If you had told me a five years ago that I’d become a two-time frequent flyer because of cancer, I would have laughed you out of the room.
Life has a way of delivering plot twists none of us audition for.
In 2022, I faced a breast cancer diagnosis, treatment, and recovery. I came through it healthy and clear.
With that clarity came a vow: to get in the best shape of my life, to listen more carefully to my body, and to notice every whisper of “something’s not quite right” before it had a chance to become a shout.
That vow changed everything.
It reshaped my habits. My health. My relationship with time and permission. Forty pounds gone. Water aerobics, rowing, dog walking. There are joyful, sustainable practices that became part of my life rather than items on a checklist.
But the most important shift wasn’t physical.
It was internal.
I claimed a renewed sense of agency.
I stopped waiting for permission from doctors, from gurus, from gatekeepers to take my next right step.
That, to me, is what it means to Be Your Own Wizard.
Over time, I’ve come to carry this as a simple mantra.
These are three truths I return to again and again:
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Listen to the whispers.
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Align with your magic.
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Surround yourself with circles that lift you.
These principles have guided some of the most important decisions of my life and work.
When Purpose and Business Align
That season of healing also sparked a deeper commitment in my business: cause-driven success.
During my treatment, I was supported by the 4th Angel Peer-to-Peer Mentoring Program at the Cleveland Clinic. When I found my footing again, I knew I wanted to pay that support forward. I tied one of my signature resources — the Bye-Bye Boring Bio workbook — to a donation model.
Something remarkable happened.
People leaned in. Messengers around the world stepped up. Mostly $27 at a time, generosity compounded. Over time, five figures has been raised or influenced.
It reaffirmed something I’ve long believed: when purpose and business align, generosity becomes contagious.
People don’t just want to consume. They want to contribute to something bigger than themselves.
A Whisper That Couldn’t Wait
In early 2025, another whisper arrived.
Something felt off again. An MRI revealed an area of concern, but I was :”snow birding” in another state, temporarily outside my healthcare system. I waited.
One month before the situation would have turned critical, I was accepted into Arizona’s healthcare network. That timing alone saved hundreds of thousands of dollars and placed me in the care of extraordinary doctors.
They found a tumor that had reached 99% invasion. It was contained by just 1%.
If I had waited longer, the outcome could have been devastating.
That wasn’t luck.
That was life whispering, “Don’t wait for permission. Act now.”
It made me wonder how often we all do this.
Waiting.
Waiting to make the call. Waiting to change course. Waiting for clarity, confidence, or consensus.
And what it quietly costs us when we do.
(At this moment, I am enjoying “no evidence of disease” status, having undergone all the surgeries and follow up treatments recommended. My intention is to be cancer free for the rest of my life.)
Why Circles Matter More Than Ever
Here’s what I know for certain: I didn’t go through any of this alone.
I shared my journey with a carefully curated circle. These were chosen family, friends, trusted colleagues, neighbors. Their presence was oxygen.
When I came out of my first encounter with cancer, I created the Love Your Business Love Your Life Inner Circle. For more than three years now, members have been championing one another’s brilliance, navigating growth and reinvention side by side. I am humbled by the words members use to describe me.
Leading this intimate cohort has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my 25-year entrepreneurial career to date.
Now I am curating a second group — the Ruby Slipper Collective — for accomplished women seeking to create their own next magnificent chapters in life and work in close community.
We love to quote Field of Dreams: “If you build it, they will come.”
But the deeper truth is this: build the right circle, and the right people show up.
Without circles, even capable leaders can find themselves isolated, over-functioning, second-guessing, carrying everything alone.
With the right circles, decisions clarify. Courage strengthens. Possibility expands.
Wizardry Looks Practical in Real Life
Wizardry isn’t mystical. It’s applied.
Sometimes it looks like using carefully chosen words.
Yes, with the help of tools like ChatGPT , I wrote a letter that persuaded a 91-year-old widow to sell us our dream home.
Sometimes it looks like negotiating for a baby grand piano I’d long dreamed of, in lieu of home repair concessions.
Sometimes it looks like selling a property during recovery, creating a multi-six-figure cushion to give us room to breathe, reflect, and re-imagine what comes next.
These weren’t lucky breaks.
They were moments of alignment where clarity, timing, and self-trust converged.
Which makes me ask: where might you be underestimating the power of your own words, instincts, and presence?
Choosing Support Over Spotlight
Cancer clarified something else for me, too.
I no longer chase visibility for its own sake. Podcast spots, stages, and shiny metrics have lost their pull.
Instead, I use my messaging gifts to support those who are stepping into the spotlight. These are the leaders and icons I admire, and the clients who enroll in their work.
It’s an unconventional path, perhaps, and it fits.
I’ve always been the wizard behind the curtain who has been deeply invested in the success of others, fluent in strategy, generous with insight.
I fly my own broom. I let my freak flag fly. I build my business so I can love my life because one without the other is never enough.
Even Wizards Need Circles
And still, no one does this alone.
Years ago, I said yes to a circle that has profoundly shaped me. Being a three-year member of Metamind — a year long mastermind of soulful leaders up to 
big things, led by Mark and Renee Porteous — reminds me that even leaders of leaders need sacred places to ask for support, to belong, to bloom.
Strong circles don’t dilute leadership. They deepen it.
They are where perspective is restored, courage is replenished, and next chapters begin to take shape.
An Invitation to Consider
So here is my invitation, from one human to another:
Be your own wizard.
Listen to the whispers before they become roars.
Align with what’s already working within you.
And choose circles that lift you higher.
We all have the power to create our own most magnificent chapters in life and work.
Whether we do so or keep waiting is a choice worth sitting with.
My vote?
Make it happen now.
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Here are links to learn more about some of the programs and initiatives mentioned in this post:
The Be Your Own Wizard Keynote
Bye Bye Boring Bio for a Cause
Love Your Business Love Your Life Inner Circle
Your Next Magnificent Chapter Journal – a free gift
The No Regrets Worksheet — a free gift
