Kathleen has spent more than 20 years working as a counsellor in hospices. When asked about her work, she says she loves her job.
Why? She enables people to tackle this final chapter. At the same time, she learns from them about what does and does not matter in life.
When facing death, a person is able to be who they really are. They become courageous and honest. They find joy in the smallest moments.
They are authentic and able to be their true self.
They talk about things they have never expressed before.
They look back on and make sense of the body of work in their life.
Kathleen says that, whilst there are many stages in our lives, three stand out.
When we are young we are fearless and set our course.
When we are in mid-life we question and maybe readjust our course.
When we are at the end of our life we find answers about our course.
Kathleen says that we can take a hint from people who are living their last days. She says:
“I would like to hope it is never too soon to learn these lessons.”
Maybe we can take some of these steps earlier in our lives. We can be who we truly are and express our uniqueness.
Here is the biography to her TED talk.
Kathleen Taylor is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor with over 20 years of experience in the nonprofit healthcare and social services sector.
She currently directs the community engagement functions of a large non-profit hospice organization.
In her career, Kathleen has worked with children in foster care, teens in the juvenile justice system, people with traumatic brain-injuries, priests awaiting ordination, people who are dying and those that love them, faith communities, coalitions, healthcare organizations, first responders, women’s groups, public libraries, and even dental offices.
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