Skip to main content

Maria Connolly, LPC Facebook Facebook Facebook

Category: Self-Leadership Skills

Your Best Year Yet? How Can It Be, When Others Are Suffering?

Could you still make 2020 your best year yet? It’s possible! Even if you feel stuck, unmotivated or too guilty to strive for a better life, consider this...“Start by doing what’s necessary; then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.” ~ Francis of Assisi

We all started this year with a lot of optimism for the months to come. We were feeling inspired to make changes and improve some things. You were DETERMINED to have your BEST YEAR yet! Even if you knew that after a few months your drive was going to diminish, you had a backup plan for getting going again. And then things got ugly…

No one was prepared for the kind of changes 2020 has been bringing us…so much loss, so much pain. If you’re someone who is suffering, I grieve with you. And I want to encourage you to hold on and hope for better things, because they will come.

Continue reading

Racism and Social Injustice: I’m White. What Can I Do?

After seeing recent social injustices and racial inequalities, have you wondered: I’m white, what can I do? It’s good to ask; it’s better to do something. “For it isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it.” Eleanor Roosevelt

Empathy has been defined as putting yourself in the shoes of another, knowing within yourself how they feel and what they need you to do, or say, or not say, in the moment. But how can you have empathy if you’ve never had to walk the path that someone else has had to walk? Because of the recent, terrible acts of racism and social injustice, I’ve been thinking about how yes, I’m white, but what can I do to help. It’s causing me to examine my own biases, as never before.

Ignorance is a blinder to empathy. The trouble with ignorance is that we may not even know when we are “ignoring” something vital that’s right in front of us. Even more criminal is choosing not to know. This contributes to the problem just as much as actively participating in it. This is the time when doing nothing is not acceptable, for doing nothing is actively making the problem worse. 

Continue reading

Change Your Thinking: 30 Ways to Make the World a Better Place

As you change your thinking, your life will change and the quality of our world will be improved because each of us will model the behavior we want to see.“I wanted to change the world. But I have found that the only thing one can be sure of changing is oneself.” ~ Aldous Huxley

The recent tragedy and the resulting protests across the world have made all of us think about how we can be a force for good in the world, not passively turning a blind eye or actively adding to the sorrows. I believe the solution lies in this: if you want to change the world, change your thinking.

Wouldn’t you agree that the quality of your life depends on YOUR attitude — the way you think about your life? It’s not dependent on your circumstances, who you’re with, or what you have. People can have it all and still be miserable. People can have so little and be joyful.

The quality of our world will be improved by each of us modeling the behavior we want to see. What qualities do you want to experience more fully?

Continue reading

Live a Better Life by Making Good Decisions Faster

Learn how to live a better life by making good decisions faster, bringing greater satisfaction, while producing the least amount of regrets.“When someone makes a decision, he is really diving into a strong current that will carry him to places he had never dreamed of when he first made the decision.” ~ Paulo Coelho

Who you are today is a direct result of the decisions, small and great, you’ve made throughout your life. Sometimes, this can be a bitter pill to swallow. However, once you accept it, you can purposefully alter the way you make decisions, so you can live a better life — one that you design for yourself, not one that’s been designed for you.

Some decisions you make rationally, after weighing the pros and cons. Other decisions you make intuitively, based on an internal sense of knowing what’s right for you.

Continue reading

4 Core Components of Resilience: How to Become a More Resilient Person

Quote: You Are Stronger Than You Think“If you can see yourself as an artist, and you can see that your life is your own creation, then why not create the most beautiful story for yourself?” ~ Don Miguel Ruiz

Life is full of unexpected twist and turns; some are pleasant and welcomed, others are devastating. At times we may think we just can’t endure it. Especially is this so after the loss of a loved one to death or a cherished privilege is snatched away from you, such as a dream job, a vocation that has defined your identity, or your security. What is it that makes us get back up, dust ourselves off and keep going? It’s the quality of resilience.

Continue reading


Let's get started with 30 free minutes

I invite you to learn more about me and my coaching and counseling services. Please contact me to schedule an “It starts with you!” 30-minute complimentary consultation with me, in-person, by phone or via video consultation, so we can explore our partnership.

SCHEDULE


How to Step Forward to a Future You've Created

Discover how to replace your old, self-limiting map with a new map full of possibilities for the future

DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE INTRO TO STEPPING FORWARD TODAY!