Consumed by her job, then found the courage to overcome guilt and find her true self
“I had never known anyone, professionally, that had worked with a Life Coach, but I found myself knowing, deep down, that I needed one. I was in a rut, consumed with my job. I was consistently working every possible minute of the day and night, worried more about disappointing my employer, than I was about my own understanding family. Yet, even as I continued to work like crazy, I was consumed by guilt – guilt about not doing enough at work and especially guilt that I was missing out on: milestones with my small children, quality time with my husband, and girl time with my friends. How would I balance it and be true to myself?
I waited a while, not knowing where to start and frankly, not having the time to research and find a Life Coach for me. Then it happened. I was at a Network of Executive Women luncheon one day and there she was. Michelle was the speaker that afternoon and I knew that was my call to action. I no longer had that excuse of ‘not knowing a Life Coach’!
When I first started working with Michelle, I think I was looking for someone to tell me that I just needed to find a new job. Instead, Michelle encouraged me to find ‘me’. You know how you meet new people and they always ask you – ‘What do you like to do with your free time?’ Believe it or not – I COULD NOT ANSWER THIS QUESTION! I was so consumed with my job, that I had lost sight of who I was as an individual. This was one of the first exercises we did and imagine how surprised I was when I found myself with a list of 25+ things!
During my time with Michelle, I did lots of other great exercises for reflection as well. That is one thing Michelle deserves a lot of credit for. No matter where your conversation goes on a given day, she is full of great quotes and exercises to help get you to the next step. I remember working on my Life Purpose Statement with her on my actual birthday – what a great gift! I hung that statement right in front of my computer at work so that I would see it each and every day and remind myself to be true to myself.
Like all changes, it didn’t happen overnight. But I did change. As the days went by and our work continued, I found the courage to overcome the guilt I had about work…and most importantly I found me.
Michelle has continued to touch base with me over the years and she has continued to be there to encourage me. We all deserve to have someone like Michelle cheering us on and helping us move forward!”
