Character – Melissa Schlies

Looking Back: What I Learned in 2020

For all of us, 2020 will go down as the year of COVID. Memories of people stocking up on toilet paper, empty shelves at the grocery store, and masks becoming a regular necessity, are now forever a part of our story. The pandemic has been the overarching atmosphere in which we’ve seen people band together and fall a part over issues such as racism, health care, politics, conspiracy theories, and even restrictions over COVID itself. The pandemic has been the overarching atmosphere in which we’ve seen people band together and fall a part... Yet in the midst of all the [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-12-23T18:18:18+00:00December 28th, 2020|Categories: Acceptance, Change, Character, gratitude, Learn, perseverance, Social Distancing|Comments Off

Hope, For When Life Feels Like It’s Falling Apart

In Northern Ireland there sits a cylindrical building on the side of a cliff, overlooking the ocean. It’s known as Mussenden Temple and once was the library of a great lord. With windows all around it, inside there are magnificent views of the sea from almost every angle. And when we decided to explore the North on our second trip to Ireland, Tony and I put it on our “must-see” list. Only, when we went to visit, it wasn’t the Temple that stuck out to us. That morning, it was the usual damp, foggy weather we’d grown accustomed to in [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-09-13T14:24:58+00:00September 14th, 2020|Categories: Change, Character, Conflict, Courage, Hope, Travel, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Three Things To Do When You Want To Escape Your Life

Growing up, there was a common theme that ran through many of the movies I watched and books I read. The main character or hero was presented with a choice: Go follow your dreams OR stay where everything is familiar and always wonder what would have happened if you left. In ninety-nine percent of those stories, the hero left home. "Go follow your dreams" OR "stay where everything is familiar and always wonder what would have happened if you left." The protagonist said goodbye to all she knew, and set out on her own. Sure, in many stories, she came [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-07-22T23:05:02+00:00July 23rd, 2020|Categories: Change, Character, Courage, Depression, Freedom, Hope, Lead, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Making Decisions, perseverance|Comments Off

On Finding Balance the Midst of Change

When I was a kid, the place I most wanted to be in the summer was the beach. As we were fortunate to live close to one, it was where my mom took me and my sisters almost daily. After all, there are endless activities to entertain four girls at the beach. There are sandcastles to build, sea shells to find, and waves to chase. Only, that last one didn’t always go as we planned. I remember my sisters and I running into the ice cold, foaming salt water just far enough so we could ride the waves into shore. [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-07-15T23:46:26+00:00July 16th, 2020|Categories: Balance, Change, Character, Conflict, Failure, Lead, Leadership, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, perseverance|Comments Off

The Real Secret To Our Marriage

Do you remember, in high school, wishing you had the answer key to a hard exam? Even though you knew cheating was wrong, there was a part of you that wished for an easier way. For me, it was always my chemistry exams—which is ironic as here we are talking about a different kind of chemistry. That of love and marriage. But now, even as adults, many of us are still looking for that answer key. We’re looking for the easiest way to lose weight, get that promotion, and even understand our spouse. With so many things to fill our [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-05-23T13:38:53+00:00May 27th, 2019|Categories: Character, Conflict, Faith, Marriage, Relationships, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Leadership #22: Your Attitude Matters

The hardest times to lead aren’t only when everything is going south and you’re just trying to keep things together. They can also be in the mundane. When the job before you and your team is to do the long slow work of building or preparing for your next big thing. When there are menial or seemingly unimportant tasks to be done. Tasks that no one is ever going to notice. Jobs that won’t get applause. Yet things that must be completed to get to where you want to go. It is in these times that, Attitude is everything. Working [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-03-22T18:58:00+00:00March 21st, 2019|Categories: Character, Lead, Leadership, Leadership Tip, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, perseverance, Uncategorized|1 Comment

Learn: That Weird Place In The Middle

It may surprise you to learn, I was unhappy to find myself working at a university bookstore after graduating college. As you might know, I love books. I was an English major. And, one of my favorite things to do is to wander the aisles of a bookstore with a cup of coffee in my hand. For me it’s pretty close to heaven. So why wasn’t I happy? Well, for one, shelving text books isn’t the same as reading a fantastic novel. Retail is hard work. But more than anything, my unhappiness wasn’t about where I was, it was about [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-03-06T20:57:55+00:00March 14th, 2019|Categories: Calling, Character, Faith, gratitude, Hope, Lead, Leadership, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, perseverance, Uncategorized, Waiting|Comments Off

A Cold & Broken Hallelujah

The train moved through the dark subway tunnels of Boston, before entering Park Street Station. This was my stop. I got off the train and made my way to the stairs. Rather than heading up to fresh air, and the sun setting on Park Street Church, I descended further to where I’d catch the Red Line Train. As I reached the bottom of the steps, on the platform between the tracks, I saw a man playing a white electric guitar. Crooning into a microphone, he stood with a small amp at his side. An open guitar case lay at his [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-03-01T16:41:24+00:00March 4th, 2019|Categories: Calling, Character, Courage, Hope, perseverance, Uncategorized, Waiting|Comments Off

I’m Hearing Voices, How About You?

“When I was your age, I had to walk to school through the snow, barefoot. And it was uphill both ways.” How many of us heard those words, or something similar, growing up? In other words, life is hard, so suck it up. Perhaps that is why, when I was twenty-two, I was walking through the snow with bronchial pneumonia, to get to a bus that would take me to work. I just thought that’s what adults do. We ignore our ailments and suppress our pain. We “suck it up,” and do what is expected of us. Only now, I [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-02-25T15:45:39+00:00February 25th, 2019|Categories: Adulting, Balance, Character, discipline, Habit Making, Health, Making Decisions, perseverance, Routines, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Learn: If We Could Do These 5 Things As Adults

Do you want to know what I think is the hardest part of becoming an adult? All of us, every single one of us, has been let down by an adult in our life. Whether we were kids, teens, or even in our twenties or thirties—we know someone older than us who didn’t act the way we thought they should. Who didn’t act the way an adult should. Very often, it can be tempting to let other’s failures become our excuse for why we aren’t the human beings we should be. How often do we hear people say, “My dad [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-01-31T16:46:33+00:00February 7th, 2019|Categories: Adulting, Calling, Character, Courage, Lead, Leadership, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Purpose, Relationships, Success, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Hope, For When Life Feels Like It’s Falling Apart

Three Things To Do When You Want To Escape Your Life

On Finding Balance the Midst of Change

The Real Secret To Our Marriage

Leadership #22: Your Attitude Matters

Learn: That Weird Place In The Middle

A Cold & Broken Hallelujah

I’m Hearing Voices, How About You?

Learn: If We Could Do These 5 Things As Adults

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