Student Leadership Development Conference & Retreat

20FREAKIN19 started out with a bang!!!

I genuinely feel like all of the challenges I experienced between 2017-2018 have deeply integrated for me so that I can use the knowledge gained from then during both the present and upcoming days ahead. Though, in many ways that’s really the whole idea behind being alive ain’t it? To participate fully and presently within the magical wonders of each present moment in an effort to grow, completely experience all that is and improve upon the moments to come for both self and others.

There’s so very much potential in now! Both in an observable and hidden fashion. I didn’t always live in the moments of the past two years. Truthfully, I spent much of those years saddened by the past and anxious about the future. But something happened right before the end of 2018. There was this “aha moment” that allowed my thought processes to realign and even granted me the understanding of what had truly occurred to me. I’d experienced trauma, had been both psychologically bullied and neglected within my professional life, developed post traumatic stress from it, lost a sense of self, and never fully integrated the major transitions I’d experienced.

During the more difficult moments of those past years I’d often think “Why the f&$@ is all of this happening”. 2019 has gifted me a strong sense of clarity. A clarity I’d been desperately hungry for. Life had been granting me opportunities for discomfort so that I could grow. Like a lobster that must seek refuge in the dark so that it’s uncomfortable and no longer suitable shell could be shed I’d been getting nudged towards situations for expansion. Ones that made self-guided change inevitable. The times of discomfort showed me ways to improve upon the person I’d forgotten that I am. I now see that those moments of mental darkness were merely times of preparation for the crucial light I’d be called to shine ahead.

While on the subject of shining light…I had the distinct honor of co-coordinating and facilitating various personal development sessions during a day long Student Leadership Conference (1/16/19) followed by a Student Leadership Retreat (1/17/19) at Westchester Community College this month. The best part is that I had the distinct joy of working with some amazing higher ed professionals and got to share some invaluable leadership skills such as mindful and authentic leadership, intentional listening, time management, the realities and importance of human connection, some how to’s for self empowerment and much, much more. During these two days I got to work with nearly two hundred students and felt fueled by each moment and interaction. In short, it granted me the opportunity to re-tap into purpose.

The smiles below are a from a few of the courageous individuals that chose to step into the discomfort and experience what it’s like to shed an old shell. One of the students even said “I originally didn’t want to be here…I thought it was going to be horrible and uncomfortable…but I’ve learned so much from you and everyone here today that I can’t wait for the next chance to do this”.