2021 was the most rewarding and exhausting year from the 35 so far of my life. It came in two’s. Buying/building a second home (cottage), starting a second business and of course the birth of our beautiful second daughter.
So how well did I handle a second home, second business and second child in one year all during a pandemic?….On the surface it probably looked like I was handling it really well. Even if you asked me how I was doing I would have honestly answered great! I didn’t feel any different. But just like the frog that can’t tell the water around him is getting hotter, I was blind to the ever increasing temperature of the environment around me and unable to truly see what was going on under it all.
I suppose it was inevitable that something had to break. Sure enough, as if coming out of nowhere three panic attacks hit me on three separate days rendering me useless for the better part of a day each time. Three strikes was enough for me to realize something was amiss and a change was needed. Enter Darryl Council. A former US Marine who now calls Nova Scotia home and is coach to many high achieving, type A personalities.
When I started working with Darryl there was only one thing I knew to expect. That I would be challenged. The rest of the details were unclear to me but trusting my coach I followed him down a path of discovery. And challenge me he did. Darryl challenged my daily routine, my habits and more importantly my purpose and priorities. He asked the tough questions and used my answers to craft weekly homework for me to complete. These tasks included technology free time, meditation, breathing techniques, fasting, cold showers, etc. All designed for a purpose as he calls it, to “Own The Day.”
Three months later I feel different, I am different. I’m more aware not only of what is around me but what is going on within me. One of the biggest transformations for me is the priority I now have around taking care of myself. This includes my physical, mental and emotional self. I come from a business background so I understand the importance of taking care of your assets. What I never stopped to consider before was what my most important asset is. It is me! Without taking care of that I have no energy or capacity for anything else. Thank you Darryl for your wisdom and for challenging me.
William Ernest Henley wrote this powerful message, “I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.” This is only true if you share one fundamental belief. That you are your most important asset and that you are the one responsible for taking care of that asset.
