Nobody likes to be uncomfortable. It is unpleasant, and people spend all their lives in an attempt to maintain as much distance as possible between them and any kind of discomfort. But life happens anyway. No matter how many frontiers one may build, how tall the fortress is, discomfort always finds a way in. The truth perhaps lies somewhere else. As Kate McKay, Founder and CEO of Siena Strategy Partners, found out, it lies in getting comfortable with being uncomfortable. Here is how to make it happen.
Kate McKay is a certified high-performance coach. She has helped corporations, groups, and individuals gain an increase in self-fulfillment and overall happiness in their personal as well as professional lives. Kate comes from a family of nine children, and it was a childhood that, to say the least, was “chaotic, fun, and crazy,” as she puts it. This “chaotic” beginning taught her from the upstart to practice what she would come to preach with time. She says, “My childhood was a busy place. You could barely ever hear your thoughts, and as someone who felt drawn to clarity, I developed my ways of finding my time and listening to myself. This practice was to put me in good stead in my future. And I can firmly say, it was my first initiation into my philosophy, unconsciously, of course, that one must get comfortable with the idea of being uncomfortable.”
Kate was shipped off to a performing arts high school when she was 15. This helped her come into her own and stay safe from the drug addictions that plagued a few of her siblings. Life went on at a reasonably charming pace for the next decade. However, things came to a standstill when she learned that one of her brothers had been murdered. Talking about it, she says, “My brother being murdered when I was 24 was a pivotal point in my life, and my family fragmented us.”
As Kate continued with life, it dealt its most significant blow when she lost her son in 2017. She took to writing to heal herself and published a book titled, Claim Your Inner Warrior as a tribute to his memory. These experiences can either break a spirit or make it realize life’s effervescence. Having practiced the idea of getting comfortable with being uncomfortable all through her life, consciously or unconsciously, helped her cope with her loss more bravely than she could have imagined. Using her life as a testimony to her philosophy, Kate says, “The loss of my son and brother has shifted the conversations I have and the choices I make. I do not hesitate to live boldly in life and to bring light to dark places. I do this with enthusiasm and passion. I love to learn to listen to people’s stories. I am always growing. I am not attached to things as many are, as I understand the fleeting quality of life in a different way. My son Will guides me. It’s an incredibly transformative journey. I also believe I am here to help people grow prosperity and wealth as I love business and economic trends.”
We wish Kate McKay’s spirit more courage and strength.
