Early in the afternoon of Tuesday, January 28, 1986, I was walking back from lunch to my part-time job as an undergraduate academic advisor at Pace University.  It was a day like most other New York City winter days -- the air was brisk, as was the undulating throng of pedestrians moving along the city sidewalks toward a thousand different destinations.  

Until, all of a sudden,  they weren't.

For those who hadn’t been watching TV that morning, the "breaking news" had to be passed along the old-fashioned way... through a rare midday publication of a city newspaper.  Peering around the clusters of people to find out what headline had grabbed so much attention, I learned that the space shuttle Challenger had exploded just 73 seconds after takeoff.

For me, the Challenger explosion marked my first collective "before and after" moment -- a global event that cleaved time into two categories:  before it happened, and after it happened.

It also marked the end of my cultural in...

 As a lifelong learner, I'm always looking for ways to learn and to grow -- whether formally or informally.

Recently, I signed up to earn a certification in religious trauma studies.  The program is relatively robust and -- to date --  has been well-designed and delivered.  Having said that, it's nowhere near as rigorous as the ICF certification process, and there are no ongoing requirements once initial certification is earned.

Students in this program are also invited to join a Facebook group -- another powerful opportunity to connect with those who want to learn more about this topic.

Last week, another enrollee in the program posted this question (modified, to ensure anonymity):

"I am a student in this program.  I have an unrelated master's degree and am an ordained minister. I am not a licensed social worker, nor am I a family counselor. I wanted to market myself as a spiritual counselor but was advised by counsel that I can't do so in my state. So,.. what should I call mys...

In 2016, I traveled — one might even say took a pilgrimage – to a Middle Eastern country.  My thoughts often go back to the many ways in which that journey changed my life, and changed me.  As is so often the case, the most profound insights and changes occurred organically and separately from the itinerary, but that is the stuff of a different blog post.   

The trip was sponsored by a local Christian church.  I opted to add a three-day "Jesus Trail" (https://jesustrail.com) 'package' to the beginning of the trip.

The Jesus Trail tour was led by a guide named Yogi, who happened to be Jewish (this fact will become relevant in a moment).  Yogi was exceptional at setting the stage for the seven of us to have life-changing experiences simply by the way in which he led this tour (more on that later, as well).

The subsequent 10-day tour was led by a different tour guide.  This tour guide, whose name escapes me, happened to be Christian (again, please stay tuned for a moment).  The way in ...

 Whatever the topic, we can all look back on situations in our lives about which we were uncertain at the time...  

... challenges that we didn't know how to face.

... circumstances that we didn't know whether we could overcome.

… possibilities that jeopardized the “status quo” in some way.

And, even with the inevitable failures that all of us will experience along our respectful journeys, we usually emerge from these challenges with renewed confidence, a deeper understanding of our own capabilities, and valuable lessons that we can apply to our future endeavors.

As coaches, we even intentionally tap into our clients' 'history of struggles and successes.'  

How so?

Imagine this -- or, better yet, reflect back on when a client came to you describing a challenging and unfamiliar situation they were facing.  It could be almost anything -- the birth of a child, a new management role, a marathon, a job layoff, choosing to end a relationship, etc.  At some point in the coaching sessio...