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Things are getting very exciting and very hectic around here as I put the finishing touches on my book and all the supporting materials that will go along with it.

I recently stopped referring to a “working title” and have said the title with confidence several times so I feel great to finally share it with you. The title of my book is, Accomplished: How to go from Dreaming to Doing.

This episode is a little bit longer than usual but I’ve got a story to share and this is actually an excerpt right from a chapter of the book and it starts with this quote from an unknown source:

“When the why is clear, the how is easy.”

When I was a young girl, I knew in my gut that God had put me on the Earth to do something special. I heard the bible stories, and I knew that, some day, I would have a dream in which God or an angel would speak to me and tell me what my special mission was.

These were the stories I grew up with. The Old Testament is full of them. God was constantly talking to people. I couldn’t wait!

And then, as I got a little older, another element of these stories appeared. These stories didn’t always have happy endings.

In fact, the ones who didn’t die a horrible death usually didn’t live a great life either. Poor Moses was kept out of The Promised Land after all he went through.

Being called on by God didn’t seem so great anymore. I prayed one night for God NOT to call on me. I asked to live an ordinary life.

And for a time I had my way. My life was an ordinary life, and I did ordinary things. In college and throughout my 20s, I envied those people who knew exactly what they were meant to be doing. All the while, I still had this growing feeling in me that I was meant for more, that I should be doing more, and that I was throwing my life away to live an ordinary existence.

The Problem with an Ordinary Existence

This feeling began to plague me after I received my final promotion in my corporate job. I started in Mutual Fund Operations in June of 2000, and, by December of 2005, I was offered my 5th promotion as the Assistant Vice President of Corporate Quality. I was shocked and overjoyed to be trusted so much (and a little nervous for the upcoming changes and added responsibilities).

I went at this new role with gusto. I was determined to prove that it was not a mistake and the right person had been chosen for the job. After 6-9 months of furious activity, everything started to settle down, and I was left with a lot of time to think.

I considered the lifestyles of those above me. The Vice Presidents of my company were working long hours. They would call in from their vacations to be on conference calls that anyone from their division could have covered.

They seemed to be tethered to work and the idea chafed at my need for freedom.

Knowing I wasn’t really looking for that 6th promotion, but happy in my current role, I was left with time for reflection. It was the perfect formula for growing discontent.

Soon I found myself staring out the window wondering, “Is this it? Is this all I’m meant to do?”

Or, a little voice piped up, could I be doing more of what I enjoyed doing: inspiring and motivating people to bring forth their best in a bigger arena?

During this time, I was introduced to a couple of professional life and business coaches at a backyard barbecue, and I instantly became intrigued. They were cheerful, they listened intently, and they asked great questions.

They stood out to me because, frankly, at a party where a lot is going on and people are drinking, how often do you have someone’s FULL attention for more than a minute at a time?

There was something about them that I admired, and I needed to find out more. I began my research.

I talked to more coaches and researched certification programs. That part seemed straight forward, but what wasn’t so clear to me was how they found clients and made money. OK, I’ll be honest; it was clear how they found clients and made money- sales, ugh! I didn’t like that answer, so I kept looking for the answer I wanted, but I didn’t find it.

Only once in my life have I ever had to do a big job search and that one time was stressful enough. (“You mean to tell me I would have to search for work over and over and over again? I would now be in Sales???”)

While I was AVP, the economy took a downturn after the real estate crash, and I started to get nervous.

The Golden Handcuffs

Clink!

That’s the sound of the Golden Handcuffs making their presence known.

The Golden Handcuffs is a term used to describe a situation in which you are so well compensated that you’re willing to be unhappy to keep it.

I was appreciated, respected, and well paid in my current job. The only problem was that I wasn’t satisfied or fulfilled in my job, and I wanted to be a professional coach.

I slowly grew bored and discontent. I distracted myself with fitness, travel, and dating — anything to keep my attention off how I felt about my career.

And then the Universe intervened with what felt like two car crashes. No, I didn’t get into any car accidents, but I did live through two mergers and acquisitions.

If you’ve never been through an acquisition or a divorce, it would be hard to describe the upheaval, uncertainty of the future, and the sweeping and unsettling changes that come through your world.

It doesn’t just affect you: Every person that you spend the majority of your waking hours with is also going through emotional upheaval as well. It’s both comforting and a burden. Everyone is on their own emotional roller coaster but your peaks and valleys aren’t in sync… they come at different times. On days where you felt better (or more in control), you were sure to encounter several people who were freaking out. When you were freaking out, you were sure to encounter those who seemed to be aloof to the situation.

We were all in it together but we were not having the same experience.

A New Earth

During this crazy time, someone recommended to me Eckhart Tolle’s book, A New Earth.

Right from the beginning, this book gripped me. The story of how flowers evolved, an analogy of the awakening of a whole new level of human consciousness, was that dream from God that I imagined I would have as a child. I wasn’t sleeping, but the message was clear: I was meant to guide people to a new level of consciousness and self-awareness…. to bring about a new earth, one they hadn’t experienced before.

I was on fire. This was my calling. I didn’t know exactly what it was going to look like, but I was certain I could no longer settle for the half-life that I was currently living.

I did what I would ask any of my clients to do, I took those first few baby steps.

Now it’s your turn to consider your life purpose. You may not have had a light bulb moment like mine (yet, anyway) but, chances are, if you’ve been paying attention, you have had experiences that can point you in the direction of your personal mission.

Whenever I read my personal mission statement and the mission of Women Taking the Lead, it still brings me back to that epiphany I had when I began reading A New Earth.

Thank you for becoming a part of my journey and here’s to your success!

Resources

Apply to be on an “On-Air Coaching” episode: Are you a female leader who has been promoted in the last year? You are invited to apply to be on the podcast.

Checklist to Ask Your Company for Coaching: Would coaching help you become a stronger leader? Wondering if your company would pay? It doesn’t hurt to ask!

Leadership Operating System Quiz: Wondering what kind of Leadership traits you have? Take this FREE, FAST quiz and find out more about yourself as a Leader.

Leadership Coaching: If you interested in finding out more about my coaching process, the cost of coaching, or how to ask your employer to pay for you to work with a coach, schedule a call with me.

Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to Doing: The book containing a simple, step by step system that gives you the foundation and structure to take your goals and make them happen.

The Women Taking the Lead Podcast

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