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marisa ciesluk

meet the chief firestarter

 

Let's start with 2016. 

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I was standing at one of those crossroads that looks great on paper and completely disorienting in real life. At work, I had just been promoted into a newly created senior leadership position. You know, the kind of opportunity you're supposed to be grateful for. At home, I had stepped into another new role: mom to a baby girl. Two things I had genuinely longed for- for years. Both arrived at once.

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And yet . . . .

My soul was restless. My heart was heavy. And there was a voice in my head- persistent, inconvenient, impossible to ignore- saying: "This isn't it, Marisa. You're made for more."

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Not more stuff. Not a bigger title. More impact. More fulfillment. More alignment. More of the work that makes me feel like I'm actually on fire instead of quietly burning out.

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I know what it is like to cry the whole way to work after dropping your daughter at daycare-more days than I care to count. I know what it's like to look the part and feel completely hollow inside. To wonder why everything you worked for doesn't feel like enough.

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And I know what happens when you stop pretending everything is fine and finally start having the real conversation.

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That's when everything changed for me. And that's what I've dedicated my work to every since: helping women and organizations stop skimming the surface and start doing the deeper inner work that actually creates change. 

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Image by Ethan Hoover
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a few of my favorite things...

still want to learn more? keep scrolling!

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My Credentials: The Relevant & the Wonderfully Irrelevant

  • Certified Leadership Coach for Organizational Performance, American University

  • Professional Certified Coach (PCC) credential by the International Coaching Federation (ICF)

  • Certified in EQ-i 2.0 + EQ 360 assessments, Multi-Health Systems (MHS)

  • Completed Playing Big Facilitator Training with Tara Mohr

  • MS, Miami (OH) University

  • BA, Longwood University

  • Learning and Development Certificate, UNC Charlotte

  • Summited Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa (because some journeys are literal)

  • Two-time Marathon Runner​ & Half-Ironman Finisher (chronic boundary pusher)

  • IVF mom to a future leader who is honing her curiosity and wit (why I do this work)

  • Burnout Survivor (X2!)

 

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on a personal note

what I believe deep in my soul

  • The conversations most people avoid are the ones that change everything.

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  • Burnout isn't a personal failure. It's a symptom that demands a response.

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  • Women don't need to be fixed. They need space to breathe, clarity to see their brilliance, and the courage to act on what's true for them.

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  • Organizational wellbeing starts with the wellbeing of your people.

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  • Cultures changes when conversations change.

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  • A culture of wellbeing starts with leadership. To lead well one must be well.

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  • Messy, imperfect action beats polished paralysis every single time. 

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