Amy Safford

I've had several coaching mentors. One particularly influencing mentor was my high school track coach, David Martin. He was a goal-oriented coach and just an incredible man. I hadn't really heard anybody talk about goal setting, and what it can mean to your life, until he explained it. He was inspiring to our entire team, and we won several state championships. To me, it showed how inspirational one person can be just by sharing their philosophy on life. He was an incredible mentor. Through the college years, my varsity crew coach, Stuart McDonald, was a similar mentor, teaching us the importance of focus in life and not letting adversity get you down. That really helped me, not only in my sporting life, but my personal life. I have a good friendship network, and to me, that is everything as far as staying healthy and connected. Nonprofit work and volunteering have also been a big part of my daily life. I think trying to help others is very fulfilling - you don't have to have a lot of money to help other people. If we're all giving back to our communities, we all benefit in the end.

I'll go back to a very simple philosophy that we've all heard before: you learn more from the mistakes you make than from your successes. I believe that every day is a challenge to become better. People who are flexible and not too discouraged by the setbacks in life, no matter what happens, are the people who are most successful in the long term. By embracing challenges every day, we're living what live throws at us, and that's both rewarding and humbling.

Do things that you love. I know that's a popular saying, and people have heard it over and over again, but I don't think you can say it enough. So many people are in jobs they don't like, because it pays the rent. So, if you are in that situation, don't be afraid to break out of that cycle, and gravitate toward things that you really are passionate about. Stretch yourself. I'm passionate about writing. Ever since I was a child, I was always reading and fascinated by what talented authors could do, and how they could change your mind about something, or make you think so differently about something in one book, one novel, or a non-fiction book, or a memoir. There are so many ways that writers can help others by talking about their own journey, or creating their own fictional world, to help other people see the world differently, perhaps in a better light.

As a writer, I think the challenges are about balancing time, giving yourself enough personal time. It's not always about sitting down at the keyboard. You have to take time for introspection. Sometimes I have a hard time with that, because I'm such a task-oriented person. I love it when I get into research, spending time at libraries, because my novels are part historical fiction. What I'm committed to, writing this novel trilogy, is including real Maine and New England history to inform the present. In each novel, I'm trying to relate our true history, the good and the bad, to the best of my ability. But saying that, I know the importance of balancing the work, giving myself enough time to reflect and stay true to the unique story in each book.

Honesty is probably the biggest value. If you've ever been in situations where people close to you have been dishonest, it really fractures your relationships. So I look for that in my personal life, and my close connections with people, and also in my professional life. Coupled with that is authenticity. Surrounding yourself with people who are authentic, who value true relationships as much as you do. Do you have relationships with people who are true to themselves and others, or people who are hiding behind a mask? As you get older, you learn to see through that. I want people around me who are genuine.