May 14, 2023

Handle Your Stress Better By Reducing Cortisol

We all experience stress in our lives. No one is immune from it. Stress comes in various formats. It could be work-related, relationship-focused, or health-specific. Some […]
April 17, 2023

Self-Leadership in a VUCA World

Written by Susan Merli When we think about working in a VUCA world, it seems like so much volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity will stop us […]
April 12, 2023

Build a Love Map: Tips for Sustaining a Healthy Relationship

Written by Susan Merli This post was inspired by my training in couples and family therapy. Looking at the various therapeutic modalities and interventions, I discovered […]
April 8, 2023

Overcoming the Spotlight Effect

If I asked you to wear an embarrassing t-shirt in public and go walk around a downtown core or a bustling school campus, would you worry […]
March 1, 2023

Overcoming Imposter Syndrome

To watch a webinar with me presenting on the topic of Imposter Syndrome (and if you don't feel like reading the blog), please click here. In […]
March 1, 2023

Feel like a Fraud or Is It Imposter Syndrome?

The fact that you’re reading this suggests that imposter syndrome is a topic of interest to you. First, let me share that it is an experience […]
February 14, 2023

How to Use Positive Intelligence in Your Life

A month ago, my friend, Carmen, invited me to join a cohort of other professional coaches and psychotherapists. I admire and respect Carmen as a seasoned […]
February 14, 2023

Tips for Healing from Trauma in Your Life Through EMDR

We live in a complex world where the chance of being exposed to a traumatic event is quite high. Stress-related events have become the norm with […]
January 8, 2023

Understanding Little t Trauma

I need to admit something to you. I have waffled for days about writing this blog post. From my perspective, the topic of trauma is laden […]
January 4, 2023

How to Build Your Resolve

As I began thinking about the content of this blog post and what I hoped you, dear reader, would find valuable, my attention turned a counselling/psychotherapy […]
December 10, 2022

Tips for Practicing Emotional Self-Regulation

Recently I blogged about tips for overcoming mistakes. Suggested reading: Overcoming Mistakes: Five Tips to Help You Move On Within this post, I shared something called […]
December 10, 2022

Overcoming Mistakes: Five Tips to Help You Move On

We all make mistakes. It is human nature and a by-product of living a full life. Some mistakes are small and we forget them quickly. Other […]
October 14, 2022

How to Decide When You Are Undecided

I’m not one who often struggles to decide. At times, it can be a good thing, and other times, well, let’s just say, the biblical quote […]
October 14, 2022

How to Motivate Yourself After Failure

Shifting Perspectives Impressionism, fauvism, modernism, post-modernism, post-impressionism! There are seemingly thousands of art movements that are, most evidently, differentiated by their disparate appearances. It is fairly […]
September 12, 2022

The Value of Asking Open-Ended Questions

In a recent blog post, I shared tips for how to deal effectively with conversations that have you feeling emotionally triggered. Suggested Reading: What to Do […]
September 11, 2022

5 Steps to Avoid Fix It Mode

In the coaching class I teach, one of the most common questions students tell me that they most want to work on is the ability to […]
August 14, 2022

How to Reduce Mind Wandering and Build Your Attentional Control

Did you know that it is normal for your mind to wander approximately 47 percent of the time? This statistic is sourced from a study by Killingsworth and […]
August 9, 2022

How to Write Engaging Speeches

An Introduction to Rhetoric Today, public speaking may seem like an innate talent of certain charismatic people. However, most of the public speakers we admire, learned […]
July 13, 2022

What To Do When Someone Emotionally Triggers You

Last week I taught a coach training class where I demonstrated a live coaching exchange with a student who asked about the value a coach brings […]
July 12, 2022

Cultivating Mindful Conversations

Mindful communication can make a world of difference when tensions or emotions run high. Learn how to watch for the bifurcation point and avoid the deterioration of any conversation.
June 10, 2022

How to Communicate Your Boundaries at Work

Increasingly, people are looking for ways to prevent too much stress in their work life. It is a serious issue that warrants a closer examination. There […]
June 10, 2022

Is it Time to Prioritize and Reduce

Sometimes there are topics that continue to resurface in meetings and conversations with clients. The issue of addressing burnout is one such topic. Recently, I’ve been […]
May 14, 2022

Leaders Dealing with Burnout       

By Susan Merli. While this post specifically mentions leaders, I believe that everyone has a responsibility for self-leadership. The tips I offer are applicable for all. […]
May 1, 2022

Team Building: Return of the Fantasy

Written by Maddie Merli May The Fourth be With You May, in my humble opinion, is the best month of the year. Where November is too […]
April 14, 2022

How to Engage Your Wise Mind

Three States of Mind We all have three states of mind:­ an emotional, rational, and wise mind. Our brain develops from the hindbrain up to midbrain […]
April 13, 2022

The Leader as Coach

Bob Dylan may have coined the term, “The Times They Are A-Changin’” with his song of the same title, but the truth of the matter is […]
March 13, 2022

Embracing Conflict Management

Although dealing with conflict is something most people tend to avoid, it can be useful when it raises awareness and provides insights that might not otherwise […]
March 1, 2022

Prioritizing Through Uncertainty

Written by Susan Merli A Microcosm of Experiences The COVID-19 pandemic created a microcosm of experiences we had to face almost simultaneously rather than over the […]
February 12, 2022

How to Detect and Protect Yourself from Emotional Vampires

Written by Susan Merli  To Trust is Human It is in our nature to trust. When we trust someone, it triggers the feel-good part of our […]
February 1, 2022

Improving Memory: More Efficient Encoding and Retrieval

Written by Dr. Anneke Olthof Is There a Limit to What We Can Learn and Remember? The beginning of the New Year marks a fresh start, […]
January 2, 2022

Communicating for Understanding

Written by Madeline Merli I Think You’re Muted Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, our ability to communicate, especially in the Lovecraftian horror of a zoom meeting, has […]
January 1, 2022

Thinking Flexibly About Stress

Written by Dr. Anneke Olthof Mid-Winter Stress Mid-Winter can be a particularly stressful time – the holiday spending and eating has finally caught up with us, […]
December 13, 2021

How To Ask for Help and Be Okay with It

This is a time of year that can be particularly taxing both emotionally and physically. December marks the end of a 12-month marathon dealing with the […]
December 13, 2021

With Great Power Comes… Great Emotional Agility?

Friendly Neighbourhood Nostalgia Written by: Madeline Merli December is a stressful, glorious month filled with holiday dinners, school finals and of course, the overwhelming amount of […]
November 13, 2021

On Understanding Diversity and Psychological Safety

This year I have made important strides to step outside of my comfort zone. For me this includes learning all I can about unconscious bias, privilege, […]
November 8, 2021

Break the Filler Word Habit

Lately, I’ve been coaching leaders on developing their presentation skills. In particular, the focus involves role playing using behaviour-based interview questions. In a typical coaching session […]
October 14, 2021

Self-Awareness is a Journey to Explore the Truth About Yourself

How do you know if you have blind spots? It never fails. At some point in a coaching engagement, the topic of self-awareness will come up […]
October 13, 2021

Consciously Connecting to Your Core Values

Our Choices Each day we are faced with choices. Some decisions are easy and require little, if any, contemplation. Other situations require more conscious and intentional […]
August 6, 2021

Categorizing People in Your Life

The Bubble During the pandemic, the size of our community became quite small as we were tasked with keeping one another safe from contagion. We had […]
August 6, 2021

Return to the Workplace Transition Concerns

Post-pandemic phase of work For the last 17 months, many employees were required to work remotely. Now that we are rounding the corner into a post-pandemic […]
July 25, 2021

The Power of Cognitive Reframing

In the post called Building Resilience One Mental Muscle at a Time, I covered two options for building resiliency. Read: Building Resilience One Mental Muscle at […]
July 25, 2021

Building Resilience One Mental Muscle at a Time

People who do strength training know that micro-tears occur during a weighty workout. A few hours later, you feel the soreness as the amount of blood […]
July 14, 2021

Figuring it Out

It has been a mystery to me how some people know at an early age exactly what they want to do as a profession and then […]
May 30, 2021

Preventing Joy Stealing in Your Life

I've wanted to write on this topic for some time now, but waited until I completed more research on the topic. Every day we have thousands […]
May 29, 2021

What is the difference between counselling and coaching?

The long-range effects of the COVID-19 pandemic remain far from being fully realized. Although, it isn’t difficult to conceptualize the potential increased demand for professional support […]
May 23, 2021

Coach Credentialing and How to Get Your ACC with the ICF

I originally wrote this post for Coaching out of the Box®'s blog and you can find it there as well as here on mine. Almost ten […]
May 14, 2021

What You Think May Not Be True

We think 6,200 thoughts a day We all have that little voice inside our head. Sometimes the messages are strong and clear and other times they […]
April 20, 2021

Communicating Well With Technology

Of all the workshops I facilitate, perhaps the one I'm doing most recently is the most relevant and necessary. It is called Communicating Well with Technology. […]
April 13, 2021

Why Say Thank You

I've been reflecting a great deal on how the pandemic is impacting society. When I'm out for a walk with Olive, I've noticed that people don't […]
January 31, 2021

The Value of Being Great At Receiving Feedback

Have you ever been in the situation where a colleague, a friend or a family member asks you for feedback and you break out in a […]
January 31, 2021

The Essence of Love

I’m not really sure exactly how I feel about February. It is sort of an in-between month. The shortest one nestled deep in winter, and also […]
January 3, 2021

Give Better Than Nothing Behaviour A Try

Wow. What kind of message is this to give better than nothing behaviour a try? I hope I've engaged your interest with this call to -- […]
January 2, 2021

5-Minute Self Care Tips to Prevent the ‘January Blues’

With January here and the holiday season tucked behind us, we face a month known for broken resolutions, ghastly credit card bills, homes stripped of holiday […]
January 1, 2021

Five tips to avoid virtual communication burnout

Working Remotely Since COVID-19 touched down with a significant impact in March 2020, many Canadian workers found themselves relocating to home-based work and using virtual meeting […]
December 12, 2020

Life Lessons from A Christmas Carol

It is no secret that I'm a Regency and Victorian-era fan. I have at least one Regency-period book on the go at all times and subscribe […]
December 12, 2020

Book Recommendation: The Leadership Secrets of Santa Claus

I'm all for books that are short, to the point, and provide key takeaways at the end of each chapter. The Leadership Secrets of Santa Claus: […]
December 10, 2020

Living in a VUCA World: How to Make Better Decisions

Madonna sang that we are living in a material world, but I say that we're living in a VUCA world. What does it mean to live […]
December 7, 2020

Grow Your Network Using LinkedIn

In a previous post, I shared a recording of a presentation on how to sign up for a LinkedIn account and make the most of your […]
November 14, 2020

Your Relationship with Money

This month's book was a challenge. Not that there weren't enough books on the topic, but rather landing on just the right one. After much deliberation, […]
November 12, 2020

What's Your Relationship with Social Media?

  Can't live with it, can't live without it. Heard this saying before? I imagine you have and wonder if you share my views on social […]
November 10, 2020

Make The Most Of Your LinkedIn Profile

The online social platform known as LinkedIn has been around since 2003. Even though over 690 million people are connected LinkedIn users, there are many who […]
October 11, 2020

What Makes Us Resilient?

As we face the second wave of the pandemic, many of us are feeling burnt out, mentally fatigued, and uncertain of what it means for business, […]
October 11, 2020

The Pumpkin Plan: A Book Review

Once the fall season arrives, many of us remember how much we love pumpkin spice, pumpkin pie, and decorating our home with orange-coloured gourds. Yes, just […]
September 14, 2020

The Power of the Morning Routine

Not everyone feels like a natural-born early riser. I get this. Some people say they are night owls who feel energized and productive late into the […]
September 1, 2020

No Capes Leadership in A Post-Heroic Age

As Authentika Academy prepares to launch its latest e-course, Habits of Great Leaders, I thought it fitting to share Maddie's 17-year old, unfiltered view of leadership. […]
August 11, 2020

What's Your Story?

I love to read and listen to self development Audiobooks. I usually have 3-4 on the go at a time. Full disclosure -- I love Audible.com. […]
August 11, 2020

From Lucky Charms to Leafy Greens

This post has been graciously written by guest blogger, Maddie Cranston. Full disclosure, Maddie is my daughter and a far better writer than I am.   […]
August 10, 2020

Are You Ready to Stop Your Instant Gratification Monkey In His Tracks?

Have you ever thought about your life in months? It's a fascinating and perhaps even sobering way of looking at your life. Recently, I watched a […]
July 7, 2020

Why Focus on Your Self-Awareness

For years I worked in a job I was good at, but didn’t love. When I was with friends or colleagues or at the hair salon […]
June 26, 2020

Grow Your Emotional Vocabulary

  This pandemic and the stress of the unknown and the uncertainty regarding what is to come can make anyone feel tired, confused, and uncertain. All […]
June 10, 2020

Meditation - Is it right for you?

In the last decade, mindfulness and meditation have risen significantly in popularity. Those who were on the fence about giving it a try have heard first-hand […]
June 3, 2020

5 Must Reads for Building Positive Habits

Probably now, more than any other time in recent history, we’ve had more time on our hands given the need for social distancing, closed businesses and […]
May 19, 2020

Virtual Travel Tips

Virtual Travel Tours. Explore the World From Your Home   Do you have a case of wanderlust and are looking for ways to keep the spark […]
April 29, 2020

How Do I Overcome Negative Inner Thoughts?

    Negative thoughts are automatic thoughts. They can be triggered by the slightest experience, comment or memory. Often, we are not aware of our negative […]
April 17, 2020

10 Distraction Busters - Don't Let Distractions Get in Your Way

Whether you're working remotely, working at the office, or working at all, you can still fall prey to distractions. They come in a myriad of disguises […]
April 2, 2020

How to Stay Motivated during Uncertain Times

It’s difficult to stay motivated at the best of times. Working toward a goal or dream that you value and know instinctively would make a major […]
March 24, 2020

Be More Productive with Time Blocking

Does Time Seem to Fly and Work Still Isn’t Done? If you’ve ever struggled with feeling less than productive or wondered what happened to your best-laid […]
March 19, 2020

Keep Calm, Connected And Prepared During COVID-19

Uncertain times It’s true that we are living in a time of uncertainty and turbulence with the continued spread of covid-19, an epic rollercoaster downhill ride […]
March 5, 2020

Using Assessments in Coaching to Boost Your Self Awareness

Engage a Coach for Your Professional Development Working on your professional development isn’t something that you might easily decide to give yourself permission to pursue.  It […]
February 17, 2020

Are You Board Ready?

Forget the Monopoly Mascot. When you think about being a director on a board, does the image of the Monopoly mascot, Rich Uncle Pennybags, come to […]
January 4, 2020

Finding Your Purpose When You Feel Lost

It doesn't feel good There are times in life when you might feel lost. Maybe that time is right now. Perhaps there are people in your […]
December 30, 2019

How to Make Goals You Will Keep

The Month of January - Friend or Foe? The start of a new year can bring a sense of renewal, hope and a promise. Maybe it […]
December 15, 2019

3 Questions That Will Help You Navigate the Holiday Season

December Overload December, more than any month of the year, seems to give us 31 days of permission to overdo it. We overextend ourselves with events, […]
November 3, 2019

Improve Your Emotional Intelligence Now

What is Emotional Intelligence? Emotional intelligence is a skill that can help change the way you view yourself and how well you communicate with others. Emotional […]
October 19, 2019

7 Tips to Improve Your Confidence Networking

Who loves to network? Do you love or loathe networking? Perhaps it is something in between. There are some easy and helpful tips to improve your […]
September 17, 2019

Find the Right Mentor for You

Looking for a mentor? There are many reasons why having a mentor is a great idea and it's even more important when you work for yourself […]
September 2, 2019

Build Positive Habits You Will Keep

A bouquet of newly sharpened pencils or new habits to keep September is officially here. Children are readying for back to school, a bit of a […]
August 6, 2019

Fostering Trust in the Workplace

Source: Magicalquote.com Recently I heard a quote that really stuck with me while watching a program on Netflix called, Mozart in the Jungle. The new maestro, […]
July 24, 2019

Transitioning Through Change Like A Pro

When I think about coming to the end of a good book, I feel a sense of loss. If I really loved the book, I don't […]
June 20, 2019

Giving Feedback With Confidence: Part 2

For years I've asked the question: What stops you from giving feedback? Not surprisingly, the response is consistently the same: 1) I don't know how the […]
May 24, 2019

Giving Feedback With Confidence: Part 1

]I recently learned some trivia about the 1976 neo-noir psychological thriller, Taxi Driver. In the movie, Robert De Niro, stars as Travis Bickle a mentally unstable […]
April 22, 2019

Finding Your North Star

Recently I embarked on a complete rebranding exercise for my coaching and consulting business. The result? It made me fall more in love with the work […]
March 26, 2019

Understanding Emotional Triggers

I can't imagine that anyone wakes up in the morning and says, "Hey, I think I'll be a victim in the story of my life today." […]
February 20, 2019

Are You Listening? Part 2

Olive and I have been through Beginner dog training. Note the graduation cap in the photo (no small feat to get this image!) I'd say that […]
January 21, 2019

Are You Listening?

I have a dog named Olive. She a sweet and loving little black Cockapoo. She literally is my constant companion and a joy in every way. […]