Start Here – Melissa Schlies

Before Setting Goals, Do This First in 2022

Three months into my first job in youth ministry, I sat in the office of one of my coworkers. My shoulders were hunched. My eyes were heavy. I was afraid I was going to cry if I said too much. I felt so empty. Across from me sat one of the few fellow women leaders on our staff. She was a force, and yet cast a motherly gaze directly into my face. Though I was trying hard to keep it together, she drew out of me what I needed so badly to say: The way I was leading and living [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2022-01-03T01:01:55+00:00January 3rd, 2022|Categories: Balance, Habit Making, Health, Holidays, Mental Health, perseverance, Practice, Routines, Self Care, Social Distancing, Start Here|Comments Off

Three Fantastic Reads For the New Year

What do you do, when things change? As I’ve shared before, change is not my sweet spot. As much as I want adventure and new experiences, every fiber of my being calls out for routine. It longs for the status quo. Even change I want, can be a challenge. That is why, last week, when Tony and I stayed home for the holidays—for the first time ever—it was hard to settle. For a few days following Christmas, it took almost as much effort to rest as it would have to work. Sometimes, slowing down feels more difficult than speeding up. [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2021-01-06T20:29:59+00:00January 7th, 2021|Categories: Good Books, Lead, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Start Here|2 Comments

Instead of Setting New Year’s Resolutions, Start Here

About eight months ago, we all began looking forward to 2021. About two months ago, a few crazy people on my social media feed started talking about their New Year’s resolutions. Only, now we’re a few days into 2021, and things aren’t looking that much different from 2020 yet. The pandemic isn’t over. Many of our same struggles from last year remain. And we’re still grappling with a world that looks so much different from how it did a year ago. With a new year, many of us want to begin moving toward a new life, only this hard [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2021-01-05T16:48:16+00:00January 4th, 2021|Categories: Habit Making, Making Decisions, perseverance, Practice, Preparation, Routines, Self Care, Social Distancing, Start Here, Success, Uncategorized|Comments Off

In 2020, What If I Don’t Reach My Goal?

A few years ago, an author/influencer I follow was coming out with a new book. It would be her fourth or fifth one—yet the first of its kind. She had HIGH hopes for this book. She even told her followers that her dream was for it to make the New York Times Best Seller List. Only, when it released, Her book didn’t make it. She was crushed. And, as she had told all of her followers about her dream, she also had to tell them it didn’t come true. It’s almost like being a kid and telling your friends you’re [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-03-26T16:39:32+00:00January 27th, 2020|Categories: Adulting, Change, Courage, Failure, Fear, Habit Making, Hope, Making Decisions, perseverance, Start Here|Comments Off

In 2020, Start Small

On Monday, I shared I was terrified the first time I climbed a mountain. Mostly, because I wasn’t ready. But honestly, I made it all the way to the peak that day. It felt amazing. Until, I hurt my knee on the way down. Then Tony half carried me about three miles as I wobbled back to the car. We were dating at the time, and boy did that experience solidify our relationship. But it also taught me I had to get in better shape if I wanted to do it again. Sometimes, the mountains we want to climb in [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-03-26T16:35:14+00:00January 9th, 2020|Categories: Calling, Change, Courage, discipline, Habit Making, Lead, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, perseverance, Preparation, Routines, Start Here, Success|Comments Off

In 2020, Climb Your Mountain

Friend, the first time I climbed a mountain, I didn’t fully know if I was going to make it. It was so BIG. A few of the people I was with, had climbed the mountain before. And as we got ready to go, they talked about how there were some really challenging spots on the way to the top. I remember listening to them and wondering, What would I do, if I couldn’t make it? I wasn’t an experienced hiker. In fact, I had only recently begun to regularly go on hikes where I lived. My adventurous side had [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-03-26T16:33:23+00:00January 6th, 2020|Categories: Adulting, Calling, Change, Courage, discipline, Failure, Habit Making, Start Here|Comments Off

In 2020, Start Here

The few days right after New Years are always interesting. Like geese migrating with the change of a season, some of us flock to the nearest gym, where every treadmill or elliptical machine is taken. While others of us suffer through what I like to call the Holiday Hangover. It’s that exhausted, “What just happened” feeling we get when the alarm goes off for our first day back at work. Or, getting back into our pajamas as soon as we come home from said job, because we just can’t. And sometimes, if we’re truly unlucky, the Holiday Hangover includes [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-03-26T16:32:23+00:00January 2nd, 2020|Categories: Adulting, Change, Habit Making, Health, Lead, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Preparation, Routines, Start Here, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Three Fantastic Reads For the New Year

In 2020, What If I Don’t Reach My Goal?

In 2020, Start Small

In 2020, Climb Your Mountain

In 2020, Start Here

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