Ugh... in my efforts to pack light, I left my curling brush and my good curling iron at home. Instead, I packed this little mini flat iron, hoping it would be enough. It wasn't. Amsterdam is a city marked by it's closeness to water. My hair didn't love the atmosphere, although my lungs did (that's another story). The clothing I selected for this trip was on brand; however, it was not chosen in anticipation of having to wear lavalier mics. I fully expected to have a hand-held microphone, and didn't consider the alternative. On the day of my first 20-minute Tedx-style talk, my hair was fuzzy. My jacket sagged under the weight of the lavalier unit, making me appear a wee bit frumpish (it's my word - go with it). Still, I walked up on that stage like I owned it, and gave the audience my best in terms of performance, content, and engagement. The next day was my interview with Mindvalley Book Club Founder, Kristina Mand-Lakhiani. I had by then given up on my hair, giving it a good scrub and letting my curls out for a spin. I pulled it up in a clamp and went with it. It was giving "grandma" or as my friend would say, "Glam-ma" - not my typical stage look. Again, I took to the stage with one intention - to share my expertise in a way that was entertaining and enlightening for the Mindvalley U audience. The result? No-one commented on my hair or my outfits. People were genuinely engaged. The questions came fast and furious. People laughed at my jokes. They leaned in. After the interview was done, audience members (including children and teens) clamoured for a private word. Others came up just to tell me they had already ordered copies of The Rise of Rage. The lesson? Showing up looking like a million bucks means nothing if your content is garbage. The hair, the clothing - that's window dressing. What was important - what IS important is what comes out of this brain, flowing through these lips. It is a reminder to me that personal branding is great, and it plays a role in the overall image. But style without substance offers no lasting impact. It's the substance that matters.

A common theme that arises in my psychotherapy practice as well as with coaching clients is the notion of gratitude as a strategy for shifting mindset. Dr. Ashley J. Smith writes in her article, "Gratitude: A Mental Health Game Changer", that gratitude trains your brain to notice and value the little things that often go overlooked. That simple shift in mindset has the potential to transform the way you experience life. Regular gratitude practice is correlated to higher happiness, stronger wellbeing, and even better health. It also helps reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression, and anger. If you struggle with your mood or feel weighed down, gratitude can be one of the most powerful practices to lean into. This is something I have known and practiced for decades now. Particularly when things seem dark and I feel overwhelmed, I turn to gratitude. I have engaged in this practice in many variations: - Begin and end the day with identifying five things I'm grateful for - this helped me to make gratitude a habit. - Focus on my five senses as I express gratitude. "Today, I saw a hummingbird sipping nectar from a flower in my garden. I heard the bees buzzing about as they collected pollen. I smelled the fragrance of my roses. I felt the warmth of the sun on my face. I tasted the sweet and tangy flavour of a freshly picked cherry tomato." Drilling down on a more granular level makes me appreciate my experiences more deeply. - Practicing saying, "Thank You" wherever I go. When shopping, when someone opens a door, even when someone is polite in traffic. Uttering the words reinforces the feeling of gratitude. - I learned my latest gratitude practice from Ken Honda at this year's Mindvalley University: "Arigato in; arigato out". This is teaching me to appreciate the value of money to bless me, but also to bless others. I encourage you to try these and other gratitude practices to help rewire your brain for positivity and to shift your mindset. Should you need a structure to launch into your gratitude practice, I quietly published a 30-day Gratitude Journal last year, which will help you to solidify your focus on expressing gratitude every day. You can click the link here to get your copy.

You know those movies where they find a baby dinosaur... or even the second season of Stranger Things when Dustin finds the little critter and makes it a pet... WHY??? In every scenario, that cute little baby grows up to be an apex predator with one intention: to have you for lunch! This is why we need to break bad habits early. Call behaviours out when we see them. Stop giving people permission to treat us badly. Here's a little snippet of my book, The Rise of Rage from the chapter: "Kill the Monster When It's a Baby". What are your thoughts on this? Share in the comments - let's get the conversation started!

Hi there! Head on over to the classroom, where you will find two evergreen courses you can access for free - Managing Stress and Anxiety, and Taming Your Dragon. We'll be adding more content as we go, so stick around and stay on top of all these great resources!

I’m so glad you’re here. This is our shared space for growth, learning, and transformation. Whether you’ve come to heal, to level up your emotional mastery, or to dive deeper into The Rise of Rage, you are in the right place. At Leverage U, we believe in creating radical, positive, lasting change — together. Here’s how you can connect and engage inside this community: 🙏 Redeeming Rage Coaching For faith-based women who are ready to heal, this space offers coaching and connection rooted in both faith and evidence-based tools. If you’ve carried unresolved pain or patterns and are longing to transform them into strength, you’ll find support and sisterhood here. 💼 Anger Solutions Blueprint This track is designed for mature professionals who know success doesn’t erase emotional struggles. Here, you’ll gain access to structured coaching and strategies to master your emotions so you can master your performance, your relationships, and your success. 📚 The Rise of Rage Book Club Dive deeper into the ideas behind my book The Rise of Rage. Members get access to past recordings and are invited to join our monthly live discussions, where we unpack key insights and apply them to real-life challenges. 🚀 How to Get Started: 1. Introduce yourself in the comments — share a bit about who you are and what brought you here. 2. Explore the different learning tracks to see where you’d like to begin. 3. Jump into the conversation — your story and your voice matter here. This is a place where leaders, seekers, and changemakers gather to do the inner work that fuels outer success. Welcome home. 🌱✨ Julie