A Year of Adversity and Gratitude

Did you ever have one of those...years?

For me, this one – 2019 – has been a particularly difficult one and a particularly beautiful one.

My year’s worth of challenges actually began in 2018 with:

• A car wreck (on Christmas Night)
• A house flood (on New Year’s Day)
• My composer husband’s fall, which caused a concussion
  (he went on to perform four hours later without noticing it – and received a standing ovation and encore)
• My own health challenges
• Health challenges among several of my clients

Often when we go through challenging times, we fail to see the beauty in the gifts they bring. Many of you know that I spent 12 days in the hospital this fall. I realized, lying there, unable to do all the things I needed to do, that I first needed to get quiet with myself and to be in a place of gratitude. It was an opportunity to honor myself – and my health.

There’s a lesson in everything in life. When everything is humming along seamlessly, I’m in such gratitude because I know, in a matter of seconds, how different life can be. And when different happens, it heightens my gratitude even more.

The good news? I’m still standing tall and so is our home – and my husband and clients are standing tall, too. We have survived and thrived. And, I’m happy to share, 2019 has been my most successful year to date.

Among this year’s highlights: speaking at the Watermark Conference for Women in San Jose, Calif., in February, followed by the Texas Conference for Women in Austin in October and, this month, the Massachusetts Conference for Women. I’m honored to have met so many dynamic women and men, and I so enjoyed speaking about showing up as your best self and communicating your true value.

I consider my hospital stay a gift. A recovery. A reawakening of gratitude for all the people in my life holding me in their thoughts. I’m grateful for family and friends and for every client and every potential client. And I’m grateful for everyone who has gone before me to blaze the trail.

For years, I’ve started each day in meditation and gratitude by reading The New York Times obituaries. Why? Because I enjoy reading how people, unbeknownst to me, have had an impact on my life. What were their contributions? How is life better as a result? There are no do-overs in life – only time. And once we’ve spent our time, we can’t get it back.

As I look toward 2020, I’ve made a commitment to myself to spend my time living with greater intentionality – on purpose, as myself. There is no other Charmaine Elese McClarie – and equally important to me, there is no other you.

If you, too, are inspired to live with greater intentionality, I’d love to hear your thoughts on what you plan to do differently going forward – especially when it comes to your career and expressing the value you bring to any situation. Need help? Then consider joining us for Your Winning Story Makes You Unstoppable, which kicks off March 28-29, in Chicago. I’d love to have you with us. Let’s make 2020 our best year ever.

Wishing you joy, unfathomable success and a wonderful holiday season,

Charmaine McClarie

PS: If you’d like to go ahead and schedule an appointment with me, please visit my online calendar and choose an option that works best for you.