I got happy and sad news at the same time yesterday. First, a phone call revealed that my friend, Tracy, who had been bravely battling cancer for 3+ years, had passed away. Then I received a text from a previous client, who just celebrated three years of being alcohol-free, I considered the three-year timing for them both. My client chose to live in her most awakened state by ditching the drink and doing the necessary and sometimes painful work to get there. My friend Tracy worked towards living to her fullest potential while preparing for and accepting her departure, doing the necessary and sometimes painful work to get there. Thinking about these loved ones and their journey these last three years was very sobering, to say the least. 

Where will I be three years from now? Where will you go? We don't know all that is around the corner for us. What I do know is that I have never regretted ditching the drink. I wasn’t really living when I was drinking. I was...

I’ve been a coach for five years. I partner with a top rated credentialing authority to recruit, train, and mentor other coaches. With a degree in social work, I started as a skeptic when it came to the world of coaching. I didn’t know what I didn’t know. I didn’t think I needed a measly coaching certificate when I already had a four year degree in helping people. 

I started with a Udemy certificate in Law of Attraction Coaching. This is regularly criticized for not being ‘real training,” but it’s how I got my start. It was a ten-ish hour online training. At the time, I understood the coaching industry was unregulated, and yet, I wanted some certifying agency to give me a quick stamp of approval to call myself a coach. I wasn’t ready to invest more, and I didn’t know where to start. I think it cost me $30. It did not teach me the necessary protocols and high standards of coaching, but it did get me started in learning about...

As part of an Add 2, Subtract 2 Summer Challenge with my INSIDER Membership I completed one of my subtraction tasks. Subtracting everything for one day a month. What I mean by that is having no expectations, to do lists, plans, or chores for one day each month of the summer. A “Do Nothing Day”. 

I understand many people would not need a “challenge” to take a day off, but I do. I am a high achieving, over functioning, extroverted, people pleaser and it is not in my nature to give myself a break. Ironically, I have to be challenged to do it. I have to give myself some sort of competition to sit still.  

It started on Saturday night when I went to the gym. This used to be a sad thing for me, in early sobriety. The gym is very empty on Saturday nights. I assume because people have friends, plans and better things to do. In my early sobriety, I had few friends, no plans, and nothing better to do. I sometimes felt sorry for myself for...