I Found a Unicorn: A Story of Intention

In November of 2020, I participated in a program for leaders of small business called Focus Forward at Aileron. Part of a small business? Not familiar with Aileron? Their mission and offerings are worth a glance. The session was designed to hone in on short term planning to navigate through the crisis of COVID while harnessing creativity and mitigating chaos. I found myself paired with an owner of a small tech company with over 25 years in the industry. For the sake of this blog, we’ll call him Bob. Wearing a buttoned-up flannel, a beard and what I can only assume were well-worn jeans, he began to describe one of the challenges facing his leadership team. He described their tendency to default to what they have always done, ‘repackaging it’ and taking the safe route. He looked at me and said, “Meghan, my team loves to polish turds.” I immediately started laughing, almost falling off my chair. I liked him instantly. We discussed the opportunity to disrupt old patterns (those no longer serving us) and form new ones to catapult us into a stronger future.

Later I shared with Bob what we were experiencing in our own emergent process within the practice, describing our Rallying Cry and the sprint to stay in front of the evolving need of our partners in the virtual environment and beyond. Bob looked at me and said, “Meghan, you need to find a unicorn.” My eyes lit up and I asked, “how do you do that?” From the ‘nervicited’ (the right combination of nervous and excited) feeling in my belly, I knew he was right. So my search began….I started to get curious and ask questions like what does a unicorn look like? Would I know one when I saw one? What magical powers would this unicorn possess? Could I afford a unicorn? I asked lots of questions. I prayed. I discerned. I waited. And then it happened.

Kristi and I had a call scheduled about plans for possible self-care offerings come January, a month I forecasted would be especially hard for everyone this year. I mentioned looking for a unicorn and she said ‘yes!’ To what exactly I had no idea…there was no job description, no clear path or benefits package, just a hazy invitation to be a part of something bigger. To grow. To evolve. To emerge. To transform. To heal. We began to talk and eventually decided to make it formal, all the pieces falling into place, ‘as it is written.’ With both of our ‘yeses’ clear, the universe responded. “Live your dreams and remember: When you want something; all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” (Paulo Coelho in The Alchemist)

I am delighted to introduce you all to a unicorn. I am in awe to be working along side of her. Welcome Kristi! I cannot wait to see how this adventure unfolds and what the journey has in store for us as we link arms in Transforming the World and Bringing Healing…..together.