Posts by Valerie Friedlander

The myths around productivity are hurting both your productivity AND your mental health. Mythologies always have a purpose for being created and usually to explain something or to illustrate a cultural ideal. These myths of productivity were generated to turn abusive labor practices into an internalized cultural ideal that we then perpetuate upon ourselves. We’ve…

Empowering evolution in your work is first and foremost about recognizing that you CAN evolve. You are not confined to what you currently know or the way you currently are or even what you’ve done in the past. With that belief, each choice becomes an opportunity to evolve into MORE the person you want to…

Many women feel called to get involved in their local government. Women and other minorities are drastically under-represented on all levels of government. Most of us agree the consequences of this are highly problematic. We want to contribute to make our communities a better place, but we typically opt for volunteer opportunities over running for…

Leading with Growth Mindset takes a certain amount of willingness to be vulnerable. Why? Because it means you own your mistakes. This isn’t easy in a society dominated by fixed mindset, which feeds the idea that if you make a mistake then you ARE a mistake. Fixed mindset leads to constantly trying to prove good…

Unlearning internalized beauty standards and redefining beauty for myself continues to be a big work for me. As a young person, one of the ways several of the kids in my class (especially the girls) bullied me was with the label “fat.” I pointed out that the boys who were my size or larger were…

Finding the best bra for you can make a huge difference in how you feel about your body. Unfortunately, it’s a lot harder than it should be because most stores will size you based on what they carry. That means that the majority of women who wear bras are wearing the wrong size bra for…

Building Confidence through boudoir photography is about empowering how you view your body. Empowerment is about choice and tapping into your possibilities. Women are bombarded with unrealistic body ideals, which makes it hard not to internalize the idea that we are flawed. Then, our choice is limited to what products to buy to try to…

No, you’re not crazy. You’re living in a period of rapid change in a society full of unhealthy coping mechanisms. Almost all of my clients recently have brought up concerns around dramatically increased levels of anxiety and anger. They know navigating the pandemic is a factor but it unnerves them how often they don’t feel…

Red flags in online coaching are important to notice, especially because they can often play on the very patterns you are looking for support to change. Coaching can be extremely helpful when you want to create something different in your life. Working with a coach can help you build a business that fits you, develop…

So, you want to start a podcast or maybe you’re thinking of turning a side-hustle into a business. Both are big commitments, which means there are several similarities between the two. (And if you want to do both, even better!) Marketing initiatives use stories of starting a successful business, successful podcast all the time. If…