About Janet

My passion is figuring out life—how to have my life flourish, how to help others flourish in their lives. My personal work in my adult life has helped me to move out of many beliefs and habits that limited my aliveness and well-being, and to support others to do the same. As the delightful artist Renee Locks says on one of my favorite posters, “Life is too short to wear tight shoes!”

My professional history began with a bachelor’s degree from Swarthmore College and a Masters in Teaching from Simmons College.

Teaching 5th and 6th graders, then Parent Effectiveness Training, and Re-evaluation Counseling gave me the skills to tutor children with learning anxiety, helping them relax into greater success.

I gave workshops and wrote articles about children’s learning, then moved into another area filled with anxious people: executive outplacement. There I helped people who’d been laid off to find new jobs.

I spent another 15 years in my own private practice providing career consulting and life coaching to a wide range of clients. Again, helping people relax and feel better about themselves led to increased success in their job searches.

More recently I began to focus on exercise. It became obvious when I looked at my own life and those around me that many of us suffer from significant blocks in this area. These blocks are not unlike those that hindered both my grade school students and my adult clients.

When we believe beating up on ourselves will lead to success, we are doomed to fail.

Am I a natural exerciser? Not really. I am not one of those who just can’t be stopped from getting out there to work up a good sweat. I can be stopped! And have been. I know what that is like.

I’ve had some years when a daily walk was easy and natural to fit in, even a few summers of walking in the morning and swimming half a mile several afternoons a week. (The joys of an academic schedule!)

But there were also years of not being able to maintain anything consistent, of feeling tired and creaky, achy and unhealthy, of sustaining my energy with coffee and candy bars every afternoon, and, much to my surprise,  of discovering my clothes were too tight. Not fun, and not something I want to continue.

My Testimonial

12 years ago my elderly mother’s severe osteoporosis, which left her homebound and dependent, scared me into action! I began strength training, after reading Miriam Nelson’s book, Strong Women Stay Young. I am very pleased to say I can now open tight jar lids without needing my husband’s help!