What have you learnt about yourself in 2013?
New Year, new beginnings 2014 series: When Lauren Hadden, our deputy editor, started 2013, she thought she knew what she wanted. As the year comes to an end, she finally discovered what she really wanted all along…
By 
Psychologies
Taking the plunge
It took some time to work myself up to speaking to someone about my yearning feeling. A life coach, Magdalena Bak-Maier, was recommended to me. The indie teen inside me sneered, but I gritted my teeth.
Fifteen minutes into the first session I was crying. Via seemingly simple questions we already got to the nub of my problem – I was ‘stuck’ when it came to my plans for the future.
I was astonished at what came out:
Q: What do I want?
A: A home
Shelter – it’s a basic requirement, right? But it took time before I could admit that it was OK to want this big thing for myself. Magdalena helped me see that it was only me that was stopping me from getting what I needed and, in fact, wanted: a house, which I was avoiding buying because I couldn’t cope with the idea of committing to a mortgage; more independence, but I wouldn’t learn to drive; and future security, because I thought pensions were for people who planned on growing old, and that sure as hell wasn’t me.
Netx page: How to make the changes
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