It’s important to acknowledge that similar to the term “work-life balance,” the word “fun” is another subjective term that means different things to different people.

As a result of this journey, I now choose to first follow what I believe is best for me, instead of putting everyone else before me. And if it means I “go against the grain” sometimes, then so be it.

I was able to make this task on my to-do list more of an occasion than an obligation.

My mentor had been right: ultimately, Northwestern wasn’t the best place for me. I didn’t want to admit it at the time, but it makes perfect sense now.

I wanted to be of service to others and be appreciated for my gifts. I wanted to be intellectually challenged, thinking at a strategic level and determining efficient action plans toward great accomplishments. I wanted to work with people, and I needed flexibility and control of my schedule.

My biggest accomplishment in this role was putting processes in place so the department could run more efficiently, and I started to realize my passion and talent for process improvement.

With my clients, I spend time to fully understand the reasons behind each activity’s presence in their lives; then we come to an understanding of how to adjust their relationship with that activity to free up time for the lives they truly want.

education, I took an assessment called CareerDrivers® and learned that “Life-Work Balance” was of utmost importance to me.

I visualized the path I was working toward, one I could never see before. And even though part of that path was blurry, I was suddenly confident that I was actually creating my destiny. What I wanted was within my reach, and my mindset shifted into believing that I was going to make it happen.