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I spent the weekend binge-watching Maid — a ten-episode series about a young woman named Alex clawing her way out of poverty, domestic violence, and a family lineage of untreated mental illness.

Alex’s life was hard. The kind of hard I’m grateful I’ve never experienced.

The truth is: I’m extremely privileged.

Even in my most stressful moments, I’ve always had a roof over my head, fresh food, and easy access to healthcare. With a little planning, I’ve been able to say yes to nearly every educational or coaching opportunity I’ve felt called toward. As a thin, upper-middle-class, able-bodied white woman, I face very few barriers to getting what I need, when I need it — and being treated with respect along the way.

Yes. I am extremely privileged.

And I waste way too much time feeling guilty about it.

That guilt shows up like this:

• Working more hours than are actually necessary…
  ​because having too much free time makes me uncomfortable.
• Refusing to pay for support…
  ​because why do I deserve help when so many people have none?
• Holding myself back in my business…
  ​because wanting more feels selfish when others are struggling.

This is true for so many of the women I work with.

We carry privilege and a hypersensitive empathy for the suffering of others. We don’t know how to hold both truths at once. So we spend our lives breaking our backs trying to make it “even.”

But how many people are we really helping when we’re walking around with broken backs?

We’re punishing ourselves for having privilege.

We feel guilty that — unlike Alex — we don’t have to search the sidewalk for spare change to put enough gas in the car to get to the job that doesn’t even cover childcare.

We hate that other people are suffering.

We hate not knowing how to fix it.

Over time, that guilt festers. It distorts our reality (“You can’t afford to pay for support!”) and contorts our bodies (“Get back to work! You need to do MORE!”). We become obedient cogs in the machine that’s harming all of us.

But the truth is this:

Your privilege isn’t a problem. It’s power.

When wielded consciously, your privilege can empower your mind and strengthen your body, enabling you to disrupt the machine altogether.

Because when you say…

• I’m taking some time off to recharge my batteries.
• I’m hiring support, so I’m not so exhausted and stressed out.
• I’m going to go bigger with my business so I can have more impact.

… you’re not just helping yourself. You’re putting a plan in motion that disrupts the status quo and makes the world a better place for all of us.

You can use your privilege to contribute to large-scale transformation.

And it starts by saying yes to yourself.

That can be hard for your inner martyr — the part of you that believes you’re not really doing good unless you’re suffering alongside the people you’re trying to serve. But we don’t need to suffer to be of service!

In fact, quite the opposite.

The more resourced you are, the more good you can do.

When you do the inner work to expand your tolerance for ease and abundance, you have more psychological and financial capacity to use your privilege well.

And yeah, that inner work is uncomfortable.

But not nearly as uncomfortable as Alex’s life.

I wish I could give my privilege to Alex — but I can’t. It’s mine.

And your privilege belongs to you.

You can ignore it, or you can cash it in for a chance to help transform the system. I’m not saying that will happen overnight. But the choices you make with your privilege today will shape the future.

And it’s okay if those choices make your life better, too.

You don’t need to feel guilty about that.

Remember, guilt keeps us busy.

And busy people don’t have the capacity to change anything.

If you want to be an agent of change, you have to step off the hamster wheel that keeps you trapped in stress, exhaustion, and overwhelm.

Which is why I’m so passionate about time off.

Taking space for yourself is the first step to harnessing your privilege for good. It allows you to see exactly what you need to heal, what you need to change, and what you need to create in order to live a more easeful life.

That’s what I want for all of us — more ease.

When you step away from the daily grind, you reconnect with the bigger picture. And when you allow yourself to consciously leverage your privilege in service of that vision, your ability to help others expands tenfold.

This is the big mission behind Sabbatical School.​

To help entrepreneurs create space to tend to themselves, clarify their visions, and find the courage to bust through glass ceilings, kick “the man” in the balls, and help create a world where everyone is taken care of.

That’s what a sabbatical is all about — intentional space for healing, dreaming, recharging, and creating radical change.

Right now, Alex doesn’t have the resources to initiate change. She doesn’t have the option to find more ease. And she definitely doesn’t have the luxury to take more time off.

But you do.

If you’re ready, I would truly love to have you in Sabbatical School.​

Early-bird enrollment closes tonight.

If money feels tight, join before midnight to save up to $500 with the early-bird rate. I genuinely want this to be accessible for you.

I know it’s scary. And I know you can do it.

Let’s use our privilege for good — for others and for ourselves.