Meet Daphne Ogle, the Coach Helping Women Reconnect With Themselves — and Design What Comes Next

Interview by Heather Anderson

There’s a particular kind of exhaustion many women hit in midlife — not the “I need a nap” kind, but the quieter ache of realizing something important has gone missing. You’ve done everything right. You’ve built a life. You’ve shown up for everyone else. And yet… something inside you is tapping you on the shoulder, asking for more.

Daphne Ogle is the person women often find when they’re standing in that exact moment.

A women-centered coach with a background in strategy, design thinking, and deep listening, Daphne helps women reconnect with themselves, clear the old stories that no longer serve them, and intentionally design their next chapter — whether that means launching a business, redefining their work, or simply learning how to live from a place that feels like them again.

What makes Daphne’s work so powerful isn’t just what she teaches — it’s how she listens. Clients describe feeling deeply seen, safe, and understood, often discovering truths about themselves they didn’t yet have language for.

You’ve shared that people have always come to you with their hardest stories. Can you take us back to a moment when you realized, “Oh… this is what I’m meant to be doing”?

People have always come to me, and I’ve always felt deeply empathetic and oriented toward being in service — but for a long time, I didn’t see that as something you could actually do as a job.

A few years ago, I was in a major transition. The consulting firm I had been helping to run was closing because the founder was retiring, and I found myself not just asking, “What am I going to do now?” It felt more like standing in a fog and saying, I need a sign. I need some clarity. Help me see what I can’t see. 

One day, I sat down to meditate and basically said, Okay, universe — I need help. Tell me what I’m meant to do.

Right afterward, I opened my computer and saw an email from a woman named Claire Zammit. I had somehow been on her list forever, getting tons of emails, and for some reason — that day — I opened one. It was advertising a free masterclass starting in five minutes. I thought, Screw it, and joined.

And it wasn’t that she told me what my job was, it was that she named something I’d been feeling for a long time but couldn’t quite articulate.

She named the quiet ache many women carry, that sense that something is off, even when life looks “successful” from the outside. She spoke about the cultural and structural barriers women face, and why so many traditional, action-driven coaching models don’t actually support the kind of identity-level transformation women are longing for.

As she talked about leading with intuition, presence, and inner authority… not more pushing or fixing… everything clicked. I didn’t feel crazy anymore. Or alone.

I could suddenly see a path forming. It was still fuzzy, but it was real. And I knew I didn’t want to be the expert telling women how to solve their problems. I wanted to help them reconnect with their own knowing. That’s when I thought Oh, This is it.

People describe you as someone who can make them feel deeply seen. How do you approach listening in a way that helps people hear parts of themselves they’ve never noticed before?

In many ways, but especially in a client session, it really starts with empathy and curiosity. It’s about not being in my own head — not thinking about what I want to say next or what I want to share — but truly listening.

I’ve always mirrored back what I hear as a way to make sure I’m truly understanding someone. But in my women-centered coaching practice, we take that a step further with something called amplification. 

I’m listening not just to the words, but to what’s underneath them — the energy, the longings, the unspoken possibilities. And when I reflect that back, it often allows women to see parts of themselves they couldn’t quite access on their own. . 

I always check in – Is this true for you? Am I sensing something more? – because amplification isn’t about projecting. It’s about holding a bigger picture until someone is ready to claim it themselves.

Another practice that’s been a total game-changer for me is something called three-part attention, one of the superpowers we learned in my woman centered coaching training. I hold awareness in three places at once: one part of my attention is on myself — usually my body or heart — another part is on the space around us, which I experience as life or source, and the third part is fully with  the person I’m speaking with.

This keeps me grounded and connected to myself, to life, and to the other person – so I’m not worrying about what to say next, and can simply listen. 

That’s so fascinating — and also sounds really hard.

I know my attention is fully on you in this moment, like I’m really listening. But imagining also holding awareness of myself and the room at the same time? I can’t even picture what that would feel like. And yet… it suddenly makes so much sense why people feel deeply seen with you.

Totally — and it does feel awkward at first. It’s a practice. But once you get the hang of it, conversations it actually feels easier, not harder. 

You stay connected to yourself while you’re listening, instead of disappearing into the other person, And that’s what makes it sustainable, you can be deeply present without getting drained

You’ve said you help people design their next chapter and become the person who can actually live in it. How do those two pieces—inner transformation and practical tools—work together in your coaching?

We do begin with the inner work – because so many women have been disconnected from themselves for a long time. Relearning how to trust your inner wisdom, your body, your knowing… that’s foundational.

There’s guilt about wanting more. There’s overwhelm. There’s self-doubt. And if we try to build something new from that place, we just recreate the same patterns in new form.

From there, the work becomes much more integrated than linear. As women reconnect with themselves and begin to shift old beliefs,,,often rooted in people-pleasing or over-functioning…we also start to shape what wants to exist in the world.

I bring over two decades of strategy and user experience work into my coaching, using design thinking, visualization, and practical frameworks to give form to what’s emerging, whether that’s a business, a role, a project, or a new way of living.  And at the same time, we’re focusing on becoming the woman who can actually lead that outer form. 

It’s about creating the outer form from inner truth and growing into the woman who can hold it.

You often work with women who feel like they’ve lost track of themselves somewhere along the way. What tends to bring moms to your door — and what patterns do you see in the “next chapter” they’re longing for?

Often, moms come to me when they’ve hit an internal wall. On the outside, life is full with family, work, and responsibility, but on the inside, there’s a quiet ache, what I sometimes call a soul toothache. A sense that something important has been set down or lost along the way, even if they can’t yet name it.

So many of us women were taught that our value lies in caretaking — and as mothers, that gets amplified. We take it all on. Somewhere along the way, we lose connection to our own desires, our creativity, and our sense of self beyond what we do for others

The next chapters women begin to imagine  are actually really beautiful. Many want to make a meaningful impact rooted in what they’ve lived and learned. Some start businesses. Some create community spaces. Some reconnect with passions or creative parts of themselves that have been buried for decades.

A common thread is this question: What have I lived that I can now give back to the world?

And sometimes the next chapter isn’t about creating something external at all — it’s about learning to make decisions from a grounded, self-connected place for the first time, and trusting that honoring themselves is not selfish, but essential.

When someone sits down with you feeling scattered, overwhelmed, or stuck, what’s usually your first move?

We slow everything down.

For many moms, life is lived in a constant state of responsiveness — to children, partners, work, and endless demands. So every session begins by helping them come back into themselves first. We start with a grounding meditation, tailored to what’s present that day.

If someone arrives overwhelmed, we focus on reconnecting with the body, with the earth, and with their center — because clarity doesn’t come from pushing harder. It comes from feeling safe and settled enough to hear yourself again.

I pay close attention to energy. Sometimes the most powerful thing we can do is pause the “work” entirely. When someone reconnects with themselves first, insight and direction tend to arise naturally.

You’re deeply committed to “power with” instead of “power over.” What does that mean, and how does it shape your work?

“Power over” is about looking outside yourself for answers — assuming someone else knows better, or that you need to be fixed or directed.

“Power with” is different. It’s collaborative power that arises from within and is strengthened through relationship, presence, and mutual respect. In my work, that means I don’t impose answers or beliefs or position myself as the expert on someone else’s life.

Clients already have the answers — they’re just disconnected from them. My role is to help restore that connection in a way that feels safe, respectful, and empowering.

You’ve said it’s not just about creating the plan — it’s about becoming the person who can run that life. Can you share a client moment that captures that shift?

One client came to me wanting to feel more confident with public speaking. She knew she wanted to help women coming up behind her learn from her experiences, and she assumed speaking was the way to do that.

As we slowed down and she reconnected with herself, something deeper emerged — a decades-old dream of creating a space for belonging, learning, and collaboration. Not a solo platform, but a shared, community-centered vision that included classes, conversations, and creative exchange.

As we began designing the business — shaping the story, the model, the value it would offer — and integrating her Human Design, she gained clarity around what she had already been sensing. She isn’t meant to do it all herself like she does in her current business. She’s meant to guide, empower, and be the one who holds the magic for others.

The confidence she was seeking didn’t come from learning how to perform — it came from trusting who she actually is.

That’s the work of becoming.

For moms reading this who feel disconnected from themselves lately, what’s one small, realistic practice they can try this week?

Start with awareness — and empathy.

When we’re overwhelmed, we often go into survival mode: putting one foot in front of the other, reacting to what’s in front of us without even realizing how much we’re carrying. And on top of that, many moms end up judging themselves for not being able to “do it all” the way it looks like everyone else can.

So notice when you’re overwhelmed. Name it — I’m overwhelmed right now — and speak to yourself the way you would a close friend. Then take three slow, intentional breaths.

Sometimes that’s enough to bring you back into your body and out of the spiral.

And if needed? Lock yourself in the bathroom for five minutes. Truly.

What does working with you typically look like — whether one-on-one or in community?

My core offering is a six-month one-on-one coaching journey, where we work closely together to help you reconnect with yourself and then shape what’s next from that grounded place. The work is deeply client-led and personalized, which allows for real depth and transformation over time. 

Alongside our sessions, clients engage with supportive practices that help integrate the work into everyday life – so it’s not just something that happens in our conversations, but something that’s lived and embodied between sessions.

What I often hear from clients is that the work feels like the moment the fog begins to lift. They leave sessions feeling clearer, more grounded, and more connected to their own inner wisdom.

The experience isn’t about being pushed or fixed — it’s spacious and unhurried. There’s room to tell the truth, to slow down, and to listen more deeply to what’s actually present.

I also offer workshops and group experiences that allow women to engage with this work in community, and I’m excited to continue evolving toward more hybrid offerings — weaving together the depth of one-on-one coaching with the power of being witnessed and supported by other women.

If there’s one thing you hope women remember from this conversation about what’s possible in their own “midlife rising,” what would it be?

That thing you can’t quite name — the ache, the pull, the something more — it’s real.

Midlife is not the end. It’s the moment when everything you’ve lived, learned, and survived becomes fuel for what’s next.

Listen to it. Trust it. And know that what you’re longing for is possible.

Curious to explore what your next chapter could look like with Daphne?

If something in this conversation resonated — the quiet ache, the longing for clarity, the sense that you’re meant for something more — there are a few ways to take the next step.

• Book a complimentary Breakthrough to Clarity session, a one-on-one conversation to help you reconnect with yourself and gain clarity on what’s next.

• Listen to Midlife Rising, my private, bingeable podcast for women navigating the in-between — when the old way no longer fits and what’s next is beginning to take shape.

• Join my email list to receive weekly coaching insights and be the first to hear about upcoming workshops and group experiences, including future Living by Design gatherings.

Connect with Daphne Ogle on LinkedIn, Facebook or Instagram.

You can also find her on The M List, The Mamahood’s searchable database of mom-recommended resources, or connect and collaborate with Daphne Ogle inside The Club membership for women Founders.