It’s been a rough week in our house! Everyone except the 20-month-old has taken a turn with the flu. The real, honest-to-goodness flu that you try like heck to prevent with a flu shot and those sanitizing wipes for grocery carts and frequent hand washing. That flu. And let me tell you, it was not fun. Body aches, high fever, congestion, sore throat, ear pain, sinus pain, extreme fatigue, no appetite, and a hacking emphysema-like cough. Good times. We missed school. We missed work. We even missed fun appointments on our social calendar so we wouldn’t spread our germs around the city. It was one loooooong week.

Yet now, miraculously, we’re healthy again! We’re back to school and to work; we’ve changed the sheets and aired out the house, and we’re busily making up for lost time. It feels great to be back to normal.

All of this sickness has had one overwhelming effect (beyond the 6-pack abs I’m developing from all the coughing!). It has made me grateful. I’m so grateful that I spend 99% of my days feeling healthy. I feel so fortunate that I wake up in the morning excited about what the day holds and with the energy to take it on. I feel blessed that I can chase my three munchkins around and manage our household and my job and have something left to go out and have fun.

This week, I renewed my compassion for those people who don’t, both for the ones who are debilitated by undiscriminating illnesses like Cancer and Multiple Sclerosis and Cystic Fibrosis and Rheumatoid Arthritis and for those whose daily lifestyles rob them of the energy they so desperately need and deserve. I was reminded that it’s not just the ill person who is affected by his or her illness either; it’s the entire family. When one of us was confined to the couch, we all suffered. Being a caregiver is exhausting and limiting in its own right!

Overwhelmingly, I believe we all deserve to experience life with a sense of thriving well-being. It’s why I left my safe and predictable corporate job and ventured out into the uncharted waters of entrepreneurship. I believe that people, especially women, deserve to THRIVE despite the demands of their professional and personal lives. Everyone who works for Nourish believes that; it’s why we do what we do. I write this blog and speak and teach and coach to help as many people as I can live “in health” instead of “in sickness.” Some people have a longer and harder road than others to walk before they experience thriving well-being but there are steps that anyone can take to move closer to this desired state. Where are you living?

If you’re ready to live “in health,” we’d love to help you begin. Schedule a FREE consultation with a Nourish Coach today. Call 513-245-4224 or email us at info@nourishyourself.com.

When I left my corporate job, I think it may have been for days like today. March. Eighty degrees and not a cloud in the sky. In March. Sundress and sandals and freshly painted toes. Whole Foods tabbouleh for lunch and pineapple Yagoot for a well-deserved treat. (Apparently we only have Yagoot stores in Ohio! Too bad for you non-Ohioans because this flavor was a-ma-zing, almost exactly like the Dole Whip you get at Disney World!) Working from a shaded Starbucks patio table. I mean does it get any better than this? When your office  is a patio table at Starbucks?!

Sometimes I have to pinch myself to remember that this is real. That I have all the permission I need to craft this life of mine any way I choose.  I don’t have to recreate my corporate life to claim productivity. I don’t have to sit inside, at a desk, from 8 till 6, scheduling meetings and having phone calls and writing memos. I can live a bit more freely. I can meander a little. I can watch an amazing TED talk video in the morning. Chat with a  friend. Work out in the middle of the day. You’d think this was obvious. I bought this freedom at a dear price when I left my corporate job.

But sometimes I’m like the elephant in this old story:

As a man was passing the elephants, he suddenly stopped, confused by the fact that these huge creatures were being held by only a small rope tied to their front leg. No chains, no cages. It was obvious that the elephants could, at anytime, break away from their bonds but for some reason, they did not.

He saw a trainer nearby and asked why these animals just stood there and made no attempt to get away. “Well,” trainer said, “when they are very young and much smaller we use the same size rope to tie them and, at that age, it’s enough to hold them. As they grow up, they are conditioned to believe they cannot break away. They believe the rope can still hold them, so they never try to break free.”

The man was amazed. These animals could at any time break free from their bonds but because they believed they couldn’t, they were stuck right where they were.

My many years in a traditional work environment shaped the way I think about work. They were the years when I learned the difference between being productive and goofing off. But what if those distinctions are no longer useful in this life I’m living now? What if writing out here in the sunshine and going for mid-day runs and reading or watching work from inspiring people IS productive?

Today was a shining reminder to craft the life I want to live. As we head into spring, I’m going to challenge any imaginary boundaries I’ve placed on my life and make sure that I’m not letting old “ropes” tie my sandal-clad feet. Where can you do the same?