Silver Linings International

04/30/2026

I’m honored to be presenting at the 𝟑𝐫𝐝 𝐀𝐧𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭, 𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 BIPOC Parent Mental Health Project, on May 19–20 in Niagara Falls, NY. 💙

This summit brings together peers, leaders, and changemakers from across New York and North America who are committed to advancing peer support through inclusion, equity, and lived experience. If you’re doing this work or care about where it’s headed, this is a space you’ll want to be in.

I’ll be facilitating a 90-minute session:
𝐈𝐭 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐔𝐬: 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐟𝐟 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐮𝐦𝐚-𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧

In our time together, we’re going to get very real about what shows up at work.

Not just behavior, but what’s underneath it.

We’ll look at how trauma responses like fight, flight, freeze, and fawn can show up in peer staff, and more importantly, how supervisors can respond in ways that create safety, trust, and connection instead of unintentionally escalating stress.

Folks will walk away with practical strategies they can actually use to support peer staff with lived experience, strengthen collaboration, and maintain accountability without losing compassion 🤝

Because when peer staff feel supported, they stay.

When they stay, relationships deepen, especially for their clients.

And when that happens, outcomes improve for everyone 🌱

If you’re a supervisor, peer, leader, or someone who wants to create a workplace where people can truly thrive, I encourage you to attend.

And if you attend, be sure to connect with me!

👉 Link to the conference is in the comments.

03/04/2026

You can care deeply about your work and still feel exhausted by it.
That tension has a name.

Moral distress. Emotional labor. The quiet weight of carrying other people’s struggles… and the weight we carry inside when the work we care about becomes hard to hold.

These pressures show up in ways we don’t always recognize at first. Fatigue, frustration, disconnection, or feeling like the work that once energized you now drains you.

I’m looking forward to joining Michael Scanlon and Street Smart Ventures for a national Community Conversation about resilience, growth, and how stress and trauma show up in our lives and workplaces in unexpected ways and what to do about it.

This conversation is for youth, young adults, entrepreneurs, health and human services professionals, and business leaders who want to keep doing meaningful work without losing themselves along the way.

Investing 90 minutes of your day may be exactly what you need to thrive throughout the year in this demanding world.

Resilience is not just a mindset. It is a skill we can strengthen.

📅 March 24 | 3:00–4:30 PM ET
Sign up today! Registration link in the comments.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DVbYyEHiRps/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

02/13/2026

I’m excited to share that I’m now 𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐞𝐝 in EQ-i 2.0 and EQ 360, 𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞-𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬.

For years, I’ve been helping leaders strengthen self-awareness, regulate stress, navigate complexity, and build psychologically safe teams.

This certification doesn’t change that work. It deepens it.

It allows me to bring data and individualized insight into the conversations, helping leaders understand not just what emotional intelligence is, but how it specifically shows up in them… and how others experience them.

Same mission.
Stronger tools.

Grateful to keep growing so I can help leaders grow.

Earners of this badge now have a thorough understanding of the EQ-i 2.0 assessment tool and can coach and train on Emotional Intelligence. They are familiar with the Emotional Intelligence elements and have demonstrated the ability to interpret a client’s EQ-i 2.0 & EQ360 report. In addition to th...

02/10/2026

🔥 𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐰𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐬, 𝐰𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐝𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞.

If your team “thrives in chaos,” that’s not resilience.
That’s a nervous system coping strategy.

One leader recently said something that stopped me cold:
“𝙒𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙤𝙨, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙤𝙨.”

Exactly.

When leaders respond in chaos, they become professional firefighters.
They spray the whole house with water, put out the fire, and quietly erode trust, confidence, creativity, and retention in the process.

And here’s the part many organizations avoid naming:
The loudest voices often get heard.
Not the wisest.
Not the most grounded.
Not the ones closest to the work.

That’s not leadership.
That’s unregulated power.
It perpetuates chaos.

What leadership needs in 2026 is not more communication training.
𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.

The ability to pause before reacting.
To set boundaries.
To build a solid, systemic culture so that everything doesn’t fall apart when someone leaves.

Out of chaos can come order.
Or it can keep burning people out.

Order does not come from working harder or reacting faster.
It comes when leaders are willing to 𝐩𝐮𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 and 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭.

That is exactly what we build in 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐄𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞.

If you are ready to stop leading in survival mode and start leading with clarity, this course starts next week.

👉 Link in the comments.

02/04/2026

💡 𝐈𝐧 𝐚 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐀𝐈, 𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐜𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝.

AI can analyze data.
AI can draft emails.
AI can optimize systems.

𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦.
𝐈𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐦𝐞𝐝.
𝐈𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝.

Years ago, leaders like Bill Gates talked about how the future of work would depend less on technical skill and more on uniquely human capabilities as technology accelerates.

That future is already here.

What I’m seeing across organizations:
• Talented leaders burning out quietly
• Teams disengaging without saying why
• Performance issues that aren’t skill problems—they’re emotional load problems

When emotional intelligence isn’t intentionally developed, leaders default to urgency, control, or avoidance. And over time, people leave—not because they don’t care, but because it feels unsustainable.

Cultivating Emotional Intelligence isn’t about being “nice.”

It’s about:
✔ 𝐂𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐞𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞
✔ 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞
✔ 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞
✔ 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤

As AI reshapes what work looks like, 𝐄𝐈 𝐝𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬—𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐥𝐞𝐬.

If you wait to build this skill until things feel hard, you’re already behind.

That’s why I teach 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐄𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞. Join us on Feb 17!

Your leaders can't afford to miss this...

👉 Link in the comments.

12/31/2025

𝐌𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔 𝐢𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥.

Because 2025 was a year that needed us — desperately.

The world is carrying a lot right now.

So are our workplaces.
Burnout, moral distress, compassion fatigue, grief, and constant change became the backdrop of daily work.

At Silver Linings, we spent the year supporting organizations through emotional intelligence development, trauma-informed leadership, and appreciative inquiry strategic planning. We adapted constantly to meet what the workforce was actually facing — often in real time.

And when you do this kind of work well, you don’t stay untouched by it.
You feel what your clients feel.
You carry some of that weight too.

That’s why Intentional matters to me right now.

Intentional means:
• not building the plane while flying it
• not saying yes just because I can
• not confusing urgency with importance
• and not carrying work that was never mine to hold

In 2026, I don’t want to rush forward without understanding what allowed us to show up the way we did — or what it cost. I want to pause and do a root cause analysis of what worked, why it worked, and what needs to be protected so we don’t burn out while helping the helpers.

Trauma-informed leadership isn’t just how we support others.
It’s how we sustain ourselves in work that asks a lot of our hearts.

Because helping "the helpers" is meaningful work.
And if we don’t take care of ourselves while doing it, the cost is too high.

So this year isn’t about doing more.
It’s about being intentional — so the work, and the people doing it, can last.

That’s the intention I’m carrying into 2026 — for me, and for Silver Linings.

What will you carry in 2026?

12/30/2025

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞. 𝐈𝐭 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦.

The world asked people to function like machines… while judging them for reacting like humans.

We normalized overload.
We praised resilience while removing support.
We told people to “take care of themselves” in systems that quietly drain them.

And then we acted surprised when burnout showed up.
When patience ran out.
When people disengaged, left, or went silent.

Here’s the part we don’t say out loud enough:
👉 Most workplaces don’t have a motivation problem.
👉 They have a capacity problem.

People are carrying:
• constant urgency
• unprocessed stress
• emotional labor that goes unnamed
• expectations that creep past what’s reasonable
• compassion fatigue from caring deeply for too long
• moral distress from knowing what’s right and being unable to do it

This year at Silver Linings International, the work wasn’t about fixing people.
It was about naming what the system keeps asking them to absorb.

If your system depends on people constantly pushing past their limits, it isn’t high-performing.

It’s fragile.

𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐡𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝, 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝, 𝐨𝐫 𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐫𝐞.
𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐚.
𝐁𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐮𝐦𝐚-𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧.

— Debra

12/03/2025

😔 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐧𝐮𝐬𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐝, 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞, 𝐨𝐫 𝐨𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐲 𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐛… 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐬.

It might be hashtag — the quiet exhaustion that builds when you care deeply, constantly, and often without a break.

Common signs many people overlook:
• Feeling drained no matter how much you rest
• Shorter patience or emotional overload
• Trouble focusing or making decisions
• Feeling “checked out” or losing empathy
• Dreading work you normally feel called to do

If you care for anyone, this might feel familiar.

👩‍💼 A 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐫 carrying your team’s stress
🐾 A 𝐯𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐫 𝐳𝐨𝐨 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐫 caring for animals who depend on you
🎓 An 𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐬𝐭, 𝐜𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡, 𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 supporting others’ emotions
🧡 A 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫 carrying responsibilities that never end

Now add holiday pressure — deadlines, expectations, emotional labor — and even the strongest helpers start to run on empty.

✨ That’s why we created this 𝐇𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐭 𝐒𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧… a space for you to replenish before burnout takes over.

🌿 𝐒𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐄𝐗𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐃:
𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐚 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞.

Share the gift of resilience and enter the season renewed… together.

Join Dr. Stacy Huff, Ph.D. on December 11 (2–5 pm ET) for a research-based, compassionate workshop on recognizing compassion fatigue and building real-world resilience.

🎁 $49 | Limited seats | Link in comments.

Give yourself the pause you’ve needed for far too long. You deserve to feel whole again.

11/20/2025

✨ 𝐇𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐅𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐈𝐒𝐏 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐟𝐟 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐃𝐚𝐲! ✨

Yesterday, I had the privilege of facilitating the 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐘𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐬 (𝐄𝐈𝐒𝐏) Staff Development Day in Albany — under the truly inspiring leadership of Deputy Commissioner Valerie Figueroa. Nearly 300 staff came together, and the energy was incredible. 💛

Our purpose was simple but powerful:
𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬-𝐛𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐮 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐬𝐲𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐭𝐲 so every role functions like a bridge — helping move ideas, support, and purpose across the division.

Together, we focused on:
🔹 Reducing silos and seeing the big-picture mission
🔹 Building 𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 & 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟-𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞 practices that last
🔹 Pausing and responding with compassion — with clients and colleagues
🔹 Making it energizing, meaningful… and definitely not just another day at work!

And we did it.

We created a day filled with 𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒄 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒍𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒓 — including staff who had never met before. We found practical ways to strengthen the bridges between bureaus and support one another through the emotional labor and moral distress present in this important work.

I’ll be facilitating a 𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 for those who couldn’t join in person, so everyone has the opportunity to participate.

Enjoy a few pictures from this inspiring day! 📸

10/06/2025

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