About Susie

I’m an HBDI® Certified Practitioner through Herrmann International who works with Fortune 500 companies to improve results through better thinking. I use my B.A. and Master’s Degrees, with a focus on communication studies, to help people manage their differences more successfully. In particular, I help adults who are frustrated by family or work conflicts that keep getting worse instead of better, to upgrade their communication skills to get along more easily.

Learning about the Four Thinking Styles ...
I’ve been teaching parenting, family management and workplace success skills for the Community Colleges of Spokane for over 19 years.  Until six years ago I was embarrassed to admit that I struggled to respect differences within my own family relationships. And then I learned about thinking styles and why many squabbles at home and work are due to biological differences in how our brains are wired.  What a relief!  I stopped reacting to conflicts so personally and began recognizing there were four thinking styles at work.

Similar to being right or left-handed we each have an innate preference for how we think and communicate.  Some are more Logical, Practical, Relational or Creative thinkers.  However, our brain uses 100% more energy to think in our non-preferred style.  This helped to explain why I found it more difficult to speak to some family members and felt in sync with others.

My "AHA" Moment ...
I experienced an “Aha” moment when my husband and I completed our thinking styles assessment, called the Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument® (HBDI®).  When things were going well, we enjoyed shared perspectives.  However, under stress or time pressures, our styles shifted.  My emotions dominated my Relational style.  Meanwhile, my husband’s style shifted from being a Creative to a Logical thinker who wanted to “fix” my problems rather than just listen.  No wonder our arguments escalated!

Understanding our diverse ways of thinking taught me to start speaking in ways my family members preferred, rather than “louder” in my style.  Becoming multi-lingual in all four thinking styles has increased my ability to communicate more effectively. Our family conflicts have decreased, and we’re enjoying more fun together.

On a personal note ...
I’m happy my husband and I are celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary.  We have two grown children and we’re re-inventing our lives as empty-nesters.  Some of my passions include integrating spirituality with everyday living.  Recently, I completed a two-year training program through Gonzaga University in spiritual direction. I thoroughly enjoy being a life and spiritual coach, teacher, writer, speaker and world traveler. 

By blending my personal experiences and professional training, I teach others how to increase harmony at home and in the workplace.  In our half brain world, we need more families and workers using Whole Brain® thinking to face increasing challenges.  Humankind’s future is depending on all of us using our entire brain to make wise decisions.