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It was a simple exchange, and yet it could have easily sent us down the wrong road.

The grand essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love, and something to hope for.

– Joseph Addison

Why would this simple thought throw me into a tailspin?

Well, it wouldn’t now.

As a life coach, I ask a lot of questions. It’s my job.

And I have a kind of unusual question for you today.

If an angel were to come to you and tell you that s/he who wins the game of life is s/he who stresses the least, has the most fun, and gains the most satisfaction from living … and you believed what she said completely … how would you live your life differently from here on?

We witnessed quite a redemption story play out this weekend on national TV.

The flawed hero in our drama? Tiger Woods.

Bear with me here. You may not care about golf. I don’t care much about golf, but I love it when real life shines a light on truths I care very much about and provides me with inspiration. This story does just that.

As a life coach and the author of these Life Lessons every month, my eyes are always open for a meaningful message I can pass along to you. Often, that message comes from my personal experience.

This month, my experience was very much of the up-close-and- personal variety … and one I’ll never forget.

I want to pass along a profound life lesson I took away from a recent negative experience. The thing is, it’s gonna look, at first blush, like a business newsletter from a business coach … but it isn’t.

Ah, the Greek Isles … the whitewashed villages with the cerulean blue domes … the crystal clear sky with the sun beaming down.

Our Greek Islands cruise left out of Barcelona … with stops in Mallorca, Sicily, Mykonos, Rhodes, Athens, Santorini, and Malta.

Santorini was special. But, let me tell ya, the sun doesn’t always shine there.

As a life coach, one of the things I’ve noticed is that we, as humans, share certain basic motivations. And one of the most common ones is our desire to make a difference in the world … to live a life of meaning and purpose.

But do you ever wonder if what you’re doing makes any real difference?

Do you doubt the impact you’re having on the people and the world around you?

When my friend asked me to go to a place called Elephantstay in Thailand, I thought it would be fun to get away, interact with elephants, and get some great photos.

What I didn’t bargain for was the profound impact this trip would have on me.

If you’d told me a giant elephant was going to teach me amazing life lessons, I never would have believed it.

As a life coach, I often ask people what’s most important to them in their lives, and they tell me it’s other people they’re close to in some way … family, friends, life partners, folks who’ve been good to them.

And if you ask these same people if they regularly acknowledge these important people in their lives with an “I love you” or a “Thank you,” most would say, “Not often enough.”

Maybe it’s the same for you. It mostly is for me, although I’m getting much better at it.

But there are some people who make it a way of life to acknowledge, thank, and praise those they love and appreciate. And that acknowledgement, love, and praise comes right back to them, making them happy in return!