COACHING

Coaching is particularly helpful for people in their everyday life.  Are you  feeling frustrated with work, stalled on big projects, stressed by children, discouraged by health needs, rushed and disorganized, or longing for more support?

Coaching is also helpful to people studying or working in academia.  Are you having trouble finishing a book, confused by the requirements of tenure and promotion, or striving to finish a thesis or dissertation?

If you would like to discover more motivation to make positive life changes, optimize your potential and find more balance and fulfillment, then you may want to try Personal Life Coaching.  Sr. Susan Merrie will be a stimulating motivator, supportive companion, gentle listener, and loyal cheerleader as you move forward toward more success and satisfaction. 

Here’s what Sr. Susan Merrie has to say about coaching:

“People often ask, “What is coaching?”  I believe that coaching is a lot like counseling or therapy with one important difference.  Counselors and therapists usually look at the past to locate the source of the problem and to heal wounds.  A coach, unlike a counselor or therapist, looks at the strengths in the present and helps the client use those to move forward.  As a coach, I help individuals identify strengths, clarify goals, develop next steps, celebrate successes, and integrate spirituality into everyday life.   I believe that moving forward in life is easier with someone to listen and hold you accountable for good intentions.” 

“Listening with the ear of your heart” is my favorite saying from the Rule of Benedict and one that resonated with me when I was first introduced to the Rule during my discernment to become a Religious in midlife.  I initially discovered the importance of listening when I was raising six children.  When in graduate school, I continued to explore listening in both my studies and my teaching, but now in my Benedictine life, it has become the essence of my ministry.  As a Personal Life Coach, listening is my work.  I listen to people to help them discover their own voice, the voice of their heart and the voice of the Spirit.  In the process they become more aware of their own strengths, more comfortable with their own weaknesses and more resourceful in using their talents.”

Sr. Susan Merrie draws on her experience as a teacher, college professor, and parent as well as her own personal growth journey from marriage and family to religious life.  She is the mother of three birthed and three adopted children and eight grandchildren.  Sr.  Susan Merrie has a doctorate in education and has experience in public, private, and criminal justice school systems where she specialized in individualizing instruction and building community.  Sr. Susan Merrie is a social justice advocate and has been engaged in helping individuals improve their lives for over 30 years.

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