Imagine navigating through the labyrinth of life, constantly questioning your choices and battling feelings of inadequacy. Sounds familiar? Judy Schenk, our insightful guest, primarily works with women, shedding light on the value of bravery in the face of discomfort and uncertainty. She encourages us to celebrate our achievements, however small they may seem, and confront the negative self-talk that often undermines our potential.
Judy Schenk has dedicated her life to creating beauty and grappling with life’s most profound questions. From her transformative experience at the College of the Atlantic in Maine to her discovery of the B Corp community, Judy’s journey is an inspiring blend of introspection and action. As the conversation evolves, Judy opens up about her passion for B Corps that prioritize people, planet, purpose, and profit. The episode concludes with a poignant recitation from her book, “Intuit: The Poems of an American Woman.” Are you ready to embark on a journey of self-discovery and change with Judy?
Alfred North Whitehead’s – The Aims of Education. Written in 1920.
College of the Atlantic, Bar Harbor, ME- coa.edu
Antioch New England Graduate School, Keene NH- info.antioch.edu
The National Outdoor Leadership School, Lander WY- nols.edu
Ravencrest, Estes Park, CO- ravencrest.org
Judy’s poetry collection: In.tu.it The Poems of an American Woman
You can purchase In.tu.it through:
Firepondpress.com. Or Email: Firepondpress@gmail.com
Also found on Amazon.
Also…Life is encountered together. Judy would like to celebrate the symphony of voices that have shaped her and thus the words and sentiments of this podcast. This podcast is most gratefully dedicated to each of you. Chris, Brittany, Charles, Everett, Cameron, Alex, Arlo, Boden, Waylon, Braelyn, Michael, Jesse, Cody, Jennifer, Jen, Laurie, Kristin, Osaru, Kit, Liz and many others…
Transcript
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([01:14].354)
Well, welcome Judy to the responsibly different podcast. We are so excited to have you on. And for those of us, um, for those people in the audience that maybe don’t know anything about you, uh, can you tell our audience maybe a little bit about you?
Judy Schenk ([01:23].081)
Mm-hmm. Yep, I’m good.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([01:40].847)
What made you who you are? What experience have you had in your life that’s kind of led you to starting up coaching?
Judy Schenk ([01:49].501)
That’s a great question and a big question, Brittany. First, I just want to let you know just how honored I am to be here and to have met you and the community that you represent and just how vital I think it is and the work that you’re doing. So thank you so much for having me. Well, you’re so welcome. So when I think about that question, I guess I could go a lot of different ways, but I feel like I’m a…
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([02:05].798)
Aw, thanks for saying that, I appreciate that.
Judy Schenk ([02:17].525)
I mean, I am an executive coach and also within that then there’s a lot of other pieces. So I call myself kind of a meaning maker or an inquirer. I’m a poet. I’m a human ecologist. I’m a shepherdess. I have a sheep farm and a teacher. And I feel like I’m a cultivator of both soil and words. I’m a lover of beauty and humanity and a student of the natural world.
My purpose is, I think, is as a life giver who wants to inspire other life givers. And I have spent a lot of time thinking about a very short purpose statement for my life and I came up with five words and they are to bring beauty to life. And so it’s kind of a double meaning at bringing beauty to life and then bringing it, actually bringing it into life through other people and through my work.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([03:05].282)
Hmm.
Judy Schenk ([03:16].165)
And that’s really what motivates me.
Judy Schenk ([03:21].405)
I mean, my work as a executive coach has come from a journey that started. And I had spoken about this to you when we first met or kind of prepared for this time. And, you know, people feel like their journey should be very linear. You know, it goes from one piece to the next, to the next, to the next.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([03:37].411)
Mm.
Judy Schenk ([03:48].353)
I found that that’s not really true and we often have a different kind of a zigzag, a back and forth, the learning goes in lots of different directions. And a lot of times what I like to say is just pay attention because you never know when that moment where there will be sort of a critical decision or a choice that you make may change the whole dynamic and direction of your life. And I had that moment come.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([04:16].26)
Mm.
Judy Schenk ([04:18].077)
for me in college. It was very simple. I’m just going to tell you a little bit about it. I was given, I was in a research paper class and I was given a one-pager and I was supposed to underline the interesting ways the person started sentences, which was very appropriate for a research paper class, but I read it for its content and it happened to be a paraphrase of Alfred North Whitehead’s Aims of Education.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([04:35].467)
Hmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([04:39].854)
Sure.
Judy Schenk ([04:46].761)
and which is all about creating change through and educating through a mixture of theory and practice and real-life problem solving. And so at the end of the class, I went up to the professor and I said, have you read this for content? And she looked at me and she said, oh, well, yeah. And I said, no, no. I said, this is what I’ve been feeling all my life. And I never knew that anyone put words to this. So
In that moment, literally, Brittany, I decided I’m leaving school. I need to leave after the semester because it was not happening there. That kind of education was not happening. And I needed to find where that was. And so I went to my advisor. I told her I was going to be leaving at the end of the semester. I called my parents. I told them I was leaving. And based on that article, and ultimately when I walked out of the advisors,
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([05:29].516)
Wow.
Judy Schenk ([05:43].473)
room, she said to me, if you ever decide to go back to college, you might want to take a look at this little college in Maine. And so I took the catalog away and I took a gap year and did the National Health Leadership School in Lander, Wyoming and then spent time in Colorado at a small school called Ravencrest. And then I moved to pulling that little catalog back out of my drawer and found that
It really spoke to me in so many ways and this school is called the College of the Atlantic. It’s on the coast of Maine it’s a school just of human ecology, which is really the intersection of humanity and Ecology or our natural world and how we make meaning out of that and That’s where I wound up going and from there You know my journey was
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([06:21].674)
Hmm.
Judy Schenk ([06:41].437)
full of, I think, inquiry and full of making positive change through action.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([06:51].075)
Mmm. Wow.
Judy Schenk ([06:53].889)
Yeah, and so then to follow on to, and then I went on and got my master’s degree in organization management. I taught for a while and I realized that if an organization is not working well, then the people can’t flourish. And so that was what led me then to Antioch and to become, you know, educated in how to make organizations work better. And my
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([07:10].211)
Hmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([07:23].235)
Wow.
Judy Schenk ([07:24].165)
amazingly kind of the framework that I used was a framework of ecology, which is now spoken of a lot. But, you know, 25, 35 years ago, that was not in the language at all. So it informs me all the time about how organizations are living systems and so, and people also in their own right and how we must approach them with the same kind of grace and dignity and thoughtfulness and inquiry.
that gives them the real power to be their full selves.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([08:00].222)
Wow. Wow, Judy. Okay, first off, I you said a few things that like really stick out to me, and I kind of want to just highlight some of them. First of all, like, thank you for kind of highlighting this zigzag approach to your life. Because I feel like so many times growing up, I was I was told and I was and I
that I had to stay on this linear path, and I always had to be stepping up, and I always had to be furthering myself and working on myself. And I think sometimes if I look back on my own life I was too hard on myself to always be making that next step up. And I think sometimes in order to move forward we do have to move back or we do have to move sideways.
So this idea of this zigzag approach really, really speaks to me. So first off, I just wanna say thank you for highlighting your experience and giving me a little bit more confidence in my own experience, because I do struggle with that sometimes, so thank you.
Judy Schenk ([09:10].249)
Hmm
Judy Schenk ([09:13].737)
Absolutely. I like to say maintenance is hard work. Even maintaining where we are is hard work and often too in that maintenance period under called maintenance. In other words, you’re not trying to step up. You’re not trying to go anywhere. You’re keeping things as you conceive of that next frontier where you might go. You are actually preparing for it, but the preparation is hidden. It’s not in your consciousness yet. It may be a goal but
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([09:36].962)
Hmm
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([09:40].085)
Mm.
Judy Schenk ([09:42].193)
So all these things are sort of coming to play and then all of a sudden there’s this sort of uplift and you walk into this new space that you thought, oh, how am I ever gonna get here? And then it’s like a phone call or an email or something that you just take into account because you’ve kind of had to create the, let me just say the architecture for it to be able to support you there in that new space.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([10:07].298)
Mm-hmm. Yeah, yeah. Something that I have to ask you because I’m so curious and I recently did an episode with Babcock with sorry. I recently did an episode with Babakoo, which they make shoes from wool. And I had Alex on and Alex was telling me all about how he loves to cuddle sheep. And I know that you have a sheep farm.
Judy Schenk ([10:26].6)
Mm-hmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([10:35].83)
So I have to ask, because Alex made me now so intrigued about sheep, where does the passion for sheep farming come from?
Judy Schenk ([10:49].061)
really know that was in me until we came to this little farm which was my brother’s and he had a heart attack at 49 and we had and so we my mom he had no will so my mom who was in her late 70s it passes on to the property would pass on to my mom and ultimately she was not interested so we ultimately bought it
and came down and we didn’t know anything, we didn’t know nothing. And then when you know nothing, you do a lot of kind of stupid things. So we got all these animals and then I just sort of started deciding based on the way they behaved and how you cared for them. I still enjoy them all and we have a couple of each different kind of animal. We have pigs, we have like two pigs, we have two goats, we have, but mostly we have sheep. And the reason why I think I chose the sheep is
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([11:28].59)
Uh, uh, uh.
Judy Schenk ([11:48].853)
They are the most peaceful creatures. They dot a landscape with their beauty. And when you gaze at them, your whole being just relaxes. They’re not aggressive. They are quiet. And they stay in a cluster. And they follow.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([11:55].255)
Hmm.
Judy Schenk ([12:18].805)
in this community of being together and that’s what protects them, you know, has protected them over the years. Of course, now they have to be, you know, watched over. But that’s what they’ll do when they feel threatened, they get together. And I think that’s a beautiful message. It’s like, when we feel afraid, we need to not just gather our own internal courage, but
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([12:32].536)
Hmm.
Judy Schenk ([12:48].513)
It’s a good lesson to remember to reach out and understand that you’ve got uh people that will surround you also so not throw it alone.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([12:56].366)
Hmm. Yeah. Oh, what a nice message. I love that.
Judy Schenk ([13:01].929)
Mm-hmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([13:03].978)
So Judy, while I was preparing for this episode with you, I had a look on your website and I noticed that you have a tagline that says, navigating choice at the threshold of change. And I’m gonna reread that again, sorry. Navigating choice at the threshold. Why is that so hard for me to say? Navigating choice at the threshold of change.
And I feel like in life, life is often changing. And it changes because we have to make choices to decide how to navigate life. And so with thinking about this tagline, I think it speaks a lot to me, but I’m wondering, how did you come up with this tagline? What’s the meaning to you?
Judy Schenk ([13:50].128)
Mm-hmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([14:01].29)
Where did it come from? And how do you decide to show up in this world?
Judy Schenk ([14:10].137)
Well, the tagline came from my brain and some, I don’t know, burst of whatever, like a synthesis, you know, thinking about all these things and then realizing, oh my gosh, this is what this is. And when I said, when that, when I articulated that phrase, I understood that, oh yes, here’s how we move through life.
Judy Schenk ([14:40].641)
many, many choices. And those choices then lead to a decision, right? That decision is when we kind of put the stake in the ground. But a choice, when you’re at the choice point, so when you’re on that threshold, so a threshold is a dividing space. It’s really what they call like a liminal space. It’s not, it doesn’t have any kind of real direction right there, you’re just, you’re standing at a crossroads in a sense on that threshold.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([14:47].725)
Mm-hmm.
Judy Schenk ([15:10].225)
So it’s there where we generate and create choice. And so at that place, you are navigating those different opportunities without making a decision yet. And so when we leave that space more broad, we allow ourselves a little more grace and a little more opportunity actually, because we’ve…
we’ve given ourselves more choices. We haven’t narrowed them down so quickly. So while we’re on that threshold and you’re both gathering choice and navigating them, it moves you then to a stronger position to make a really firm and thoughtful decision. So that’s what we do. We’re navigating that choice there. We’re bringing those choices in. We’re giving ourselves some space.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([15:59].565)
Mmm.
Judy Schenk ([16:07].117)
in that kind of uncomfortable, uncertain place. It’s before you’ve stepped forward, you’re not going back. You’re probably not going too far, so you’re not going forward yet. So it doesn’t feel, it’s not very comfortable. You’re in between, right? But if you can be brave and stay there for just a little while longer and not close down so fast, then you may just open up opportunities that you never have thought of or will come your way.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([16:20].182)
Hmm. Yeah.
Judy Schenk ([16:37].041)
because you have lingered there with some bravery.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([16:42].115)
Yeah. And this bravery that you’re talking about, and I believe this is true, correct me if I’m wrong, but most of your clients are female identifying, and I’m wondering, this bravery that you’re talking about, is this a common thread that you are often working on with your clients?
Judy Schenk ([17:03].657)
Absolutely. Yeah.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([17:07].728)
What are some of the other trends that maybe your clients come to you seeking?
Judy Schenk ([17:15].721)
Well, a lot of the most accomplished people that I’ve worked with will say to me at some point, I feel like I’m a failure. I haven’t done enough. They’re deeply committed. They work more hours a week than they want to admit. They sacrifice time and time again. And at the end of the day, they don’t feel like they’re enough. And
They also talk about being afraid and talking about not knowing what to do next and all these things that are just you would say to yourself this person never has had should or could ever have had these thoughts and yet they are rampant among these among women who are very accomplished and those who are emerging leaders also and I just want to speak to them too.
women who are looking for what that next thing is and sort of taking this journey to have a little more compassion and kindness for yourself as you walk this journey. It’s just our, I think our bar, the bar that we set is so high that when we even accomplish those things, we still can’t.
stop for a minute and celebrate. So celebrate ladies, like you’re doing some incredible things. I know that these people, they’re just doing these amazing things. I see them all the time. So I celebrate them and that is my privilege.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([18:42].134)
Mmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([18:51].612)
Mm-hmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([18:58].046)
you’re speaking directly to me without maybe realizing it, but I hear you. I hear you when you say maybe slow down and take a second to celebrate because I think sometimes we all just get a little bit caught up in the work and we get caught up on the next steps. And yeah, we don’t take that time to slow down and celebrate the accomplishments that we just completed to get to the next step. So, and it may be talking a little bit to myself here, but like, especially for those
Judy Schenk ([19:01].612)
Um, uh-huh.
Hmm.
Judy Schenk ([19:21].896)
Mm-hmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([19:27].402)
ladies that are task oriented. I mean, males too, right? There are task oriented males. But instead of just looking forward to like completing the task, checking it off and moving on, take a moment to appreciate the fact that you just checked it off, so yeah.
Judy Schenk ([19:32].489)
Sure, absolutely.
Judy Schenk ([19:41].897)
Uh huh. Yes, and that’s why you should have sheep because if you go and watch a sheep, you just, everything stops. It’s like a zen moment. So, you know, you can put it on your screen saver or something, but they will slow you down. They’ll bring you back to reality.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([20:00].15)
Oh, I love that. Yeah. Well, I’m working right now on still getting a dog. So maybe a dog will settle me down and bring me back to reality when I need it instead of a sheep. I don’t think living in the city that I live in, I can have a sheep in my yard.
Judy Schenk ([20:01].929)
Thank you.
Judy Schenk ([20:16].605)
You could have them, no, I’m sure you can’t, but the dog will be fun and the dog will definitely give you lots and lots of love, Brittany.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([20:19].96)
Hehehe
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([20:24].758)
Right? Are there any other trends that you see that you want to speak about, bring light of? Also, I can skip on to the next question too.
Judy Schenk ([20:41].133)
one thing that I would want to say that I see also, and we all do this, but is challenging the narrative that’s in our head. And often we don’t, we don’t actually stop and think about what you are saying to yourself. And I hate to say, but that many times we’re saying things that are very negative.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([20:48].9)
Mm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([21:08].565)
Mm-hmm.
Judy Schenk ([21:08].817)
things like I’ll never be able to do this or it’s whatever I do, you know, I’m not, I’m not, I’m going to mess it up. There’s a hundred things. I don’t belong in this place. I’m not, I’m not as smart as everyone else. How did I ever get into this room? You know, those kinds of things. And so I heard this, I don’t know if it was a podcast between these two people and the person was asking, you know, how this one
person had made a significant change in their life and their answer was, one day I just decided to stop listening to the things I was telling myself. And so if you stop listening to the first start so that you become aware of them, then stop if you can and the way we stop is to replace them with something that’s much better and much more positive. Like go get them tiger you can do it.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([22:00].778)
Mm. I like that. I like that a lot. Start listening to yourself if you’re not already doing it, and then stop because you’re probably damaging yourself and then replace it with some positive affirmation. Love that.
Judy Schenk ([22:07].529)
Thank you.
Judy Schenk ([22:13].06)
Yes.
Yes, yes, absolutely.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([22:20].022)
So Judy, I’m wondering kind of what you’re doing with me right now. Would you call this coaching?
Judy Schenk ([22:26].864)
Uh huh.
Judy Schenk ([22:32].617)
No, I wouldn’t call it coaching. And here’s the reason why, because I’m telling you things and I’m also giving you advice or, you know, because the nature of the question, like what have I found or what do I see? So it’s more, you know, my experience and then sharing that with you. Excuse me. So what a coach does, and different than a consultant. So I like to think of it this way. A consultant is
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([22:34].227)
Okay.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([22:39].152)
Mmm.
Judy Schenk ([23:02].653)
advisor, they’re hired to tell you what to do, okay? And so that’s their job and they’re usually an expert in a particular field and so that’s why you hired them, right? On the other hand, a coach is often confused with a counselor. Excuse me, a counselor is more like, and these are not hard and fast lines, but in general this is how I try to distinguish things and I think it’s helpful. A
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([23:06].007)
Mm-hmm.
Judy Schenk ([23:32].001)
is more like an archaeologist. So they’re looking for the deep whys of either behavior or behavioral change, and they’re going kind of looking backwards and not as, not that they wouldn’t be looking for, but they’re not as focused on the forward piece. They’re gonna unearth some of those things that have influenced you in your life or in your behavior that make you do certain things. And you’re asking the question, why a lot? A coach is like more like,
If the consultant is an advisor or a teller and a counselor is like an archeologist, then the coach is more like an architect. So a coach is looking forward and they’re really a thinking partner and a deep inquirer asking about
the next pieces that come from really your articulation of what you need. So I find my questions when I’m coaching someone from the person I’m coaching from. So I’m always leading forward and I’m not telling, I don’t advise, I don’t tell, I listen, I help them hear what they’re saying and then I ask questions that bring them to
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([24:40].269)
Hmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([24:53].518)
Mm-mm.
Judy Schenk ([24:59].065)
the conclusion or a self-realization of sort of a future state. So it’s creating the architecture together as they move sort of through this change process. Yeah, it’s phenomenal. Like someone said to me, one of the first lines I read in one of the training certification program I did was, welcome to the magic of coaching. And I thought, okay, that sounds a little bit, you know.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([25:05].185)
Mmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([25:14].344)
Mmm.
Judy Schenk ([25:28].777)
too much like woo or whatever. And then I realized, oh no, actually there’s a real truth about that, that people have these amazing aha moments that are all theirs because they’ve been supported through very active listening. They have been asked to think about what’s behind their questions.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([25:49].55)
Mm.
Judy Schenk ([25:56].921)
and where they’re going, and then they’ve been given space with a witness to hear how they’re concluding or how they’re putting it all together. And it’s just, it’s a really profound moment when that happens.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([26:15].772)
So interesting because now that I’m hearing you actually say the difference between coaching, counseling, and consulting, it makes a lot of sense. And I’m sitting here and I’m listening to you talk and I’m a little bit reflecting back on our prep call for this podcast to get to know each other and get up to speed on what we’re, what the planning for the podcast. And I’m like, oh, wow. I wonder if.
you realized or if it’s maybe just like part of your DNA now as a person but um and reflecting back to that prep call I just came off of this really powerful moment breakthrough moment with my manager and you have this sense of comfort and um safety just in your personality that I felt from you right away from the moment I met you.
And as I’m telling you this experience on the prep call, you, I could totally, I now see like, I felt so safe with you because you were actively listening and you were guiding me to come to my own conclusions about my feelings. And as you’re saying that, well, that’s what a coach does. I’m like, no, duh, that’s what a coach does. Like that’s exactly what you did for me in that moment where we were like sharing an experience together. So.
I guess my point that I’m saying all this for is like, do you think coaching is a switch that you turn on and off? Or now that you are a coach and you’ve identified how to be a coach for people, do you see it kind of coming into your personal life? And do you quote unquote like coach, like maybe your friends or your partner, like through your life?
Judy Schenk ([28:08].893)
to be careful. So like with my girls they’ll call me up and I’ll sometimes say okay who do you want me to be here on the phone? Now like just be my mom you know or no mom it’s okay you can ask me questions you know and yeah and the truth is
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([28:18].698)
Okay.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([28:25].229)
I love that.
Judy Schenk ([28:33].533)
I mean, you use the word to guide, and a coach actually, I just wanna push back a little bit on that, because the coach is asking a question that’s coming from, for example, from you. And so there’s no real guidance in terms of like, I think you should go this way. So just wanna clarify, it’s really asking another question that then moves you.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([28:37].805)
Mmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([28:53].259)
Yeah.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([29:00].642)
Hmm.
Judy Schenk ([29:00].917)
just by saying, so say you say, I don’t really know where I want to go next. I might say, well, if you knew where might you want to go next? And then you said, oh, well, this and this and this maybe. And I might say, oh, well, tell me more about that. And so you see how I’m just kind of taking you and so honoring of the person, because when they get to that space where they have that moment or that shift, they are there because of themselves.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([29:08].44)
Mm-hmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([29:15].924)
Mm-hmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([29:30].274)
Mm-hmm. Oh, so fun. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, I love that. So Judy, speaking of like our relationship and how we met and everything, we met down at the B Corp Leadership Development Conference that was down in Southeast back in September. And if I’m correct, your company is not a B Corp yet, but you found yourself at the B Corp Leadership Development Conference.
Judy Schenk ([29:30].286)
That’s what I love.
Judy Schenk ([29:58].813)
Yes.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([29:59].51)
So I’m wondering, and I’m a little bit prying here, but I’m wondering if you can kind of speak to what drove you to that conference and how did you feel being at that conference, maybe not yet being a B Corp, but knowing that B Corp was, or that conference was filled of B Corps. What did the community feel like for you? Did you enjoy your time?
Would you go again? I guess I’m just looking to understand from your perspective what the conference was like.
Judy Schenk ([30:35].269)
Yeah, to answer, I can answer that one very quickly. Yes, it was amazing and I love the community. The people were fantastic. They are passionate, they are genuine, they are collaborative. I mean…
Judy Schenk ([30:53].445)
uh, just like really collaborative, like they really believe in collaboration. And, um, you know, at the end they put up the big board, it was a big board where you could just ask something or give something. And so people would just offer, you know, all sorts of things just out of the, you know, this is where they had their expertise. They want to share it. They want people there to gain that access. And so they just.
put it up there on the board. I thought that was phenomenal. But what drove me there was I had this, like I was working with a coach and he, and through the time that we had together, I was trying to come up with where, like I really wanted to focus my time and attention. And I realized I just had this kind of epiphany where I came kind of full circle, bringing together my love of the outdoors as an ecologist, a human ecologist.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([31:22].21)
Hmm. Yeah.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([31:36].981)
Mm-hmm.
Judy Schenk ([31:49].405)
who is bringing together humanity and the natural system. So then to see that the benefit corporation was not only using, you know, caring for the planet, caring for people, caring for, and then having deep purpose because that is what really drives me, are my values and making the world in some way a better place to be. And so,
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([32:02].4)
Mm.
Judy Schenk ([32:18].361)
then and then also that they’re making a profit. So these four things, the people, purpose, planet and profit all are working together. And I thought, you know what, if I could work among or with these people and I could, through coaching, amplify their impact, then I have changed the world for good through someone else’s skill and ability that is
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([32:22].062)
Hmm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([32:38].199)
Hmm
Judy Schenk ([32:46].441)
far beyond where I could ever reach myself. And that, in that moment, I said to this coach, I said, I actually, I almost feel giddy. I just, it was such a weird word, but it was just like, I found this intersection of the things that I loved and I found then a community that was living and breathing it. And so I hope to either become, to be a B Corp or become a B Corp, or certainly work among.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([33:07].061)
Mm.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([33:14].612)
Mmm.
Judy Schenk ([33:15].35)
corporation community I mean just they’re outstanding exemplary
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([33:19].846)
Yeah, this feeling that you’re describing, although extremely different, but very similar for me when I found the B Corp community. I often called it and I’ve heard other people call it like it’s almost like a coming home. Like you just all of a sudden feel like you found your people and you feel so safe and so connected without ever of like really met it, meeting the other person. So.
Judy Schenk ([33:29].001)
Mm-hmm. Yes.
Judy Schenk ([33:38].33)
Mmm, absolutely.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([33:49].194)
Yeah, it feels like a coming home, so I hear you.
Judy Schenk ([33:49].666)
Absolutely.
Yeah, nice way to put that.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([33:54].214)
Yeah, oh wonderful. So do I dare ask, do you plan to go to the next B Corp Leadership Development Conference that will be happening next year down in the South?
Judy Schenk ([34:04].251)
Yes, isn’t that happening in Atlanta? Is it Atlanta? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, so very, um, yeah, I, yeah, I definitely would go again. Absolutely.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([34:08].156)
I believe they did announce it and I believe it is Atlanta, yeah. Very exciting.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([34:18].322)
That’s awesome. Judy, is there anything else that you wish to share with our audience or ensure that they know about you before we say goodbye?
Judy Schenk ([34:32].185)
Well, I mean I would love to hear from anyone who could get me at judyshankcoaching at gmail.com. I have a website, judyshankcoaching.com. Would love to talk with you if you’re on this journey and you want to get there in a way that has both a nod to your health and wellness and wholeness and your boldness.
to step out and take a risk or do something different. And then what I love to include also is a sense of wonder and where you can go and how big and broad and high and wide it might be. So if I can in any way walk alongside you, I would be most honored.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([35:20].446)
Oh, I love that. And for everybody listening in the show notes will be a link for Judy’s email, for her email address and her website. Um, and we’ll also share Judy’s LinkedIn. So connect with her in all of the different places, reach out to her. Like you just heard, she wants to support you. So.
Judy Schenk ([35:41].057)
Brittany, could I read just a short poem? It’s a poem that’s in my book, it’s called Intuit, the Poems of an American Woman, and it’s called Between. And I think it’s very appropriate here. It says, between, how does it feel to be in between? Not quite on one side, not quite on the other. In between, pushed, pulled, pressed, prayerful, watching, waiting, wondering, worshipful, searching for the step.
that bridges the divide and brings me back to solid ground.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([36:16].962)
Judy, that was wonderful. And share the name of the book again for our audience.
Judy Schenk ([36:21].007)
It’s called Intuit, the poems of an American woman.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([36:25].942)
We will also link to that in the show notes so that you can read all of Judy’s beautiful poems.
Judy Schenk ([36:29].917)
Oh, there you go. Well, that would be my pleasure.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([36:33].526)
Well, thank you, Judy, so much for your time and your expertise in sharing your knowledge with us here on Responsibly Different.
Judy Schenk ([36:42].377)
You’re so very welcome. Thank you for having me, Brittany.
Brittany Angelo (she/her) ([36:46].59)
Okay.