Trailblazers’ Stories: not-your-average Blog
Here you’ll find more than 450 full-lenght articles, most 4000 words+, about subjects that would interest people who are navigating huge life changes, challenges and crises and are starting the next chapters in their lives. Most articles feature the story of someone who had to cope with a life-altering crisis. Maybe you’ll find the story of someone who survived the exact same crisis as you are facing? You can use the search function below to find inspiring stories:
Here are the main themes:
1. Retreats – Stress Dissolvers & Direction Finders – The transformative power of retreat experiences for people navigating major life transitions, career pivots, and personal crossroads. Explore how stepping away creates space for clarity, renewal, and intentional next chapters.
2. Horses – Partners in Transformation – How equine-assisted learning can accelerate emotional healing, build self-awareness, and guide stressed professionals toward their next chapter with wisdom that only horses can provide.
3. Navigating Life Changes, Challenges & Crises – Practical strategies and emotional support for weathering life’s storms—from unexpected upheavals to planned transitions. Learn to navigate uncertainty with resilience and emotional adaptability during pivotal life moments.
4. Burnout & Stress Management in Transition – Understanding why life transitions amplify stress and burnout risk. Science-backed approaches to managing acute and chronic stress when you’re already navigating significant personal or professional change.
5. Life Purpose – The Foundation of New Beginnings – Discovering and reconnecting with your deeper purpose during times of change. Explore why clarity of purpose is essential when reinventing your life, career, or identity.
6. Emotional Intelligence, Empathy, Self-Awareness & Mindfulness – Developing the inner resources that make transitions smoother. Cultivate emotional maturity, self-compassion, and mindful practices that support you through life’s most challenging passages.
7. Reinvention and Reconstruction after a Major Life Change – Navigate relationship shifts, empty nests, health scares, career pivots, redundancies, retirement, relocation, professional success without fulfillment, and find clarity for your next chapter.
8. Grief, Loss & Legacy – Honouring what’s been lost while creating meaningful legacy. Process grief from death, relationship endings, or life chapter closures, and discover how loss can transform into purposeful living.
9. Nature, Sustainability & Slow and Solo Travel – Reconnecting with natural rhythms as an antidote to modern overwhelm. Embrace sustainable, intentional living that supports well-being during life transitions and beyond.
10. Writing, Reading & Storytelling – How words heal and transform during major life changes. Explore writing your story, reading for solace and inspiration, book reviews, and storytelling circles as powerful tools for processing transition.
Margaretha Montagu
Introverts vs Extroverts: Many introverts spend decades pretending to be extroverts to fit in but according to Laurie Helgoe, "Introverts are more effective leaders of proactive employees. When you have a creative, energetic workforce, an introvert is going to draw...
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Margaretha Montagu
Without necessarily Meditating on a Mountain Top Trying to “find your true calling” can feel like looking for a needle in a philosophical haystack. And while classic advice like “determine your values” or “write a mission statement” works for some,...
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Margaretha Montagu
Introduction: Rethinking the Bucket List For years, the bucket list has reigned supreme as the ultimate blueprint for a life well-lived. Scaling Everest? Check. Sipping champagne in a hot air balloon over the Serengeti? Done. Absolutely. Dining at a three-Michelin-star...
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Margaretha Montagu
Summary This article reframes life purpose discovery as a cutting-edge strategy for amplifying success rather than an esoteric or "new age" concept. It challenges the assumption that life purpose is secondary to professional achievement. Introduction: The Missing Piece in the...
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Margaretha Montagu
Introduction The midlife crisis—a cultural relic that once inspired impulsive sports car purchases, drastic career overhauls, and soul-searching trips to far-flung destinations. For years, it served as the poster child for life transitions, often wrapped in a haze of regret...
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Margaretha Montagu
Alright, readers, buckle up! We're about to embark on a wild ride called Identity Shift: From Zero to Hero. I have written a number of very SERIOUS articles recently, in an attempt to be helpful (one is nearly 3000 words...
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Margaretha Montagu
“The greatest tragedy in life is not untimely death, but to live a life of emptiness.” – Debasish Mridha Imagine finally reaching the summit of success, surrounded by every external marker of achievement, and feeling… nothing. Not triumph, not joy,...
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Margaretha Montagu
Introduction From bubble baths to binge-watching Netflix, traditional self-care has been reduced to a checklist of indulgences that often leave us feeling more drained than rejuvenated. For all its popularity, the "treat yourself" culture has become little more than a...
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Margaretha Montagu
Introduction Have you ever noticed how some people seem to navigate life with quiet strength, no matter the circumstances? It’s not because their lives are easier or free of challenges. Their secret lies in their perspective: they live with a...
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Margaretha Montagu
Strategies for Introverts Introduction Time is ticking, the pressure is mounting, and a decision must be made. Whether you're a leader steering your team through a critical juncture, a professional juggling multiple priorities, or simply navigating life’s daily challenges, the...
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Margaretha Montagu
Our willingness to wait reveals the value we place on the object we’re waiting for. Charles Stanley In Praise of the Pause We've all been there – stuck in life's waiting room, checking our metaphorical watches and wondering when our...
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Margaretha Montagu
What is the Secret of Living a Meaningful Life? The secret of living a meaningful life isn't really a secret at all - it lies in understanding that it is up to us to make our lives meaningful. How you...
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Margaretha Montagu
A Light-hearted Guide for Trailblazers, Visionaries, Groundbreakers, Guidinglights, Empire builders, Torchbearers and Pathfinders Sausan, a brilliant CFO I worked with, found herself staring at her reflection one morning, wondering why her recent promotion to a coveted board position felt more...
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Margaretha Montagu
When did burning out become something to brag about? Picture this: You're sitting in a meeting, bleary-eyed and clutching your third cup of coffee as if it were a lifeline. Someone casually remarks, "I haven’t had a proper vacation in...
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Margaretha Montagu
Especially during Life Transitions Introduction Storytelling is one of humanity’s oldest and most powerful tools for making sense of life. Beyond entertainment, stories provide structure, convey values, and reveal truths about our lives. By adopting storytelling techniques, we can infuse...
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Margaretha Montagu
Major Life Changes can make even Seasoned Professionals feel like Anxious Amateurs You've spent decades mastering your field, earning those battle scars of experience, and finally feeling like you belong with the best. Then suddenly, a seismic shift occurs –...
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Margaretha Montagu
Don't Spend It, Invest It. Harry sat in his sleek, glass-walled office overlooking the city, the rhythmic clicking of his Montblanc pen against the desk filling the sterile silence. The faint scent of leather from his chair mingled with the...
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Margaretha Montagu
“If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” — Isaac Newton Potential clients often ask me what happens during an iNFINITE iMPACT mentoring consultation. Below, I share an example of such a consultation, entirely...
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Margaretha Montagu
Turning Points and Existential Questions Life transitions: they’re the moments when the universe taps you on the shoulder and says, “Time for a Change.” Whether it’s a career pivot, the starting/selling of a business, part- or full retirement, the loss...
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Margaretha Montagu
Why Successful Professionals Secretly Question Their Accomplishments (And What They Can Do About It) Part of the #12 Strategies Collection Introduction In my years of working with the impressively accomplished, I've observed that many of them (though not all, mind...
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Margaretha Montagu
Anthony didn’t do breaks. Vacations, maybe. But they were the carefully curated kind—five-star hotels, perfectly chilled martinis, and assistants who’d answer his emails faster than he could order room service. He wasn’t the sort of guy who meditated, journaled, or...
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Margaretha Montagu
Live Your Legacy Part of the #12 Strategies Collection Introduction You've mastered the art of achievement. The corner office, the strategic acquisitions, the industry recognition – you've checked all the traditional boxes of success. But in quiet moments, a persistent...
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Margaretha Montagu
Summary Healing organisations prioritise stakeholder well-being while pursuing sustainable success. This model challenges traditional profit-centred approaches by integrating compassion, non-judgemental support, purpose, and environmental stewardship into core business operations. Introduction This morning my stepbrother, knowing that I would be fascinated...
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Margaretha Montagu
What is Your Communication Style and why is it Crucial to Determine This? During any major life change or transition, whether it is personal or professional, it is crucial to communicate clearly—both with yourself and others. Life changes can be...
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Margaretha Montagu
A Fresh Perspective Introduction At the beginning of this new year, many of us are making plans and setting goals for the year ahead. Whether it's career ambitions, fitness targets, or personal development objectives, we aim to map our paths...
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Margaretha Montagu
A Fresh Start in a Fast-Changing World So, here we are in 2025, where AI writes poetry, cars practically drive themselves, and your coffee maker probably has more computing power than NASA circa 1969. If there was ever a time...
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Margaretha Montagu
If you have obstacles that are holding you back from who you want to be, PRIMING is one of the most effective tools for bridging that gap. Tony Robbins Introduction When the storm hits—whether it’s a life-altering crisis or a...
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Margaretha Montagu
Every January, millions of us take a moment to reflect on the year ahead, enthusiastically penning New Year's resolutions. Eat healthier. Get that promotion. Pivot your business. Finally start that profitable side hustle. These big goals can feel empowering, yet...
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Margaretha Montagu
At the close of one chapter and the imminent start of another, there’s often a pause. This pause can feel unsettling and disorienting—a disruption in your carefully curated rhythm. Yet, it’s also a moment brimming with untapped potential, a chance...
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Margaretha Montagu
Because the Habit of Reflection can separate Extraordinary Successful Professionals from Highly Successful Ones As the year winds down, it's easy to get caught up in the holiday rush and the flurry of end-of-year deadlines. But amidst the chaos, this powerful tool...
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