integrates her faith, creativity, and a profound belief in the limitless potential of each individual.
Married to her soulmate Doug, Leslie balances her vibrant coaching career with a fulfilling family life, including a stepson, a son, and four grandchildren. Her retreats and programs offer a wide range of entry points for women at all stages of life. Leslie’s ultimate goal is to inspire women to believe that all things are possible, helping them step into their full authenticity and wild success.
Tell us about yourself, especially the parts that are not so known from your online presence?
My spiritual and psychological journey began when I was 18 years old and “found my faith” in a time of tumult and loss. A pure and clear moment of connection to the divine, God for me, changed the trajectory of my whole life. I left my path in graphic and fine arts and began my exploration into the meaning of life, who I really am, and found my authentic purpose that has been the backbone behind all I have created since and responsible for the deep joy in my life.
I went on to receive both my BA and MA in Clinical Psychology and my license as a Marriage and Family Therapist, later becoming a Certified Sex Therapist. From there, I ventured into TV as an expert in Psychology, Sex, and Relationships, both locally and nationally, and co-wrote a book, Amazing Intimacy – A How to Guide for Love, Sex and Passion. To believe it all began 44 years ago, while my mission has evolved and expanded over time, brings me more gratitude, delight, and awe than I can put into words.
My greatest “creations,” however, have been my soulmate marriage of 27 years, a remarkable twice-gifted (autistic) musician 24-year-old son, a wonderful 42-year-old son, and four delightful grandchildren. Hard to believe, I know, because surely, I am only 40 years old. LOL 😉
How have you cultivated your marriage to be this successful and joyful over the years?
We’ve been in love for 30 years and married for a substantial part of that time. I’m totally with my soulmate, my biggest fan, my confidante, and my best friend. “Everyone should have a Doug”—that’s what the women in my mastermind say because they know him. We met at an event, and our connection has only deepened over the years.
I think the number one thing is, we both desire our own personal evolution as people. We are both invested in becoming our most amazing selves. We love to grow, learn, and expand, constantly bringing a fresh version of ourselves to the relationship. It never gets old when you’re continually growing, and so is your partner. It keeps our marriage lively and enriching. We’ve always had our own lanes, and that independence, coupled with our deep connection, is what makes our bond so strong. Play is also important—being silly, laughing, and simply enjoying life together.
What brought you into the field of healing and emotional intelligence?
My focus early on when I first started in private practice was generalized: Relationship guidance, mental health recovery for depression, anxiety, and couples’ work. My experience and learning moved into Depth Psychology, Emotional Intelligence, developing intimacy in all relationships, and Amazing Intimacy in couples’ relationships. I specialized in Human Sexuality starting in 2004.
In more recent years, my movement into transformational coaching has been elevated by my growth and integration of Quantum Psychology, Energetics, Soul-Spirituality work, and Human Design, which I have coined in my work as “Divine Design.” The expansion of my own authentic, innovative, and creative identity—the original path in art and faith—has come full circle and has given me deep satisfaction and impassioned me even more. I humbly believe I am living in my Zone of Genius and most definitely am bringing forth the most aligned, unique, and powerful “work” (that feels like play) that I have ever delivered. And there is still much expansion for me, my clients, and the world to come!
When it comes to your own personal journey of deep healing and liberation, what has been the catalyst for your growth?
It has been said, “It takes an expert client to become an exceptional guide, healer, and impactful influencer of others.” I KNOW that to be true from many years of personal growth that have been unending and will never ever stop. Staying “in process” and evolving as a way of life is critical to being a compassionate and powerful leader of others.
What is the advice you would give to your younger self? Other women that are “stuck”?
Hold yourself tight with love. Believe in and trust yourself. Seek to find and connect Self with God, Spirit-life, and Divine Power. Never ever give up for very long. Get guidance and help whenever you need it. Find your people! Be IN your life, experience it, relish it, and have a blast!
Tell us about your work ; what is the deep work you do with women?
The work I do with women is not just relational. The work I do is a whole-woman transformation. We’re looking at every part of her life. From her emotions to her relationship to her career to her life purpose. I have my dream wheel that we work through. Women come to me for a lot of different reasons. They can be stuck around something, or they want to expand their business and their brand and become more alive on social media and work in synchronicity with me. I have lots of different places where women can start with me based on what they want. Because sometimes it’s esteem. Sometimes it’s, “I don’t know how to do social media.” “How did you get on TV?” “How can you do that?” So they can come in for different reasons, but they tend to come in, I think, ultimately, because we have a spiritual connection. We are aligned.
While faith is often an integral part of the work I do; I’ve been very purposeful in my language and how I show up online. I want women to have a sense that I am open and available and I have a heart for them. I think that is more important, that and the excellence of my work. I have been creative around the presentation of my faith, which is a very deep, bold, and profound faith that is the backbone of my life. And there is a spiritual component in every woman who has come into collaboration with me so far. There’s something that I’m sure they resonate with. Either they know because they’ve historically been with me, or they see it because it transmits.
Whether you call it the quantum, whether you call it the universe, whether you call it God, whether you call it Jesus, that transcendent connection is very a part of the foundation of all my work. What I do for women is bring them into full authenticity, deep love, and wild success. I think, across the board, we are conditioned to over-adapt, be overly nice, and be more other-centered in such a way that doesn’t necessarily serve us. We overfunction and overcompensate.
In my experience, very often we have back-burnered ourselves so much in service of the nurturance of others that we can lose ourselves. Being able to know ourselves, see ourselves, find ourselves, become empowered, let ourselves be all we are designed to be is transformative and freeing. When we shed the conditioning of fear and shame and guilt and the old stuff that we’ve absorbed from other people pouring into us that wasn’t necessarily healthy, whether that’s trauma, injury, whatever, and we inhabit and embody who we really are, divinely and authentically, everything shifts magnificently
We never stop becoming, but we do keep becoming more and more and more. Ultimately, I think we’re all walking each other home, side by side. The women in my world are really “in” my world. I’m their biggest fan, their biggest advocate. I will not abandon or forsake then. I’m going to challenge them sometimes, because I intend to inspire them to not abandon themselves. . I see it when they minimize themselves. I think the power of being with other women in a high-level framework — and by high-level I mean inspired, aligned frequency, full safety – the capacity to show up and be vulnerable and transparent with each other — is so good for all of us. It is then we get that wonderful, “I am not alone and we are all in this. We are individuals, but we all share the same kind of tumult, experiences, joys, and heart. ” It’s so permission-giving and freeing and shame-releasing for women to say, “Me too!”
You CAN have it ALL – RISE UP, take a stand for yourself, make BIG moves!
Walk us through your offers and enrollments for women who want to join your current spaces?
I have created a Suite of offers (a portfolio) that meets ambitious, wanting women where they are at—allowing them to choose a Growth Path unique to their needs and desires. From getting crystal clear on what they desire/dream of, to realizing the gravity and magnificence of WHO they are, to becoming wiser and more emotionally intelligent and relationship ninjas, to flourishing in their intimate lives and sexuality, to finding real sisterhood in a high-level community with other ambitious heart-centered women.
I work side by side and heart to heart with women to create their abundant online brand and business, offer luxury coaching and masterminding retreats, and guide them in becoming high-integrity, exceptional coaches in the coaching industry.
From $22 to $33,000, there’s a whole range. Because I want people to be able to enter wherever they’re at. I don’t want to be exclusive. Plus, I am a sex therapist and I do have sexuality offerings. My starting program for many women is my signature program, which is a woman’s transformation program for the whole of her. It covers everything from identity to relationships, and sexuality and is called, “The Amazing You! Signature Program.”
MANIFEST WITH US: What are you actively calling in now?
It’s endless and often wordless… Specifically, a wildly successful music career for my son on his terms, a multitude of new aligned, amazing women in my Amazing YOU world, longevity and supernatural health, more spaces to share all of me for the rising of ALL women, many travel and adventure experiences in my own life and with women in my inner Amazing YOU! spaces and those who want to be in the Amazing YOU! World. Also, jaw-dropping amounts of wealth and abundance in the hands of women, and a Spirit-led abundance that allows me to see more, to perceive greater heights and further mastery that creates peace and joy.
What are your rules/rituals/practices for an abundance mindset?
Many! And they have become internalized and a way of life. I have developed deep practices within my connection to God and Self, including embodied gratitude, listening to Spirit, and dwelling in the felt experience of being with God and the fullness of mySelf. I tune into creative inspiration and grab hold of unique innovation when it “hits”—embracing my creative spirit and enlightening me daily.
I have established ways of transforming my experience, knowledge, and wisdom to allow them to be inhabited by the women I work with. It’s in our here-and-now connection and co-collaboration that brings truly magical moments, ideas, inspiration, and innovation for the women I am honored to work with. Simply put, I have lots of “secret sauces,” strategies, and practices that expand my clients and myself..
What would you say is your magical formula to living a harmonious life?
We are our own magic when we are aligned with our purpose, know who we uniquely are, support ourselves, our empowerment and our passion, create a life by design that feels good, and surround ourselves with a loving, powerful guide/coach/mentor and a safe, ”for us” devoted community. We don’t create amazing lives, love, and wild success alone.
What do you want women to retain the most from your work?
All things are possible for me.
That they know it, from the top of their head to the bottom of their feet and in their soul, that “all impossible things are possible FOR ME.” I believe that and more. I think potentiality is limitless. I think more than possible is possible. And when women walk away and they know this at their core, it changes everything.
It’s when we think we can’t, it’s when we think it’ll never happen, it’s all the negative bias, the stuff that keeps us deflated and squelched, that keeps us from believing. There is a loving force in the world, and so much available for us individually in our authentic divine plan. I know it because I’ve lived it. It’s still happening in my life. It’s happened for 44 years. How grateful I am that I have been on this journey for 44 years! And it just keeps getting bigger and better and more yummy.