Featured Coach: Laura Quade

Each week FAM Features a coach from our community, so we can get to know them and learn from their experiences.

Fast Facts

Name: Laura Quade

From: Atlanta, Georgia & Maine, USA Primary Values: Sustainability, Play, Education, and Autonomy

Area of Expertise: Helping parents thrive in the face of adversity

Q&A

Why did you get into coaching? Having worked with, taught, coached, and generally spent time with children, I found my gaze suddenly shift toward the experience of parents and primary caregivers.

What is your philosophy/style/approach? Flexibility, a friend once reminded me, is the key to happiness.

Nonverbal communication, it turns out, is not only our first and most innate form of communication, but also the most successful method in adopting the practice of flexibility. In moments of silence we are more able to recognize and consider our body's physiological responses to stress and stimulus in the present moment. This silence also provides the space needed to respond with consideration for the impact we may cause.

What book had the biggest change in your life and what did you learn from it? A Pattern Language by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, and Murray Silverstein. This book, commonly referred to as the 'architect's bible,' is a compilation of 253 patterns to solve problems in the built environment. Adamantly interdisciplinary, the patterns address far more than the physical space of a construction project. Rather intended to aid in developing for social sustainability as much as efficient, environmental, and economic building sustainability.

Describe your biggest failure and what you learnt from it. My 30's started with a divorce. Young and child-free, I don't regret the relationship or the marriage. I learned a tremendous amount from both our time together and the process of separation. The failure was in my communication as I made the decision that would ultimately change each of our lives for the better. A continuous practice, I strive to prioritize establishing healthy communication patterns at the onset of any relationship, romantic or otherwise.

Describe your biggest success and how you achieved it. I live in the present moment, unapologetically, and to the lament of the planners. My greatest success was learning to pause my immediate reaction to negative stimulus to allow myself time to consider and appreciate the inevitable outcome. My continued success comes from continuous (and frequent) failures to listen first.

What’s one piece of advice you think everyone should follow? 1. Don't believe everything you think. 2.Appreciate the influence you have over others, and their influence over you.

How do you handle stress? I am an optimist. This is not a skill or a success but a privilege that allows me to live with low expectations and high hopes. I do my very best to not believe the assumptions and expectations I make of others.

How do you prioritise and manage your time? I aim to prioritize the tasks that include others over those that solely serve myself.

How do you stay healthy? Physically, I drink water, cook most of the food I eat and restrict myself from buying packaged food. and walk or ride my bike if it's a possible option. Emotionally, I spend time in public places, around others, and drinking coffee. Socially, I open my door, my ears, my dining room, and my time to others when at all possible

What does happiness mean to you? Flexibility in mind and body

What does success look like to you? The greatest metric of success, I believe, is witnessing our own actions create a positive impact on those around us. When we prioritize our contribution to community success over personal gain, I believe we will inevitably find stability and security.

Describe your future self. I look forward to traveling the world, meeting, learning from, and sharing the ideas and actors who are working toward a more sustainable world.

What are some of your core beliefs/guiding principles? We are more alike than we are unalike, and if we are able to put our initial judgements aside while we get to know others, we will find that our confidence grows, and our communities flourish.

Describe the best transformation you witnessed in someone. I took a job as the nanny of a 4 year old in January, 2020, who was very nervous to interact with challenges and difficulties. We worked to build his physical strength, emotional intelligence, and confidence. Within two or three months, he went from struggling to carry a cup of water across a room due to fear to jumping on a trampoline and climbing on ladders and walls.