I arrived in California on 22 March, just as the stay at home orders were issued. I’d managed to secure one of the last flights out of Australia but I didn’t really trust that I’d make it into the States, given how quickly everything seemed to be changing. Also, did I...

Wellbeing is one of those nebulous terms we hear a lot of in popular culture. So what the hell do we mean by wellbeing? It’s not happiness, that elusive butterfly. Wellbeing goes deeper than that. Wellbeing is when you can trust that your basic physical, mental and...

In case you are laboring under the misapprehension that, being in the health and wellbeing sector, I’m sailing through COVID like it’s a slightly advanced version of a meditation retreat, let me level. I’m a life coach and yoga teacher, and a card-carrying hippy. But...

With its scorching effect on your identity and the cynicism, sadness and isolation that can ensue, emerging from burnout means you are changed. It’s possible to emerge from burnout more empowered, authentic and capable of implementing positive change. As Nate Klemp...

I’m in a busy café on the outskirts of drizzly Vancouver after two and a half amazing weeks in British Columbia. My partner and I came last year to ski Revelstoke for five days straight and loved it so much we decided to come back, this time for longer, taking in an...

I'm calling it: “work-life balance” is dead.  While the notion of balancing the demands we face to mitigate stress is helpful, the term itself is flawed and antiquated.  RIP, work-life balance. Laterz!  There are two key reasons why “work-life balance” has to be...

No one leads their professional life with the aim of burning out. So how does burnout happen? What motivates us to push beyond our boundaries? Why do we persist with unhealthy behavior and attitudes when we are clearly on a crash course towards burnout? For most, the...

A couple of weeks ago, I was scheduled to catch up with my friend James for a drink. He’s originally from Canada but forty years in Australia have worn the edges off of his accent. It was a Friday, and the forecast was 45 degrees Celsius. We were going to meet about...

We get a lawyer to do our legal stuff, a mechanic to fix our car, a hairdresser to tame our locks, an accountant to take care of our taxes. Why is there still a stigma around therapy?  I’m not ashamed to say that I’ve been in therapy four times. And I think it’s...

Sometimes you have to risk hurting others to look after yourself. Visiting places I’ve previously lived, so that I’m nourished rather than exhausted, involves being selective. Whether it’s Amsterdam, Adelaide, Agadir or Aljezur, I used to try hard to catch up with...

I nearly died yesterday, and something within me has shifted. Driving on a four-lane Spanish highway at about 8am, tunes cranking, I was cruising behind a large truck carrying earthmoving equipment. When I was about to shift into the left lane to overtake it, the...

After almost a year away, I’m back in Europe. It’s something of a homecoming, as I lived here for more than 15 years. And with all the crisscrossing roadtripping I did from the north of the Netherlands to the southern tips of Spain and Portugal, the whole continent...

About a month ago I realized time was ripe for me to finally undertake my second ten-day Vipassana meditation course. I completed my first one in Portugal almost 3 years ago, and the experience was transformative – even though I slacked off on my meditation practice...

As humans, we tend to believe that we exercise a high level of control over our lives. We make all kinds of choices, about work, health, education, family, what Netflix series we watch, and we are chuffed when these choices have the consequences we desire. It gives us...

For a few years I lived an endless summer – June-July-August in the northern hemisphere, Christmas and New Years down south. My wardrobe dwindled to dresses, bikinis, sunnies and Havaianas. It was as awesome as it sounds. This year, after winter in California I’m...

“Life is a highway”. Perhaps that’s why I love roadtrips so much – they are a literal expression of the existential journey we are on. We pass through places or phases, things go wrong and we fix them, sometimes we are elated and sometimes we feel (or actually...

At Mammoth Mountain ski resort, there is an actual mammoth on the slopes. Ok technically it’s a person who skis around dressed as a woolly mammoth. Appropriately named “Woolly”, every time I see this critter, I get excited in a way that makes me feel like a little...

Have you noticed how many LinkedIn posts are about how leaders should treat employees? It’s often the classic Richard Branson quote about putting employees first, or a similar one from Steve Jobs. Their proven logic is that if employees are happy, customers will be...

The new year is about fresh starts and new opportunities. It’s a time of possibilities and potential. But new situations can be stressful. A new school or workplace, a new city or even country: we have all experienced new situations that stressed us out. With four...

What would you do if money was no object? What comes so naturally and brings you such fulfilment that you wouldn’t need money to do it? These are classic coaching questions, aimed at establishing what makes you come alive, with a view to goal setting for your career...

We associate the word ‘passion’ with something fiery, a pursuit that comes so naturally you can’t fight it. Like, "if you find your passion you’ll never have to work another day in your life". Unfortunately, this is a big fat lie. Passion derives from the latin word...

Sometimes I push myself physically, sometimes mentally. Yesterday I did both at once: I climbed the Ha’ikū stairs.  The stairs, also known as the Pali Ladder or the Stairway to Heaven, were constructed by the US Navy during the Second World War for access to a secret...

When I saw the sunny, calm forecast at Mammoth Mountain, I couldn’t help it. Saturday afternoon, I jumped in the car and buzzed up to one of my favorite places in the world – my in-laws’ cabin in Mammoth Lakes. And on Sunday, less than 9 months after knee...

I’m settling into a home for the first time in more than two years. After spending most of my time since 2016 living out of a suitcase, I am tapping into a new, deeply domesticated vibe. And loving it. Scouring Craigslist ads for the right lamp, visits to IKEA (3...

The stores are full of Christmas tat, which can only mean one thing – it’s almost time for another new year. Before things start to really ramp up with festive parties and panicked gift-purchasing (which is the only way I purchase gifts), I am taking time to start...

Amsterdam has been a part of my life since I was a 16-year-old student arriving for a year’s exchange. Though I was to live on a dairy farm 50km to the north, the first week was spent with four other Aussies on induction in Amsterdam’s inner-west. Immediately, I was...

In flight from Bordeaux to Paris, and after a hectic couple of months in my homeland and now on the continent, I’m calm and focused again. A brief catch up: My 94-year-old father had a series of falls and was diagnosed with dementia He was hospitalized, and after 3...

Ever realized that you’ve gone past your reserves and burned your energy down to less than nothing? I’m right there. I am exhausted, emotional and angry. There are a number of ways I usually find grounding in order not to feel out of balance in this way. Eating right....

After a long relationship ended, I took time off from the whole concept and learned one valuable if annoying fact about myself: I’m great at being single. Freedom and autonomy are two of my favorite things, so being in a serious relationship again is proving...

There are decisions we make in our lives that are so defining, we have no clue when we make them just how much they will shape our future. It’s not just what we actively choose to do, but – sometimes even more powerfully – what we choose not to do. The mediocre job we...

I just returned from an amazing trip to the countries of the Caucasus: Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. Snuggled between mountains and seas, this small area made a huge impression on my heart. There was a bunch of surprises: - it is way easier than we expected....

After quitting law, I went for celebratory drinks with a friend. Discussing plans for my future, I searched for the words to explain how I wanted my life to change. “I want to build a life that, if I overheard someone at the pub describing it, I would be Kermit-green...

This weekend, while my boyfriend is in Bali, I spent a couple of days with his kids. His daughters are aged 9 1/2 and almost 12, and are totally awesome. Smart, funny, kind, adventurous, easy going. It’s a pleasure being with them, and being a part of their lives...

Moving overseas is an exciting and rewarding experience – but also challenging (which is what makes it so rewarding!). I’ve moved internationally a bunch of times and am in the process of moving to my fourth continent right now. So, what are the key things to do, to...

When I’m contemplating doing something that scares me and I need a reminder of how taking risks can actually be rewarding and safe, I ask two questions: What are the most important decisions you have made in your life? Stuck? Here are a few of mine, for inspo. -...

Tomorrow I turn 40, and I don’t give a shit. I mean it. I didn’t care about turning 30 or 35, and so far almost-40 feels fine. However, experience has taught me that I can be a master of self-deception. I’ve been known to be nonchalant in the lead up to Valentine’s...

After I quit as a lawyer, I worked as a receptionist at a small Amsterdam gym (for context: everything in Amsterdam is small, especially compared to California). It was awesome: the pay was low but it got me socializing, teaching yoga, and hanging with rad, inspiring...