Growth Doesn’t Happen Alone—It Happens Here

Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about the power of the “third place.”

Not home. Not work. But a space where people can show up fully, think out loud, be witnessed, and grow alongside others.

In a professional world that often swings between isolation and overperformance, third places are where real transformation happens. They’re where self-awareness deepens, self-trust is rebuilt, and new possibilities actually take shape — in relationship, not in isolation.

This is why Christy Uffelman, BCC, MHCS's new book, Wayfinding: Navigating Your Personal Evolution and Professional Growth Mountains, resonated so deeply with me. She names — with clarity and warmth — what so many of us feel but rarely articulate: that sustained personal and professional growth requires spaces designed for reflection, alignment, and connection.

Christy has shaped my own work in profound ways. We hired her to co-facilitate the very first cohort of MOMENTUM at Pitt, she introduced me to the transformative power of coaching, and her peer coaching model (from her prior book The Peer Revolution) continues to underpin the impact of both MOMENTUM and MotherMind.

Reading Wayfinding reminded me why communities like these matter so much. Third places don’t just support growth — they make it possible.

If you’re navigating your own personal or professional transformation, or thinking about how to create conditions for others to do so, this book is worth your time.