Volcano as Metaphor: How Pele’s Fire Ignites Personal Transformation

Beneath the surface of our polished lives often lies a quiet, persistent tension. Leadership, parenting, and partnerships all demand that we stay "on," even when exhaustion, insecurity, or rage simmer just below the surface.

About fifteen years ago, the tide shifted in my executive coaching practice: more women began seeking coaching. After two decades of working primarily with men, this change cracked open a new perspective, a deeper look into the inner lives of modern-day heroines.

Three themes emerged again and again:

1. Over-Functioning and Chronic Over-Responsibility

So many women carry the weight of everyone else's needs at work, at home, in their communities, often without pause. This relentless over-functioning breeds exhaustion and resentment. And eventually, they forget how to ask themselves, "What do I need?"

2. Unresolved Self-Worth Tied to Achievement

When self-worth is rooted in performance or external validation, success becomes a double-edged sword. This isn't just a corporate issue; it shows up in volunteer roles, nonprofit leadership, and even in stay-at-home parenting. The result? A constant need to prove oneself, at the cost of joy, rest, and self-compassion.

3. Emotional Suppression and Disconnection from Desire

To be taken seriously in male-dominated spaces, many women dull their emotions and mute their intuition. Over time, they lose access to their inner voice and their deepest desires. The outside may look successful, but inside, it often feels hollow.

It's not a sustainable way to live. At its worst, it leads to resentment, self-abandonment, and burnout.

During a trip to Hawaiʻi, I found myself pulled toward the myth of Pele, the Hawaiian goddess of fire, a powerful metaphor for transformation.

The Fire Within

Pele is more than a destroyer; she is a creator, a rebel, a force of nature. Legend tells of her voyage across the Pacific in search of a home. She ultimately claimed Kīlauea on the Big Island as her throne, but not without conflict. Her clashes with her sister, the sea goddess Nāmaka, shaped the very land we walk on today. Pele's fire is fierce, yes, but it's also fertile. Her eruptions are not simply destruction; they are initiation.

My fascination with Pele didn't come all at once; it stirred over time, as I walked the lava fields, listened to local stories, and felt something deep in my body awaken. The more I learned about her myth a force of both destruction and creation, fire and fertile rebirth the more I saw her as a mirror for the journey so many women are on. That recognition became more than inspiration; it became a call. I felt compelled to create a space where women could come face-to-face with their own inner fire, not to tame it, but to honor it.

That vision became Madame Pele's Gift, a 9-day intensive retreat for women, held at a remote, private estate on the Big Island, just miles from where Kīlauea offers a stunning display of raw power and beauty each day.

This retreat was designed not as an escape, but as a return to truth, to desire, to the sacred process of burning away what no longer fits and rising anew.

Let the Lava Flow

Lava doesn't rush. It rises, deliberately. And it transforms everything it touches. This is your invitation to melt what's rigid, to reclaim what's buried, and to feel fully.

The land surrounding Kīlauea teems with ohia blossoms and black sand, beauty born from pressure and heat. So too are we. Pele reminds us: the most sacred versions of ourselves are forged not in ease, but in courage.

If you're ready to release what no longer fits…

If you're yearning to feel alive again, not just productive, but whole...

Then walk the lava fields.

Be held by the earth.

Be cleansed by the water.

Let the fire show you the way back to yourself.

For more information on all of our programs or to register for Madame Pele's Gift Retreat 2025, click this link. Also, don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube and Spotify channels for weekly episodes of Deep Work Fast. Each week, I'll bring you on-demand coaching to help you be the best you can be at home and work.