http://www.silverliningsinternational.org/

Silver Linings International, Rochester, NY (2026)

08/20/2026

Waiting patiently…

If we all could have the patience of a dog waiting for its ball to be “chucked”…what would we learn about ourselves?

08/18/2026

I've been dog-sitting my way across the UK this summer. 🇬🇧🐾

This morning, Diesel and I were out for our usual walk when we came up behind a dad and his son walking a dog.

As we got closer, their dog kept stopping and looking back at us, refusing to move. 👀

Diesel suddenly crouched low to the ground.

Not knowing his history or how he might react, I instinctively shortened the leash, not wanting to create a situation that wasn't there.

Then the gentleman turned around and smiled.

"They're mates," he called out. "They know each other." 😊

I relaxed my grip on the leash, and the two dogs had the sweetest reunion right there in the middle of the road. 🐕❤️🐕

As we walked away, I thanked him.

"I'm just looking after him," I said. "I didn't know."

As supervisors, we often make decisions with incomplete information, too.

We don't always know what experiences someone is carrying, what has built trust for them, what they're worried about, or what helps them succeed.

💜 That's why intentional curiosity matters.

Not to lower expectations.
Not to avoid accountability.

𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞'𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐰𝐞'𝐯𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞.

Sometimes one conversation...one piece of context...can completely change how we see a situation.

That gentleman knew Diesel's story. I didn't.

The difference between us wasn't that he cared more.

He simply had more context.

As supervisors, we won't always have the full story either. 𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐥 𝐰𝐞 𝐝𝐨.

💜 If you'd like to join us for our next Trauma-Informed Supervisors cohort beginning September 22, 🔗 the link is in the comments.

08/11/2026

Over the past several weeks in the UK, I didn't just collect memories...I collected reminders.

🌿 I noticed a tiny feather caught on a dried flower.

💜 I discovered a path that had been beside me all along, but I hadn't seen it until weeks later.

🎶 In Liverpool, I was reminded that sometimes our deepest losses can become the foundation for incredible strength.

🐾 Even walking the dogs taught me something about slowing down, paying attention, and noticing what I would have rushed past before...like a heart-shaped stone in the cracked earth at the edge of a hay field.

As I pieced all of these experiences together, I realized they weren't just teaching me about travel. They were teaching me about myself as a .

There have been times when I noticed I was stressed...and ignored it. I convinced myself I just needed to push through.

There have also been times when I completely missed the signs that someone else was struggling. Looking back, I can see the opportunities I missed to ask one more question, to check in, or to simply get curious instead of making an assumption.

That, to me, is what trauma-informed leadership is really about.

Not having all the answers.
Not getting it right every time.
𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠.

Because when we hashtag sooner, we can respond differently. We build trust. We create psychological safety. We strengthen relationships. And sometimes we change the trajectory of someone's day...or even their career. Or we save ours!

That's exactly why we created our 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐮𝐦𝐚-𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞. It's designed for leaders who want practical tools to recognize stress responses in themselves and others, respond with intention instead of reaction, and build teams where people can do their best work, 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙘𝙝 𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙡𝙪𝙙𝙚𝙨 𝙔𝙊𝙐.

Our next live cohort begins September 22. See the comment below.

08/07/2026

One thread kept weaving its way through the stories as I wandered through The Beatles Story museum in Liverpool, UK.

With the headphones on 🎧, listening to the history behind the music 🎶 and taking in each exhibit, I realized I wasn't thinking as much about the songs...
I was thinking about the people.

Before they became two of the greatest songwriters in history, John Lennon and Paul McCartney were just two boys who had both lost their mothers far too young. 💔

Paul was 14 when his mum, Mary, died of breast cancer.

About eight months later, in July 1957, 15-year-old Paul met 16-year-old John at a neighborhood church fair, where John was playing with The Quarrymen. 🎸

Before the day was over, John had invited Paul to join the band.

Less than a year later, John's mum, Julia, was struck and killed by a car. 💔

As I listened, I found myself wondering what it must have meant for two teenagers to find someone else who understood that kind of loss.

Then another thought quietly found its way in...

Sometimes our deepest pain becomes the place where we find people who truly understand us.

Sometimes it's also the place where we discover a passion, a purpose, or a determination we never knew we had. 🌱

Not because heartbreak is a gift...

But because human beings have an incredible capacity to keep loving, creating, and hoping, even after life breaks our hearts. ✨

As I was leaving, Yellow Submarine started playing. 🎶

I smiled. 😊

Not because it was my favorite Beatles song...

But because after spending a few hours listening to stories of loss, friendship, hope, and the people behind the music, it somehow felt like a quiet reminder...

We're all just trying to find our place in the world.

And maybe...

We're all traveling through it together. 🌍 💜

08/05/2026

❤️🇬🇧 I didn't expect Liverpool to stay with me like this.

I rode the double-decker buses 🚌, took the ferry across the Mersey ⛴️ (and yes...there was absolutely no way I was making that trip without Gerry & the Pacemakers playing in my head 😄🎶), wandered through the city, and spent hours in The Beatles Story museum.

I thought I'd come away humming the songs.

Truthfully...I still am. 😊

But somewhere between the ferry ride, the museum, dinner with my English friend Janet Baker and her family, and wandering the streets of Liverpool, I found myself thinking less about the music...
..and more about the stories.

One story, in particular, has stayed with me.

On July 6, 1957, a 16-year-old John Lennon was playing with his band, The Quarrymen, at a neighborhood church fair. After the performance, someone introduced him to a 15-year-old Paul McCartney. Paul borrowed a guitar 🎸, played a few songs, and before the afternoon was over, John invited him to join the band.

Then there was another story I'd never heard.

Paul attended the Liverpool Institute. George Harrison was a year younger and went to the same school. They got to know each other on the bus ride home because they shared a love of guitars and music. That friendship eventually led Paul to introduce George to John.

I couldn't stop thinking about that.

A church fair.
A bus ride home.
A simple introduction.

None of them knew they were living a moment that people would still be talking about nearly 70 years later.

As I rode those same buses through Liverpool, I kept thinking...

History is full of moments that almost didn't happen.

A conversation.
An introduction.
A bus ride home.

Most of us will never know which ordinary moment we're living through while it's happening.

Maybe that's why it's worth slowing down. 🌿

Not because every conversation will change the world...

But because one of them just might change yours. ❤️

07/31/2026

Today I was visiting with my good friend Janet Baker and her son in their beautiful back garden here in the Midlands, England.

They told me about the significance of seeing a white feather 🪶: that it was a sign from a beloved person who has passed on, saying hi.

I'd never heard of this before.

However, I shared with them that I had seen a white feather perched on a dried flower on a forest pathway days earlier, just sitting there. I wasn't sure how it was so fixed on that flower; it should have blown away. Yet it was still there.

I quickly looked at the date I snapped that photo. It was July 28, my brother Steve's birthday, who passed away 4 years ago.

Tears came to my eyes. Maybe it was a sign that he was there walking that path with me. He would have loved it here.

My friend dropped me off at my hotel. When she returned home, she found a white feather on the ground where we had been sitting in her garden talking about these signs.

I don't know if you are a believer, but I am.

It's comforting to know that our loved ones are still about, giving us hints that they are watching over us!

My heart ❤️ is full and my eyes are still teary!

07/30/2026

A month ago, I came to the UK to house/dog sit for a couple of months. 🇬🇧🐾

People have asked me why.

I wanted a new perspective. I wanted to step outside my comfort zone and experience life differently.

What I didn't expect was how much it would stretch me.

The part that surprised me most?

I didn't think I was stressed.

I kept telling myself, "𝘐'𝘮 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦."

"𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥."

"𝘐𝘵'𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦."

But underneath those words, my nervous system was working overtime.

Every day required just a little more mental energy than I realized. Looking the other way before crossing the street. Trying to understand English words that somehow meant something completely different here. Figuring out transportation, grocery stores, customs, and routines. Relying on the kindness of strangers.

None of those things felt overwhelming by themselves.

But together...they were.

The hardest part is, I couldn't even admit that to myself.

I just kept pushing through because that's what I've always done.

Then one morning, while walking the dogs, I looked up and realized there was another footpath running right alongside the one I'd been walking every day.
I'd been here for three weeks.

The path had been there the whole time.

I had just never seen it.

So I took it.

As I walked, I noticed the dogs stopping to sniff every new scent. I paused to watch a bee buzzing around a flower. I found myself drawn to all the shades of purple growing along the path. Then I spotted a tiny feather hanging from a dried flower.

None of those things were new.

They had been there all along.

𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐝.

As my nervous system settled, I finally had the capacity to see them.
It made me wonder how often this happens in leadership.

How many of us tell ourselves, "I'm fine. This is just the job." We adapt to carrying more and more until it feels normal. We don't even admit to ourselves how much we're carrying because we just keep going.

And I wonder how many leaders are walking right past paths they can't yet see, not because they aren't capable, but because they're carrying so much that their brain is simply focused on getting through the day.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐝 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤? 🌿

07/29/2026

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠...𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫? 🤔

That was one of the most powerful conversations during this month's Facilitators' Collective.

As facilitators, we spend countless hours designing agendas, creating slides, and perfecting activities. But somewhere along the way, many of us begin measuring success by one question:

"Did I get through all of my content?"

What if that's the wrong question?

This month we explored a deeper one:

"𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐦𝐞 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐰?"

Sometimes that means setting aside the lesson plan because a conversation is creating more learning than the next ten slides ever could.

Sometimes it means resisting the urge to reteach content for those who weren't prepared, and instead inviting participants to teach one another.

Sometimes it means remembering that participants don't experience our lesson plans.

𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬.

Every choice we make communicates what we believe about learning, trust, and human potential.

Great facilitation isn't just about delivering excellent content.

𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐨𝐰𝐧.

💙 Those are the conversations we have every month in the Facilitators' Collective. Not just what to facilitate, but who we need to become as facilitators.

🌱 We'd love to have you join us in August! If these are the kinds of conversations you've been looking for, send me a DM. We'd love to welcome you.

07/22/2026

🚀 We're dreaming a little...and we'd love your input.

At Silver Linings International, we're exploring the development of a year-long Leadership Intensive for next year focused on helping senior leaders strengthen one of the most important leadership skills today: emotional intelligence.

The program would include EQ-i 2.0 / EQ 360 assessments, individual coaching, and 12 core learning modules designed to help leaders lead with more confidence, navigate difficult conversations, build psychologically safe workplaces, retain great staff, and create healthier organizational cultures.

We have lots of ideas...but before we build it, I want to hear from you.

If you could design the leadership program every senior leader should experience, what topics would you include? 🤔

What do today's leaders struggle with most?
✨ Leading through uncertainty?
✨ Staff retention?
✨ Conflict?
✨ Burnout?
✨ Accountability?
✨ Trust?
✨ Change?
✨ Something else?

What skills do you believe leaders need now that they weren't taught before?

Drop your ideas in the comments or DM me. ⬇️

We'd love to build something that reflects what organizations truly need—not just what we think they need.

07/21/2026

Most people think emotional intelligence is something you're born with.

I don't.

I believe emotional intelligence is a practice. 💙

Every day, we have opportunities to strengthen it...or ignore it.
It starts with one simple skill: 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠.

👀 Noticing when your shoulders tense.
💓 Noticing when your heart starts racing.
🗣️ Noticing when your voice gets louder...or when you suddenly go silent.

Those aren't signs that you're a bad leader. They're signals that your nervous system is trying to protect you.

The question isn't, "How do I stop feeling this?"

The question is, "What do I choose to do next?"

That pause between emotion and reaction is where leadership lives.

Instead of asking:
❌ "What's wrong with this person?"

Try asking:
✅ "What might they be carrying right now?"

That single shift changes conversations, builds trust, and creates psychological safety.

The best leaders I know aren't the ones who never get frustrated or overwhelmed. They're the ones who recognize what's happening inside themselves, stay curious, and respond with intention.

𝐄𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐬𝐧'𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.

𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞.

And in today's workplaces, that practice may be one of the most important leadership skills we can develop.

At 𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐋𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥, we're excited to offer 𝐄𝐐-𝐢 𝟐.𝟎 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 to help leaders better understand themselves, strengthen their emotional intelligence, and create workplaces where people can thrive.

Whatever you practice...you get better at!

If you're curious about how it works or how it could support your team, send me a DM. I'd be happy to tell you more. 🌱

Silver Linings International

08/20/2026

08/18/2026

08/11/2026

08/07/2026

08/05/2026

07/31/2026

07/30/2026

07/29/2026

07/22/2026

07/21/2026

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