On Longing and Belonging

7,350 miles from Seattle.

7,350 miles from Seattle. As someone who coaches leaders through transitions, I'm living one of the core challenges we each experience at some time in our lives (often many times!). How to build belonging in a new place without losing connection to the communities that shaped you and still matter?

There's real tension here - missing the people who know your story, feeling disconnected from the professional networks you've cultivated, and longing for family and chosen family who've shown up through so many challenges and celebrations.

And simultaneously - building new community, sharing your story with new friends, creating new connections with colleagues, and expanding the circle of trusted and chosen family.

Here's what I'm learning: belonging isn't binary. Living between Australia and Seattle doesn't mean being fully absent from either place. My community in both places shows up for me, and I show up for them - as family, as a friend, as a coach and colleague, and as someone who's committed to these relationships regardless of time zones.

Both Seattle and the Sunshine Coast are home. Both communities matter. And the work I do - coaching leaders through their own transitions and transformations - happens from wherever I am.

For leaders navigating their own relocations or distributed teams, this ability to create community in multiple places matters. Your ability to hold both longing and belonging, to honor the past while building what's next, models the kind of flexibility leadership increasingly requires.

Home isn't just one place. Home is the people who see you, show up for you, and welcome you. The work of building community doesn't stop because you're in a different hemisphere.

If you're navigating a transition - personal or professional - or building something that requires you to show up fully, whether in person or across distance, I'd love to hear how you're doing it. Reach out. I'm here to help (regardless of where I am!).