Sometimes, we need to take the path of the unknown, the uncomfortable, to find our way.

They say life comes in seven-year cycles

For me, 2013 to 2020 was extraordinary. It upended everything I knew and led me halfway around the world from the U.S. to India to coach sports. I never considered sports to be a career choice. It was always something to do on the side. But in this second act of mine, sports became my cornerstone. I became passionate not in being in competitive, championship-winning teams, but rather, in building teams that were bonded with healthy communication and gender awareness.

But let’s go back to the start of things…

I grew up in the U.S. where I had a fairly typical American upbringing balancing academics, sports, family and friends. I had supportive parents who guided me towards a bright future. By my early 30s I had secured that bright future. Yet, I had this distinct feeling something was missing.

As this feeling grew stronger, my quest also began to understand this better. I did traditional therapy, traditional life coaching and read loads of self-improvement books. Yet, I still woke up every morning knowing something was missing. You see, I had created a life based on what was expected of me, not one I truly wanted.

I started reading more about the body-mind-soul connect and intuition. I began a practice of meditation and met with alternative healing practitioners. Slowly, I started to see life from a different lens and gathered the courage to begin again.

And this is what I was giving up

I earned both my BBA and Masters in Accounting from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. I joined Ernst & Young in 2004 to work in the financial services audit practice while becoming a New York State Certified Public Accountant and was then invited to work in the Transaction Advisory Services consulting group. In 2008, I took a job offer at a private equity firm serving as a senior financial analyst.

From 2009 to 2013, I shifted to the non-profit sector in hopes of contributing to society in a more purposeful way. My work ranged from managing disaster relief projects and rebuilding homes post Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans to supporting the largest, most diverse school district in the country in Los Angeles.

Taking a leap of faith

In 2013, I took a leap of faith to transform my life from the comfortable, sort-of happy version to one based on intention and life purpose. I moved to south India to coach sports for an after-school program for underprivileged youth in Chennai. I realized that sometimes, we need to take the path of the unknown, the uncomfortable, to find our way.

Growing up I loved to play, watch and talk about sports

I never considered sports to be a career choice, though. It was always something to do on the side. But in this second act of mine, sports became my cornerstone. I became passionate not in being in competitive, championship-winning teams, but rather, in building teams that were bonded with healthy communication and gender awareness.

Being part of a team taught me some of my biggest lessons

When I moved to Chennai, I discovered Ultimate Frisbee, the only sport in India played with mixed-gender teams. This community became my second family and I spent much of my free time contributing to its growth. I joined one of India’s most diverse club teams with the majority of its players from underprivileged backgrounds. I became an assistant coach for India’s first under 20 men’s team where 90% of our players didn’t have a passport and had never travelled outside the country before. It showed me that sports can change a community. And it also revealed a passion of mine to work towards solving the gender inequity I was seeing and facing on a daily basis. I began organizing week-long immersion sports camps for teenagers and young adults to bridge gaps of gender and socio-economics. These were the beginnings of the non-profit I founded in 2016, Transformational Sports.

So many of the lessons I’ve learned I’ve been guided to share

As my next seven-year cycle begins, I’ve been guided to share my experiences through writing and life coaching. Coming from such a traditional, corporate background I know what it’s like to look at concepts of intuition and body-mind-soul connect with a feeling of, “This stuff isn’t for practical or normal people like me.” I’m here to tell you: it’s simply not true. Especially in today’s times, where life is upended, we need to find that connection, to tune into ourselves more and more. Part of my life purpose is helping others to do just that.