Troubled Youth are Typically Written Off…

But there can be so much more for them.

I believe no teen should ever be written off.

No matter how significant their destructive patterns seem to be.

I believe that every young person is capable of overcoming and developing new, life-giving patterns through a process of discovery, acceptance, learning new skills, and rebuilding a cohesive sense of self by restoring and bringing together all parts of who they are – the messy and the magnificent!

Some Outward Expressions of the Unrestored and Unskilled Messy…

• Difficulty Understanding or Responding to Others’ Emotions

• Manipulating Situations or Using Others to Their Advantage

• Sense of Entitlement or Expecting Special Treatment

• Rigidity

• Chronic Negative Outlook or Pessimism

• Pathological Lying

• Physical or Verbal Aggression

• Low Tolerance for Challenges or Disagreements

• Outbursts of Rage

• Persistent Defiance

• Disregard for Rules and Laws

• Impulsive and Risky Behaviors

• Engaging in Inappropriate or Risky Sexual Behaviors

• Avoidance of Accountability

• Little to No Effort to Engage in Learning

• Excessive Attention Seeking Behaviors

• Difficulty Forming and Maintaining Healthy Relationships

• Self-isolating

• Extreme Forgetfulness and Poor Time Management

• Overreaction to Emotional or Social Stimuli

• Highly Sensitive to Real or Perceived Failure or Rejection

• Self-Centeredness and a Lack of Consideration for Others

• Targeting Others Through Intimidation or Control

Many Current Approaches

to working with young people struggling with these types of patterns and behaviors focus on systematically 'managing' them using a one-size-fits-all approach, which includes methods like: a strict reliance on punishment, using isolation or “time-out” strategies, over or under-accommodation, relying on rigid systems of consequences and rewards to modify behavior, or 'talking it through' and teaching them unsustainable coping skills to mask, survive, and ultimately hide what’s going on inside so they can avoid ‘major’ trouble. (Or maybe a combination of these.) Unfortunately, many of these teens do not fare well in adulthood.

My Mission

is to empower youth and young adults with the tools to build self-awareness and acceptance; transform a reactive mindset into an opportunity mindset; break negative thought patterns; develop emotional resilience; discover their purpose; apply core leadership principles to their lives and relationships; achieve meaningful goals; and cultivate new habits of mindfulness, genuineness, gratitude, empathy-based communication, and collaboration.

What If…

What if your struggling teen or young adult could learn and apply transformational leadership principles and entrepreneurial mindset strategies to create lasting change in their own life while inspiring others? What if they could learn and master a professional level of negotiation, collaboration, and contribution skills to empower and strengthen their communication and community impact and set them up for success in their personal, academic, and working relationships? What if they could learn the skills needed to recognize, understand, accept, respect, and even validate others’ perspectives, feelings, and needs? What if they could discover their motivational drivers, true passions and interests, and core positive beliefs that shape how they want the world to be?

What if they had the opportunity to learn and apply all of these - and many other powerful skills - that would lead them to a successful, fulfilling, and sustainable future?

Empowering youth and young adults with life-giving skills and facilitating the kind of discovery, acceptance, and authentic, restorative personal growth that results in TRANSFORMATIONAL change is one of my GREATEST passions.

Because I was once one of them

…and have worked with many of them.

I have worked in many group homes, youth residential facilities, alternative high schools, and across the U.S. and overseas on outreaches to at-risk youth, street children, orphans, youth struggling with addiction, teens and children rescued from human trafficking, and women and girls recovering from various forms of abuse and sexual trauma for over twenty years. I have a passion for those feeling lost, forgotten, and written off to know that they are seen, heard, loved, and have the potential to do amazing things with their lives.