MEET NANCY
A little about who you’ll be working with….
Is It Really True Girls Can’t Be Lawyers??
♦ I’ve lived a pretty amazing life. I grew up in Delaware – a small town girl with big dreams, aspirations and the desire to do something “cool” with my life. Graduating High School in 1968, my guidance counselor told me that I “shouldn’t even consider being a lawyer because no one will ever hire a woman lawyer.”
♦ I enter college looking for that career “appropriate for a woman.” Social work it was. However, I quickly realized that, while I love helping the world, this is probably not my life path. I Listened To My Gut!!
Life is Full of Zigging and Zagging
♦ Marriage, two beautiful kids, a degree in psychology, and a divorce amazingly change the trajectory of my life. My college plan to get a degree in Child Psychology, was abandoned when a divorce necessitated graduating and getting a job right away. I quickly realized that life is not just about ‘having a plan’ – it’s about knowing how to zig & zag when unexpected events can (and will) disrupt your well thought out plans. For me, having the tools and techniques to support and help me get to my end goal proved to be critical.
Look For The Angels Along The Way
♦ Fast forward to a wonderfully successful career in Marketing Research, THANKS to a Psychology Professor who pioneered qualitative Market Research. He took me under his wings, MENTORED me and helped me have the confidence to go in this direction. Ultimately, I grew to become the Director of Marketing Research for L’Oreal in NYC – a major life changing experience – small town girl goes to NYC.
♦ Life could get OVERWHELMING and scary. I was a single mom, living in an area with no relatives, & commuting into NYC. My friendship circle created my support system and I am forever grateful for these ANGELS.
♦ I quickly realized that it is really about BELIEVING that I can, it is about having focus, determination and resilience if you’re going to turn life’s disruptions into a POSITIVE LIFE SOLUTION.
Am I Really That Gutsy??
♦ Let’s take what I learned in corporate + my Psychology degree and START a Qualitative Marketing Research firm specializing in interviewing people & understanding what makes them tick…. likes and dislikes, wants and needs, expectations, fears and concerns, passions and joys. I helped companies DESIGN their marketing strategies, their advertising, & their products. I LOVED this job!
Another Dream Is Born
♦ Even though I loved what I did, the constant traveling wreaked havoc with any kind of LIFE BALANCE. I decided to take my two decades of research experience and open a retail gift boutique at the Jersey Shore! For anyone who’s never done retail, it is a LOT OF HARD WORK!! Retail consultants and coaches show me the skills and tools I need to have a successful retail store and to HAVE FUN DOING IT! The Good Life Gift Boutique is born!
Is This All There Is??
♦ It’s time to Give Back – to find something that I truly believed in & dedicate my life to that purpose. I realized that one of the biggest problems kids were facing was stress and anxiety. I helped my grandchildren learn mindfulness – helping them understand their anxieties and how to deal with them. The amazing positive feeling I had motivated me to create a non-profit to teach kids’ practices focused on Mindfulness, Kindness, Gratitude and Positive Thinking. When I first came up with this idea, Mindfulness was not widely understood or discussed, especially related to kids. However, I knew I was onto something and I was not going to be side tracked. Do Good Foundation is born!
Who’s Up For Another Life Changing Experience?
♦ I can honestly tell you that my life in 2015 was probably one of the best I had ever experienced. I was mentored by Marci Shimoff (in the movie The Secret, NY Times Best Selling author – Chicken Soup for the Soul for Women, Happy for No Reason, Love for No Reason), my store was seeing unprecedented growth and sales, my personal life was good, my family was healthy, and life was pretty remarkable!
♦ And, then in September 2015, I was physically hit by a car while crossing the street. At first, I didn’t realize that anything was wrong with me and then day by day the reality set in. My daughter suggested that I might have a concussion. My life seemed to be going in slow speed…For 18 months, my life was spent in treatments — cognitive rehabilitation, speech therapy, physical therapy, vestibular treatments, massage therapy, and anything else that people suggested. I would try just about anything to “get my life back to the way it was before I was hit.”
Time Out…Life on Hold
♦ The accident was a major life changing, humbling experience. Rather than reaching out, I retreated. While I was so grateful that my injuries were treatable, I could not believe what was happening. I felt vulnerable, scared and confused.
♦ For years, companies had hired me “for what’s in your head” & for my expertise, experience and skills. I now had to work hard to stay focused, to remember what someone said 5 minutes before, to deal with the anxiety, and to deal with the constant headaches and pains throughout my body.
♦ What I can tell you is that this experience was filled with lessons. It taught me to slow my life down, to lean into the physical and emotional discomforts, to be more compassionate and patient with myself, to ask for and take support if and when I needed it and to FOCUS ON WHAT WAS RIGHT AND THE ‘GOOD’ in my life. And, most importantly, I learned how to look at my fears straight on and to realize the IMPORTANCE OF BEING VULNERABLE and CHOOSING how I would deal with my vulnerabilities.
“Only when we’re brave enough to explore the darkness will we discover the infinite power of our light.” – Brene Brown
Life is About Choices
♦ I was brought up in a family that fostered the idea that we always have choices. I could allow that inner critic to take over and be in charge of my thoughts or I could get out of my head and be right here, right now – in the present.
♦ I have learned that making those choices that support the positives in my life are the ones that have helped me through the tough times and created more of the fun and joyful, POSITIVE times. So, regardless of what is going on in my life, I…
CHOOSE GRATEFULNESS & KINDNESS. CHOOSE HAPPINESS & SELF COMPASSION. CHOOSE PEACE AND JOY. AND, I CHOOSE to LIVE IN THE PRESENT.
Creative Insight Journey
♦ The Creative Insight Journey course was such a game changer for me – it reinforces my life of Mindfulness and dealing with the positive in a way that helped me create the next chapter of my life.
♦ Becoming certified to coach adults and kids about the practices that have truly helped to craft the life I live today has been a game changer. Being witness to people opening up and realizing they can design their life as they want to live it is MAGICAL. To see an adult or child become CLEAR about who they are, what they want out of life and what CHOICES they are going to make is AWE-INSPIRING. It lights up my soul knowing that I can provide my coaching insights to help people get to this place in their lives.