My Story

When I talk to people about my life, I find that I describe it in chapters...either around where I lived, where I worked, or something significant that was happening at that time.

Don't worry-- I won't bore you with all of the details of each chapter, but here are a few discoveries and highlights that tell my story.

Chapter 1
I grew up as a farm girl in Iowa... my world was really small and homogenous. We all went to the same school, same churches, spoke the same language, sort of looked alike, and all were (or related to) farmers--are you getting the picture? I loved how I grew up, but the box I lived in was really, really small.

I always knew I wanted to live in a bigger box, but was never sure how to make that happen. From the beginning I was not living my life deliberately...things just either sort of happened to me, were stumbled upon, or a decision was made for me.

Chapters 2-5
I went to college, graduate school and got a couple of great jobs in college admissions in New York and Ohio. Here I learned that I wanted to make a difference in people's lives. I started to get some clarity around my purpose. During these chapters, however, other people had a lot of influence over my decisions--college professors, co-workers, friends, family--I was not yet living deliberately and still hadn't found the right fit.

Chapter 6
I stumbled into a great job that was truly making a difference in people's lives and unleashed something I hadn't experienced until then--true passion! I loved the work I was doing so much that I would have done it for free! My discovery in this chapter? I can be passionate about my work. Now, I did end up getting fired from that job and was involved in a class action law suit (which is an entirely different story!!!) so obviously the decision was made for me that this wasn't my true calling!

Chapter 7 and 8
Next, I just happened to get a job in Washington, DC. I loved the agency and the people I worked with, but the job I was doing was not well suited for me. I went to DC on a 3-month temporary assignment and when I got my 'Recognition of Five Years of Service in the Government' award, I couldn't believe that much time had gone by while doing something I didn't really enjoy.

So...after six years, I quit! I gave up my Thrifty Savings Plan and my health benefits and started Chapter 9! Many people thought I was crazy to give up that kind of "security," but I knew I wasn't living my best life. I took some time off to allow myself to decompress, get quiet, and slow my mind down enough to listen to what my heart and spirit was telling me to do. That led me to coaching.

NOW I'm living my life deliberately! I am combining all of my discoveries-- helping and making a difference in people's lives, doing something I am absolutely passionate about and working with people I love and enjoy!

One of my favorite quotes is from Jim Rohn, "If you don't design your own life plan, chances are you'll fall into someone else's plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much."

I was definitely a part of someone else's plan for a long time! I love that I am now deliberately designing my own life plan. And this plan is much, much bigger than I ever imagined as a young girl growing up on my parent's farm in Iowa!

Are you ready for YOUR next chapter?