Freedom – Page 2 – Melissa Schlies

Holding Our Holiday Plans Loosely

One of my favorite holiday memories as a kid was on Thanksgiving. As most childhood memories go, I can’t for the life of me remember what our family’s plans were supposed to be that day. I only remember what happened. But most likely, for dinner, we were supposed to go see our grandparents, who lived over an hour away. Then, We got a big New England snow storm. The kind that created drifts far taller than my youngest sister. She was four or five then, and the snow banks made her cry out from not being able to see my [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-12-05T22:01:21+00:00December 9th, 2019|Categories: Balance, Christmas, Freedom, Preparation|Comments Off

An Open Letter to All My Fellow People Pleasers

Dear friends, I have a feeling there are more of us than we realize. “Us” being anyone who has spent more time making other people happy, than they have spent thinking about their own happiness. Or anyone who has felt it’s more trouble to speak up for oneself than it is to suffer the consequences. Chances are, you are one of “us,” if you’ve ever: Agreed to doing more than you can handle for a Holiday dinner, event, or party. Heard your boss say that you didn’t get time off for the Holiday because you were the only one who [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-11-13T16:33:05+00:00November 18th, 2019|Categories: Balance, Christmas, Conflict, Freedom, Health, Self Care, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Five Things I Wish Someone Told Me About Moving Far From Home

Years ago, I talked to an expat who had lived overseas for over thirty years. He said that after being away from your country of origin for ten years, your sense of where you come from shifts. Your idea of home gets muddled. Because all your recent history has been spent in a place other than where you grew up, you begin to feel like you belong where you are, more than where you’re from. Living in a different culture for so many years, I am sure, enhanced his experience even more so. But now, after living fifteen years in [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-09-04T13:32:33+00:00September 26th, 2019|Categories: Acceptance, Adulting, Change, Freedom, Lead, Leadership, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, perseverance, Preparation, Travel, Uncategorized|Comments Off

On Labor Day

“The dictionary is the only place that success comes before work. Hard work is the price we must pay for success.” — Vince Lombardi In our culture, an interesting thing has happened since the evolution of the internet and the creation of reality TV: Our understanding of success has changed. Our definition of this word has shifted to include those who are “Insta famous.” And in this shift we’ve lost our ability to comprehend how much work true and lasting success requires. Because we’ve found all the glitter and glam of fame enticing, we’ve believed that the internet can short-circuit [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-08-30T19:19:39+00:00September 2nd, 2019|Categories: Freedom, Habit Making, perseverance, Success|Comments Off

Declutter Your Mind (With This Free New Resource!)

Sometimes, things are quieter on the outside of us than they are on the inside. To an observer we may seem calm, cool, collected. But in our mind, it’s the complete opposite. Worries over a project we have at work or tension with our boss weigh on us heavily. Then there are those dreams we’ve been longing to make reality, only it’s never the right time. Not to mention, our mother, father, sister, or brother called yesterday and shared some concerning news about a family member. Earlier, we took a minute to escape from the world. We opened up [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-08-17T18:27:02+00:00August 19th, 2019|Categories: Adulting, Balance, Declutter Your Mind, Freedom, Health, Making Decisions, Preparation, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Trouble with Self Care? Start With Scrambled Eggs

Often, the first thing to go when I hit a busy season, or we return from a trip, is exercise. Though I’d also say it’s tied with maintaining a healthy diet. Once our routines are interrupted, Tony and I seem to gravitate more easily toward snack foods and the couch, than our running shoes and a protein packed smoothie. This makes the summer a perfect time for us to slack off when it comes to taking care of ourselves. And, I have a feeling, we’re not alone. But, fall is coming. Once our routines are interrupted, Tony and I seem [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-08-09T14:50:46+00:00August 12th, 2019|Categories: #mybodyhas, Balance, Body Image, discipline, Food, Freedom, Habit Making, Health, Self Care, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Thankful, On The Fourth of July

Here in the US, many of us today will wake up looking forward to a cookout with friends or family. We’ll be thinking about the food we’re going to bring, or who will be at the party. There will be hamburgers, hotdogs, potato salad, and maybe even our Aunt’s famous Jello cake, all in Red, White, and Blue. And in the evening, we’ll sit on a blanket in the grass somewhere, or in front of our TV at home, to watch fireworks. After all, it’s July 4th. A day that marks our country’s declaration of freedom should be celebrated this [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-07-05T15:39:08+00:00July 4th, 2019|Categories: Freedom, Lead, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead|Comments Off

Team Schlies Travel Guide (Repost)

As travel is one of our favorite things, and these tips still serve us well, today I am reposting our Travel Guide. Enjoy! For the born traveller, travelling is a besetting vice. Like other vices, it is imperious, demanding its victim's time, money, energy and the sacrifice of comfort. —Aldous Huxley For those of us who love to travel, Huxley’s words seem both dramatic, and somewhat true. Leaving one’s home to explore the world, can take our time, money, energy, and even, our comfort. But, if you’ve been bitten by the wanderlust bug, like we have—for the most part, you’re [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-06-13T13:25:59+00:00June 20th, 2019|Categories: Food, Freedom, Lead, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Making Decisions, Travel, Uncategorized|Comments Off

FOMO, The Internet, & Travel

We’ve all been there. In a moment of down time, we’ve picked up our phone to scroll our socials, only a photo stops us. Suddenly, we begin swiping right. No, I am not talking about Tinder. I am talking about other people’s vacation photos. Maybe it’s the deep turquoise blue of the ocean behind them. Or perhaps it’s the stone streets of a place we’ve only ever dreamed of going. And of course it’s the smile on our friend’s (or some celebrity’s) face as they’re living their best life. For a moment, we are transported into their trip. We feel [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-06-13T12:45:09+00:00June 17th, 2019|Categories: FOMO, Freedom, Travel, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Rewiring Our Body Image: #MyBodyHas

Do you remember the first time you had a negative thought about your body? I know I don’t. All I know is I was young, and that since then, there have been too many to count. Sometimes, thoughts of shame about my body have come as easily to me as breathing. They fly through my brain and land in my heart bringing a heaviness that is hard to shake. Because they’ve been making their appearance for years now, they leave in their wake a sense of defeat. They tell me my body will never be enough. My body that has [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2019-06-12T16:13:11+00:00June 13th, 2019|Categories: #mybodyhas, Acceptance, Beauty, Body Image, Courage, Freedom, Good Books, gratitude, Health, Hope, Lead, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Holding Our Holiday Plans Loosely

An Open Letter to All My Fellow People Pleasers

Five Things I Wish Someone Told Me About Moving Far From Home

On Labor Day

Declutter Your Mind (With This Free New Resource!)

Trouble with Self Care? Start With Scrambled Eggs

Thankful, On The Fourth of July

Team Schlies Travel Guide (Repost)

FOMO, The Internet, & Travel

Rewiring Our Body Image: #MyBodyHas

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