I believe women intuitively know a lot about success.

 
 

Welcome here! I’m Susan.

And, you know what? I love that you want to have it all.

After all, it’s your definition of success that matters.

My guess is if you’re here, more of your life is right, than it is wrong, because you’ve designed it that way. Which is perfect, because that tells me you’re my kind of person.

And I hope we know one another a long, long time.

 

On chasing success...

It was just over five years ago, that my do-er, ultra accomplished, get sh*t done, list-making goddess Self was busy in the thick of the corporate grind.

And it’s still not clear which was the HARDER GIG, but the whole other routine of working out at 5:45 am, showering and then getting my two young boys dressed, fed, all-the-lunches made, pre-prepping dinner, only to get them to school for 8:30 am was also insane, earning me a Starbucks on the way to work.

My work bestie and I used to joke that we, as Moms & VP’s, ran circles around our male counterparts who casually sauntered into work, lunches made by NOT THEM.

This younger version of me, a woman who I revere (and one who I also look upon with a ton of compassion), was hyper focused on her Big Goals & Outcomes. Success was The Name of The Game and she played the game hard, and she played it well. BTW - Is there any other way to play it?

Yes, younger me, had checked off all the boxes…The Education, The (handsome-eight-years-younger-than-her) Husband, The Mortgage, The Kids, The Job with The Title, The Salary…

I was self-sufficient AF, and very proud of having my shit together.

Until, it lost its juice.

 

One day, on a lunchtime-escape-from-work walk,I came across a poor wee bird that had met an untimely end, and I was like "Holy eff, this is me!”

Here I was, in my life feeling unable to fly.

I felt trapped, confined by my life and instantly felt a deep ache for ease, breathing room and a whole lot of freedom.

 I decided to leave The Big Job, with The Big Money to do life different.

And then, I made the same mistake all over again,

I set up a whole bunch of cool NEW boxes to check off: The Entrepreneur, The Online Business Owner, The Work-Whenever-You-Decide-To, The Mom Who Can Drive Her Boys To All Their Activities...

And I was still as tired as when I left corporate.

While I had cut the cords to my other life, I was still chained to the deep rooted beliefs that drive our society’s definition of success.

I was The Poster Girl of Success.

Did I think that just because I left The Big Job it would all be different???????

 

The Real Problem

Let’s start with what is not the problem: your ability to do just about anything you set your mind to. You’re a rockstar. And clever AF.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way (because sometimes when we’re trying to make change we have a tendency to be real hard on ourselves).

The reality is that there are whole number of beliefs fully woven into the fabric of our society and - take it from me - these need to be seen for what they are.

These beliefs are about success and how we should go about making it happen. Like Just Do It, No Pain No Gain, Be Stronger Than Your Excuses, Only The Strong Survive, and my personal favorite:

The key to success is hard work and determination.

Let me clear Brave One, I will, without a doubt be teaching and modeling this to my kids.

But are these the only ingredients that go into success?

These sneaky little ways of working lie beneath the surface of our skin, fuel our efforts, whisper all-the-day-long to keep on going, and to never, ever stop. And they’re stubborn; they don’t wash off in the shower, or go on vacation.

Our beliefs about what’s required for success are baked into our bones. They are deeply embodied and at the heart of our habits and routines.

Sigh.

 

 With a little work, and a lot of curiosity & compassion we can weave in new beliefs about success.

There is another way.

And of course I found this way, because that’s what women like us do right? Bring our determination to bear and work our butts off to figure things out.

And it’s NOT going to be a 10 step program, because we’ve already done success that way.

It starts, finishes, and includes along the way, massive doses of curiosity, compassion and courage.

Feeling curious? Great!

 My vision is to help you realize a sweeter, more satisfying version of success, sooner.

Random Susan Stuff

  • My house of men

    These three have captured my heart through and through and DAMN there is a lot of testosterone in my house. (And yes, I’m always up for a girl’s night!)

  • Strong women

    My all time fave woman, my mother. And easily the coolest, most beautiful woman I know. Her constant message to me, do what you love… be yourself.

  • All the salsa

    I make a mean salsa (guac too) that I shamelessly bring to every potluck I go to. (No one is complaining BTW). Message me if you’d like the recipe.

  • Role models

    My parents have been redefining success for as long as I can remember. Here is our family, back in the 80’s when we moved to India for 3 years. And values, always front and centre.

  • Let's jam Enneagram

    I’m an Enneagram 3 (but competitive with myself, not you). I could talk self development and Enneagram and and and all day long…

 

Boxes I’ve checked off

a.k.a. the street cred stuff

Let’s talk business: MBA, 20 years in corporate (financial sector, manufacturing etc.), VP Human Resources & Organizational Development.

Let’s chat life: B.A. in foods & nutrition, mom of boys, lived and traveled to 30+ countries, fluent in Spanish, loads of life experience re: burnout & exhaustion. Allergies and plant based cooking.

Let’s chat values & all the other important stuff in life: I’m here for it all…my values drive everything I do and why I do what I do. I grew up churched. Work is service, service is work.

Let’s jam about change & transformation & the messy intersection of all of the above: Integral Master Coach, Integrative Enneagram Certified. 15 years + coaching women.

And I’m always available to chat: about food & wine.

So whether you’re here to create success in your whole life, or ensure your work & life are playing nicely together or creating more success inside your work, I’m here to help you realize it.