I have two questions for you.

1. What do you most crave?
2. What if what the world needs most is for you to do that?

Twelve years ago, the cravings of my heart became really loud and insistent. I was living a life of “service,” doing my best to give as much as I could, as often as I could, as well as I could, to communities and causes I loved.

Until I had nothing left to give.

With the best of intentions, I had worked myself into full-blown depletion.
 
My body was telling me in subtle and not-so-subtle ways that something had to change. Now.

In response to the pain of my body’s messages, I started going to an amazing massage therapist and intuitive healer.
 
In the quiet of those first sessions, probably after shedding some tears of exhaustion and the wounding that all too often happens in the course of mission-driven work, I let myself express what I truly craved.
 
More than anything, I craved OASIS. I craved rest. I craved quiet time for myself, by myself. I wanted to sit in stillness beside the river. For as long as I wanted.
 
I remember my massage therapist asking me this life-changing question:
 
“What if what the world needs most is for Katie to sit by the river?”

 WHAAAT??? How could that be? What does that do for anyone?
 
And yet, at some cellular level, I began to trust the wisdom of that craving.

I began to prioritize giving myself moments and days of oasis. I took time to sit by the river. I found my spirit reawakening. My creativity reawakening. My truth and my voice reawakening. My body healing. And as I came back to life, I began to bring moments of oasis and soulful reflection into my work with communities.
 
Over the course of time, that led me to the work that I do now. My coaching circle recently told me, “Katie you not only give people a place of oasis. You ARE oasis.”
 
It turns out that my massage therapist was right.
 
What the world needed most from me was for me to sit by the river.
 
In giving myself the gift of oasis, I healed.  I could become an oasis for the people I am here to serve. And I teach them to do that for themselves. So that THEY can tap into the wisdom of their deepest craving. So that they can free themselves to do what it is that the world needs from them most.

Really, these two questions are at the heart of my coaching practice.
 
First, I help clients uncover what it is that they truly crave.
 
And then we clear away the questions and guilt and accusations of selfishness that their inner mean girl or boy throws at them, so that with peace and trust, they can answer Question #2: What if what the world needs most is for me to do ______________?

Even if it doesn’t make sense.
 
Even if it looks “selfish.”
 
Even if you can’t see in practical terms how it could possibly be helpful to anyone but you. Right now.

(Listen--If you’re scared that what you truly crave isn’t serious enough or weighty enough, you must listen to this podcast from one of my all time favorite people, Elizabeth Gilbert:
http://maximumfun.org/magic-lessons/magic-lessons-ep-201-you-have-screaming-not-calling-featuring-sarah-jones)
 
The most powerful thing my clients and I do together is come into the oasis of stillness and renewal, where we listen to and honor what their hearts need to say.
 
So that they can be happy. So that they can live the life they crave. And so that they can do the work that is most naturally, joyfully theirs to do. Because coincidentally, that is what the world needs most from them.
 
For me it is to be oasis for myself and for the people I get to work with.
 
For you it may be something else.

Whatever it is, what if you trusted that there is wisdom in what you desire?

So I'm going to ask you these questions again:

• What do you most crave at this moment in your life?
• What if what the world needs most is for you to say, “Yes?”

​xoxo,

P.S. If you need help uncovering what it is you crave most, then work with me, Braveheart. It is in there. It is always in there. But you may need help clearing away what keeps you from seeing it. And that is one of the things I do best (because it makes me happy.)

I don’t know about you, but 2015 kicked my *ss. And it kicked the *sses of a lot of people I love. For many of us, 2015 required levels of strength, honesty, leadership, and emotional reserves we didn’t know we had.
 
And so, I am easing into my visions and plans for 2016 slowly and gently.
 
If you’re already crystal clear on what you want to create in 2016, that’s wonderful. Ride that wave!
 
But if you’re just beginning to think about it, join me this month. You’re right on time, Dearheart. Over the next four weeks, we’re going to deep dive into our Wisest Self, and start creating our best 2016, from the inside out.
 
Here’s where we begin: You are enough, just as you are.
 
Sometimes, especially if the holidays left us feeling off our center, resolutions and goals can be self-criticism in disguise. (I'm grateful to Nick Ortner for this insight).
 
When you lose X pounds, then you’ll be worthy.
 
When you land X job, then you’ll be worthy.
 
When you can run X miles, then you’ll really be rocking it.
 
Do I want you to lose weight you don’t need anymore? To land that job that challenges and nourishes you? To feel the strength of being able to run X miles?
 
If it’s what your soul craves, YES!
 
But you’ll have so much more chance of success (and feeling good) when you move toward that vision from a place of love and desire, rather than because you’re running to keep your Inner Critic at bay.
 
Let’s not make resolutions driven by fear. Because you and I, we are too beautiful and powerful for that.
 
Instead, I invite you to set intentions from a place of wholeness and desire.

I invite you to listen to your Inner Heroine. She is authentic. She is powerful. And she is wise.
 
She knows where you’re feeling called to something deeper. Something more. Something richer.
 
She knows you may not YET have everything in place to create this thing you long for. But she knows this: She is fundamentally sure of your wholeness, your resilience, and your ability to figure stuff out as it comes. And she can guide you to get the help and tools you need to bring your desire to life.
 
She knows you are ALREADY whole. Already worthy of love and happiness.
 
Just as you are.
 
Today.
 
Before you accomplish X.

P.S. Want to Create Your Best 2016 with me in person? Join me for a special Day Retreat Jan 23.

Not too long ago, I met with a woman who yearned to create something beautiful and powerful. She was born to create it. She knew she was here to create it. She had the talent and skill to create it.

Here's what I think might be going on here. In my own life, and with the many wonderful women I get to work with, I've noticed that almost as soon as we start to identify what we truly desire, we slam right up against all of the reasons we can't have it.

And we shut down.

Or, we look longingly at our fading dream as if it's the mythical city of Camelot, fantasizing, "If only things could be different..."

• If only I had a job I loved.
• If only I didn’t have so much debt, then I could _______.
• If only I didn’t have to do ______, then I could do what I love.

 
Oh girlfriend! I have spent so much time wandering around in that wilderness! And I’ll bet you have too. It's what I call the If Only Trap.
 
If only there were a way to turn it around... ; )
 
Oh, but there is!

Start here. Ask: “What if?”
 
One of my favorite examples of what happens when we stop saying "If only..." and instead ask, "What if?" comes from Master Coach Susan Hyatt. Susan leads incredibly delicious retreats life transformation retreats in beautiful destinations across the world. But this wasn’t always so. For years, she yearned to travel internationally. But her husband? He’s more of a “Let’s go the lake house every weekend” kind of guy. So Susan put off her yearning for years. Decades. “If only he would travel with me...”
 
Until one day Susan asked herself, “Hey! What if I create this MYSELF, with my business?” Since that day, Susan has been creating fabulous coaching retreats for herself and other women in gorgeous locations in Italy, Thailand, Ireland. BAM!

Notice the tremendous energy shift when we move from "If only..." to "What if?"

And so, dear Heroine, where have you been wandering around in the wilderness of "If only..."?

What is YOUR "What if?"

• What if I can do more of what I love?
• What if I can create more time for myself?​
• What if my family doesn’t resent me for taking the time to do what I love? What if I find a way to do it anyway?
• What if I can say “no” to that job that squashes my soul? (Maybe it's time to set your graduation date.)

Everyday for the next week, question any thought that sucks energy away from what you truly desire.
 
1. Notice when you bump up against "I can't" or "If only..."

“I can’t...”
“This won’t work...”
“If only I could...”
 
2. Calm the thought. Tell it, “Yes, I see you. I see that you’re just trying to keep me safe. Thank you. I’ve got this.”
 
3. Now ask yourself, “What If?”
 
What if I can do _________.
What if it does work?
What if I don’t have to? What if I can say “no” to something I don’t love?
​What if I say "yes" to what I yearn for?
 
Ask with curiosity. Ask with true wonder. Ask with a sense of possibility.
 
Notice how you feel. (Doesn’t that feel more powerful?)
 
Well done, Soulful Heroine! You’ve just created a big opening for creative inspiration and new ideas and insights to come in.
 
Watch for it.
 
Listen for it.
 
Thank it.

Act on it.
 
And then tell us about your "What if?" in the comments below!

xo,

If you’re like me, you juggle many good things. (I have three business pursuits and a volunteer nonprofit.) The categories of to-dos can be overwhelming, let alone the to-dos themselves.

But I have an unswerving passion for this: When I coach soulful women and men to rekindle their passion and do work they love, it is magical. I am in the sweet spot of my passion.

It is without a doubt what I’m here to do. And I don’t want it to get lost in the shuffle of other good things.

So this is my mantra for 2015: Passion First.

I’ll bet you have persistent passion too, even if it’s not how you’re making your living - yet. Is it photography? Healing people and the planet? Writing? Bringing order to chaos?

As we dive into 2015, I invite you: Put your passion first.

Why? There are lots of good reasons, like being true to you, being happy, etc. But here is the #1 reason:

Because no one else is going to do it for you.

From today on, and every day in 2015, when sit down to plan my day, I’m going to ask myself, “What if I put my passion first?”

I invite you to join me.

Put Passion First.

Because it’s too darned easy to lose sight of your passion in the many things of the day.

In 2015 I am choosing to arrange my days so that my Passion gets nourished first, tiny step by tiny step.

Want to join me? Here are a few tips for getting started:

1. Give it love: Every day give your passion your attention - even for just a few minutes. Learn, play, meditate, brainstorm, daydream in the arena of your passion, even if the rest of the day is devoted to other projects. 
   
2. Make time: Set aside a chunk of minutes or hours in your day, a day a week or a day a month, to inspire, nourish, and grow your passion. Make time to create. 
   
3. Make room: What can you let go of to make room for your passion? Is there some activity that no longer feeds you? Something that distracts you? I invite you to let it go, darling. Give your passion room to grow, and it will!
   
4. Take a step: Take a small but meaningful step in the direction of your passion. Research it. Update your resume. Set up a conversation with someone you admire who does it. Choose an image or symbol that reminds you of it and put it somewhere you will see it often.
   

Here’s what I know for sure. When you put your passion first, you send a powerful message to yourself and to the Universe, that you mean business.

What is one tiny step you can take today to move your passion from the background into the foreground of your life? What is one way you can give your passion some love - even if it’s just for 15 minutes - today?

Declare it! And let us know in the comments below!

P.S. Want some help excavating your passion? That’s my favorite work. If you’d like some 1:1 guidance for living your passion and purpose, meet me here.