I am publishing this from the snowy Berkshires of Massachusetts where I am leading a retreat at Kripalu. It had been one of the single most incredible moments of my life. This piece was written by Heather McKearnan who joined my retreat at the last minute, along with her mother. Heather's father passed away just last week so she happened to be in the next town over (she lives in Santa Fe) and, in her words, "there was no option of her NOT being here".

We all dislike hearing sharp criticism, but it can also be hard to hear praise.

At the Handel Group, it's that time of year where all of us coaches get together and acknowledge the things we like about each other. It was my turn a few weeks ago, and I listened for ten minutes as some of my favorite people in the world told me what they admired about me. 

Many clients come to us at the Handel Group® not knowing what they want in some aspect of their lives. Take career, for example. They know that they are not fulfilled in their current job, but they don’t know what would be more fulfilling. They envy other people who have known from an early age what they wanted to do. They may even conclude that “I am just not a passionate person,” “I don’t really have anything that drives me” or some other sort of fiddle-faddle like that.

If you are anything like me, pursuing a dream seems like it should be a lot of work.

Last fall, when I began looking for the love of my life, I suited up for the long, laborious haul. I reasoned that I needed to make a stunning online dating profile, which would take me about ten drafts, spend a half-hour each day carefully sorting through the men on the sites, arrange outings with my girlfriends to meet men, and sift through crowded rooms to find the few men who clicked with me.