"From Doubt to Delight: Highlights of My 2024"
As the clock struck midnight on January 1st, 2024, and I stood with my partner and children watching the fireworks at Saundersfoot harbour, I could not help but wonder what the new year had in store for me.
I was unaware that this year would bring numerous unforeseen opportunities, significant personal development, and numerous moments of happiness.
But it started with sadness – my father had just died, my uncle died a few weeks later and we started the New Year with a rapidly declining stepmother who just wanted to be back with my father. She honestly believed that they would be reunited upon her death. It exceedingly difficult watching someone you care about intentionally dying. Family disagreements alongside feelings of loss and the inevitable regrets of things unsaid to my father made even the fun of watching John dressed in fancy dress run into the sea on New Years Day difficult.
January just felt bleak, even a trip to The Bahamas was marred by a report on the news the first night that Americans had been advised not to travel to the country due to the excessive murders in the first 3 weeks of the year! We made sure that the doors were extra secure and that we maxed out our days on Jaw’s Beach.
In Feb I took the decision to walk away from my professional role as a Director of Commissioning. It was one of my hardest professional decisions, but I needed a break and recognised that I had to recover from recent events.
I finished on 19th April, by the 20th I was bored. It takes time to come down from a period of high emotional intensity. But in that typical hamster wheel approach to life, I was missing it, felt guilty about my emotional need and question how would I make a difference to people if I could not do my job? I kept telling myself that I will just take a month off, get back asap.
Then along came Jay Shetty and his coaching programme. It gave me a focus and purpose while I healed. New skills, new people with a different life focus were refreshing and made me feel vibrant and alive.
Combine that with some summer sailing, concerts (That Take, Taylor Swift & Adele) and walking in Scotland and one month rapidly became 3 – 4 – 5 months.
Coaching was becoming practical with the first group of real people with real dreams and ambitions. I nervously took discovery calls, undertook Wheel of Life audits, explored Imposter Syndrome, and studied.
And as you train to become a coach, you also get a coach – the wonderful Anna from Montreal.
With Canadian style, she further helped my healing journey, allowing me the space to explore the barriers and enabling me to let them go.
August arrived and as I walked along a windy white beach in Scotland, I had a call about a new commissioning project just 20 days. But oh, how good did I feel as I went back to Commissioning. But I return refreshed, uplifted, and inspired back to making a difference for people.
September and I am a qualified coach – I even give a short speech at graduation AND I have a paying client!
The client numbers have grown, and my clients are really seeing a difference – new job, businesses launched, mindsets reshaped, barriers acknowledged and steps towards those dreams. And just to keep the learning and growing I just completed my Level 2 in Digital Marketing.
Without doubt I have had big moments of doubt and obstacles to overcome.
However, each challenge brought valuable lessons and helped me grow stronger. Reflecting on these moments, I realised how much I have learned and how far I have come. I truly did not know what the future looked like when I finished my work as a Director of Commissioning.
So as the year ends, I am filled with gratitude for the experiences and memories that 2024 brought. It was a year of happiness, growth, and new beginnings. I look forward to what the future holds, with a heart full of hope and excitement.
Join me on my coaching journey, and make next year a year of change for you – email me on