Last-minute changes had me scrambling to get Sadie settled with a sitter before boarding a plane for business. The plan? A sales demo, a few handshakes, and the hidden bonus of a night off from midnight potty walks. What I didn’t expect was to meet someone who looked a little like me: heart a little bruised, life a little rearranged, future a little uncertain. Instead of just talking about the opportunity in front of us, I found myself sharing pieces of my healing story. And for the first time in a long time, I realized: what I’m doing isn’t just helping me, it’s giving someone else hope too.

The actual reason for my trip was straightforward enough: a customer demo. My role was more symbolic than tactical, showing the client that this deal mattered to our company. It was new type of opportunity with an established partner, which meant the pressure was high and every detail mattered. Our director of business development couldn’t attend, so I had to step into the sales role myself. Cue me, someone usually buried behind spreadsheets, Teams meetings, and reports, dusting off my “client-facing” smile and stepping way outside my comfort zone.

Stepping into that role felt oddly familiar to what I’ve been doing in my personal life these past few months. I’ve been pushed out of the comfortable spaces I knew, forced to find new footing in a life I didn’t expect. Just like in sales, where you never quite know how the customer will respond, healing has been a mix of preparation and improvisation. Some days I nail the pitch; other days I feel like I’m fumbling through my own story. But either way, I’m showing up.

And that’s when I met her, a colleague from our partner’s company. In an industry so dominated by men, it was instantly refreshing to have another woman at the table. We didn’t have to say it out loud, but there was an unspoken relief in not being the only one navigating the double challenge of making our professional voices heard while carrying personal stories of resilience. What started as small talk about the demo quickly became something deeper. We weren’t just coworkers thrown together for a meeting; we were women walking parallel paths, both rebuilding, healing, and learning how to move forward.

I don’t think that was by chance. Call it alignment, call it divine timing, but I believe it was something greater at work. I’ve been so focused on finding my footing that I almost forgot how powerful it can be to share the journey. For her, hearing my story was a reminder that she wasn’t alone. For me, it was proof that I’ve grown enough to turn my pain into encouragement for someone else.

Now, let me back up and set the scene outside the meeting room. Our male colleagues chose the hotel (rookie mistake letting them decide). The elevators were out, so it was either climb the stairs or gamble with the dilapidated service elevator that creaked like it had seen better decades. The décor was… let’s call it “faded glory,” and the bar came with a bonus: a very drunk man who decided my new friend and I were the night’s entertainment, loudly calling us out while we did our best to sip our drinks and not make eye contact. If Mr. Right had been hiding out in that bar, he was definitely sprinting for the exit.

And just when we thought we’d escape after one night, the meeting ran long, flights out were impossible, and we were forced into a second stay in the slums. The universe apparently wanted us to linger just a little longer.

And yet, in this most unlikely place, over bad lighting and worse wine, I found something real. On night two, my colleague and I traded pieces of our stories. She listened to how I’d chosen to make brave, messy changes in my life, and she called it bold—but refreshing. That word sat with me. Refreshing.

It’s not how I usually describe myself. Bold? Maybe. Messy? Definitely. But refreshing? That was new. And it made me realize something: this journey isn’t just about stitching my own heart back together. It’s about showing others that they can, too. Healing isn’t always loud or dramatic; sometimes it’s just sharing a small piece of your story at the right time with the right person.

In work and in life, wins don’t always look like what we expect. Sure, it would’ve been nice if the hotel had a functioning elevator and a bar scene worthy of a rom-com meet-cute. But maybe the real win was something better. At work, it was stepping out of my comfort zone and proving to myself that I could show up in front of a client with confidence. Personally, it was realizing that I’m far enough along in my own healing to be a source of strength for someone else.

Maybe the hotel didn’t deliver on glamour, and Mr. Right definitely wasn’t hiding behind the bar. But what it did deliver was proof that healing has a ripple effect—and that unexpected teammates, whether in business or in life, can remind you that you’re stronger, bolder, and more capable than you think. Sometimes you bloom a little, and someone else feels brave enough to bloom, too.

And honestly? That’s the upgrade I didn’t know I needed.