As a coach, it’s my job to help people keep moving forward – to grow, to lead, to reach their goals. But it’s also my job to be in tune with what’s really going on in the world, and how it’s affecting the people I serve.
I’ve got to be honest: There’s a heaviness in the air right now.
Maybe you’ve felt it too.
It’s something I’ve noticed in conversations with clients, at events, and just being out in the world. There’s a current of grief running underneath everything.
Some of it is personal: loss of a loved one, loss of health, loss of a dream.
But a lot of it is collective. The grief of witnessing struggle, injustice, and even cruelty. The grief of watching the systems we rely on strain under pressure. The grief of seeing people turn on one another when we need each other most.
Grief, at its core, is about loss. Many of us are grieving more than one thing at a time.
I want to assure you…
It’s okay to feel what you’re feeling.
Yes, we’re professionals.
Yes, we’re business owners, leaders, caregivers, and go-getters.
Yes, the bills are still due, and the work still needs to get done.
But that doesn’t mean we have to power through with a smile pasted on.
You don’t have to put on a mask and pretend everything’s fine.
Our strength doesn’t come from pretending; it comes from our humanity.
There’s a fine line we walk. We don’t want people to see us as “Negative Nancys” who bring the room down. But the truth is, there’s no shame in feeling sad over fractured relationships with friends or family. It’s okay to shed tears over the possibility of a child, elder, or other vulnerable human not having enough to eat. Or to worry that you’ll fall on hard times too. There’s no shame in feeling unsteady when the ground beneath us shifts.
You’re allowed to grieve. You’re allowed to feel it.
Just don’t carry it alone. Whether it’s talking to a therapist, a friend, a partner, or writing in a journal, find a way to share it.
When we let our grief move, it moves through us.
It makes space for compassion, for creativity, and for clarity.
From that space – Take Action!
Donate food. Offer help to a neighbor. Say something kind to a stranger.
And then?
Let yourself rest. Let yourself laugh. Let yourself feel joy when it comes.
Those small sparks are not betrayal, they’re fuel. We need joy to keep going.
Feel what you feel. Let it be messy.
But don’t let it harden you.
Let it remind you what matters. Let it connect you more deeply to others.
That’s how we keep going – not by ignoring what hurts, but by honoring it and still choosing to move forward.
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