The Call to Live. Fully. Deeply. Now.

There’s something stirring in me.

A whisper. A pull. A call I can’t quite name yet—but I can feel it.

And maybe, just maybe, you feel it too.

Lately, I’ve found myself asking: What does it truly mean to live?
Not just exist. Not just get through. But live.

To feel awake, to feel present, to feel—fully, deeply, now.

Because I don’t want to sleepwalk through this life. 

I don’t want to wake up one day and realize I missed it.

And so, I’ve been sitting with these questions:

💭 Am I alive when I get caught up in the mayhem of my mind?
💭 Am I alive when I replay old worries, waiting for the perfect time to act?
💭 Am I alive when I hold onto certainty, avoiding the stretch that real growth requires?

Or…

💡Am I alive when I lean into discomfort—because discomfort is often the first step toward something bigger?

💡Am I alive when I choose presence over autopilot? When I pause, breathe, and truly take in the moment?

💡Am I alive when I say yes to something my heart longs for, even if I don’t yet know where it will lead?

I don’t have the final answers. But I do know this:

I want to live.

And I want that for you, too.

What If Today Was Your Last?

I recently came across a story that stopped me in my tracks.

"I woke up as my 90-year-old self in my 32-year-old body… and it was amazing. I took the walk I always postponed. When my mother called, I cried, because it had been years since I’d heard her voice. A voice I took for granted before it was too late."

I sat with that for a long time.

Because it made me wonder…

📌 Who in my life do I take for granted?
📌 What am I waiting to do, say, or feel?
📌 What would I regret if tomorrow never came?

And if that wasn’t enough—this thought landed even deeper:

If today were my last, would I have been fully here for it?

Not just in the big ways—but in the quiet, ordinary moments.

☕ The first sip of morning coffee.
🌅 The way the sky shifts colors before the world wakes up.
👂 The sound of laughter from someone I love.

So often, we wait for the “big things” to wake us up. The promotion. The love story. The life-changing trip. But maybe—the things that make life worth living are already right in front of us.

The only question is: Are we here for them?

A Space to Sit With It All

Lately, I’ve been feeling a pull to shed another layer. To sit in the discomfort of peeling back what isn’t real—so I can step more fully into what is.

And if I’m honest? That’s not always easy.

Most of us resist stillness.
We avoid the unknown.
We fill space so we don’t have to feel.

But what if the discomfort isn’t something to fear—but something to lean into?
What if, instead of turning away from the uncertainty, we turned toward it?
What if we gave ourselves space to listen? To really listen?

🌿 That’s why I created Calm & Connect.

A space to sit in the unknown together. To listen, not just to our thoughts, but to something deeper. To create space for clarity to emerge—not by force, but by presence.

It’s for those who are willing to get uncomfortable in the pursuit of something greater. 

For those who want to live—not later, but now.

If this resonates, come sit with me, with us, this Sunday, March 16th.

If you’ve been feeling the pull to something more, but don’t know what’s next—let’s explore it together.

An Invitation to Listen

✨ What helps you come alive?
✨ What is your soul asking for?
✨ Are you willing to listen?
✨ Are you courageous enough to heed its request?

If this message speaks to you, I see you.

🌿 Want to sit with these questions in community?
Join us in Calm & Connect.

💡Looking for deeper work?
Let’s explore 1:1 coaching or an upcoming retreat.

🔗 Click Here to connect or simply reply to this email

Equanimity and Peace: Anchors for a Life Fully Lived

This past weekend, I answered a call I could no longer ignore: my soul's quiet plea for stillness. I committed to a solo retreat—a few days to unplug fully so I could truly plug in. To reflect. To listen. To create meditations for The Reset Room.

While driving through the quiet, I hit play on a familiar playlist—the kind of music that seems to meet you exactly where you are. A song called Equanimity and Peace by Ram Das came on, and I found myself pressing repeat, over and over.

“What are we to do? What shall we do today? What shall we do with our lives?"
 He half jests, then asks "How do we live our lives with sufficient perspective, moment to moment,” he asks, “so that we can enter into the moments of life with equanimity and peace?”

Equanimity and peace. Two words that feel both comforting and at times elusive, especially in a world that pulls us in every direction. Yet, as I listened, I knew in my core: these aren't distant ideals. They are the anchors of a life truly lived.

The Four Pillars of an Actualized Life

Ram Das describes four essential pillars for a joy-filled, fully lived life:

When we're locked into our own perspectives, we perpetuate division—separation from others, and from ourselves. Truth invites us to soften those edges and truly see. This is Wisdom.

These aren't destinations—they're practices. Ways of being that call us back to ourselves, again and again.

The Season of Heightened Emotion

The holidays are often described as “the most wonderful time of the year.” But if we're honest, they can also be a time of heightened emotion—a swirl of connection and tension, joy and grief.

This past weekend, as I reflected, I realized how often we get swept up in the noise of this season. Maybe it's a family member's words that trigger something deep within us, the overwhelm of endless to-dos, or the invisible weight of unspoken expectations.

What if, instead of letting those moments pull us into frustration or self-doubt, we paused?

What if we gave ourselves the gift of equanimity—the ability to step back, breathe, and see clearly? What if we chose peace, not as avoidance but as a way of fully showing up, open to possibility?

A Gift (or three) to Support You

In the spirit of these practices, I want to share a gift: my free meditation on Insight Timer, Prioritize P.E.A.C.E.

This practice is designed to help you reset your nervous system, gain clarity, and connect with a sense of inner calm. Whether it's a challenging conversation with family or the swirl of holiday stress, this meditation can help you find your footing and respond from a place of intention.

Click here to access the meditation.

If you're craving community with which to pause and reconnect, join me this Sunday for our Calm & Connect session at 10am ET. Together, we'll ground ourselves, create space for equanimity, and enter this season with clarity.

A Rare Opportunity to Go Deeper

As I step into the final stages of my journey to becoming a Master Certified Coach (MCC), I'm offering a special opportunity: two deeply discounted coaching sessions for new clients at $275 per session (normally $675).

These sessions will be recorded (audio only!) for evaluation purposes as part of my MCC certification. They're a chance to explore what's possible, gain clarity, and create meaningful change in your life.

Here's what one client recently shared:

"That was a whole other realm. I've had years of therapy, but that not only met our goals, it broke down barriers I couldn't even imagine."

This offer is available through December, and space is limited. If this resonates, I'd love to connect.

Click here to book your session.

Wishing You Wisdom, Compassion, Equanimity, and Peace

This holiday season, may we find the courage to pause, the perspective to see clearly, the love to meet ourselves and others with compassion, and the steadiness to choose peace.

Let's step into each moment with an open heart, allowing truth to guide us toward a life fully lived.

Yours in love - and gratitude,

Rachel

How Redefining Failure Unlocks Unimaginable Growth and Success

Happy Halloween!

🎃 Ghosts, haunted houses, and horror movies might be spooky, but you know what’s really terrifying? The fear that keeps us stuck and stops us from reaching new heights.

Fear of failure. Studies reveal that up to 70% of people hold back from pursuing their dreams due to this very fear.

 In our last Calm & Connect conversation, we explored a powerful truth: we’ve been getting failure all wrong.

In English and particularly in Western culture, failure has become a destination—an endpoint that feels mutually exclusive with success. It’s as though you either reach “success” or fall into “failure,” with no space in between. And this binary mindset is holding us back.

When failure is seen as an identity—“I failed, so I am a failure”—it prevents us from trying new things, embracing a growth mindset, innovating, and thriving as human beings. We forget, as Archbishop Desmond Tutu reminds us, that “we’re not meant to be perfect from the word ‘go’.”

But not all cultures share this perspective. In Mandarin, failure is inherently understood as part of growth, and in Portuguese, the word “fracasso” refers to failure as a temporary condition, not a permanent state. It encourages resilience and persistence, recognizing that failure isn’t final—it’s just another chapter in the journey.

A Personal Story: Pushing My Growing Edge

Recently, I attended the BrainTrust Live Women’s Conference in Nashville, where the theme was failure.

Wildly successful entrepreneurs—those who have built multi-million-dollar companies—shared their stories, not just of their achievements, but of their failures and what those failures taught them both personally and professionally.

I found myself in that room feeling both inspired and uncomfortable. Why? Because I was pushing at my own growing edge. As many of you know, I’m currently building The Reset Room alongside my dear friend and colleague, Mirette Seireg. It’s a vision that we—and many others—believe has the potential to add tremendous value to organizations and institutions.

But here’s what I’ve come to realize: when I sit in that fear, I do nothing. The project doesn’t grow; neither do I. But when I remember that failure isn’t a stop sign—it’s not a period at the end of a sentence—but rather an opportunity to learn, iterate, and improve, my mindset shifts.

Failure becomes a catalyst for growth, a stepping stone on the path to progress. 🌱✨

So, I Ask You:

Where are you afraid to fail?

Where have you seen failure as “the end,” and what would happen if you shifted your perspective to see it as a learning curve on the path to success?

Whether it’s a new relationship, a job, a venture, or something deeply personal—how might redefining failure open the floodgates to success?

Navigating Fear and Stress this Week

To help you navigate the stress and uncertainty in the coming days, I’m offering three opportunities to join me for live meditations:

1️⃣ Calm & Connect: Sunday, 10am CT—Shift your mindset as we dive deeper into topics like fear, failure, and resilience. Sign up here.

2️⃣ Insight Timer Live: Election Day, Tuesday, 10am CT & 3pm C. 
"Finding Calm Amidst the Storm." Join these free meditations to reconnect with clarity and inner peace during tense times.

Let’s be honest, this is a far better way to spend your time than being glued to the rollercoaster of news reporting all day. Give yourself this gift of space to breathe, center, and find resilience amidst the chaos.

Click the links below 👇 to sign up and prioritize your mental wellbeing this week. Let’s take a collective breath and lead with intention.

---

Important November Calm & Connect Updates 💛

Just a heads up! Our next Calm & Connect falls on the same day as Daylight Savings Time, but our session time remains the same: 

Sunday, November 3rd, 8am PT / 11am ET. 

Please note: On November 17th, due to Rachel's schedule, Calm and Connect will be held one hour earlier at 7am PT / 10am ET.

Looking forward to connecting with you!

UPCOMING EVENTS

FREE LIVE EVENTS

Insight Timer November 5th, 10am CT

Insight Timer, November 5th, 3pm CT 

The 1 Invaluable Life-Changing Tool You Need: From A Dog 🐶

Convulsing, spitting, shaking, he nearly gives himself a heart attack. Daily. And his response to fear represents a HUGE lesson:

It’s heartbreaking, but Bella, a precious pug, was mauled by a larger dog as a pup.

Completely fine 12 years later, the real, sustained injury from this event lives in Bear (Bella’s brother).

EVERY TIME we go for a walk (they are temporary additions to my family, while a friend travels), when Bear sees a larger dog, he launches full force (leashed) in the other dog’s direction.

Without fail, 2-3 times a walk (3-4 times a day) these sweet, loving pugs turn reactive out of pure fear.

And while nothing comes of it, Bear creates such immense inner turmoil and agitation, it takes substantial time for him and those with him to calm down.

A vivid example, can you relate to Bear’s overwhelming and debilitating fear-based response? Even slightly?

Unfortunately, we can all be like Bear:

Predicting the worst, defending against it even if it doesn’t unfold, and in the meantime, giving ourselves major agita.

So how do we stop it?

How do we not let our brains (prediction machines that predict the worst) have us take a dive off the deep-end based on a previous experience, disturbing our own equanimity - our own inner ease and peace (and likely activating others)?

It starts with awareness, and a simple pause.

That pause between the stimulus (whatever activates us) and our response is THE KEY to a new response - and thus a different result, creating a WHOLE NEW REALITY. It also builds greater emotional intelligence.

Do you find you get triggered too readily? Too often? Do others on your team get activated without awareness? Habituating that pause, and embracing the power of mindfulness is critical.

I’ve had a blast bringing these tools to organizations and sharing them with our Calm & Connect community.

Part of a team or have friends or contacts that would benefit from these tools? With August being Mental Health Awareness Month, it’s never been a better time to embrace these tools.

Let's connect.

Catapult Your Leadership Now: 5 Reasons Why Mindfulness Is The Mother Of All Leadership Skills

Originally published on Forbes.com

Each year billions of dollars are spent on developing professional women. There are scores of trainings on how to better communicate, be more agile, how to listen, be a better mentor, more creative, less reactive, visionary… the list drones on. 

It's enough to make one's head spin. 

The skillsets needed today are unlike those championed decades ago: a new era of Leadership is not only emerging but compulsory. No longer will we (or do we) celebrate and promote the dictatorial, hard-ass leader who generates their power in threats and aggressive backlashes.

Instead, the visionary, the strategic thinker, the listener and the collaborator, the female executive who weighs the balance of short-term gain with long term needs rises to the fore. The woman who understands that as they lead, their decisions impact a greater whole, namely the communities to which they are connected, is followed. And while all these skills can be taught, there is one practice that underlies all. The secret, The Mother of accelerators, if you will: Mindfulness.  

As defined by Jon Kabat-Zinn, Mindfulness is “the awareness that arises from paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally."

Meditation is one of the most powerful ways to foster Mindfulness. Contrary to popular misconception, Meditation is not about clearing the mind. 

The nature of the mind is to wander, to have thoughts. No matter how often you meditate, the mind will wander, and thoughts will surface: it's what the mind does, even if you are the Dalai Lama. The power lies in training a new response to, and awareness of, the wandering. 

Meditation is equal parts about habituation the mind back to the present moment, as it is, noticing when, and to where, the mind wanders and with compassion (nonjudgmentally), bringing it back to the present moment. These essential aspects of the practice serve as the backbone to nearly every Leadership skill women need to thrive.

Here's a peek at why Mindfulness is the Mother of all Leadership Skills.

1. Mindfulness Fosters Intentionality. In Meditation, the exercise is to habituate the mind back to the present moment, or back to an object of focus, again, and again, and again. That training builds the neuro muscle so that when our mind wanders or when our attention gets jerked away, in life and the boardroom, we can more easily refocus. In meetings, it's natural to get caught up in our thoughts, critical points, or the impending presentation, detracting from fully hearing emerging specifics that might require a change in approach. This fostering of intentionality enables us to be with what is, instead of what we "think" is present. 
   

2. Mindfulness Mitigates Reactive Tendencies – Reactive tendencies are significant inhibitors of effective Leadership. Some leaders lash out, others shut down, while some "go along to get along." When we react, it is as though our brains have been yanked into a state of fear or anger, undermining our ability to respond thoughtfully. When we have developed the skill to notice, without judgment but with discernment, where our mind is, and the state it is in, we are more likely to pause. That pause enables us to respond purposefully and intentionally chose the next best course of action. Ultimately, that pause not only influences the response, but also how it is delivered. As the adage goes, often, "it's not only what you say, but how you say it."
   

3. Mindfulness Cultivates Creativity: as we step out of our reactive tendencies, often propelled by anxiety and fear, it opens up space to create and innovate. Studies show that when fear and anxiety override the brain, it's as though it's an orchestra gone wrong, you can only hear the out of tune violin and trombone. It's nearly impossible to hear anything else, never mind allow creative insight to arise. Meditation not only enables us to acknowledge our reactive desires and choose a different action or focus, but it also allows us to hear the rest of the symphony and the space between the notes. It is always in that space that insight arises.
   

4. Mindfulness Facilitates Broader Perspective: As the practice becomes more habitual, it inherently builds greater awareness. The act of noticing that the mind has wandered, without judgment, but with full awareness, enables access to more information about ourselves, our tendencies, and the present moment. This expanded perspective in turn fosters enhanced discernment. As researched by the leading thought leaders of The Leadership Circle, core Leadership Competencies of Strategic Focus and Systems Thinker require these skills.
   

5. Mindfulness increases Emotional Intelligence (EI or EQ): The previous school of thought was that there was no room for emotions in the workspace. Now, research and case studies show that EQ is critical for great Leadership. Meditation increases EQ through enhancing the ability to pause and check-in before choosing a response, as well as through the development of consistent, nonjudgmental awareness. Both of these skills foster EQ's key components, including Self-Awareness, Empathy, Self-Regulation & Social Aptitude. fMRI scans of the brain further support this claim, as these scans show that Meditation directly increases the activity in areas of the brain related to Empathy and Compassion (EQ).

Through a surge in research, including Harvard Studies,  we now know that with only eight weeks, Meditation can rewire and build areas of the brain not just related to empathy and compassion, but also to memory and learning, and rewire areas related to stress. But just like the gym, it is a practice that needs consistency. A response is often "I don't have the time," but it can start with a mere minute. Though the benefits are extensive in the leadership realm, a mindful practice impacts all spheres of life. Mindfulness truly is The Mother, the great support, the compassionate listener, the teacher of all critical Leadership, and ultimately life, skills. You can't afford not to take the time.