We are living in interesting times. The pandemic brought about challenges for so many people, yet positive shifts have arisen in how we view the work/life balance. In fact, professional life and career coach Kashonna Holland Marrow says the balance has flipped to life/work in our culture. So yes, now life comes first.

"We have come to the realization that we need to do more of what we love. We are taking more control," Marrow said. "People thought, 'My work has disrupted my place of solitude, so how can I still have harmony?' We are also assessing if we still like what we do and the people around us."

Marrow stands right where we need her as we face both uncertainty and opportunity. As a child in Texas, church members would hand her the microphone. "Kashonna will certainly have something to say!" When high school classmates struggled with a problem, Marrow was the one they turned to for advice and guidance. For her, coaching was always a calling.

"I was coaching before coaching was a profession and major movement," Marrow said. That passion stirred in her throughout her career in human resources and staffing, then burst through when she became the author of Seven Days to Simply Shift, a corporate trainer, speaker, and president and CEO of the coaching firm Simply Kashonna.

The key to meeting any goal, she said, is a willingness to accept change and evolve. She believes that every shift comes with some discomfort, but that discomfort is temporary. "If you can lean into the discomfort, you will see something great on the other side."

Marrow works with individuals, groups, and organizations to inspire and guide them through change. She challenges their way of thinking, raises their level of curiosity, and encourages them to go beyond their comfort level.

We asked Marrow to share three changes that we can make today to move us toward our life and career goals. 

She offered these three gems:

1.  Embrace evolution. Things change, and so do people.

2.  Know when to press and when to rest. Don't burn out for approval.

3.  When you show up for yourself and follow through on commitments to yourself, everything changes.

Marrow will be sharing her thought-expanding insights at the Howard County Chamber of Commerce's Women's Leadership Conference on May 17, 2022, from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, where she will facilitate the breakout session "Elevate Your Brand." She invites women to "unharness their special power and engage it for game-changing success." How's that for inspiration?