256. Love Boat Cruise Director Didn’t Work Out– So Now She Helps Others Navigate

Before college, Jewels wanted to be like Julie McCoy, the cruise director on the popular TV hit, The Love Boat, which ran from 1977 to 1987, and made Saturday night THE hot night for TV. “I was told there really wasn’t a demand for that, so I should go into elementary education. That really wasn’t my passion, but I did what my parents said, went to college and got my elementary education degree.” She excelled in education, first in the classroom, then as a principal and administrator, but her dissatisfaction played out in a growing reliance on alcohol. For years, she managed to hide it, even from the people closest to her.

“It wasn’t until I turned 30 that I realized that I’d had enough. I had made enough bad choices, told enough lies because of my alcohol dependency, and my life really was not in alignment with who I thought I was and who I wanted to be. I went through an outpatient treatment program and got sober at the age of 30. It was at that time that I really learned how spiritually depleted I was, how much I hated myself. I got into Alcoholics Anonymous and started on my journey of really learning to love myself, learning to do things in the world that didn’t involve alcohol.”

“Before I got sober, I would tell myself that my drinking was not hurting anybody else, it was just hurting me. Then, it dawned on me: Who’s the person most important to me? It IS me!”

“Someone in A.A. told me I should go to women’s meetings. So, I did. Every time I left those meetings, I’d wonder, ‘What do normal women do? How do normal women get the support they need and the unconditional love, when they’re trying to put on a face to the world?’”

“In those A.A. rooms, you get to be you. You’re able to share from your heart and be authentically you. It’s a beautiful connection you have with the women in those rooms. A lot of times, you don’t even know who they are. But there’s a space that’s safe, that allows you to share and be heard. That became a cornerstone of why I created Chicks Connect.”

1. Don’t be distracted from your true calling. If anything is pulling you away from it, tackle it head-on, with help.

2. Find ways to reach out and connect authentically with others.

3. Share what you find with others, and help them identify and reach their true calling.