As a new-ish business owner, I often get asked: what does Hatching actually do?
Is it a consulting firm? Do we only work in the animal welfare space? Is it something we do in person or online?
All very good and fair questions, especially considering my background in the animal welfare space over the past twenty years.
In the beginning of my career, I did things like clean kennels and care for the animals. I worked in the intake lobby, where sometimes over a hundred dogs and cats would enter the shelter in a single day. And yes, there was the part of the work where hard decisions were made about what animals were “savable.” Sometimes those decisions made sense. And other times, they really didn’t.
The headline: shelter work, like many helping fields, has a front-row seat to all kinds of suffering.
There’s the in-your-face kind of suffering: an animal in pain, a member of the public in distress over saying goodbye to their pet, or the anguish your co-worker feels when the animal they’ve been advocating for doesn’t make it.
Then there’s the more subtle suffering: the financial toll of working in an industry that can make it hard to meet your basic needs; the shame and frustration that shows up when you see what people are saying about your shelter on social media; or the heaviness of witnessing how much your community is struggling right now.
And here’s the truth: whether you’re working in a shelter, vet clinic, school, hospital, or any high-stakes, service-oriented space, you’re likely experiencing your own version of this tension, pressure, and toll.
Even if your life is solid, being in close proximity to suffering changes you. Especially if you self-identify as an empath, which many people who help others do.
This leads to all kinds of things: burnout, empathy fatigue, and living in survival mode.
We grind in the name of something bigger than ourselves. To take care of our responsibilities. To create a better life for ourselves and our families.
Somewhere along the way, we start to believe that sacrifice and service are the same thing. That in order to be worthy, enough, and valuable, we have to give more of ourselves than we can actually sustain.
We “should” all over ourselves and others. We judge. We lean on shame and blame as the fastest way to try to hold ourselves and others accountable.
I remember when we first started Hatching, we were hired by an organization going through massive change and hardship.
I spent hours listening to staff, volunteers, and stakeholders. I could hear their pride and their pain at the same time. I could see how deeply they cared and how the work was slowly eating away at them.
I saw how hard they were on themselves. And how that sometimes turned into being hard on others.
I could see it because I’ve lived it. And if I’m honest, I still do at times.
Looking back, I realized that was the moment Hatching “hatched” itself. I realized the answer wasn’t solving organizational challenges; it was helping the people within them care for themselves while continuing to care for others.
And I knew then: a list of program and operational recommendations wasn’t going to be enough. Not for the kind of impact they truly deserved.
What they needed was more compassion.
Compassion for themselves. For each other. And for the community.
So, to answer the question: what does Hatching do?
We support people and organizations in moving from survival mode to compassion mode.
Through experiential workshops, courses, and speaking engagements, we create spaces for people to reconnect with the power of compassion.
No matter who we’re partnering with, our goal is always the same: supporting the people behind the work by helping them reconnect with themselves, each other, and the purpose behind their work.
Right now, take a breath.
Reflect on how compassion has shaped your life. Think about the people or animals who’ve shown it to you.
What it feels like after a soulful interaction with your best friend (furry or two-legged). When someone makes you that meal you’ve been craving. Or the breath you offer yourself before a difficult conversation so you can show up calm, grounded, and clear.
These moments matter.
Compassion becomes the bridge to understanding ourselves, each other, and the world around us.
It gives us strength. It’s an act of courage. And it’s an act of hope.
It also gives us the capacity to be with the suffering we encounter in our lives.
Because if you care about something or someone, you will suffer. That’s part of the price of love.
So instead of resisting that suffering, or becoming cynical or numb to it, what if you cultivated enough compassion to relate to it differently?
In a way that preserves your humanity, your mental health, and your well-being.
In a way that allows you to show up with more energy to keep doing hard things.
In a way that unlocks new ideas, possibilities, and innovation.
Because that is possible, despite the beliefs, stories, and evidence we’ve collected over time.
Now more than ever, in a world where hopelessness, disconnection, and polarization are rising, how do we each do our part to counter these forces?
We believe the answer is compassion.
If you’re curious about how we can support you or your team in cultivating more compassion, visit our website and join the compassion movement today!