Susan Harrow
May – June 2026 • Vol 4, No 22

Embarking on my life coaching career years ago, I somehow intuitively understood that our hearts begin beating to a different rhythm when we are changing, transforming, and shifting gears and we are therefore in need of support and encouragement.  I was attempting to describe this concept to a young teenage friend of mine, who had grown up in the earlier days of techno-logy. He listened patiently and quietly at his keyboard. “Oh,” he finally said, “it’s like tech support, only it’s heart support.” And the idea was born—but yet to be tested.

As my coaching progressed, I was contacted by a local Montana author who was struggling with writer’s block. Familiar to the problem, I imagined working through practical problems and their solutions. That was where we started, but it soon became evident that the obstacles she was presenting were rooted in her relationship with her husband. He was actually not the perceived problem, but their relationship needed a deepening of understanding from both partners. Support and encouragement became what I could offer and, as the matters of the heart were unraveled and resolved, writer’s block was also eliminated.

A few years later at a community visioning event, I was approached by an old friend. She was dealing with sleep issues and what she creatively called artistic hoarding. Collections of this and that were crowding her home, and sleep had become erratic and disturbed. We began working through the issues rather joyfully, be-cause her attitude was one of patient overcoming, step-by-step. An old sofa made it to the dump and boxes were being packed for the thrift shop.

Her vision was brightening. But suddenly, her journey took a radical and unexpected turn… She was diagnosed with an aggressive and progressed cancer. Practical problems were set aside for a transformed understanding of heart support on my part—celebrating small victories or just daily breaths of fresh air, listening and visiting, encouraging her courageous attitude. From my perspective, my friend was taken away much too soon, but I was left with valuable lessons of the heart, which I carry with me.

Life coaching is about life, with its twists and turns, visions created and re-created, the expected and the unexpected. My original idea has led me forward and encouraged my own ongoing transformation.

Heart support has become a spiritual practice for me and a keystone to my work as a coach. Try to offer heartfelt support to those you encounter on your own journey of self-discovery. The rewards are remarkable.

For coaching with Susan Harrow, visit: https://blueheavencoaching.com/ or email: susan@blueheaven.net