This is an absolutely delightful yet deep conversation with the brilliant author-activist Lydia Slaby.  Her book, Wait, It Gets Worse, talks about her transformation from a type A super achieving perfectionist, to a cancer surviving seeker of peace and purpose.  We talk candidly about her process, meditation, ego resistance and so much more in this connected exchange.

In Her Own Words…

“I am an advocate, speaker, and writer focused on empowering people, communities, and organizations faced with daunting change. My blog HairOptional.com was started to share updates about my treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma with family and friends and continued after I was declared cancer-free to dispatch reports from the wilderness of survivorship. Recently transplanted from Chicago, I live in Rhinebeck, NY with my husband and two adorable cats. WAIT, IT GETS WORSE is my first book.

My storytelling, volunteering, and consulting combine my skills and experience to support humanity’s connectedness, creativity, and advancement. A survivor of multiple health challenges, I am dedicated to helping people recognize, accept, and thrive inside transformation and transition. My clear-eyed acceptance of the reality of my own situation, combined with my sarcastic yet gracious sense of humor, grants others the ability to access the upheaval that I felt and feel every day, so that they can approach their own work with calm grace.

Once upon a time, I was a corporate lawyer in Chicago focused on bankruptcy and restructuring. I served Governor Patrick in Massachusetts as Deputy Chief of Staff for Administration and Finance where I oversaw the state’s response to failing cities and towns. I have sat on nonprofit boards and advised for-purpose organizations that focus on young adult cancer, women’s empowerment, the environment, and storytelling for over 15 years.

I studied design at Harvard, covered most of the world in my travels, hold a BA with honors in Urban Studies and Business Economics from Brown University, and am a graduate of Northwestern University’s JD-MBA program.”

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