Written by Asha Carolyn Young, Instructor and Practitioner of Healing Arts Asha Carolyn Young offers remote energy healing and emotional processing sessions for well-being. She teaches online Quantum-Touch® workshops and broadcasts self-healing information on News For The Soul radio. She also coaches freestyle painting. If you’re stuck in lower emotions, like depression, grief, anger, or fear, there’s an easy way back to better feelings, freestyle painting. The grouch in you might shrug, but consider freestyle painting as a uniquely amusing and highly effective emotional remedy. Few supplies are required, set-up is quick, and you’re likely to feel much happier when you’re done painting. Painting with water-based paint on wet paper For chasing away the blues, I recommend painting with water-based paints, such as watercolor or ink, and using dampened watercolor paper as your surface. The wet paper makes it impossible for you to control the outcome, so you have to let go. The wonder and fun of watching your brushstrokes move in directions of their own will engage you, and as you bring in more colors and strokes, your painting will become more interesting. As you let go, allowing the paint to flow wherever it will, you simultaneously inspire your deeper subconscious to let go, bringing the possible release of heavy emotions and catharsis. What supplies do you need? All you need are: Several watercolor brushes of various bristle sizes, such as small, medium, and large Watercolor paints or inks in various colors A bucket of water A tray for mixing colors (a glass casserole dish works well) A couple of watercolor paper pads Schedule it in After you have your supplies together, the last step is to schedule your painting session. Tell your loved ones, “I’ll be busy for a bit,” and close the door. Play music or just be silent. Turn off your devices. Remember, you are painting to bring healing to yourself, and you are worthy of receiving this love. A gift of love from yourself to yourself. Freestyle painting promotes emotional release and happiness, and that is what you want. So, keep the date. Start painting Begin by dipping the bristles of all your brushes into your bucket of water and letting them soak for a few seconds. Then, very gently press the bristles to remove excess water and lay them down. Select a large wet brush to lightly but thoroughly dampen your sheet of watercolor paper. Choose a color and use a small brush to put a bit of it in your mixing tray. With your intuition, pick a color you feel like starting with. Don’t question your choice, go with it. Add a dab of water and blend it with the paint or ink to stretch the color. Notice you can gradually lighten the hue by adding a bit more water and then testing the color on a scrap of paper. For bold colors, use very little water. For pale colors, more water. Select a brush. I recommend a large one, and dip it into the paint you chose. Now, paint! Paint without censoring yourself. Paint freely, with spontaneity and abandon. Run your brush in whichever direction and speed you like. Let the dampened paper absorb and spread your strokes unpredictably. What have you got? A little paint goes a long way on dampened paper. So, you might want to pause and see what you’ve got. Stand back and enjoy the color as it spreads without you being able to control it. Watch and see what it turns into. If you want, pick another color and try adding some of it to your painting. Paint freely, with whimsy, without planning. Let strokes of this second color blend with the first color, creating new hybrid colors. You can stop any time or continue longer if you like, layering paint colors and letting parts blend. You might play with using smaller brushes atop earlier broad strokes that are starting to dry. When you’re finished, let the paint and paper dry completely before removing them from the watercolor pad. Painting on two pads simultaneously Having at least two watercolor pads enables you to paint on both surfaces at once. This allows you much more opportunity to express yourself without having to wait for the paper to dry. Continuous painting helps put you into the alpha brainwave state, which, because it silences your analytical mind, helps keep your critical voice at bay, giving you more freedom to express yourself fully. The traces you leave Make your mark. Leave tracings of your mood. Let it all out. Then, after your paintings are dry, sit back and contemplate them. What do you see? The paintings, like sponges, have absorbed some part of you. They embody those old feelings that used to be yours. Now those feelings have transformed into something different, something lighter in you. Since your paintings bear markings of your more troubled emotional state from back then, you might want to thank them for their service. Your painting has absorbed your depression, your sorrow. And if you’re like me, you’ll enjoy looking at what you’ve created. Whether it’s gloomy or joyful-looking, it is your creation, coming from your past mood, emotions, and thinking. And you might get the sense that you didn’t paint alone, but rather with forces of nature directing pigment flow, as if spirits in the magical universe came to play with you as you painted. Sometimes, you will find unintended patterns and repeated shapes. These make you wonder, “Who planned that?” Signs of catharsis You might not be able to see the depths of what is contained in your own freestyle paintings, but another person looking at them might quickly sense exactly how you felt when you painted them. Many years ago, when experiencing some emotional upheaval, I tried painting with watercolors on dampened sheets of paper for therapy. I let loose and painted about eight paintings, one after the other. The process worked to chase away my depression. Some months later, a friend with exceptional empathetic and psychic capabilities saw the paintings and instantly felt the emotional pain I had felt and released while painting them. She teared up and shared what she felt. Only then did I realize how much sadness I had released into those paintings. The painting process had liberated me emotionally, and apparently, the paper still held tracings of my past suffering. The advantage of painting freestyle on wet paper is that you're guaranteed a loss of control. As you let go of needing to control the outcome of your painting, your subconscious can release its hold on lower emotions. Freestyle painting is cathartic, allowing the release of lower emotions. It worked for me, and it can help you, too. Science backs painting benefits Freestyle painting, like many creative activities, alters your brainwave levels from fast beta waves to slower alpha waves as you move away from analytical thinking to imagining and sensing. The slower wave patterns of alpha are immediately beneficial to your physiology, according to researchers like Joe Dispenza and his team, who study brainwaves of meditators. Slower brainwaves like alpha and theta are known to improve human health in a myriad of ways, beginning with greater brain coherence. Findings from researchers for The Guardian magazine also indicate that engaging in any of the arts can improve your immune system, gene expression, and blood pressure, and make you more resilient to dementia, to name a few benefits . Activities like playing musical instruments, crocheting and sewing, and going to concerts are, like freestyle painting, highly beneficial, physiologically and emotionally. Painting as a path to healing The joys and thrills of creating and the meditative aspects of painting make it indeed highly beneficial for people. Additionally, our self-esteem rises when we create. “I painted that,” we can say and feel a sense of happiness and empowerment simply from having been a creator. And since our first, experimental, freestyle paintings might look funny and strange, we can laugh at ourselves, which, of course, is also very healing. Help with beginning to paint If you want help getting started, consider seeking guidance from a painting coach. You can soon be on your way to painting and healing yourself in a pleasurable way. You might even discover that painting is so fun, you never want to stop. Visit my website  for more info! Read more from Asha Carolyn Young Asha Carolyn Young, Instructor and Practitioner of Healing Arts Asha Carolyn Young is a practitioner of intuitive energy healing and emotional processing. She offers remote sessions for people and pets, teaches online workshops for Quantum-Touch®, and bimonthly broadcasts self-healing information on News For The Soul radio. A painter and author of three art-related books, Asha also guides people to engage in creative expression for health and happiness.

Written by Abisola Fagbiye, Customer Experience Strategist Abisola Fagbiye is a Customer Experience Strategist and Microsoft 365 Productivity Consultant with a Professional Diploma in CX from The CX Academy, Ireland. A WiCX member, she transforms how businesses connect with customers, turning interactions into drivers of loyalty and growth. For more than a hundred years, five words have been used to justify unfair treatment of employees, encourage customer expectations that are hard to meet, and create harmful service environments. This phrase dates back to 1905, when merchants often cheated customers, but today its misuse is hurting both workers and businesses. Knowing this history helps explain why taking the phrase literally can cause real damage. Is the customer always right? For over a century, business owners have often used the phrase "The customer is always right" as a protective shield for their employees. Unfortunately, this has sometimes led to unfair treatment and a toxic work environment, with employees feeling betrayed by their employers. But here's an interesting and important point, this phrase was never meant to be taken literally! Its origins date back to a 1905 article in The Boston Globe, highlighting a different era when stores operated under the principle of caveat emptor, or "let the buyer beware." Back then, stores often misrepresented products and treated customers with suspicion, creating a confrontational shopping atmosphere. However, visionaries like Marshall Field, Harry Gordon Selfridge, and César Ritz introduced a new approach, treating customers with dignity and respect, taking their complaints seriously, and believing them when they report issues. Their goal wasn't to declare that customers are always correct but to shift from an adversarial mindset to one focused on excellent service. This change aimed to break down the long-standing barriers of mistrust between customers and merchants. The missing words that change everything In recent years, social media users have shared that the original saying was longer, "The customer is always right, in matters of taste." This slight change really shifts the meaning. If we believe the customer is right in matters of taste, it suggests that businesses shouldn't argue with customers about preferences, choices, styles, or colours that suit them. However, it doesn't mean customers are right about prices, policies, or how employees are treated. According to Snopes' research , there's no evidence that Selfridge or any source used this more extended version.  The addition of "…in matters of taste" seems to be a modern way of explaining the original saying, which some find problematic. Even Selfridge himself appeared to acknowledge these limits. In a 1936 newspaper editorial, his department store stated, "The customer is not always right. There is such a thing, very seldom, as the unreasonable customer." International variations reveal original intent In France, César Ritz used the phrase "le client n'a jamais tort," which means the customer is never wrong. In Germany, they say “der Kunde ist König,” meaning the customer is king. In Japan, the phrase “okyakusama wa kamisama desu” translates to “the customer is like a god.”  These expressions reflect a desire to treat customers with the utmost respect, highlighting the importance of prioritising their satisfaction, genuinely listening to their concerns, and treating them with dignity. They don't imply that customers should be given unlimited power to misbehave or make unreasonable demands. How the meaning drifted As the retail environment improved and customer protections became common, the original idea behind the philosophy became less distinctive. Businesses didn’t have to work as hard to show customers they could be trusted because trust had become the norm. Even after its original purpose faded, the phrase stuck around. Managers began using it not to foster trust, but to dismiss employee concerns. Saying "The customer is always right" often ended conversations quickly, leaving employees in tough spots. If the customer is always right, then employees usually have to be wrong, no matter what. This permanently changed the power balance between customers and businesses. The harm this myth creates The phrase can sometimes allow abusive customers to demand anything and behave however they like. According to research from the University of British Columbia, frontline employees who face verbal abuse often experience adverse effects such as stress, anxiety, and emotional exhaustion. Understandably, employee morale can suffer when they feel unsupported. When staff see management consistently siding with customers, even when those customers are clearly wrong, it can be quite disheartening. This attitude can create a divide between management and employees, and over time, this cultural gap can be more damaging than individual incidents. It's essential to learn that training employees to handle difficult situations effectively requires strong support from management, rather than simply always siding with customers. Companies that rejected the myth thrived Herb Kelleher, the beloved founder of Southwest Airlines, took a notably caring and thoughtful approach. His core belief was "employees first, customers second, shareholders third." He felt that when employees are treated with kindness and respect, they naturally provide better service to customers, leading to success that everyone can be proud of. When some customers, who were upset and mistreated by Southwest staff, encountered Kelleher, he gently explained, "No, they are not always right.' Southwest Airlines would sometimes kindly suggest that demanding customers consider flying with other airlines rather than continuing to cause trouble for staff. This approach helped Southwest soar to become one of the most profitable airlines ever, enjoying many years of steady success, never having to furlough staff, and earning a place among America’s most admired companies. Putting employees first didn't hurt the customers, quite the opposite, it created a team of passionate staff eager to serve well. Modern customers don't need paternalistic protection The phrase originated when customers needed advocates to stand up to unscrupulous merchants. That era has passed. Today, consumers are more knowledgeable, connected, and empowered than ever. Research from PwC reveals that they actively seek reviews, compare products across different platforms, and interact with brands on social media. Customers no longer rely on businesses to always be right or to protect them. Instead, they appreciate honest information, high-quality products, fair policies, and respectful treatment. They are savvy enough to make wise decisions about where to spend their money. The old idea of "the customer is always right" doesn’t fit with today’s expectations. Modern customers want to be respected as capable adults who can assess value and make well-informed choices. Better philosophies exist The phrase "The customer deserves to be heard" emphasises the importance of customer feedback, helping employees maintain standards and boundaries. "Employees first, customers second" highlights the natural order that leads to excellent service. "Treat customers as you would want to be treated" encourages mutual respect without expecting subservience. Everyone involved in a business relationship deserves to be treated with dignity, neither should have unlimited control over the other. Learning how to gather and respond to customer feedback fosters stronger relationships, much more than just accepting feedback without question. Set appropriate boundaries Establish clear policies on acceptable behaviour by emphasising that bullying, harassment, discrimination, and verbal abuse are unacceptable in your workplace. Offer staff comprehensive training on managing difficult situations, including techniques for de-escalation, staying calm, and knowing when to involve supervisors. Empower managers to support their teams effectively, especially when customers cross boundaries, encouraging them to step in rather than expecting staff to endure abuse alone. Be ready to end customer relationships that harm your employees. After all, some customers aren't worth the trouble. While the phrase 'the customer is always right' was groundbreaking in 1905, it can actually be harmful in today's world.  The business environment it addressed has changed dramatically. The companies that truly succeed now are those that create organisations where employees feel valued and inspired to serve customers because they're treated well themselves. Discover how fostering mutual respect and building customer loyalty can forge stronger, more meaningful relationships than mere subservience ever could. This keynote gets standing ovations. "Kill the Script: Human Connection Wins Every Time" challenges everything your team thinks they know about service philosophy, including the dangerous "customer is always right" myth. Audiences discover the true history of this phrase, why literal interpretation destroys cultures and employee morale, and what healthy customer relationships look like. This provocative presentation transforms how leadership teams balance customer service with employee protection. Book this keynote that people talk about ,  or email . Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn   for more info! Read more from Abisola Fagbiye Abisola Fagbiye, Customer Experience Strategist Abisola Fagbiye is a Customer Experience Strategist and Microsoft 365 Productivity Consultant who helps organisations rethink engagement, build CX-driven cultures, and drive retention and growth. With global experience spanning SMBs to enterprises, she delivers workshops and training that blend strategy, energy, and actionable insight. She is a mentor and rising voice in CX leadership. Further reading: How to Train Customer Service Teams That Actually Perform How to Collect Customer Feedback and Actually Do Something with It How to Turn Satisfied Customers into Loyal Advocates

Pierce D. Logan, founder of QWERT Poetry, LLC, is a solopreneur who commissions personalized poems on a manual typewriter for strangers at special events and through partnerships. Strangers approach the typewriter to engage in an intimate session, during which meaning is extracted from a deep conversation with the poet. Pierce then composes the poem and, finally, the requester welcomes home a timeless keepsake. Throughout the past decade of exploring people's special moments during these poetry sessions, Pierce has learned that all humans have a distinct need to be witnessed and listened to. As a former educator of ten years, the greater purpose of QWERT has come to be to revive the necessary role of the bard in society through literacy development workshops and community engagement. Pierce Logan, Founder Who is Pierce Logan? Introduce yourself, your hobbies, your favorites, you at home and in business. Tell us something interesting about yourself. Pierce is a solopreneur, writer, and runner. His story begins back when he was a misfit in school, always reading books, observing, and questioning. Skateboarding culture provided formative frameworks for understanding alternative perspectives and finding a sense of belonging on the fringes. This perspective provided fodder for creativity and gave more nuance to meaning. As a young adult, he fell in love and traveled solo to Brazil for the first time. Soon after, he became fluent in Portuguese and discovered the flow state, having studied obsessively for many hours every day. For the first time, he realized he was capable of mastering a skill, but before, he had lacked the direction and inspiration. This paved the way for developing his writing, founding QWERT Poetry, LLC, and continuing to work the writer's muscle. He eventually became a high school teacher and taught for ten years, and eventually decided traditional education would never be the place for his mind. From the fringes looking in, he learned a lot about the world, himself, and what he did and didn't want. This has informed his ethos and what drives him forward, rooting him in spirituality and self-improvement. At home, life looks like reading (the more occult the topic, the better!), learning from or being inspired by videos on YouTube, playing Xbox, meditating, cooking, studying foreign languages, or recording content for social media. What inspired you to start QWERT Poetry, and how has your journey shaped the work you do today? I was inspired to start QWERT Poetry from a deep desire to connect with others, though I believe this was subconscious at the time. What actually got me started was my mom and my love of poetry. I began writing poetry as a teen, inspired by descriptive, complex lyrics from the angsty music I listened to at the time. One day, my mom came home from work with a poem about me written on a typewriter and a black and white photograph of a guy sitting behind a typewriter in the NYC subway. I then decided I should get a typewriter and try the same thing. I set up in Central Park, soon got my first client, and the rest is history. I fell in love and felt like I had found something I was called to do. This was back in February of 2015. I recognize how essential these brief moments of connection are, and I need them as much as the people I write for do, so I keep going. What makes your approach to poetry and writing unique in today's landscape? Today the seam that binds the digital and physical world is stronger and less noticeable at the same time: We have a hard time recognizing what's been generated by a human, why we are even seeing or experiencing something, whether through our algorithm or through our emotions. The territory we are charting is new, but at the same time familiar. Being able to helm us through these seas is important to me: I feel called to represent this moment through poetry. Your feelings, your moments, your uncertainty. Since I began QWERT in 2015, I learned that I, too, feel exactly what you are feeling, I have had the same thoughts, and can recall the same hugs, scents, and regrets that the stranger before me is courageous enough to describe in full. It's also important to note that the role of the poet is a historical and enduring one: poets used to travel from town to town in search of housing and food, sharing their whimsical words and wielding their storytelling skills in exchange. When masses of people were illiterate, those who knew how to read and write would transcribe letters of communication by hand, then later on, by typewriters. Therefore, what I do has deeper historical roots than meets the modern eye. How do you incorporate your personal experiences into your poetry to make it resonate with your audience? I think rather I incorporate others' personal experiences into my own – I think it's an exercise of connecting and feeling with another person, really seeing them for who they are in the moment, and meeting them there to co-produce this work. People request topics that we can all relate to – if it's about heartbreak, even a young child can understand what it feels like to feel abandoned or hurt by someone else. If it's about changes, we have all experienced change in one way or another. Being human always resonates, and these are human experiences I deal with. Can you share a success story where your poetry made a significant impact on someone's life? Definitely, I can share a couple. One would be when a young guy hired me to be present at his proposal at the MET in NYC. The beautiful thing was, another typewriter poet was set up there during one of their first dates, from whom they had commissioned a typewriter poem! He wanted to replicate that, so I sneakily set up in the same spot he outlined and pretended not to know the photographer whom he had also hired. I even got a couple of extra commissions while I was there, helping me stay incognito. They came to request the poem, then, the moment I was waiting for happened: he read the poem to her, which ended with a poetic proposal. He got down on one knee on the iconic steps of the MET and proposed. Poetry can really transform a moment. Another one I can recall was on the anniversary of someone's grandmother's death. This person later became a friend and a big supporter of mine. She recounted that the poem was exactly what she felt and wanted to remember her grandmother by. To capture that in words, onto the page, frame it, for her to be able to slow down and feel her grandmother's presence again, for her to take it home, there was nothing more memorable. How do you stay motivated and inspired in your writing, and how do you keep the creative process flowing? I'm not sure that motivation or inspiration to write works the same way for everyone. In terms of what I do on my typewriter, the inspiration is really in the stories strangers tell me. It's interesting because during the moments in between, when it's silent, and I am not sure when the next person will come, I can only choose to savor the special moment I just had, because I know it's a gift that many people dream of – that paradox of intimacy and anonymity. Once I am engaged in conversation with someone, the feeling of the poem comes before the words. Once I have the details I need, which again is a feeling, a sense of readiness and preparedness to write, then I am off, and nothing can stop me. It's a divine force that carries my words outward. This is how I communicate. What role do social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook play in your work and connecting with your audience? These platforms are constantly evolving just as the digital landscape and human possibilities continue to advance. They have helped me connect with greater audiences – the wonderful thing is, typewriter poetry is really an experience for everyone! I mainly use Instagram as I've found it conducive for building my personal brand. I also intend to leverage TikTok more for short-form videos of me typing. I believe content like this helps explain what typewriter poetry is, and it's amazing for people to watch someone use a typewriter 'in the wild'! How do you see the future of poetry evolving, and what role do you want to play in that evolution? This might be my favorite question! I do think poetry still matters and that something that has been with us since the beginning of time will continue to evolve with us. I see more and more people leaning on poetry as a means of expressing the experience and feeling of life. Prose is a format of writing that provides context, develops the setting, etc., but poetry cuts right to the quick – it gets to the heart of the matter. Even folks who won't find themselves sitting down to read poetry are indeed in touch with and affected by it. This is evidenced by the influence of musical lyrics. Lyrics are poetry dancing with rhythm. I personally prefer page poetry because I find it more suitable for how I communicate. But poetry can be the intro to a movie that creates the mood or concisely establishes a mystery. There's a reason we are drawn to rhyme or to embellished wording – we are trying to get the emotion, the true essence of the thing we wish to communicate. This is poetry's role. And if it weren't still relevant, why does it still exist? The quality or approach to poetry might not be what evolves, but perhaps how we interact with it and savor it in meaningful ways will evolve. What challenges did you face when building your brand, and how did you overcome them? In the world of typewriter poetry, there is no road map. As someone who has always liked to chart my own path, that is exciting to me. While we have a typewriter poet group chat where we can bounce ideas off one another and share resources, it is a lone-wolf sport, in my opinion. The challenge I currently face, ironically, is developing the language to communicate what my service really is and to infuse the value of poets of old, along with meeting the needs of modern times, to find the right prospects. Too often, people think I can just work on Valentine's Day and maybe Christmas and be good! Poetry is not just something to gift for Valentine's Day, or even just for a corporate event; it is best suited as an ongoing activation that excites guests, brings them to tears on any Tuesday afternoon, and invites them back because your hotel has something so touching and timeless to offer. How can clients benefit from your poetry workshops or services, and what can they expect to gain from working with you? Typewriter poetry is unlike any other experience. 99.9% of the time, people I have written for have given raving reviews, not only because of how novel what I do is, but because I am among the best at it. I don't say that lightly – I have been doing this for over a decade now. I've made mistakes – forgotten names, lost track of someone's details, and forgotten to write their poems at an event. But I've learned from these mistakes, and as a result, I understand how to engage people, not only to produce a truly personal keepsake, but an unforgettable experience. I regularly hear from past clients years later, and they've not let go of their poems. The pieces we crafted together have changed the trajectory of their lives – from encouraging them to go after their dreams to memorializing their late loved ones. Just like any field of work, one must constantly gather and sharpen relevant skills. It has been my life's work to become an excellent listener, a friend, a medium. But also to gain the courage to quantify and qualify the value of my poetry whilst learning how I can best serve others through our sessions. This was once an experiment, a project, but now it is my calling. The typewriter has a way of drawing people in, and together, with my undivided attention, clients will find a way of expressing something that has been lodged in their throat, waiting to jump out onto the page. I would much rather spend an extra minute or two with a client than rush the poem. I have learned that I cannot write until I've uncovered the heart of the matter with you. It is my duty to help you find that and write it beautifully, sometimes painfully, onto paper. Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn , and visit my website for more info! Read more from Pierce Logan

Gareth Edward Jones is a visionary technology leader, environmentalist, and social impact advocate with over two decades of experience at the intersection of people, purpose, and digital transformation. A CIO Times Top 5 Business Leader (2024-25), and Executive Contributor for Brainz Magazine. Gareth is the founder and CEO of Lightrise, where he champions ethical innovation, ESG-driven strategy, and inclusive technology solutions. Gareth Edward Jones, Visionary Technology Leader, Environmentalist, and Social Impact Advocate Who Is Gareth Edward Jones? Gareth Edward Jones, founder of Lightrise™ and chair of the Lightrise Foundation, is a pioneering force in technology-driven business transformation, leadership development, and holistic growth. Guided by a mind-body-spirit philosophy and a deep commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, Gareth empowers individuals and organisations to align purpose with performance and thrive in an era of rapid change. After witnessing how fragmented systems and short-term thinking limit human potential, Gareth set out to redefine success–creating strategies that build resilience, clarity, and sustainable impact. His approach fuses cutting-edge technology, human-centred design, and leadership principles with empathy and integrity, enabling clients to achieve more consciously and lead with confidence. Through Lightrise, Gareth partners with ambitious entrepreneurs, progressive institutions, and global organisations to unlock hidden potential and drive meaningful change for people and the planet. His work has helped leaders turn complexity into clarity, adversity into advantage, and challenges into catalysts for growth. With humanity at the core – and the occasional touch of modern-day alchemy – Gareth and his team transform negative challenges into positive value, shaping a future where innovation and purpose go hand in hand. What inspired you to start Lightrise and focus on People Centred AI, HR, ESG & Cyber-Security modern work solutions and services? I’ve always been driven to support people and make a positive difference, but shortly after the pandemic, I burned myself out ( which I wrote about ). I had been successfully working remotely on international digital transformation and HR projects for several years. I had worked at some of the world's top universities, charities, and the world's oldest municipal police force in London. I was successful in all my roles, but I was never satisfied. I still held a deep connection to nature and, since childhood, a desire to help change the world. As I got older, that inner voice grew louder and was reinforced by witches, psychics, and spiritualists I had met on my journey, foretelling a 'golden future' and my path to help others. I reflected deeply on my life and realised I could turn my learning and experience into something with a broader, more positive impact. I studied Environmental Science as an Undergraduate and subsequently Development Management as a Postgraduate. I never lost sight of the challenges Humanity and the Planet collectively face, yet somehow found my career shaping around HR and IT. When you want to provide strong solutions in this area, you really need to focus on all the important foundations, which are HR, ESG, Modern Work, and Cybersecurity. Equally, I maintained my connection to nature through approaches to wellbeing, and charity challenges, including a trek to Everest and an Arctic Survival Challenge in Sweden. When I was a kid, I always had an entrepreneurial streak, and this has never left me. I started my own car-washing business at the age of 10, then, soon after, sold fishing lures to my Dad’s fishing friends. Fishing was a skill my father passed down to me, and it became a great approach for mindfulness too. I love the autonomous, creative, and opportunistic approach of entrepreneurship. But after burning out, I saw a way to transmute my lived experience (including those shadow moments) into the light of positive impact, weaving together my mind-body-spirit philosophy with technology. Throughout my career, I realised that without controlling all organisational levers, influencing and building a company culture focused on positive values, strong ethics, and integrity was challenging. Positive change at a corporate level is rigid and slow, and I can be impatient. For speed, I decided to go it alone and build from the ground up, using my skills across all business functions. Through Lightrise, we demonstrate how simple it is to build a remote business for good by aligning ourselves with the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals. The goals are an internationally agreed, ready-made blueprint for our combined success. Even without the UN label, these 17 intentions make good practical sense. With this approach, I was able to quickly establish Lightrise’s values, strategy, mission, and pace. Our mission would be simple. To make a positive impact in the world by providing IT and HR services with humanity and integrity. In doing so, we could show the world a templated approach to being a business for good, whether you were the size of a bee or a giant enterprise. As time has moved forward, I’ve taken this model to impact individuals too, by providing coaching, speaking, and wellbeing services based on my own journey through anxiety, fear, and resilience. Advising on the tools, techniques, and technology I used to help me. How does Lightrise help businesses transform their operations using Cloud and AI technologies? We don't believe in unnecessary spending and dislike inefficiency. We show people and organisations how they can achieve more value with less investment, using appropriate technologies and approaches, and always advocating for maximising the value from commercial off-the-shelf solutions to reduce complexity. Now four years old, we have built a company where AI and People bring equal value and complement each other. Copilot is part of the fabric of our organisation (even though we started with ChatGPT). Now we’re able to help others realise how it can be used across all functions in their business, as we have done in ours, and, more importantly, weave this together from a change perspective to take people on a successful journey. How does Lightrise help individuals grow? Everyone’s path is different, and we recognise that. At a collective level, we’ve started a community to enable and support those with entrepreneurial mindsets who want to cut their own path, providing a safe place to explore and learn from our experience of building a fully remote, cloud-based organisation. We’ve also tried to bring some positive disruption to coaching. Coaching has been beneficial for self-realisation and individual growth in my own life, but unfortunately, it remains largely the preserve of those who can afford it. When we were getting dozens of requests a day for coaching services from people in developing countries, we put together a pay-what-you-want coaching session. This provides an entry point to coaching that is also enhanced with AI. How does your approach make you different from other consulting firms offering similar services? Our focus is on People and Planet above profit. It's the positive impact we make that drives us daily. Of course, making more means we can do more to help others. We weave our values of Humanity, Integrity, Humility, and Respect into everything we do, ensuring continual positive impact in our relationships. This often starts by introducing our clients to our work on international development projects worldwide that align with the UN Goals. Every engagement with us creates an impact, whether that's restoring rainforest, empowering women in developing countries, or feeding people experiencing poverty. All of this is traceable on our website. We are also keen to show people how a cloud approach can be used as part of a strategy for simplifying ESG. The data centres we use have stretching targets to be carbon negative and water positive by 2030, and you can monitor all the cloud solutions we provide with free Emissions Impact Reports, making it easy to reduce reporting complexity and increase transparency. Our roots were in HR and People, so when we approach IT projects, we do so in a human-centred way. What's the change needed? How will it be received? We make sure people aren't 100% utilised so they won't burn out. How can AI empower people to achieve results and value more quickly? On Lightrise Projects, we develop an understanding of how to meet your needs exactly, to plot a path to success. Can you describe a typical problem your clients face, and how you help them solve it? We found that when talking about People Processes and Technology, it links to HR, Learning, Cyber Security, and Modern Work. To create the most complete solution, that's what we advise and provide managed services for. But traditional challenges include improving all experiences and processes in a worker lifecycle from recruitment, time capture, leave and absence, joining/leaving, case management, compensation, pay, engagement experience, and information security. Equally, we assist with the exact solutions that have enabled our own success, including CRM, Finance, and Project Operations. At an individual level, people approach us seeking assistance with personal resilience, leadership, entrepreneurship, and being their best selves. We’ll keep evolving our assistance offering based on our own learning journeys. For example, as part of my personal interests and development, I’m currently learning hypnosis and other forms of healing modalities. Whether organisational or individual, we approach everything with empathy and understanding in a structured, risk-conscious way, aiming to make as much positive impact together as we can. What kind of results have your clients achieved after working with you? Solutions that they feel empowered to own and enhance themselves with Lightrise as their safety net. Reduced technical debt and lower total cost of ownership through our approaches to provide appropriate solutions and not upsell unnecessary add-ons. A great example of this is one of our current clients, who recently had to upgrade after their vendor “sunsetted” one of their solutions. We took the opportunity in their cloud upgrade to simplify their architecture and process. The best solutions should be architected to be quick and straightforward to realise value. How do you tailor your solutions depending on the size or industry of a business? Understanding what success looks like is key. Collectively, we've learnt a lot from large enterprise projects, which we've distilled into approaches appropriate for Small to Medium Businesses to get value rapidly, in templated or tailored ways. We use best-practice approaches and Copilot to speed up delivery while guiding our clients to do the same. In a world where McKinsey determines 70% of IT projects fail . We always work with clients to target being in the successful 30%. What is your monthly managed service, and why is “1 to 10 days per month” an ideal setup for your clients? There has never been a better time to run a small business. Capitalism is built on controlling labour and means of production, traditionally making the costs inhibitive for many to succeed. With AI, we've all got a chance to get onto those first rungs on the business ladder. But while all that is true, global change, economic headwinds, and cybersecurity complexity all pose challenges for businesses. We've always said it's important to treat our clients as we want to be treated as clients ourselves. The reality is, we never found a partner who could help us across all the fronts we needed without being upsold or overcharged for services our bootstrapped approach could afford, so we've done it all ourselves. Now we are training others to do it through the Lightrise Community on Skool, which we run with our sister impact organisation, the Lightrise Foundation. We want to see the community of learners there succeed in their entrepreneurial endeavours and become part of our talent pool. Providing our clients with 1 to 10 days a month gives them a scalable, low-risk approach to cover all the key foundations they need to start a business, but were unable to find in any single supplier. What should a business expect during the first consultation or assessment with Lightrise? A free impact token to make a positive impact towards our mission; after that, we'll be keen to listen and understand how we can meet their needs exactly. Something often overlooked in many projects is what success looks like. Once we know this and the landscape, we'll be keen to show them standard solutions that they can get the best value from, and point them to any free trials available, with time to follow up on their thoughts in the future. How does your team handle sensitive areas such as cybersecurity or HR compliance while ensuring smooth operations? I think the important thing is to make sure everything is managed with zero trust and that we treat our clients' data and security with the same diligence we treat our own data and processes. Treat clients as you want to be treated yourself. We now use AI-enabled security, which simplifies management. We also have a strong relationship with the University of Southampton, which is ranked as an academic centre of excellence in Cyber Security Research by the UK Government, and ranks in the top 100 globally for research performance and educational reputation. Tim Berners-Lee is even one of its alumni! A number of the team come from an HR background and still have a confidential, People-first approach to managing the business and compliance, which is further supported by a comprehensive set of skills and competencies available to us via our sub-contractor network, the Lightrise Alliance. All suppliers in this network have had to meet the high bar we've set for ethics, data compliance, integrity, and environmental credentials. What common misconceptions do potential clients have about consulting, and how do you address them? [Laughs] I've never had much time for consultants in my career. I thought they cost too much, were ineffective, and inefficient at producing results. This can be a misconception, or it can be a reality depending on which consulting partners you work with. Other common misconceptions include: Consultants just give advice Consulting is only for big companies Consulting is all about strategy Consultants replace employees We’ve worked with a lot of large companies and bloated projects; however, in reality, targeted consultancy with practical outcomes and measures of success can add a lot of value for small to medium businesses, as well as Enterprises. We provide professional services that empower people and companies. Something that I’ve regularly heard throughout my career helping people with Functional Consultancy or Solution Architecture is this “Oh our current/previous partner wouldn’t let us change the system. Every configuration change had to go via them”. How can companies own their solution, or their employees feel empowered when this approach is taken? Our goal no matter the size of the organisation is to leave in place a solution with local knowledge on how it can be maintained operated by the organisation itself. Our intent is not to replace employees with expensive outsourced support, but to provide support in the context of making our clients feel safe that they have someone supportive to lean on when needed. We do provide advice, but equally we create tangible results, whether this is in the form of project management, HR consulting, or solution analysis, setup, and quality assurance. Each client’s needs are different, and strong consultants can operate at all levels of a business. We are very task-oriented, always ensuring there is value from the exchange of our time. Our plans are structured with success targeted as the outcome. Each task provides value and progress towards helping a client achieve that success as quickly and responsibly as possible. What advice would you give to a business owner who is hesitant to invest in consulting services but wants to grow sustainably? Consulting services are being disrupted. Use AI as much as you can within your risk appetite and recognise when to engage specialist consulting to balance genuine legal risks and targeted value. Understand when you are engaging with consultancy: what problem it solves for your business/organisation/institution, how quickly it will create value, and how it empowers others in your broader internal team. There is still a place for consultancy, but make sure you choose partners who align with your vision, goals, ethics, and shared appetite for success; doing anything less could be a costly decision. What’s next? Gareth is working on his first autobiographical leadership book, layered with entrepreneurial, personal, and spiritual stories and lessons. Buyers of the first editions of the book, Darkfall to Lightrise, will also receive one share in the Lightrise business, meaning they can enjoy the story so far, while also being part of our next chapter. Darkfall to Lightrise is expected to be out in Spring/Summer 2026. Start your journey with Lightrise today. If you would like to own a signed copy of Gareth’s book and a share in Lightrise’s future, please register interest using the link on Linktree . We welcome you to join the Lightrise community and to chat about how we can support your transformation. Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn , TikTok , and visit my website  for more info! Read more from Gareth Edward Jones

Written by Dana Hatch, Executive and Neurolinguistics Coach Dana Hatch is renowned for employing a variety of coaching methods to assist leaders in overcoming their struggles and achieving the next level of success. At a certain point in the healing journey, awareness stops being a comfort and begins demanding change. You've seen the patterns, grieved the losses, and now you're at the reckoning, the moment where clarity alone is no longer enough. It’s time to make decisions, confront the truth, and let go of the old identity that no longer serves you. This is the chapter where healing gets uncomfortable, but it’s also where true transformation begins. Where awareness stops comforting you Parts I and II were about seeing and feeling. About waking up. About grieving what almost was. This one is different. If the first two parts helped you understand yourself, this one asks you to take responsibility for what you do with that understanding because there is a point in healing where insight stops being soothing and starts being demanding. You’ve already seen the patterns. You’ve already grieved the losses. Now comes the part most people quietly avoid, the moment when you realize clarity alone won’t change your life. Only decisions will. This is the reckoning. The chapter where awareness stops explaining you, and starts confronting you. And once you cross this line, you don’t get to un-know what’s required of you. The breaking point between who you were and who you refuse to be The reckoning isn’t gentle. It isn’t poetic. It isn’t nostalgic like the almosts. This is the chapter where you look straight at the truth you’ve been avoiding, and realize it’s been living under your skin the entire time. This is where the story stops being about who hurt you, and starts being about who you have allowed yourself to be. Not in self-blame, in self-honesty. The reckoning is the moment your old identity starts to split, and the version of you who survived collides with the version of you who wants to live. It is raw. It is uncomfortable. It is necessary. Because every transformation has a breaking point, and this one is yours. The three faces of reckoning Reckoning doesn’t arrive all at once. It unfolds in stages, subtle at first, then intrusive, then unavoidable. Most people expect some dramatic spiritual awakening. What they get instead is something far more ordinary and far more disruptive, it’s their life calling their bluff. Phase 1: Denial  When you pretend you’re fine while your life is actively on fire Denial isn’t dramatic. It’s practical. It’s the mental gymnastics routine you perform to keep your identity intact. It sounds like: “I’m overreacting.” “It’s not that bad.” “I’ll deal with it later.” “This is just how I am.” “They didn’t mean it.” “I can make this work.” And if we’re being brutally honest, which, if you’ve read anything I‘ve written, you know that's how we roll here. Denial is usually a last-ditch attempt to protect the version of you that knows change is coming and wants absolutely no part of it. You cling to old patterns like Rose clung to the door at the end of Titanic, not because they’re good, but because the familiar seems like the life raft you need to keep you afloat. You defend situations that drain you because leaving would require a backbone you’re not sure you have yet. You justify treatment you hate because you’ve built your entire identity on enduring it. Denial is emotional duct tape over a leaking dam. It buys time. Not true. And it always buckles, not because you choose honesty, but because your body eventually refuses to lie for you. Phase 2: The confrontation The mirror you’ve been avoiding finally grabs your face Confrontation isn’t graceful. It doesn’t arrive during a meditation session with soft music and enlightenment candles. It shows up mid-breakdown. Mid-argument. Mid-pattern. This is when you start catching yourself in real time. You hear yourself overexplain and think, Why am I still doing this? You chase someone emotionally unavailable and whisper, Oh god… It’s me. You prioritize people who wouldn’t throw you a life vest if you were drowning and finally admit, This isn’t selflessness, it’s self-abandonment. Confrontation isn’t about blame. It’s about exposure. It reveals the version of you that’s been steering your life from the shadows: The appeaser. The fixer. The performer. The chameleon. The version of you designed for other people’s comfort. Confrontation is uncomfortable because it threatens your identity, not your behavior, your self-concept. It forces you to face a brutal realization, the person you built to survive may not be the person you actually want to be. And worse, it might be someone you don’t even like. Not because you chose them intentionally, but because you never stopped long enough to choose at all. You were busy adapting. Enduring. Becoming whatever kept the peace, kept the connection, kept you from being abandoned. Then the real reckoning hits, not gently, not gradually, but like a throat punch you didn’t see coming. You realize you haven’t just been participating in your own suffering. You’ve been maintaining it. Reinforcing it and structuring your life around it. You’ve been the caretaker of the very patterns you swear you want to escape. That’s when everything shifts. Because now the story changes. It’s no longer just about what happened to you. It’s about what you continued, what you tolerated. What you protected because it felt familiar. And once you see that, you don’t get to unsee it. That’s confrontation. Not insight. Not awareness. Ownership. Phase 3: The collapse  When the old you finally stops pretending People fear collapse because they mistake it for failure. But collapse is actually the body’s way of tapping out of a life it can no longer survive. The lesson we keep refusing to learn is this: Sometimes breaking is not losing. Sometimes walking away is not weakness. Sometimes starting over is not proof that you failed, it’s proof that you finally stopped sacrificing yourself to stay functional. Collapse is the moment martyrdom stops being confused with strength. The moment you choose preservation over performance. The moment you put the oxygen mask on yourself, instead of suffocating quietly to prove how much you can endure. That’s not failure. That’s the win of all wins. And here is what collapse looks like, it's a relationship ending, and realizing you don’t have the energy to chase anymore, a job pushing you past your limit, and your body saying, "No." We’re done. A pattern repeating so loudly you can’t pretend you don’t see it, a truth landing in your chest so hard it knocks the breath out of you. Collapse isn’t weakness. It’s honesty. It’s not the moment everything breaks. It’s the moment you stop holding it together. The line you can’t step back from Here’s the part no one tells you about awareness. Once you see your patterns, you’re no longer innocent. Comfortable, maybe. Familiar, definitely. But innocent? No. From this point forward, every repetition costs more. The same relationship hurts worse. The same boundary violation feels louder. The same self-betrayal feels heavier. Not because you’re failing, but because your nervous system knows better now. This is the line. On one side is ignorance. On the other hand, there is a choice. And standing still isn’t neutral, it’s a decision to let the old life keep running the show. After this point, you don’t get to say: “I didn’t know.” “I couldn’t help it.” “I had no choice.” You did know. And now, you do have a choice. That’s not pressure. That’s agency. The identity you must outgrow The you that kept you alive won’t be the you who sets you free. There comes a point in healing where you realize the hardest thing to let go of isn’t them. It’s you. Not the you that’s emerging, the you that kept you safe. The one who learned to navigate dysfunction like it was home. The one who mastered shrinking, smoothing, pleasing, performing, and fixing. That identity wasn’t a mistake. It was a survival strategy. But the identity that protected you will eventually limit you. And when you outgrow it, it will feel like betrayal. When the old you starts fighting back Don’t be surprised if the old identity puts up a fight. It will protest. It will panic. It will try to convince you that healing is dangerous, and staying small is safer. It will sound like: “I don’t want to be difficult.” “They’ll leave if I say how I really feel.” “If I stop being the strong one, everything will fall apart.”  “If I don’t fix it, who will?”  “If I stop tolerating this, what do I even deserve?” That voice isn’t the real you. It’s the ghost of who you needed to be. It’s everything you built to survive a version of life you’re no longer living. But if you listen closely, beneath the panic is something else, capacity expanding. The sound of a life that no longer fits, trying to fall away. The whisper of a self that’s tired of being tolerated and finally wants to be chosen. Letting the old you die feels like losing a friend People glamorize transformation, but no one talks about the loneliness of letting go of the only version of yourself you’ve ever known. It feels like mourning. It feels like standing in the doorway of your own life, unsure of where to step. It feels like betrayal, even though you’re betraying the parts of you that once betrayed you. But here’s the sacred truth, If the old you doesn’t feel like it’s dying, the new you hasn’t been born yet. Reckoning is the middle. The tearing. The unmaking. The moment you bury the identity that was built from wounds, so you can grow the one built from truth. The data in the breakdown Your worst moments aren’t failures. They’re reports. We’re conditioned to panic when things fall apart. To treat emotional breakdowns like moral failures. To shame ourselves when we spiral, shut down, cling, lash out, or collapse. But here’s the truth no one teaches you, A breakdown isn’t proof that you’re broken. It’s proof that you’ve reached the limit of a system that can’t sustain you anymore. Your breakdown is a report. A diagnosis from your nervous system saying, “This isn’t working. We can’t keep living like this.” Your triggers aren’t random. Your reactions aren’t flaws. Your patterns aren’t character defects. They're information. We just weren’t taught how to read it. When you cry over something “small,” it’s never about the moment, it’s about everything before it. When you overreact, it’s because you’re done under-responding. When you shut down, your body is done negotiating for oxygen. When you spiral, you’re holding a truth you haven’t said out loud yet. When you obsess, a wound is asking to be witnessed. When you feel rage, it’s because you finally recognize a violation you once normalized. This isn’t dysfunction. It’s truth getting louder. You’re not “too emotional”, you’re under-informed. If you listen closely, your breakdown will tell you exactly what you need to know, what boundary is missing, what need is unmet, what relationship is misaligned, what identity is outdated, what future is calling. The breakdown is the meeting you’ve been avoiding, with yourself. Avoiding pain doesn’t prevent breakdowns, it delays them. Suppressing emotion doesn’t erase it, it stockpiles it. Performing “fine” doesn’t stabilize your life, it just postpones the reckoning. But once you stop treating every emotional moment like an emergency and start treating it like information, everything shifts. Instead of asking, “What’s wrong with me?” you start asking, “What is this trying to tell me?” That question alone changes everything. Breakdowns aren’t the enemy. They’re boundaries your body sets when you won’t. That panic attack? Boundary. That exhaustion you can’t shake? Boundary. That sudden disgust for what you tolerated for years? Boundary. That moment you end up crying on the kitchen floor for no clear reason? Boundary. Breakdowns are the truth you’ve been avoiding, offering you a way out. Accountability vs. Self-blame This is one of the most important pieces of The Reckoning. It is confrontational without being cruel, and compassionate without letting the reader off the hook. This is where you teach them the difference between taking responsibility and abusing themselves with it. It’s written in your signature voice, incisive, relatable, slightly darkly funny, emotionally intelligent, and disarmingly honest. The line between owning your patterns and beating yourself with them One of the biggest traps in healing is confusing accountability with self-punishment. Most people don’t know the difference. They think “taking responsibility” means dragging themselves through an emotional gravel pit until they’ve suffered enough to feel redeemed. But here’s the truth: Self-blame is self-abuse. Accountability is self-respect. They are not the same thing. Self-blame sounds like: “I ruin everything.”  “It’s my fault they treated me like that.”  “I deserved it.” “I always screw things up.”  “No one else has these issues.”  “If I were better, this wouldn’t have happened.” Self-blame is a tantrum of the inner critic. It’s shame dressed as responsibility. It doesn’t teach you anything, it just keeps you small, quiet, and guilty. Self-blame is the emotional equivalent of punishing a child for being scared. It reinforces the oldest wound, “I’m the problem.” This is not healing. This is self-betrayal with a fancy vocabulary. Accountability, on the other hand, sounds like: “I see the part I played.”  “I understand where I abandoned myself.”  “I can’t control them, but I can control my boundaries.”  “My patterns make sense, and they can change.”  “I’m responsible for what I allow, not what others choose.” Accountability is not self-attack. It is self-awareness in motion. It turns insight into intention, and intention into action. Accountability says, “I deserved better, and I’m learning how to give it to myself.” The real difference: Direction Self-blame traps you in the past. Accountability moves you toward the future. Self-blame keeps you stuck in the story. Accountability writes you a new ending. Self-blame spirals. Accountability pivots. Self-blame says, “I’m the villain.” Accountability says, “I want to do this differently next time.” One destroys your identity. The other rebuilds it. Here is why we confuse the two, because shame feels familiar. And what’s familiar feels safe, even when it hurts. Self-blame is predictable. It keeps you in the role you’ve known your whole life, the fixer, the apologizer, the over-explainer, the one who absorbs the blame so no one else has to be uncomfortable. Accountability, however, requires maturity. It requires you to stand up inside your own life and say, “I can’t keep outsourcing my power.” It forces you to face the places where you betrayed yourself, ignored your intuition, or stayed when you should have left. Not to shame you, but to free you. How do you know you’re in accountability, not shame? Ask yourself one question: “Is this thought helping me grow, or is it punishing me?” If it feels heavy, constricting, hopeless, that’s shame. If it feels clarifying, honest, energizing, that’s accountability. One closes the heart. The other opens it. Accountability is the backbone of the reckoning, because this chapter of healing isn’t about blaming yourself for the past, it’s about refusing to abandon yourself in the future. It’s about recognizing where you gave your power away, and choosing, deliberately, to stop doing that. It’s the moment you stop making excuses, stop repeating cycles, stop negotiating with your own suffering, and start showing up differently. Not perfectly. Differently. That’s the difference between accountability and self-blame: One keeps you stuck. The other walks you out. Meeting the self you’ve been avoiding The self you judge the most is the self that protected you the longest. Not the polished version. Not the one you show the world. The other one. The needy one who learned early that asking softly didn’t work. The angry one who showed up when your boundaries were ignored one too many times. The clingy one who stayed because leaving once meant losing everything. The numb one who shut it all down because feeling it fully would have broken you. This is the self you’ve been trying to outgrow, overwrite, or pretend never existed. And yet, this is the self who kept you alive. Most people try to heal by disowning these parts. They shame them. Silence them. Label them as “toxic,” “dramatic,” or “too much.” But you can’t heal a self you keep exiling. You can’t become whole while treating parts of yourself like liabilities. Reckoning forces the meeting. Not to glorify these parts. Not to let them run the show. But to finally acknowledge why they were necessary. This is the moment you stop asking, “What’s wrong with me?” and start asking, “What did I need when this became my strategy?” Because the truth is, these parts didn’t emerge out of weakness. They emerged out of intelligence. Adaptation. Survival. You don’t heal by rejecting her. You heal by integrating her. By saying: “I see why you showed up.” “I understand what you were protecting.” “You don’t have to do this alone anymore.” This is where reckoning stops being self-criticism and becomes self-leadership. This is where the war inside you ends. Not because you won, but because you stopped fighting yourself. This is where reckoning becomes wholeness. The rebuild how reckoning becomes reclamation There’s a moment after the surrender where everything feels unnervingly quiet. No more spiraling. No more grasping. No more negotiating with your own suffering. Just… stillness. A kind of internal silence that feels foreign at first, like walking into a house after a storm, and realizing the walls are still standing, but everything inside is different. This is the rebuild. Not the glamorous part, the sacred part. This is where the reckoning stops burning things down and starts clearing space for a life that actually fits you. People expect rebuilding to look like big declarations, “I’m changing my life!” “I’m never going back!” “I’m choosing myself from now on!” But rebuilding rarely starts with a roar. It starts with a whisper. A quiet, steady, steadying decision that sounds like: “I won’t abandon myself this time.”  “I’m allowed to take my time.”  “I can choose differently today.”  “I am the one I’ve been waiting for.” Rebuilding isn’t the big moment. It’s the accumulation of small ones. The micro-shifts. The tiny acts of self-respect. The quiet corrections of old patterns. Rebuilding is the boring, consistent, beautiful work of becoming someone new. This is where you meet your power, not the performance of it The rebuild is where your power stops being a fantasy and starts being a practice. It’s where you do things like: Say “no” without explaining the entire history of your existence Let someone else handle the fallout instead of jumping in to fix it Delete the text you used to send at 1 a.m. Take a beat before reacting. Walk away from what drains you. Stay when it’s good, even when intimacy scares you Tell the truth without softening yourself to be digestible. These don’t seem monumental until you realize they would’ve been impossible before. Power isn’t loud. Power is choosing differently in the places you used to abandon yourself. This is the part no one talks about, that rebuilding requires grieving the version you’ll never be again. When you rebuild, you lose someone, the old you.   The one who tolerated too much. The one who accepted crumbs. The one who confused attachment for connection. The one who was loyal to her own suffering. The one who fought so hard to be chosen, instead of learning to choose themself. Letting that person go hurts. Because they didn’t fail you, they protected you. They survived for you. They kept you alive long enough to get here. The rebuild honors them. But it doesn’t return to them. Because you’re not trying to become them again, you’re trying to become the version of you they never got to be. The rebuild is the bridge to reclamation This is where Part III ends, and Part IV begins to glow on the horizon. Reckoning breaks the old life. Rebuilding prepares the soil. But reclamation, that’s where you rise. The rebuild is the inhale before the exhale, the quiet before the becoming, the moment the universe holds its breath, because you are about to reclaim everything you once surrendered just to survive. This is where you start writing the story on your own terms. This is where you begin living in alignment instead of longing. This is where all the pieces you thought were broken finally find their shape. Reckoning brought you to your knees. Rebuilding puts you back on your feet. Reclamation is where you start to walk differently. And that walk, that’s Part IV. Follow me on Instagram , LinkedIn , and visit my website for more info! Read more from Dana Hatch Dana Hatch, Executive and Neurolinguistics Coach As a certified executive and neurolinguistics coach with over 15 years of experience in business consulting, I bring a unique blend of psychological insight and practical business acumen to help leaders and organizations achieve transformative results. My approach combines cutting-edge coaching techniques with deep industry knowledge to unlock potential, drive performance, and foster sustainable growth.

Written by Shakti Bottazzi, Best-Selling Author, International Coach, and Embodiment Teacher Shakti Bottazzi is a best-selling author, certified international coach, and three-time entrepreneur. With a successful corporate background and deep expertise in healing hidden emotional wounds, she helps individuals overcome limiting patterns and create authentic, lasting transformation. Have you ever had the sense that your life isn’t meant to be figured out, fixed, or forced, but remembered? Many people I work with aren’t lacking motivation, intelligence, or spiritual curiosity. What they’re missing is not effort, but alignment, a quiet inner knowing that says, "This is who I am, and this is how I’m meant to move through life." Across cultures and traditions, this inner architecture has been described in many ways. I often refer to it as your life design, what I also call your living blueprint. It is not something static or theoretical, but a dynamic pattern that reveals itself through experience, choice, and embodiment. Here are three grounding truths that can help you recognize whether you are living in alignment with that design. 1. Your life design is not something you invent, it is something you uncover One of the most exhausting modern myths is that we must create ourselves from scratch, reinvent endlessly, optimize constantly, and improve without pause. Your life design doesn’t ask for reinvention. It asks for recognition. From an early age, you likely showed clear tendencies: how you respond to pressure, how you make decisions, what environments support you, what drains you, and what consistently brings you back to yourself. These patterns aren’t random. They are signals. Many people override these signals in order to belong, succeed, or meet expectations. Over time, this creates a sense of disconnection or quiet dissatisfaction, even in an apparently good life. Living in alignment begins when you stop asking, "Who should I be?" and start asking, "What has always been true about me?" 2. Maps can help, but embodiment is what brings your design to life Over the years, many frameworks have emerged to help people understand themselves more deeply. Systems such as Human Design and astrology, when used wisely, don’t tell you who to be. They offer maps to help you remember, tools that illuminate your natural rhythms, decision-making style, and recurring life themes. But a map is not the territory. Insight alone does not create alignment. You can intellectually understand your tendencies and still live in ways that contradict them. Your living blueprint only activates when awareness meets daily life, in how you pace yourself, set boundaries, choose work, relate to others, and listen to your body. This is why alignment often feels less like a breakthrough and more like a return, a gradual settling into what feels honest, sustainable, and internally coherent. 3. When you live your life design, clarity replaces force One of the most reliable signs that someone is living out of alignment with their life design is chronic forcing, pushing through decisions, relationships, or paths that require constant self-negotiation. Living from your life design doesn’t eliminate challenge, but it changes how challenge is met. There is less internal resistance. Decisions feel cleaner. Energy is used more efficiently. Clarity doesn’t always arrive as a dramatic revelation. Often, it shows up as simplicity, knowing what to say yes to, what to decline, and when to pause. Over time, this creates a sense of trust, not because life becomes predictable, but because you are no longer at war with your own nature. A living blueprint, not a fixed destiny I call this a living blueprint for a reason. Your life design is not a rigid script or a predetermined outcome. It is a relationship, one that deepens as you listen, respond, and embody it over time. In my book, Remembering Her: A Soul’s Embodiment Journey, I explore how this inner design plays out through real-life experiences of disconnection, remembering, and return, and how embodiment, rather than belief, becomes the bridge between insight and lived truth. If there is one thing worth remembering, it is this: "You are not here to become someone else. You are here to live more fully as who you already are." Sometimes, the most meaningful transformation begins not with change, but with remembrance. If you feel called to explore this more deeply, you can discover how I work with embodiment, awareness, and alignment in Remembering Her: A Soul’s Embodiment Journey, available on Amazon , or through my ongoing teachings and conversations on the Soul Wisdom Project . Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn , and visit my website for more info! Read more at Shakti Bottazzi Shakti Bottazzi, Best-Selling Author, International Coach, and Embodiment Teacher Shakti Bottazzi is a best-selling author, certified international coach, and three-time entrepreneur with a successful corporate career spanning decades. Today, she combines her business expertise with deep training in trauma healing and spiritual development. Through her work, she helps individuals uncover hidden emotional wounds, break free from limiting patterns, and embody authentic, lasting transformation. Shakti is also the founder of The Awaken Path, where she guides clients worldwide through coaching, retreats, and multidimensional healing. Her mission is to awaken the soul and empower people to live with clarity, resilience, and purpose.

Written by Madelyn Harman, Women's Mindset & Fitness Coach Madelyn Harman is a Women’s Lifestyle Transformation Coach and the founder of Ignite Fitness. After overcoming her own body image struggles, she now supports women in reclaiming confidence through holistic fitness, mindset work, and sustainable lifestyle change. Are you ready to 'actually' crush your New Year’s goals this time? Dive in with me as we explore the hidden reason why 99% of people don’t achieve their goals and how you can finally succeed! Each year, New Year’s resolutions are made with hope, motivation, and a genuine desire for change, yet many quietly lose momentum within weeks. This is often framed as a lack of discipline or follow-through, but my experience in the health and personal development space has shown otherwise. Through this article, my goal is to help you uncover the real reasons resolutions rarely last, and to offer a clearer, more sustainable way to approach goal setting so that the intentions you set this year have the opportunity to extend well beyond January. Stop, drop, burnout In a world today where “Hustle Culture” has taken over and silently strangled the peace, freedom, and contentment of America’s mainstream society, what I am about to speak on is so utterly crucial when it comes to focusing on what really matters and making progress instead of spinning your wheels a million times in the mud of unfocused intentionality. This pattern is well-documented in research on habit formation and long-term behavior change, yet it’s often overlooked in mainstream goal-setting conversations. Buckle up! As a female entrepreneur/business owner and ambitious, goal-oriented leader, I connect fiercely to the statements that always pop up this time of year, such as burnout, self-care, New Year’s resolutions, and goal setting , along with all the other things that get thrown around with the end-of-year exhaustion and New Year excitement/dread around the corner. It’s not just business owners, either. Being in the health & wellness space for 4+ years, I have keenly observed one notable thing: it’s a graveyard of R.I.P. good intentions and “See you in the next life, success and consistency!” It’s incredibly tragic, if I’m being honest. Looking to the right and left, passing by those who have set out on a great mission, not only in the business stream but the personal health & wellness stream, and turning sideways in less than half a second. But why? I’ve asked myself this a lot in the past. Why do people fail so frequently, so violently, and so many times when it comes to their ambitions in health, wellness, mindset, etc.? My journey as a Life Coach and wary observer of trends, habits, and patterns has revealed a few enormous causes. Allow me to share some insight: 1. Lack of clarity & vision Many people have a solid general idea of what they want, but very few have a specific vision for what they want. This is the first problem. “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” Quite literally in the physical world, too. We are chasing our own tails the instant we don’t have clarity on what we are actually trying to achieve, and, therefore, we fail at anything we attempt because there is no bullseye to even hit. Clarity isn’t just motivational, it’s neurological. Studies show that clear, written goals activate the brain’s reticular activating system , increasing focus and follow-through. How to fix this? I highly suggest journaling/writing down things that you are able to envision wanting in your life. Get it in front of you on paper. Why is this powerful? Our brain needs to offload information that is floating around, and the visionary aspect of having it on paper in front of us is extremely powerful. 2. A weak 'why' “When the Why is not strong enough, the How will never be big enough.” I like to describe the Why as the gasoline in your engine. As soon as it runs low, your vehicle is not going anywhere; it is the powerhouse of your dreams, goals, and ambitions. Here’s an example: If Jimmy sets out to accomplish a marathon by the end of 2026, but his why is that his friend Jerry is running one and told him it would be a good idea to do it too, so he can get in shape, then I can guarantee you that Jimmy will not follow through, even until the end of January. Unless Jimmy becomes intrinsically motivated to do this for himself. Keywords. When Jimmy now owns that goal of running a marathon because his Why is, “If I do this, I will have the body, the confidence, the stamina, and the respect that I’ve always dreamed of, and if I 'don't' do it, I will feel ashamed, still be overweight, struggling with self-esteem, lose my family’s respect, and ultimately let myself and my friend down”? Now that is something that will keep Jimmy accountable to his goals, and he will make it a priority, not a backburner pot on the stove. How to fix this? If you find yourself struggling to invest in working toward your goal and sticking with something you committed to recently (or a while ago), I challenge you to question your why. Again, going back to paper, write this out. State the specific goal that you have already accomplished, writing it down from 1, and now get really clear on your why. Why is this important to me? Why do I need to achieve this? What does it mean to me if I accomplish it? What does it mean if I don’t? Then pay attention to the energy this gives you. If you come out of that brainstorm just exhausted, mentally fatigued, drained, and ultimately questioning if you put the right thoughts on paper, then I think you should reconsider if that goal is really meant for you at this time or if you’re forcing it, just a thought. 3. Biting off more than resolutions can handle Pretty much everyone is good at eating. The problem comes when most of us are also good at putting more on our plates than our stomachs are capable of handling. This is true, too, in the realm of goal-setting. We set our eyes on the Feast of the Future and begin to implement every imaginable task that could get us there, failing to realize that our engines are not capable of going from 0-100 in 0.3 seconds flat. Nope. Not gonna happen. We love to overachieve, overdream, and overcomplicate. I’m definitely not here to stifle dreams or encourage you to dream small, but only to take a step back and approach it more realistically. Here’s how. How to fix this? Take a moment to breathe. Really. Let your excitement settle, your nerves calm down, and just allow yourself to take in the present moment. This is crucial. Normally, we allow ourselves to get caught up in the present moment of elation and the “could-be’s,” and I’m very guilty of this myself. So we need to calm down, let reality sink in just a tiny bit, and then take the next step. And that is to get physical. No, I don’t mean punch your co-worker you got pissed at this morning, I mean to physically put it in front of you. This helps you visualize what will need to take place. To do this, we start by working backwards. I need you to get down and dirty with visualizing this dream as strongly as you can. Get all the details, the feelings, the emotions, what exactly is taking place. Now we figure out what is missing from this picture in order to make that happen. Keep doing this all the way down the chain until you get one actionable step to take right now. That may be one thing, like calling an old friend to reconnect on an opportunity they offered 3 years ago, or it might be a habit you need to implement, like getting up at 6 a.m. instead of rolling out of bed at 7:58 a.m. to make it to work at 8 a.m. You get the drift. Give it a try and let me know how it goes. Closing in on change These are just a few of the patterns I repeatedly see in my work coaching individuals through sustainable change rather than burnout-driven motivation , and I hope this can help a few who are on the struggle bus of “ Coach Madds ! What in humanity do I do next?!” Obviously, there are many other reasons people may not achieve their resolutions this new year, but I challenge you to look closely and see if you can associate yourself with any of these listed above. Sometimes it’s hard. Sometimes we don’t want to admit we are failing at something, believe me, I do that often. I hate failing as much as anyone, yet this is what will help you the most. Revisit, recognize, shift, take action, see change. It’s simple but not necessarily easy. I wish you the best of luck, and, as always, I’m here if you need me! I’m just one call away. Schedule your coffee date here ! Follow me on Facebook ,  Instagram ,  LinkedIn , and visit my  website  for more info! Read more from Madelyn Harman Madelyn Harman, Women's Mindset & Fitness Coach Madelyn Harman is a Women’s Lifestyle Transformation Coach and the founder of Ignite Fitness. After overcoming her own body image and confidence struggles, she now helps women build sustainable strength, energy, and self-worth through fitness, nutrition, and mindset coaching. Her programs focus on breaking perfectionism, healing body image, and creating confidence from the inside out. Madelyn is known for her holistic, psychology-based approach and mission to help women stop shrinking themselves and start fully showing up in their lives.

Written by Osvaldo Cooley, PhD, Dermal Clinician & Body Contouring Specialist Dr. Osvaldo Cooley, PhD, is an expert in body transformation, metabolic performance, and longevity. As the founder of The Elite Hub, Dr Os helps high-performing individuals achieve visible, lasting results through advanced diagnostics, personalised recovery strategies, and specialised body contouring therapies. In the pursuit of peak performance, endurance athletes often focus on speed, strength, and cardiovascular capacity. Yet one of the most decisive performance traits, one that separates adaptable, resilient athletes from those who plateau, is rarely trained intentionally: metabolic flexibility. Metabolic flexibility is the body’s ability to efficiently switch between fuel sources, primarily fats and carbohydrates, based on intensity, duration, and demand. For athletes, this is not a theoretical concept. It is a measurable physiological capacity that directly influences performance, recovery, and longevity in sport. What is metabolic flexibility? At rest and during low-intensity exercise, the body should rely predominantly on fat oxidation. As intensity increases, carbohydrate usage should progressively rise. A metabolically flexible athlete transitions between these fuels smoothly and efficiently, without excessive stress, premature fatigue, or metabolic “chaos.” Using advanced metabolic analysis such as PNOĒ VO₂ max testing, this fuel utilization can be objectively measured across intensities. Athletes with poor metabolic flexibility often rely too heavily on carbohydrates, even at low workloads, while struggling to access fat stores when they should. Why metabolic flexibility matters for performance Endurance and durability: Fat stores are virtually limitless compared to glycogen. Athletes who can access fat efficiently preserve carbohydrates for higher-intensity efforts such as climbs, surges, and race finishes. This directly translates into better late-race performance and reduced risk of “hitting the wall.” Improved VO₂ max expression: VO₂ max is not just about oxygen delivery, it is about how efficiently that oxygen is used at the cellular level. Metabolically flexible athletes demonstrate improved mitochondrial efficiency, allowing them to sustain higher workloads with lower physiological cost. Faster recovery and lower stress load: Excessive carbohydrate dependence increases sympathetic nervous system activation. Athletes with poor flexibility often show reduced HRV, elevated resting heart rate, and impaired recovery. In contrast, flexible athletes demonstrate better autonomic balance and resilience to training stress. Breathing efficiency and lactate control: Improved fat oxidation reduces carbon dioxide production at submaximal intensities, leading to more efficient breathing patterns and delayed ventilatory thresholds. This allows athletes to maintain controlled respiration deeper into effort, a critical advantage in endurance events. Common barriers to metabolic flexibility In practice, many athletes unintentionally sabotage their metabolic health through: Chronic moderate-to-high intensity training Insufficient aerobic base development Over-reliance on carbohydrates during easy sessions Inadequate recovery between sessions One of the most common misconceptions I hear is: “The more carbs I burn, the fitter I am.” In reality, elite performance requires the ability to choose the right fuel at the right time, not dependence on a single energy system. How metabolic flexibility is improved Consistent Zone 2 training: Low-intensity aerobic work below the first ventilatory threshold is the primary driver of improved fat oxidation and mitochondrial adaptation. This is where metabolic efficiency is built. Strategic intensity, not constant intensity: High-intensity sessions are essential, but only when layered on top of a strong aerobic base. Without that foundation, intensity accelerates fatigue rather than performance. Breathing reconditioning: Nasal and diaphragmatic breathing during low-intensity work improves oxygen utilization and reinforces aerobic metabolism. Individualized fueling strategies: Generic nutrition plans fail because metabolic profiles differ. Objective testing allows fueling strategies to be aligned with physiology, not trends. Measuring what matters Metabolic flexibility cannot be accurately inferred from pace, heart rate, or appearance. It must be measured. VO₂ max and metabolic testing provide the clarity athletes need to train with precision rather than assumption. A smarter way forward At The Elite Hub, we use PNOĒ VO₂ max testing to assess metabolic flexibility, identify limiting factors, and design personalized training and recovery strategies that improve performance at every level. If you are serious about endurance performance, recovery, and long-term progression, the question is not how hard you train, but how efficiently your body produces energy. Book your VO₂ max test and personalized performance plan at The Elite Hub and discover how metabolically flexible you truly are. Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn , and visit my website for more info! Read more from Osvaldo Cooley, PhD Osvaldo Cooley, PhD, Dermal Clinician & Body Contouring Specialist Dr. Osvaldo Cooley, PhD, is a leading expert in body transformation, metabolic performance, and longevity. A former athlete, his promising career was cut short by injuries that sparked a passion for understanding recovery and performance optimisation. Drawing from his personal journey and extensive research, Dr. Os developed proven techniques to help men and women transform their bodies, improve fitness, and boost long-term health. As the founder of The Elite Hub, he empowers high-performing individuals to achieve visible, lasting results through advanced diagnostics and personalised strategies.

Written by Martin Hargrove, Artist Mentor & Entrepreneur Martin Hargrove is the Producer/Artist behind the Fitstylesss website. He is a leader and teacher who perceives reality outside of the box and thinks and operates on a higher consciousness level. In a world where digital payments are the norm and economic uncertainty looms large, Bitcoin appears as a beacon of financial innovation. As of 2025, over 559 million people worldwide, 10% of the global population, own cryptocurrency, with Bitcoin leading the charge. The total crypto market cap has surged past $4 trillion, signaling Bitcoin’s transition from a niche experiment to a mainstream powerhouse. But what exactly is Bitcoin, and why should the average person, whether sending money to family abroad or simply looking to protect their savings, care? This guide breaks it down simply, exploring Bitcoin’s fundamentals and its tangible benefits for everyday users. Bitcoin, often abbreviated as BTC, is a decentralized digital currency that operates without banks, governments, or middlemen. Imagine cash, but entirely online and borderless, secured by cutting-edge technology rather than a vault or a central authority. Bitcoin’s origins trace back to 2009, when an anonymous figure (or group) known as Satoshi Nakamoto invented it in response to the 2008 financial crisis, which exposed the vulnerabilities of traditional banking. Unlike dollars or euros, which are controlled by central banks, Bitcoin operates on a peer-to-peer basis, allowing users to send it directly to anyone, anywhere, with just an internet connection. The technology behind Bitcoin’s magic lies in blockchain, a public digital ledger that records every transaction in a transparent and tamper-proof manner. Think of it as a shared Google Doc that no single person can edit, once a “block” of transactions is added, it’s locked forever. Bitcoin’s process involves mining, where computers worldwide (miners) solve complex puzzles to confirm transactions and add them to the blockchain. As a reward, miners earn new Bitcoins. Bitcoin is stored in digital wallets, which can be apps or hardware devices. Each wallet has a public address (like an email) for receiving funds and a private key (like a password) for spending. Bitcoin, with its limited supply of 21 million Bitcoins, is scarce like gold, unlike fiat currencies that can be printed endlessly. It serves as a practical tool for real-world finance. Bitcoin’s adoption has surged, with over 2.78 million people actively participating in cryptocurrency activities in the U.S. alone. States like California and New York lead the way. Globally, India and the United States top the 2025 Crypto Adoption Index, driven by the popularity of mobile apps and regulatory clarity. What began as a techie’s dream has become an integral part of daily life. For instance, El Salvador made Bitcoin legal tender in 2021, and major retailers like Starbucks accepted it via apps in 2025. This mainstreaming is not merely hype; it’s driven by utility. Blockchain technology now facilitates faster banking integrations, with Mastercard predicting deeper integration into financial services this year. Bitcoin helps everyday users beyond its role as an investment tool. Here are the top reasons why it is beneficial to everyday people: Cheaper and faster cross-border payments: Bitcoin offers more cost-effective and faster cross-border payment options compared to traditional methods. Increased financial inclusion: Bitcoin has the potential to increase financial inclusion by providing access to financial services for individuals who are unbanked or underbanked. Enhanced security: Bitcoin transactions are secure and tamper-proof, reducing the risk of fraud and theft. Decentralization: Bitcoin operates on a decentralized network, eliminating the need for intermediaries and reducing the risk of manipulation by central authorities. Lower transaction fees: Bitcoin transactions typically have lower fees compared to traditional banking systems, making it more affordable for users. Greater transparency: Bitcoin transactions are transparent and traceable, allowing users to track their transactions and ensure accountability. Increased liquidity: Bitcoin has a high level of liquidity, meaning that it can be easily bought and sold, providing users with flexibility and convenience. Potential for long-term growth: Bitcoin has the potential for long-term growth, making it an attractive investment option for those looking to capitalize on its potential. Reduced transaction times: Bitcoin transactions are processed much faster than traditional banking transactions, allowing users to receive their funds more quickly. Increased accessibility: Bitcoin can be accessed from anywhere with an internet connection, making it more accessible to users in remote or underserved areas. Sending money overseas? Traditional wires can incur fees of 6-7% and take days to settle. Bitcoin significantly reduces these costs to under 1% and settles transactions in minutes, making it an ideal solution for remittances, which amount to $800 billion annually. Apps like Strike or Cash App make it as convenient as Venmo to send and receive instantly. Everyday spending and rewards Forget carrying cash, use Bitcoin for everyday purchases such as coffee, groceries, or online shopping. Crypto debit cards from providers like Coinbase or Binance allow you to spend BTC at millions of merchants, earning 1-2% back in crypto rewards. A hedge against inflation and economic volatility With global inflation persisting and currencies like the dollar facing devaluation risks, Bitcoin’s fixed supply positions it as “digital gold.” In uncertain economic times, Bitcoin preserves purchasing power, as evidenced by users in high-inflation countries like Argentina who have turned to it for stability. Additionally, receiving payments in BTC provides privacy and growth potential, as its value has historically outperformed traditional assets. Financial inclusion for the unbanked Over 1.4 billion people lack bank accounts, but Bitcoin levels the playing field. All you need is a smartphone. In 2025, adoption in emerging markets has surged, empowering small businesses and individuals to save, borrow, and transact globally without intermediaries. Tools like portfolio trackers make it user-friendly, simplifying complex assets into simple apps. Bitcoin also offers enhanced security and privacy. Transactions are pseudonymous and encrypted, reducing fraud risks. Blockchain’s transparency allows you to verify everything yourself. Features like the Lightning Network enable instant, low-cost micropayments, perfect for tipping creators or subscribing to content. Remember, while Bitcoin’s volatility adds excitement, it is crucial to diversify and only invest what you can afford to lose. Bitcoin is not a get-rich-quick scheme; it is a shift toward empowered and efficient finance. In 2025, as adoption reaches new heights and integrations deepen, Bitcoin is not just the future; it is the present. Whether you are reducing remittance costs, earning rewards on groceries, or safeguarding your savings, Bitcoin puts financial control back in your hands. Start exploring your wallet, and the world will thank you. Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , and visit my website  for more info! Read more from Martin Hargrove Martin Hargrove, Artist Mentor & Entrepreneur I’m a hardworking individual who loves creating fashion, fitness, print, acting, and voice-over style content. I’m someone you can rely on to give 100% and I’m very efficient with time management. I let my work speak for itself, and I want to take my passions global/international while also still being coachable and reliable. This is what I’m passionate about, and I want to take this to the highest level. Also seeking representation.

Written by Mark Branson, Leadership Theorist Mark Branson has combined 20 years of experience, 5 State Titles, and one World Record into the first advancement in leadership theory in 50 years. Branson's first book, The Illusion of Competence, introduced perception-based leadership. Branson's second book, Unified Leadership Theory (2025), advances the theory further. Unified Leadership is a perception-based leadership theory. Why? No one ever says Emotional Intelligence is reality. We each have different perceptions shaping different realities, yet these realities somehow intersect to create our collective reality. The intersection between perception and reality occurs at the most elemental level of emotional intelligence. Unified Leadership is built around this intersection. The mind mistakes perception for fact before the brain has a chance to intercede. Unified Leadership uses The Illusion of Competence to stimulate the sensory organs before the brain has a chance to sort things out. Crafting The Illusion of Competence and tricking the limbic system is as simple as spraying Pine-Sol at the front door before the boss walks in. Maybe you mopped. Maybe it’s The Illusion of Competence. Either way, if it smells clean, it is clean. Leadership focuses on the path Emotional Intelligence takes through the brain because Emotional Intelligence cannot be explained through observation. The limbic system does this. The prefrontal cortex does that. The thing leadership does not understand is the "how." Emotional Intelligence starts with the Amygdala, credited with detecting emotional stimuli and triggering emotional responses. Emotional stimuli arrive at the Amygdala via our sensory organs. Our sensory organs shape our perceptions before the Amygdala has a chance to interpret the stimuli or generate an emotional response. Emotional Intelligence originates in the brain. The Illusion of Competence originates in the mind. Perception and emotion ride hand-in-hand from the sensory organs to the Amygdala, at which point Emotional Intelligence turns into emotional reaction. Unfortunately, this transition occurs too late to be of value. Leadership relies on the science of the brain to explain emotional intelligence, but this approach has shortcomings. Science tries to explain what the brain does without understanding how the brain does it. Science says the Anterior Cingulate may monitor conflicts between emotion and logic, but the "how" or the "why" are beyond scientific understanding. Unified Leadership relies on The Illusion of Competence to explain the inner workings of perception-based leadership. The brain’s inner workings in relation to Unified Leadership are immaterial because Unified Leadership is supported by observation. Emotional intelligence is about controlling your emotional reactions and understanding the emotions of others. Unified Leadership is about influencing perceptions through the sensory organs of others to garner emotional reactions that are acceptable to all involved. What makes me happy makes you happy. What makes you sad makes me sad. What makes us angry makes everybody angry. Don’t wait to see if your actions make others happy. Make them happy. Leadership overcomplicates Emotional Intelligence, but it really is that simple. People often say that perception is reality. If perception is reality, why would you focus on anything else? Unified Leadership: The Strategy of Engagement is now available for purchase here . Follow Unified Leadership on LinkedIn to get my latest thoughts on perception-based leadership. Visit my website for more info! Read more from Mark Branson Mark Branson, Leadership Theorist Mark Branson set the world record for the arcade game Asteroids in 1981, playing for 55 hours in a quarter. Branson then applied his concepts of greatness to winning 5 New Mexico state racquetball titles over a 15-year career. Branson then created a leadership theory from scratch, combining 30 years of leadership experience and his habit of winning into the first advancement in leadership thought since the turn of the century. References: The Neuroscience Behind Emotional Intelligence - Neuroba The Neuroscience of Emotional Intelligence - Forbes

Written by Elliot Ross Surgenor, Visionary Entrepreneur and Founder Elliot Ross Surgenor is the founder and CEO of Fly Business Aviation, with operational bases in Miami, Scottsdale, and Cabo. With a background in media, entrepreneurship, and luxury aviation, he specializes in elevating private travel through innovation and exceptional client service. Running a 24/7 business changes the way you think about time, responsibility, and leadership. There is always something happening. A flight in the air. A crew operating across time zones. A client whose plans shift unexpectedly. In industries like private aviation, the business never truly sleeps and for a long time, I believed that meant neither should I. Over the years, however, running Fly Business Aviation has taught me a lesson I didn’t expect, without boundaries, availability stops being a strength and starts becoming a risk. When the business never sleeps In aviation, timing is everything. Weather changes. Logistics evolve. Decisions can’t always wait. Early on, I equated leadership with constant presence. If something happened late at night, I felt I needed to be involved. If I stepped away, I felt irresponsible, even when the team was capable. But a business that never sleeps will eventually test how long you can operate without rest, clarity, or perspective. And that test is rarely kind. Responsibility is not the same as availability One of the most important shifts I made as a leader was understanding the difference between being responsible and being constantly available. Responsibility means: Building systems that function under pressure Empowering people to make decisions without hesitation Trusting your team with real ownership Availability, when unchecked, creates dependence. And dependence limits growth, both for the business and for the people inside it. True leadership isn’t about being everywhere. It’s about creating an environment where things continue to work even when you step back. Why burnout isn’t a badge of honor There’s a narrative in entrepreneurship that glorifies exhaustion. Long hours are worn like proof of commitment. Burnout is mistaken for dedication. But in reality, burnout erodes the very things leaders are responsible for protecting, judgment, patience, and clarity. In a high-stakes industry, poor decisions don’t stay theoretical. They have consequences. And no amount of effort can compensate for decision-making made from a place of exhaustion. Sustainable leadership requires energy, not just endurance. Boundaries as a leadership skill I’ve come to see boundaries not as personal limitations, but as a leadership discipline. Healthy boundaries look like:  Clear escalation paths instead of absorbing every issue Knowing when to intervene and when to trust Protecting mental clarity as deliberately as operational standards When leaders respect their own boundaries, teams learn to operate with confidence rather than fear. Accountability becomes shared, not centralized. And that’s when organizations become resilient. What running a 24/7 business ultimately taught me Boundaries don’t weaken leadership. They refine it. They create better decisions, stronger teams, and businesses that can grow without burning out the people who lead them. Running a 24/7 business taught me that leadership isn’t about constant presence, it’s about sustained responsibility. And in industries where the pressure never stops, sustainability isn’t optional. It’s the job. Follow me on Instagram , LinkedIn , and visit my website  for more info! Read more from Elliot Ross Surgenor Elliot Ross Surgenor, Visionary Entrepreneur and Founder Elliot Ross Surgenor is a leading entrepreneur in private aviation and the founder of Fly Business Aviation, based in Miami, Scottsdale, and Cabo. With a background in media and international business development, he has built a company known for its innovation, personalized service, and refined operational standards. Elliot also leads Lusso Jet Design and Air Dining Cabo, subsidiaries focused on luxury jet interiors and in-flight catering. His expertise spans brand strategy, client experience, and aviation operations. He is also the host of a podcast exploring leadership and the future of the industry. Passionate about giving back, Elliot supports philanthropic efforts, including initiatives for children in need.

Written by Magali Collonnaz, Medical Doctor, Life Coach, and Founder of SPARRK Life Coaching Magali Collonnaz is a medical doctor, life coach, and founder of SPARRK Life Coaching. After experiencing long-COVID and breast cancer herself, she created a whole-system coaching framework to help people reclaim strength, clarity, and control after major health disruption when traditional care falls short. For many women, menopause brings anxiety that feels overwhelming and out of character. It can escalate quickly and leave women wondering if it will ever stop. Hormonal change plays a role, but the deeper problem is the gap between medical reassurance and the practical, day-to-day support women actually need to function. What is menopause anxiety? Menopause anxiety refers to new or worsening anxiety that develops during perimenopause or menopause. It can affect women who have never experienced anxiety before, women who have struggled with anxiety in the past, and women who previously felt they had it under control. Anxiety symptoms are common during the menopausal transition, with vulnerability increasing as hormone levels fluctuate. What makes menopause anxiety particularly distressing is that it often feels different from everyday stress or situational worry. Many women describe a constant sense of inner tension, sudden surges of panic, or a feeling that their body is stuck in a heightened state of alert, even when there is no obvious external trigger. This loss of emotional and physical steadiness can feel frightening and hard to explain. Why anxiety can feel so intense during menopause Hormonal changes during perimenopause and menopause affect multiple systems involved in mood regulation and stress response. Oestrogen interacts with key brain chemicals such as serotonin and GABA , which help regulate calm, emotional balance, and stress tolerance. As hormone levels fluctuate and decline, these systems can become less stable, making the brain more sensitive to stress signals. At the same time, menopause often brings other symptoms that place additional strain on the nervous system. Poor sleep, night sweats, hot flushes, weight gain, palpitations, and brain fog all increase physiological stress. When the body feels unpredictable or out of control, anxiety often follows. The nervous system remains on high alert, scanning for danger, even when none is present. This combination of hormonal change and ongoing physical symptoms helps explain why anxiety in menopause can feel more intense, more constant, and harder to switch off than at other times in life. Related: Your Guide to Managing Menopause with Confidence How menopause anxiety shows up in daily life Menopause anxiety often affects daily functioning in subtle but persistent ways. Some women wake each morning with a sense of dread or unease. Others experience sudden waves of panic, breathlessness, or racing thoughts during the day. Many notice increased health anxiety, constant worrying, or difficulty concentrating. At work, tasks that once felt manageable can become overwhelming. Confidence may drop, decision-making may feel harder, and emotional resilience may be lower. At home, irritability, emotional reactivity, or an inability to relax can strain relationships. When anxiety is combined with fatigue and poor sleep, it can feel relentless. Why being told it is normal does not help Many women are told that anxiety in menopause is common and, therefore, something they should expect. While it may be common, that does not mean it is easy to live with or that it does not deserve support. Being told that anxiety is normal often leaves women feeling dismissed and unsupported. Without clear explanations or guidance, anxiety can feel confusing and isolating. This lack of support can increase fear and self-doubt, which in turn worsens anxiety symptoms. Normal does not mean insignificant. Women need understanding, structure, and practical tools. Normalising symptoms without offering solutions leaves women managing a physiological problem as if it were a personal coping failure. Why menopause anxiety can settle with the right approach Menopause anxiety is not permanent. The nervous system is adaptable, and anxiety often settles when the right supports are put in place. Addressing anxiety early prevents it from becoming entrenched and reduces the risk of secondary problems such as depression, burnout, or withdrawal from daily life. Hormone therapy can be helpful for some women, particularly when anxiety is closely linked to other menopausal symptoms. For many women, however, lifestyle strategies are the real game-changer. These approaches directly reduce physiological stress, improve resilience, and restore a sense of safety in the body. The most effective approach is early and proactive. Too often, women are reassured and sent away, rather than given tools to stabilise anxiety while symptoms are still escalating. That delay is one of the reasons anxiety becomes entrenched. The good news is that menopause anxiety is highly responsive to the right interventions. When support is practical and targeted, symptoms often ease far more than women expect. What actually helps calm menopause anxiety Calming menopause anxiety is not about forcing yourself to be calmer or thinking more positively. It is about reducing the signals of threat in the body and giving the nervous system consistent messages of safety. Supporting the nervous system Breathing exercises are powerful because they act directly on the stress response. Slow, controlled breathing, particularly with a longer out-breath than in-breath, helps shift the body out of a constant fight-or-flight state. Learning how to use breathing intentionally during moments of anxiety, as well as at regular points in the day, helps retrain the stress response. Processing emotions rather than suppressing them Many women are encouraged to suppress anxiety, distract themselves, or replace it with positive thoughts. This often backfires. Anxiety is not resolved by ignoring emotions. Emotions need processing, not pushing away. Allowing sensations to be felt, without judging or fighting them, reduces fear and prevents anxiety from escalating. Improving sleep quality Poor sleep makes anxiety feel constant. Regular bedtimes, limiting screens in the evening, and getting natural morning light all help regulate the sleep-wake cycle. Caffeine and alcohol are common but overlooked triggers. Caffeine can increase feelings of nervousness and restlessness in menopause. Even small amounts can worsen anxiety or sleep in some women. Alcohol may feel calming initially, but it often increases nighttime anxiety, early waking, and poor sleep. Reducing both can significantly lower baseline anxiety over time. While sleep may not improve overnight, consistency often leads to gradual stabilization, which in turn reduces anxiety. Related: How Does Menopause Affect Sleep and What Can Women Do to Fix It Using worry time Worry time is a simple but powerful tool for reducing constant mental noise. Instead of engaging with worries throughout the day, worries are written down and intentionally set aside. At a scheduled time later, the list is reviewed. Many worries lose urgency when revisited. Others can be addressed more clearly. This practice helps the brain learn that worries do not need constant attention and reduces the sense of being mentally overwhelmed. Movement and time outdoors Movement helps the body process stress hormones and regulate mood. Walking, strength training, and gentle cardiovascular activity all support nervous system regulation when done at the right intensity. Time outdoors, particularly in natural light, further reinforces calming signals to the brain. When extra support is needed For many women, menopause coaching provides structured guidance to implement lifestyle strategies in a way that fits their specific needs, goals, and daily realities. Clear guidance, accountability, and personalized strategies often make the difference between knowing what might help and actually feeling better. If anxiety is severe, persistent, or accompanied by low mood, hopelessness, or loss of interest in daily life, medical support is important. This may include assessment for depression or discussion of treatment options such as hormone therapy. Rebuilding confidence during menopause If menopause anxiety has left you feeling unlike yourself, it is often because you have been expected to manage a complex physiological transition with little more than reassurance. Many women are told what is happening, but not shown how to live well while it is happening. With the right support, this phase does not have to define you. When you learn how to calm your nervous system, improve sleep, and respond differently to anxiety, things start to shift. Your energy begins to return. Your thinking becomes clearer. You feel more capable in daily life again. This is exactly the gap my Menopause Empowerment programme was created to address. It is designed for women who want more than reassurance and are ready for clear, expert guidance on how to stabilize anxiety and rebuild confidence in daily life. You will be guided step by step to build a weekly plan that fits your life, your capacity, and the activities you enjoy. Rather than focusing on one area alone, the programme works across sleep, stress regulation, movement, nutrition, and mindset, because lasting change requires all of these working together. The aim is not to cope with menopause, but to thrive through it and feel strong, steady, and confident again. Follow me on Facebook ,  Instagram , and visit my website  for more info! Read more from Magali Collonnaz Magali Collonnaz, Medical Doctor, Life Coach, and Founder of SPARRK Life Coaching As SPARRK Life Coaching founder and director, Magali Collonnaz combines medical and health coaching expertise in her online coaching programmes. After developing chronic pain following long COVID, and later experiencing treatment-induced menopause after breast cancer, she saw how often people are left without practical support when symptoms persist. She created SPARRK for those who refuse to accept “There’s nothing more we can do". Her work focuses on lifestyle-based coaching to help people regain control of their health when traditional care falls short. She is committed to helping people make a powerful comeback, feel empowered in their daily choices, and build lasting change.