Learning Requires Love

I’m in a new job coaching people who are struggling with and conquering food addiction. Many resist that label, which is fine with me, as long as they acknowledge the experience of feeling crummy once certain kinds of foods are in their bodies and yet reaching for them again and again.  Others embrace the word addict because it explains a lifelong struggle, and, once acknowledged, provides a clear answer for freedom—steer clear of those substances that are addictive, namely flour and sugar.

While I have embraced the notion of myself as an addict for well over a decade, the most recent old narrative I’ve had to discard is that I’m technologically challenged. Working remotely for an online company requires a bunch of new apps and video conferencing .And I’m doing it!  I may not be the fastest learner, but I’m capable and enjoying these virtual connections-- the meet and greets with other members of the team, the department meetings with pictures of all of us in front of me, the poignant calls recorded for others to hear.

I woke up this morning and told Brian I was just so happy. Sure it’s 28 below zero, sure I didn’t leave the house yesterday, sure I forgot again to lead the centering exercise before beginning the coaching call. But I’m in a loving, forgiving, supportive community, which is the safest container in which to learn.

What are you ready to learn if given the right context and a warm invitation?

The Tenderness of Transition

I just left a job I loved for 10 ½ years, at a company I admire and respect, the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation.  My work--leading spirituality groups and meeting individually with people--was fun, helpful and appreciated. So why leave?

 The pattern of my last five jobs has been 1) I'm content and competent where I am  2) the Universe taps me on the shoulder and points to something new 3) my innermost self feels drawn to apply 4) I get the job. This time,  I read an email,  drafted a response, applied, went through six assessments, two interviews, and am now a Coach and Program Delivery Associate for Bright Line Eating Solutions, an online company to help people lose weight and keep it off, founded by the brilliant  and lovable Susan Peirce Thompson.

I’ve moved from working with people recovering from addictions to alcohol and other drugs to those recovering from food addiction, albeit in varying degrees. And just as my own recovery was reinforced by working for a decade in the field, today I find myself in the middle of a community I’ve been a member of for two years, with an unprecedented level of support to work on my earliest addiction.

Getting “sober” with sugar is more challenging for me than was letting go of alcohol and other drugs because eating was the earliest way I learned to soothe myself.  And also because we live in a culture saturated with cues for bad food choices as well as free samples in many workrooms and offices.

Once again I’m learning new systems, getting to know new colleagues, and operating on a much bigger platform than ever before. The course I coach has over 3,000 registered, and while not every one of them will listen to every coaching call, a good number will.  Once again I get the chance to recognize I’m not going to do this perfectly, laugh at my mistakes, and remain teachable from all who cross my path.  I also know enough to double-up on those actions that nourish me physically and spiritually: phone calls, hot yoga, deep breaths, mindful cups of tea, more meetings, more meditation.

Life is a series of transitions. Right now I’m in a BIG one, and once again, I’m invited to deepen my connection to Source so I can hear guidance, have a better sense of timing, and remain calm. I’m grateful for this new opportunity, which builds, as all of our next steps do, on everything I’ve ever learned. Nothing is wasted. Everything is gift.