A personal coach can help you define and achieve the life you desire. Through reflection, provocation, guidance, and accountability your coach can help you become the remarkable person you are destined to become.

If you have demons shouting scripts into your ears, from inside your head, this isn’t meant as a substitute for therapy or medication. The suggestions here are meant to augment your existing regimen and are meant to make you uncomfortable. From the depths of depression or despair, self-pity rises up and attempts to drag you down. The surest defense against overwhelming and melancholy is to be of service to others. Having a purpose, other than yourself, is a motivation to get up and get on with your day.

All of life is series of small steps, small steps, side steps, a bigger step, a backward stumble and dozens of more smaller steps until you arrive at the destination – joy.

Ask yourself – ” when I think of someone who could use my help, what name jumps out?”. Be honest, you got a flash, an answer that intuition and karma are calling you towards. Accept that name and ask a second question.” what is the least I can do to be of service to them?” Today’s least might be too big a step to undertake but by breaking the task into bite size pieces you won’t bite off more than you can chew.

Imagine that you heard Tom as an answer to the first question and invite him for Sunday dinner was the action. If you are overwhelmed by the thought of planning, preparing, serving and entertaining for a big dinner there may still be a way to be of service and build towards a dinner in a couple of months.

Can you do some baking; everyone has favorite cookies and then call Tom and make a delivery. In this scenario you control the situation and timeline, you reduce the effort but you still add value to someone you is waiting for your assistance (even if they don’t know it is you). The act of thinking about someone else, considering their circumstances, pressing forward and finding a way to make a difference and then acting on it is life fulfilling. You are a better person for your action, you will feel better (not perfect) and Tom will have a glimmer of hope in every delicious morsel.

Baking isn’t the solution to all problems (it just seems like it should be) and when you answer the who and how questions you will likely end up with a different approach. The process of making it bite size is successful when you are honest with yourself.

Write the preferred goal (what you imagined was your call) on the left hand side of a page – Feed Tom Sunday Dinner. On the left side write, honestly where you are today (your current state) Feeling Overwhelmed. Between the two columns begin creating a list of steps that will get you from today to the preferred future. Bake, call Tom, buy lunch, have coffee, arrange a date, grocery shopping, plan a meal, find recipes, prepare food, clean house, purchase wine… As your list grows pick a couple that you ‘feel’ you could begin with. Lets use Call Tom and Bake. Place Call Tom of the right side of the paper and your current state ( feeling unprepared) on the right. What are the steps in between? Look up Tom’s number, think about what I want to say, write some notes for the conversation, pick a time, dial the phone, let him know you care…