Rochelle Finzel
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author sitting on top of a mountain

Rochelle Finzel

essays and reflections on living with intention

Four days after running a personal-best marathon, I was diagnosed with stage IV cancer.

What followed wasn’t just a fight for survival — it was a complete reexamination of what it means to live well.

After my illness, I changed careers and began the long journey to listen more closely to what brings meaning, peace, and joy to my life.

Now I write about what helps me stay awake to the beauty of being human: inspiring words, small shifts in perspective, stories from wilderness trails, and the quiet lessons that emerge when life breaks us open.

If my words can help someone feel a little less alone, a little more grounded, or a little more hopeful, then sharing them is worth it.

Latest Reflections

  • What does it mean to live well

    What does it mean to live well

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    Rochelle

    What does living well mean to you? Quoddy Head lighthouse, Maine. Don’t we all need a guiding light. I get regular email newsletters from a Catholic priest, a Buddhist nun, a Stoic writer, a clearinghouse covering a range of spiritual practices, numerous scientists, therapists and coaches. (Not to mention both…

  • Finding peace

    Finding peace

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    Rochelle

    Remember this… “Ultimately, we have just one moral duty: to reclaim large areas of peace in ourselves, more and more peace, and to reflect it towards others. And the more peace there is in us, the more peace there will be in our troubled world” — Etty Hillesum Finding my…

  • Act your age

    Act your age

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    Rochelle

    A recent conversation… “What brings you to Maine?” “To see the pretty colors,” I replied. “You are about 40 years too young for that.” What does age really tell you? Gorgeous colors on a trail in Acadia National Park We just got back from a week in Maine, and as…

Photo of author

Rochelle Finzel spent twenty years leading public policy and nonprofit efforts to advance economic opportunity, including ten years with the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). After surviving a life-threatening illness and experiencing a personal transformation, she changed careers. Rochelle became an internationally accredited coach, intent on understanding how to facilitate personal growth and self-leadership. She founded her coaching practice to help high-achieving professionals lead with confidence and avoid burnout. She writes about her experience with burnout and illness and the powerful science that underpins her transformation. Her memoir, The Run of My Life will be released in September of 2024. She lives in southwest Colorado and is happiest running, biking, hiking, skiing, and sharing nature’s wonders with her husband.

The Run of My Life

The Run of My Life is a compelling memoir about self-discovery, resilience, and the radical courage to let go. 

Rochelle Finzel followed the rules and aspired to be the best. At thirty-nine, her life seemed perfect. She had a great job, was dating her soulmate, climbed mountains on the weekends and had just run a personal best marathon. Four days later, she was diagnosed with stage IV cancer.

Facing a bleak prognosis, Rochelle reexamined her life. Facing continual reminders of her mortality but fiercely fighting for survival, she opened her heart, followed her gut, learned to listen to her body, and trusted its wisdom.

Honest and heartfelt, The Run of My Life pulls the reader into exam rooms and onto mountaintops, offering hope and inspiration for those enduring any kind of crisis, and for finding new life on the other side.  

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Book cover with mountain scene and title The Run of My Life