A dear friend sent me a beautiful card recently in which she wished me well “especially after the horrendous year you’ve had.”

Horrendous?

“What does she mean?”, I thought. “Why does she think my year was horrendous?”

And then it hit me. It’s because I had covid.

And yes, at times it was rather horrendous. I was seriously ill for many months.

But horrendous is defined as “causing fear or dread or terror”. And that certainly does not define my year.

Rather, it was a year of discovery for me.

I thought I had accrued enough of life’s experiences to know myself pretty well already. But I learned a great deal more about myself.

I know now that I have the courage, strength and perseverance to endure even a marathon-length challenge.

That I have the resilience to bounce back, even when it means rebuilding from scratch. Over the many months of recovery, I measured my progress by how far I could walk. At first, it was down the stairs; then down the driveway, then half-way down the block, and ultimately, many months later, I am back to doing the vigorous daily walks I did before getting ill.

I learned that I actually have patience, which anyone who knows me well may be relieved to hear.

I learned that protecting and preserving my vitality is essential. Giving of myself to others must be done in a way that doesn’t deplete my own vitality, or there will be nothing left of me to give. And not being able to be of service those many months was one of the most painful parts of my illness.

I already knew that what truly matters to me, besides my family and close friends, is being of service through my work.

But what I learned is the critical importance of ensuring that I do that work in a way that is fully aligned with who I am.

Because in order to do, I must first be fully who I am. My biggest self. No holds barred.

And that may seem evident to you. But it wasn’t to me. For years, I’ve been advising women to step forth. I’ve expressed it one-on-one privately with female clients and friends. I even co-created a forum called Remarkable Women in which I would open each evening with, “There’s so much human potential in this room that is going unheard. Step up. Speak up. The world needs you.”

And the world does. We each have an opportunity to contribute. Mine is to support those who want to ignite meaningful change.

I’ve rebuilt both myself and my business over the past 9 months. And now my offer is fully aligned with who I am and what I am here to do. And it feels glorious.

You’re viewing this on my new website (loud chorus of Hallelujah!). Please take a little tour. You’ll find our new means of igniting your meaningful change. We call it the Illumify Game Changer because that is exactly what it is. It enables you to challenge the status quo, and create what could be, should be or must be. You can “play” it solo or with your teams, or join one of our open groups.

And know you’ll be hearing more from me as I step forth from a year defined by discovery, with gratitude for its many precious gifts.

Take good care.