Risk-Taking Archives - Kathleen Hassan

How Do I Learn to Love Myself?

Did you know that if you type, how do I learn to… into Google, the #1 searched skill is—you guessed it—love myself. Why is it that so many of us never learned this essential and vital ingredient to living a life of wholehearted happiness? Oftentimes, it’s the negative messaging that we received as kids that has become our conditioned and programmed response to life. Like an operating system that’s been running in the background, it affects our self-image and the way we see ourselves in relation to the world. My negative programming was installed and had been operating beneath the surface since childhood. My dad died when I was ten years old and my mother died when I was sixteen. The six years between their deaths were not happy times as my mother, a widow with five kids, suffered from a debilitating heart condition and a broken heart. She [...]

By Kathleen| 2021-06-07T13:37:50-05:00 June 7th, 2021|

Wanna Make God Laugh?

You know the old joke, "Wanna make God laugh? Tell him your plans!" Well no doubt, God is laughing his ass off right about now as I embark on a mission trip to Medellin, Colombia this summer. Never in a million years did I imagine I would be a freaking missionary traveling to remote regions to share the love of God. It was never part of my five, ten or even twenty year plan. But four years ago I walked into a church and it felt like home. I'm not even sure I was looking for a church, but happened to see a sign on the main road one day for Life Christian Church. The logo was a tree and I always loved the symbolism of the tree of life and so I decided to check it out. Six months after that, I got baptized in the Gulf of Mexico! [...]

By Kathleen| 2018-04-06T14:23:10-05:00 April 6th, 2018|

Perfectly Imperfect: Adele Models the Art of the Do Over

Thank you Adele! Last night during the Grammys, in front of millions of viewers, Adele modeled the art of the do over to perfection. She was singing a tribute to George Michael and a few bars into her rendition of Fast Love, she stopped and said, "I'm sorry, I can't mess this up for him. Can we start over?" A collective gasp shot round the world. Then, as if realizing what she'd just done, she dropped an undeniable f-bomb. You might wonder, what's so perfect about that? Often times our greatest failures become our greatest life lessons, but try telling that to a teenage girl who is obsessed with perfection and will do just about anything to achieve that. There's an anxiety epidemic in our world today as our girls are bombarded with air-brushed images and unrealistic standards of beauty and perfection. To witness a pop culture icon publicly screwing [...]

By Kathleen| 2017-03-07T10:59:57-05:00 February 14th, 2017|

Create Dangerously: As If Someone’s Life Depends On It

The other day on Facebook I read the transcript of a speech delivered by a girl from York PA. Her name is her name is Devon Hornberger and she gave the Valedictorian Commencement Address at her high school graduation ceremony. I was blown away by her speech that began by recounting the abduction of 276 girls from their dormitories in Chibok, Nigeria. They were kidnapped because their abductors believe that girls should not be educated. Her message to her fellow classmates was about the privilege of their education and how young people around the world are risking their lives for that same right. In her speech, she also sited a quote by Edwidge Danicat, an award-winning Haitian-American author: “Create dangerously, for people who read dangerously. This is what I’ve always thought it meant to be a writer. Writing, knowing in part that no matter how trivial your words may seem, [...]

By Kathleen| 2017-03-07T11:44:34-05:00 June 2nd, 2016|

my epic fail… and grateful for it all

I would not be able to do the work that I love, the work that I was put here to do... without YOU! I can say that today, fully understanding this connection and the value of having you in my life. But I didn’t always act that way. Let me explain. Several years ago, I hit a wall. My life and my work took a little detour. It was a significant time and it was necessary to pull back in order to recover and heal. But this, in and of itself was not my epic fail. No one goes through life unscathed and everyone at one time or another faces some obstacles on their path. No, my epic fail was believing that I had to be perfect and that I couldn’t share what was going on with me until I had put it all back together again, wrapped up in [...]

By Kathleen| 2017-03-07T12:39:02-05:00 November 26th, 2013|

Ask Kat: I Broke Up With a Guy – So Why I Am I So Sad?

Just got this great question from a girl named Nikki and figured I’d share my response to her with other girls who may have been wondering the same thing. I broke up with my bf and I thought I would feel relieved bc I lost my romantic emotions for him, but instead I'm the one bawling my eyes out. It just sucks because I do care about him, he just wasn't “the one” and I feel empty and sad. I feel like I should feel so relieved. Is it normal to feel sad even if I’m the one who left him? Dear Nikki - Of course it’s normal - you're mourning a loss. Even when you make a choice that supports your best and highest good... that doesn't mean that there isn't a time of grieving. Not so much mourning the loss of him... but mourning the loss of what you [...]

By Kathleen| 2013-11-19T21:22:57-05:00 November 19th, 2013|

Boobs, Jugs, Hooters & Tits: The Quest for the Perfect Breasts

This past weekend, I was in South Beach, Miami attending Mama Gena’s Worldwide Sister Goddess Weekend. I felt like I was magnetically pulled there. I somehow found myself on Mama Gena’s website back in July and saw the blurb about the weekend. I clicked the link and signed up without a moment’s hesitation - not knowing really anything about it nor anyone who would be there. I drove across Florida with butterflies in my stomach, feeling this intense resistance going on inside of me - knowing that I had been divinely called here and feeling so much fear at the exact same time. I have never experienced anything like it before in my life. Hundreds of bold, sexy, adventurous, outrageous women all committed to living a life unleashed and out loud. These chicks - young and old, tall and short, thin and chubby - every one of them totally owned [...]

By Kathleen| 2017-03-07T12:40:59-05:00 November 15th, 2013|

Taking the Bite Out of “The Bitch”

What comes to mind when you hear the word “bitch?” The “b word” has so much negative connotation to it and our fear of being labeled as such often keeps us toeing the line and squashing our thoughts, voices and opinions. Last night I was working with a client who is a 2nd grade teacher and currently has a student teacher in her classroom. My client was describing all the ways that this neophyte was not performing up to expectations or the standards that she has set for herself and her classroom. But rather than being strong and assertive, she had slipped into a more passive-aggressive role and was allowing the performance of this student teacher to totally affect the mood and energy of the classroom. When I asked what was the block that was preventing her from being direct and laying it on the line for this young woman, [...]

By Kathleen| 2013-10-30T18:45:17-05:00 October 30th, 2013|

Stay Where You Are – So I Can Feel Safe

There's a certain sense of security and camaraderie in the struggle of life. But what happens when someone decides to let go of the struggle and step into the joy and flow of life? Do people like you better when you play it safe and play the victim of circumstances? When someone decides to step out of the role they've been playing and makes a bold move towards change, you'd think that everyone would stand up and cheer! But more often then not, people try to put you back where they think you belong so they can feel safe. Misery loves company is an expression that, although few of us would admit, really does make us feel a little bit better about our own lives if someone else is struggling right along with us. The Mobile Effect Imagine everyone in your family and all of your closest friends are all [...]

By Kathleen| 2017-03-07T14:06:26-05:00 December 20th, 2011|

What If You Knew You Couldn’t Fail?

Imagine if you knew in advance that you’d already won and that nothing you could do - or not do would change that. Imagine how different your approach to life would be. Your attitude and perspective would be so dramatically shifted from the way it is right now. You’d play more and worry less. You’d see challenges as opportunities to be creative. You would no longer be driven by the self-centered fear of not being good enough because you’d already know that you are enough. Well, guess what? You’ve already won! You already are enough! For you were created in the image and likeness of God. Within you lies the changeless and eternal truth that you are one with your Creator. Our only purpose here is to awaken to the truth of that and let go of the illusion that we are anything less than the love and light of [...]

By Kathleen| 2017-03-07T14:10:11-05:00 July 11th, 2011|