Written by Santarvis Brown, Leadership Engineer Dr. Santarvis Brown, known as "The Leadership Doctor," is a globally recognized scholar, executive, and author shaping the future of education and equity. Blending academic rigor with real-world impact, he leads institutional transformation across boardrooms, classrooms, and communities. Leadership has become dangerously easy to confuse with visibility. We count followers, celebrate titles, announce promotions, highlight awards, and often measure success by the size of the office, the reach of the platform, or the number of people who report to us. Yet one of the most important questions a leader can ask has nothing to do with any of those things: Who is becoming better because I am leading? That question changes everything because leadership, at its highest level, is not simply about authority. It is about stewardship. Leadership is not merely about what we accomplish through people, but about what happens to people because they were entrusted to our influence. That is why I have come to believe something deeply: your leadership is your ministry. When I use the word ministry, I am not suggesting that every executive meeting should become a sermon or that every leader must operate from a religious framework. I am talking about ministry in its most fundamental sense: service, responsibility, care, influence, and the intentional use of what has been placed in our hands to improve the lives of others. Some pulpits have lecterns. Others have conference tables. Some look like classrooms, while others look like boardrooms, hospitals, nonprofit organizations, businesses, government offices, churches, Zoom screens, or kitchen tables. Wherever your presence has the ability to strengthen another human being, there is an opportunity for leadership to become ministry. People are not interruptions to leadership Somewhere along the way, many organizations became so focused on performance that they forgot the people producing it. Metrics matter. Revenue matters. Productivity, deadlines, enrollment, growth, and results all matter. But if the organization grows while the people inside it shrink, leadership has failed somewhere. If you hit every target but leave exhausted, humiliated, frightened, or emotionally wounded people behind you, you have not truly succeeded. If people applaud you publicly but have to recover from you privately, that is not effective leadership. Leadership must be measured by more than outcomes. We must also ask whether people became more confident, more capable, more courageous, and more willing to speak, try, and believe that their contribution mattered because they experienced us as leaders. People are not interruptions to our leadership. People are the reason for our leadership. Leadership leaves an emotional footprint Every leader leaves something behind when they exit a room. Sometimes it is confidence. Sometimes it is clarity. Sometimes it is courage. Unfortunately, sometimes it is anxiety, fear, or shame. Whether leaders recognize it or not, every interaction creates an emotional footprint. People may eventually forget the agenda from the meeting. They may forget the annual strategy, the presentation, the quarterly results, or the exact words spoken during a retreat. But people rarely forget how a leader made them feel when they were vulnerable. They remember the leader who corrected them without humiliating them. They remember the person who noticed their potential before everyone else did. They remember the leader who said, “I believe in you,” or who defended them when doing so was inconvenient. They also remember the leader who asked, “What do you need?” when their personal life was falling apart, instead of immediately asking when they would return to work. They remember the person who gave them another opportunity after a mistake and refused to reduce their entire identity to one bad decision. We should never underestimate the weight of those moments. What feels like a five-minute conversation to a leader may become a five-year source of courage for someone else. That is the power of influence, and it is why leadership should never be treated casually. Your wounds should make you wiser, not harder One of the greatest dangers in leadership is allowing our wounds to become our management philosophy. Sometimes people justify harmful leadership practices by saying, “That is how I came up,” or “Nobody helped me.” Others say, “I had to figure it out,” or “My boss was harder on me than I am on them.” But surviving poor leadership does not make poor leadership acceptable. Your pain is not permission to reproduce pain. Mature leaders turn wounds into wisdom. If you know what it feels like to be overlooked, become the leader who notices people. If you know what it feels like to be underestimated, become the leader who looks twice before dismissing someone. If nobody opened doors for you, become a door opener. If you walked into rooms where nobody expected you to belong, make sure someone else has a chair when you finally get inside. Healing should affect how we lead. Our scars should produce compassion, not cruelty. Our struggles should increase our empathy, not decrease it. What almost broke us should become part of how we build others. Power should expand opportunity Titles give authority, but they do not automatically give influence. A title may cause people to obey you, but it cannot force them to trust you. A paycheck can purchase attendance, but it cannot purchase commitment. Fear may produce compliance for a season, but it will never create authentic loyalty. That is why I often ask leaders a challenging question: Who gets better because you have power? Who gains access because your name is in the room? Whose career moves forward because you made the introduction? Who gets invited because you remembered them? Who gets developed because you decided not to hoard what you know? Who gets a chance because you were willing to say, “I think this person is ready”? The best leaders become elevators. They lift people. They sponsor people. They recommend people. They create opportunities. They are willing to put another person’s name forward, allow someone else to lead the presentation, create a stretch assignment, or make a phone call that opens a door. That is what power looks like when it becomes purpose. We should never use all our influence merely to increase our own influence. Some of it should be used to increase someone else’s opportunity. The ministry is often in the small moments We have romanticized impact. We often imagine that meaningful leadership must happen on massive stages or through enormous initiatives. Yet much of leadership happens quietly. It happens when you remember someone's name. It happens when you check on the employee who is normally strong. It happens when you give credit publicly, apologize sincerely, or mentor someone who cannot advance your career. It happens when you tell an emerging leader, “There is more in you,” or when you give the quietest person in the room an opportunity to speak before the most powerful person dominates the conversation. Leadership ministry also looks like making an introduction, providing context instead of criticism, asking one more question before making an assumption, and choosing dignity while delivering accountability. The moment may feel small to you, but it may be enormous to someone else. You may have given them ten minutes, yet they may remember those ten minutes for the rest of their career. Leadership is built in moments. Success can still cause you to miss the assignment There is another danger for high-achieving leaders: success can slowly disconnect us from the very people leadership was supposed to serve. You can build the company and lose your compassion. You can earn the degree and lose your humility. You can build the platform and lose your accessibility. You can gain influence and stop listening. You can become so important that ordinary people can no longer reach you. That is not growth. It is disconnection. We must never confuse achievement with alignment. The higher we rise, the more intentional we should become about remaining human. Never become so accomplished that kindness feels beneath you. Never become so educated that you believe you have nothing left to learn. Never become so powerful that apologizing feels impossible. Never become so successful that service becomes inconvenient. Leadership was never meant to make us untouchable. Your legacy is walking around in people One day, somebody else will have your title. Someone else will sit in your chair. Someone else will lead the meetings, have the office, make the decisions, and carry responsibilities that once belonged to you. Eventually, your name will disappear from the organizational directory, and the institution will continue moving forward. That truth should not frighten us. It should focus us. If our identity is built entirely around position, then we are building something temporary. But when we invest ourselves in people, our leadership can continue long after we leave. Your legacy is not sitting inside your office. Your legacy is walking around in people. It is in the leader you mentored, the student you encouraged, the employee you developed, the person you promoted, and the individual you challenged without destroying. It is in the young professional you introduced to someone who changed their career. It is in the person who now leads differently because they once experienced your leadership. That is legacy. It is not merely that people remember your name. It is that something of your leadership became part of theirs. A leadership prescription If leadership is ministry, then leadership requires intentional practice. This week, begin by seeing someone who has become invisible. Affirm something specific in them and remind them that their contribution matters. Then empty your ego by asking someone else, “What do you think?” and genuinely listening to the answer. Reach back to someone traveling a road you have already traveled. Give them a lesson, a contact, a warning, a resource, or an opportunity you wish someone had given you earlier. Before leaving important interactions, reflect on whether people are stronger or smaller because you were there. Finally, use your influence to expand somebody else’s future. Open one meaningful door. Make the introduction. Recommend the person. Share the opportunity. Sponsor the emerging leader. Leadership does not become weaker when we serve. It becomes worthy. The question every leader should ask Tomorrow, before the first email, meeting, call, or crisis, ask yourself: Who needs the best version of my leadership today? Who needs your courage? Who needs your patience? Who needs your honesty, advocacy, correction, or encouragement? Who needs you to stop talking and listen? Who needs you to open a door? You cannot rescue everyone, solve every problem, or become responsible for everyone’s happiness. But you are responsible for what you do with the influence entrusted to you. So lead as people matter. Lead like your example matters. Lead like somebody is learning how to lead by watching you, because they are. Perhaps the greatest evidence that you were a leader will never be how many people followed you. It will be how many people became more because you were there. That is leadership. That is legacy, and that is ministry. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and visit my LinkedIn for more info! Read more from Santarvis Brown Santarvis Brown, Leadership Engineer Dr. Santarvis Brown has spent 15+ years serving as a leader, innovator, and changemaker in education, showcasing in-depth insight as an administrator, educator, and program director. A noted speaker, researcher, and full professor, he has shared his speaking talent at many community and educational forums, often as a keynote speaker. He has also written several publications on civic service, faith, leadership, and education.

Catherine Cifuentes-Rojas grew up in the foothills of the Andes, the daughter of two elementary school teachers. Her father was also the local Volunteer Chief. That combination of steady instruction and hands-on emergency response shaped how she approaches problems today: understand the fundamentals, then act. She read encyclopedias cover to cover as a child. She taught herself English and French so she could watch films and read novels in their original language. When her mother fell ill, nine-year-old Catherine learned to cook for the household rather than wait for someone else to fix the gap. None of this was assigned to her. She sought it out. That pattern, of taking on the unfamiliar before anyone asks, is the throughline of her career. Graduating too early to start college Cifuentes-Rojas finished high school at 15. She was Class Valedictorian, a Math Olympiad winner, and the top scorer on Colombia's national ICFES exam in her hometown. But she was too young to enroll in university. Instead of treating the gap year as a delay, she spent it teaching English in public schools. It was practice for skills she would need later: breaking down complex material for people who are encountering it for the first time, and doing it with patience. She went on to earn a B.S. in Clinical Microbiology at Universidad del Valle, where she worked on malaria vaccine research at the Malaria Vaccine and Drug Development Center. Seeing immunology applied to a live public health problem, rather than studied in the abstract, is what pointed her toward research as a career rather than a subject she was simply good at. From cancer immunology to RNA biochemistry Her M.S. in Cancer Immunology at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana led to a faculty post there, teaching immunology while still in her twenties. She then moved to Texas A&M University for a Ph.D. in Genetics, shifting her focus toward RNA biochemistry and molecular biology. That was a real pivot, not a small adjustment. Vaccine immunology, cancer biomarkers, and RNA biochemistry are different disciplines with different tools and different questions. Cifuentes-Rojas has said that adaptability, the willingness to reinvent yourself scientifically, is one of the traits that has carried her from one field to the next. Long non-coding RNA and a national prize At Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, she spent seven years studying long non-coding RNAs in stem cell biology, first as a postdoctoral fellow and then as an Assistant in Molecular Biology. The work was funded by NIH awards, including an F32 NRSA fellowship and a K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award. In 2020, the National Academy of Sciences awarded her research the Cozzarelli Prize in Biological Sciences. It is one of the more selective recognitions in the field, and it came after nearly a decade of work most people outside molecular biology never hear about until a discovery is fully formed. Building platforms instead of running experiments After Harvard, Cifuentes-Rojas moved into biopharma. At Sail Biomedicines, she worked as Senior Scientist on circular RNA platform technology, then became Associate Director of Discovery Biology and Interim Head of In Vivo Pharmacology, overseeing target validation. In 2022, she joined Ginkgo Bioworks as Director, leading Genetic Medicines and Biologics. There, she led the effort to build the company's internal RNA therapeutics platform from scratch, while directing a team of more than 30 scientists in a matrixed environment, across federal programs with BARDA and HHS. The shift from bench scientist to platform builder is a different kind of work. It means fewer hours at the bench and more time deciding what forty other scientists should be working on, and why. Cifuentes-Rojas has described bridging traditional immunology with computational and AI-driven teams at Ginkgo as one of the harder adjustments in her career, requiring her to learn the technical vocabulary of machine learning engineers well enough to set direction for them. What the early years still explain Cifuentes-Rojas often traces her working habits back to that year she spent teaching English before starting college. She calls it a lesson in using unplanned time productively rather than waiting for the "right" moment to begin. She keeps two cats, Sunspot and Mars, and a Belgian Malinois named Dalton, and takes long walks with him when she needs to think through a decision. Outside the lab, she volunteers at her children's school and at a local animal shelter, and donates to conservation and children's charities including the World Wildlife Fund and ChildFund International. The distance between a classroom in the Andes and a genetic medicines platform in Boston is considerable. What connects them is a habit she picked up before she was ten: when something needs doing and no one else is doing it, do it yourself.

Vladimir Kuskovski grew up in Mogilev, Belarus, in a house where English was spoken alongside Russian and Belarusian. His mother taught English at the university level, and she had him reading in English by age seven. Summers were spent along the Dnieper River with his parents, and later on the water as a rower, a sport that eventually put him on the USSR Olympic team in 1984. He finished School No. 23 at age 16 and went on to Minsk Linguistics University to study English and German. He completed his master's degree there, with part of the coursework done at the University of Manchester in the UK in 1991. From linguistics to the classroom Kuskovski's path into education did not start in a head of school's office. It started in a classroom in South St. Paul, Minnesota, where he taught Russian and German and worked as an IB coordinator. It was a long way from Mogilev, but the move gave him a close look at how American public education worked, from the inside of a single building rather than from a policy paper. That classroom experience turned into something bigger in 2000, when he earned a Specialist in Education degree and a K-12 administrative license from St. Mary's University in Minneapolis. The same year, he was named Teacher of the Year and received the Silver Apple award in Minnesota. He moved from teaching into the principal's office at New Spirit Middle School in St. Paul, the first step in a career that would eventually take him through schools on four continents. A career that crossed borders Over the following two decades, Kuskovski led schools in Germany, Switzerland, India, the United States, and Cyprus. He was Head of School at LAS in Switzerland, then moved to the International School Hamburg, then to the Oberoi International School in Mumbai, back to Switzerland at the International School of Basel, and later to EF Academy New York. Having completed his time at EF Academy, he now serves as Head of Trinity Private School in Cyprus. Each move meant learning a new system, a new staff, and often a new language of instruction. He completed his Ph.D. at Capella University in 2008 and a fellowship at the Klingenstein Center at Teachers College, Columbia University, in 2011, credentials he picked up while still working full time in schools rather than stepping away to earn them. He has also taught part time, as an adjunct professor at Endicott College and Grand Canyon University, and as a visiting professor in the graduate program at Teachers College, Columbia University. Building something new in Mumbai Not every chapter of Kuskovski's career involved running an existing school. In India, he was brought on board to help start Stellar World School, a group of three IB schools in Mumbai, where he serves as Consulting Group Director, directing the group on a consulting basis for the owner. All three schools are now in their fifth year of operation and are very successful. Building a school network from the ground up is a different exercise than taking over a headship. It meant setting up governance, hiring systems, and academic programs before a single student walked through the door, work that drew directly on everything he had already learned leading established institutions. A seat at the table Kuskovski has spent much of his career serving on the boards that shape international education itself, not just the schools inside it. He served two terms, the maximum allowed, on the board of the Council of International Schools. While living in Germany, he sat on the board of the Association of German International Schools. Since 2014, he has served on the board of the Academy for International School Heads, and since 2015 on the board of Baku Oxford School. In 2024, the Association for the Advancement of International Education inducted him into its Hall of Fame, and in 2021 he was named a Distinguished Apple Educator. He has also taken part in charity efforts connected to Feed the Starving Children, Rising Westchester, and the Terry Fox Run for cancer research. Still running Kuskovski has completed 11 marathons across six countries, a pursuit that grew out of the same instinct that once put him on a rowing team: steady, repeatable effort over a long distance. He reads the New York Times daily and follows Russian-language independent press alongside professional literature on leadership and education. Decades after leaving the water of the Dnieper behind, the habits built there – patience, perseverance, and a willingness to put in the miles, still show up in how he runs a school.

Written by Gabrielle Lewis-Lungo, Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist Gabrielle Lewis-Lungo is a Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist, Certified Nutrition Specialist, and Personal Trainer with over 10 years of experience in fitness and nutrition. Through her unique background, she combines nutrition and movement to help individuals build a deeper understanding of how their bodies, behaviors, and lifestyles work together. Many women know the saying, “We only feel our best two weeks out of every month.” Often said in jest, it highlights the menstrual cycle's significant impact on nutritional needs, eating behaviors, energy availability, and overall physiological function. Although research on energy intake across menstrual cycle phases remains limited, current knowledge of female physiology is robust. Estrogen and progesterone fluctuate predictably throughout the cycle, modulating not only reproduction but also metabolism, appetite, energy expenditure, nutrient metabolism, mood, and additional physiological processes.[1] Understanding these changes and their effects on nutrition, motivation, and physical activity helps women prepare for each phase and use strategies that support their health goals. The phases and their impact In a textbook 28-day cycle, the menstrual cycle is generally divided into four phases (note that actual phase lengths vary from woman to woman and cycle to cycle): Menstrual phase (approximately days 1 to 5): The menstrual phase begins on the first day of bleeding. Estrogen and progesterone are at baseline low levels, and the uterine lining is shed. Follicular phase (approximately days 6 to 14): During the follicular phase, estrogen rises as ovarian follicles develop. Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) stimulates follicle growth, and one follicle becomes dominant. The endometrial lining begins rebuilding in preparation for a potential pregnancy. Ovulatory phase (approximately day 14): Ovulation occurs after a peak in luteinizing hormone (LH), releasing a mature egg from the dominant follicle. Estrogen peaks just before ovulation, while progesterone remains relatively low. Luteal phase (approximately days 15 to 28): After ovulation, the ruptured follicle transforms into the corpus luteum and produces progesterone alongside a secondary, modest rise in estrogen. If pregnancy does not occur, both hormones decline, triggering menstruation and starting the cycle anew. These timeframes are approximations. Cycle length and phase timing naturally vary, particularly for women with longer or shorter cycles or disorders such as polycystic metabolic endocrine syndrome (PMOS). In these situations, maintaining a consistent nutritional baseline and making intuitive adjustments based on real-time symptoms is more practical than following a rigid day-by-day plan. For example, if you have an irregular cycle or PMOS, you might track patterns in your energy, hunger, mood, and physical performance throughout the month to identify meal adjustments that help you feel your best. A simple symptom journal or cycle-tracking app can help you spot trends and tailor your nutrition accordingly. It is also helpful to consult a health care provider or registered dietitian for individualized guidance, especially if you experience unpredictable cycles or additional symptoms. Beyond reproductive health: What are estrogen and progesterone actually doing? Estrogen and progesterone carry out essential functions throughout the body well beyond reproduction: Estrogen: Supports bone formation and remodeling via interactions with calcium and vitamin D pathways. It modulates lipid profiles (including hepatic LDL-cholesterol regulation), supports central nervous system signaling, impacts gut motility, and influences energy metabolism.[2] Progesterone: Changes throughout the second half of the cycle correspond with rises in basal body temperature, higher resting energy expenditure, shifts in appetite, and altered sleep architecture. Progesterone and its neuroactive metabolites also interact with GABAergic pathways involved in mood, affect regulation, and stress response.[3] Such hormonal fluctuations explain shifts in appetite, energy, mood, sleep quality, and physical performance throughout the month. The menstrual cycle is a systemic neuroendocrine process, not solely a reproductive one.[4] Adequate energy and hormonal function Adequate energy intake is mandatory for normal hormonal signaling, whether your goal is body recomposition, weight maintenance, or sustained wellness.[5] The body requires sufficient caloric fuel to maintain the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian (HPO) axis, which governs the hormonal signaling cascade required for regular ovulation. When caloric intake consistently falls below physiological needs, a state known as low energy availability (LEA), reproductive function downregulates. The hypothalamus reduces GnRH signaling, blunting LH and FSH pulsatility and disrupting ovulation, estrogen, and progesterone production. Prolonged low energy availability carries downstream risks for bone mineral density, metabolic rate, cardiovascular markers, and endocrine health.[6][5] What does adequate nutrition look like? Age, body composition, training volume, health status, and metabolic demands dictate nutritional requirements. Consulting a qualified nutrition professional helps establish an eating structure customized to your individual baseline. As a general structural baseline, the Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Range (AMDR) suggests: 45-65% of total daily energy from carbohydrates 20-35% from dietary fats 10-35% from dietary protein These ranges serve as flexible guidelines, not rigid prescriptions. A woman who regularly lifts weights or runs needs meaningfully more baseline calories, carbohydrates, and protein than someone with lower physical activity demands. To help you visualize how this looks in practice, here are a few simple meal and snack examples designed for different activity levels: For moderate activity (such as walking or yoga): Overnight oats with chia seeds, berries, and Greek yogurt Rice bowl with grilled chicken, roasted vegetables, and olive oil Snack: Apple slices with peanut butter or a handful of almonds For higher activity (such as running, HIIT, or resistance training): Scrambled eggs with sautéed spinach, whole grain toast, and avocado Quinoa salad with black beans, feta, mixed greens, sunflower seeds, and tomatoes Snack: Whole grain toast with cottage cheese and blueberries, or a smoothie with banana, protein powder, and nut butter Adjust portion sizes and macronutrient emphasis based on your exercise intensity, weekly routine, and appetite signals. Restrictive dieting protocols that slash energy intake put women at elevated risk for ovulatory disruption. The primary clinical priority is ensuring the body has enough total energy availability to support essential endocrine processes. Whereas specific metabolic conditions like PMOS may warrant adjustments in carbohydrate distribution and quality, overall energy sufficiency must remain intact.[7] How do you know if energy availability is adequate? The medical community increasingly recognizes the menstrual cycle as an important sign.[8] Variations in cycle length, missed periods, anovulatory cycles, or changes in flow can point to underlying neuroendocrine or metabolic stress. Inadequate energy availability is a common driver of cycle irregularity, but shifts can also stem from thyroid conditions, elevated prolactin, PMOS, perimenopause, or acute life stress.[9] Persistent changes in your cycle warrant medical evaluation rather than assuming nutritional changes alone can correct them. Tracking cycle length, flow, subjective energy, and appetite patterns across time delivers actionable biofeedback about your systemic health.[10] To make this easier, use a simple journal or phone note to record key symptoms or energy levels each day. Many cycle-tracking apps also let you log period dates, moods, physical symptoms, and changes in activity or appetite. By tracking these markers consistently, you can more easily spot patterns and make educated adjustments to your nutrition and routine. Supporting each phase with food Understanding physiological shifts lets you make intentional nutrition choices. The goal isn't to follow four distinct diets every month, but to focus on the nutrients your body needs most. Menstrual phase (replenish iron and micronutrients): Menstrual bleeding involves blood loss, so iron intake is a key focus. Iron is required for hemoglobin synthesis and oxygen delivery. Folate and vitamin B6 support red blood cell formation, while magnesium supports neuromuscular recovery.[1] Prioritize bioavailable heme iron sources like lean beef, sardines, clams, chicken thighs, or eggs, alongside plant-based non-heme sources like lentils, beans, and tofu paired with vitamin C (citrus, bell peppers, berries) to maximize absorption. Incorporate folate from leafy greens and lentils, vitamin B6 from poultry, potatoes, and bananas, and magnesium from pumpkin seeds, dark chocolate, and spinach. Follicular phase (support recovery and sustained energy): As estrogen rises, hunger is often naturally lower in the follicular window and leading up to ovulation.[5] This makes the follicular phase an important time to eat enough, since appetite alone may not signal full energy needs. Focus on regular protein sources (eggs, poultry, Greek yogurt, tofu, fish) and quality carbohydrates (sweet potatoes, oats, quinoa, rice, fruit) to support glycogen storage, training recovery, and tissue repair. Ovulatory phase (support cellular function): During the brief ovulatory window, nutrition does not require dramatic overhauls. Emphasize micronutrients and dietary fats involved in follicular maturation, membrane fluidity, and cellular function: folate (leafy greens, asparagus), omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D (salmon, sardines), and antioxidant compounds (berries, dark greens, citrus).[11] Emphasize unsaturated fats like extra-virgin olive oil, walnuts, and avocado. Luteal phase (support elevated energy requirements): The luteal stage brings noticeable metabolic shifts. Progesterone raises basal body temperature, resting energy expenditure, lipid oxidation, and protein turnover, and often increases appetite[5][1] Instead of suppressing higher hunger levels, support the metabolic increase with complex carbohydrates and balanced meals, such as oatmeal with yogurt and fruit, rice bowls with protein and vegetables, or roasted potatoes with salmon. Emphasize calcium (dairy, kefir, calcium-set tofu), magnesium (nuts, seeds, dark chocolate), and vitamin B6 (chickpeas, poultry, bananas) to help manage premenstrual symptoms. For premenstrual bloating or fluid shifts, avoid extreme sodium restriction; instead, prioritize steady hydration and potassium-rich foods like potatoes, papaya, dates, avocado, beet greens, and spinach to maintain healthy electrolyte balance. Build your baseline Honoring your cycle’s nutritional demands does not mean micromanaging four separate meal plans. The foundation of hormone-supportive nutrition is establishing a reliable, everyday baseline that delivers adequate energy, protein, carbohydrates, fats, fiber, and micronutrients. From that baseline, apply minor, practical adjustments founded on what your body communicates: Add a portion of complex carbohydrates to meals if luteal-phase hunger or fatigue increases. Emphasize bioavailable iron sources and pair plant irons with vitamin C during and immediately after menstruation. (If you experience heavy menstrual bleeding, have a physician evaluate your serum ferritin, as dietary iron alone may not rebuild depleted stores.)[12] If you experience premenstrual water retention or muscle tension, incorporate potassium- and magnesium-dense whole foods. A sustainable baseline includes adequate protein at each meal, carbohydrate portions scaled to your activity, quality fats, diverse produce, and consistent micronutrient density. Use your cycle as ongoing biofeedback, adjusting nutrition to support your physiology, rather than forcing your physiology to fit a rigid dietary regimen. Conclusion The menstrual cycle is far more than a reproductive timeline. Estrogen and progesterone fluctuate predictably and modulate metabolism, appetite, recovery, mood, and nutrient handling throughout the month. Letting go of the expectation that appetite, energy, and training output should be identical every day removes unnecessary friction. While cycle-specific nutrition science continues to develop, the evidence is clear on two core points: adequate energy availability is fundamental to endocrine balance, and learning to listen to cyclical bodily signals promotes long-term health. Supporting your body does not require nutritional perfection, it requires consistent nourishment and the flexibility to meet your changing physiological needs. Nutrition disclaimer: The information shared in this article is intended for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for individual medical or nutrition advice. Every individual’s health history, medical conditions, medications, and nutritional needs are unique. This content does not constitute medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. While many menstrual symptoms are common, it is important to consult your doctor or medical provider if you experience missed periods, cycle changes that persist, unusually heavy bleeding, severe pain, new or worsening mood changes, or symptoms that interfere with your daily activities. Always speak with your doctor or medical provider about hormonal issues, menstrual irregularities, or any chronic health conditions, and seek further evaluation from a registered or licensed dietitian for individualized nutrition guidance. Let’s work together Through individualized nutrition counseling, I help clients recognize their unique needs, develop practical strategies, and build sustainable behaviors that support their goals, boost confidence, and reduce frustration. Request a complimentary insurance benefits check to see whether your plan covers nutrition visits. Follow me on Instagram, and visit my website for more info! Read more from Gabrielle Lewis-Lungo Gabrielle Lewis-Lungo, Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist Gabrielle is a nutrition professional whose work explores the connection between physiology, psychology, and eating behaviors to uncover the deeper patterns that influence health and wellness. Gabrielle’s approach is rooted in the belief that sustainable health begins with understanding the body rather than fighting against it. By integrating nutritional science with a deeper understanding of human behavior, she recognizes that lasting change requires more than information alone. Her work explores the physiological, behavioral, and lifestyle factors that influence health, helping individuals develop a more personalized and sustainable approach to wellness. References: [1] García-Montero, C., Castro-Martínez, P. d., Boaru, D. L., Ortega, M. A. & Fraile-Martínez, Ó. (2026). An Overview of the Impact of the Menstrual Cycle on Nutrient Metabolism: An Integrative Perspective. Nutrients 18(7). [2] Zhu, J., Zhou, Y., Jin, B. & Shu, J. (2023). Role of estrogen in the regulation of central and peripheral energy homeostasis: from a menopausal perspective. Hormones. [3] Baker, F. C., Driver, H. S., Paiker, J., Rogers, G. G. & Mitchell, D. (2002). Acetaminophen does not affect 24-h body temperature or sleep in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. Journal of Applied Physiology 92(4). [4] Klusmann, H., Schulze, L., Engel, S., Bücklein, E., Daehn, D., Lozza-Fiacco, S., Geiling, A., Meyer, C., Andersen, E., Knaevelsrud, C. & Schumacher, S. (2022). HPA axis activity across the menstrual cycle - a systematic review and meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Front Neuroendocrinol 66. [5] Rogan, M. M. & Black, K. E. (2023). Dietary energy intake across the menstrual cycle: a narrative review. Nutrition Reviews 81(7). [6] Iwasa, T., Minato, S., Imaizumi, J., Yoshida, A., Kawakita, T., Yoshida, K. & Yamamoto, Y. (2022). Effects of low energy availability on female reproductive function. Reproductive Medicine and Biology 21. [7] Koltun, K. J., Souza, M. J. & Scheid, J. L. (2019). Energy Availability Is Associated With Luteinizing Hormone Pulse Frequency and Induction of Luteal Phase Defects. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism 105(1), pp. 185-193. [8] Rosen Vollmar et al., 2025. [9] Loucks, A. B. & Heath, E. M. (1994). Induction of low-T3 syndrome in exercising women occurs at a threshold of energy availability. American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory 266(3). [10] Albers, S. (2026). Cycle Syncing for Fitness and Nutrition. Cleveland Clinic. [11] Jurczewska & Szostak-Węgierek, 2022 [12] Munro, M. G., Mast, A. E., Powers, J. M., Kouides, P. A., O'Brien, S. H., Richards, T., Lavin, M. & Levy, B. S. (2023). The relationship between heavy menstrual bleeding, iron deficiency, and iron deficiency anemia. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology 229(1), pp. 1-9. [13] Health, O. o. (2024). Iron - Health Professional Fact Sheet. Office of Dietary Supplements.

Written by Kirsten Welsch, Founder & Master-Trained Color Analyst Kirsten Welsch is a certified 23-season color analyst and founder of ATX Color Studio near Austin, Texas. She also runs Business of Color Analysis, where she helps new color analysts build and market their businesses with confidence. If you have been following the color analysis industry recently, you may have seen conversations about the new 35-Palette Color Analysis System. Some people are excited about the additional options, while others are wondering whether we really need more palettes at all. After completing the International Image Institute’s Advanced Color Analysis training in Toronto in September 2026, I became one of the first seven analysts trained in the expanded system. What I think is most important for clients to understand is that these additional palettes are designed to create more personalization, not to replace the seasonal system people already know. What is the 35-Palette system? Most people are familiar with the traditional four seasons: Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. Over time, professional color analysis systems have become more detailed because natural coloring is much more nuanced than simply being warm or cool. When I conduct a professional color analysis, I evaluate undertone, value, intensity, and contrast. Undertone refers to the underlying temperature of someone’s coloring. Value describes how light or deep the coloring is, while intensity, also called chroma, refers to how bright or muted it appears. Contrast looks at the differences in depth between a person’s natural features. The International Image Institute’s established 23-Palette Color Analysis System already allows analysts to explore those differences in much greater detail than the original four-season approach. The new 35-Palette System builds on that framework by adding 12 dimensional palettes for clients whose coloring is particularly enhanced by a specific characteristic within their existing season. Are there now 35 color seasons? No. This is probably the biggest misconception I have seen online. The 12 additions are new palettes, not 12 entirely new color seasons. The foundational seasonal categories are still Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. The dimensional palettes allow for additional refinement within the existing system. I can use myself as an example. I have known for quite some time that I am a True Spring. During my advanced training, however, I learned that I align more specifically with Spring High Value, which means I am especially flattered by the lighter colors within the True Spring palette. My season did not change. My undertone didn’t change, and my original analysis wasn’t suddenly wrong. I simply gained a more precise understanding of which colors within my existing season are especially harmonious with me. Who can qualify for a dimensional palette? Not everyone will qualify for one of the 12 additional palettes, and that is intentional. Within the International Image Institute’s framework, the eight dimensional palettes associated with the True Home Seasons are designed for people with fully warm or fully cool undertones. The four Universal dimensional palettes are designed for people whose coloring is classified as fully neutral. This distinction matters because many people fall into seasonal categories with blended undertones, such as neutral-warm or neutral-cool. For example, someone who is neutral-warm would not move into a dimensional palette simply because they happen to be very light, bright, or deep. The 12 additional palettes are Winter Low Value, Winter High Contrast, Spring High Value, Spring High Chroma, Summer High Value, Summer Low Value, Autumn High Chroma, Autumn Low Chroma, Deep Universal, Light Universal, Bright Universal, and Muted Universal. Even if someone meets the undertone criteria, that doesn’t automatically mean one of the dimensional palettes is a better fit. A True Spring may still be best represented by the original True Spring palette rather than Spring High Value or Spring High Chroma. The goal is greater precision when it helps, not reclassifying everyone into something new. Does your previous color analysis change? If you have already invested in a professional color analysis and love your existing palette, there is no reason to assume your result is now outdated. The expanded system does not mean the previous 23-Palette framework was incorrect. Instead, it gives trained analysts another layer of information when a client’s coloring clearly benefits from additional refinement. That distinction is important to me. Color analysis should leave clients feeling more confident, not make them wonder whether they constantly need a new answer every time a methodology evolves. The same is true when using your palette in everyday life. I have written before about why black isn’t universally flattering and five neutrals that work better. Your palette should give you useful direction, but it should never eliminate your personal style or make you feel restricted. Why more personalization matters One reason I find the expanded system so interesting is that two people can share the same season without being equally flattered by every color in that palette. When you work with clients regularly, you begin to see how much variation exists even within the same seasonal category. Lighter colors may especially enhance one True Spring, while another may look strongest in the clearest, most saturated parts of the palette. That does not mean the broader season is wrong. It means it can have additional nuance. To me, that is the most valuable part of the 35-Palette System. More palettes aren’t useful just because there are more of them. They are useful when they help an analyst provide a client with more specific, practical recommendations. What this means for clients As a client, you do not need to memorize 35 palettes or understand every technical distinction. That is the analyst’s job. The goal of a professional color analysis is still the same: to identify the colors that harmonize with your natural coloring so you can make more confident decisions about clothing, makeup, hair color, and accessories. Whether your result falls within one of the original 23 palettes or one of the 12 additional dimensional palettes, you should walk away understanding your colors more clearly, not feeling more confused. Discover your best colors If you are curious about your own color season, I offer professional 23-Season and 35-Palette color analysis through ATX Color Studio in Bee Cave, Texas, just outside Austin, as well as virtual color analysis for clients worldwide. The expanded system gives us another way to personalize color recommendations, but the goal remains simple: helping you understand which colors make you look and feel your best. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn for more info! Read more from Kirsten Welsch Kirsten Welsch, Founder & Master-Trained Color Analyst Kirsten Welsch is a certified 23-season color analyst and the founder of ATX Color Studio in Bee Cave, Texas. After years of designing luxury weddings in Costa Rica, she discovered color analysis and realized the power of wearing the right colors firsthand. That experience inspired her to help other women feel that same confidence. She now offers in-person and virtual color analysis sessions and runs Business of Color Analysis, where she mentors aspiring color analysts on marketing, social media, and building a successful business. Her mission is helping women stop guessing and start glowing.

Cindy Jacobs is the founder of Free Rein Australia, developer of the Biological Completion Model™ (BCM), and author of the forthcoming book The Unfinished Response. Her work begins with a simple premise: nothing the nervous system does is random. In this interview, Cindy argues that the future of trauma therapy lies in working directly with nervous system logic. She explores why trauma can continue to loop despite insight, somatic awareness and regulation, how prediction determines what becomes possible, and why the goal of trauma therapy should extend beyond symptom relief to the restoration of agency. Cindy Jacobs, Nervous System Logic Practitioner You say that trauma therapy has moved from talk therapy into somatic and nervous system-based approaches, and that the future of trauma therapy is working directly with nervous system logic. What is nervous system logic? Nervous system logic is the biological sequence behind what we do. The nervous system detects what is happening, predicts what is likely to happen next, selects a response and prepares the body to act. Then it learns from what happens. If the response succeeds, the nervous system receives evidence that the strategy worked and its prediction updates. If it does not succeed, or the response is interrupted, the system learns from that outcome. I am particularly interested in what happens when the response cannot finish. That is why I believe this is where trauma therapy needs to go next. We have become increasingly skilled at working with thoughts, emotions, sensations and nervous system states. But those are expressions of an underlying organisation. If we want to understand why symptoms persist, we need to work at the level that is organising them. “Nothing the nervous system does is random.” You are very clear that BCM is not a somatic therapy. Why not? First, I make a distinction between nervous system logic and BCM. Nervous system logic is the explanatory framework – it describes how the nervous system organises and learns. BCM is the clinical model I developed to work with that logic. BCM may look somatic because the body is involved, but the body is not the organising principle of the work. Many somatic approaches follow what emerges – sensation, movement, activation, emotion or bodily experience. BCM is looking for something specific: what defensive response did the nervous system organise, what happened to it, and what prevented it from completing? When a threat is detected, movement is involved. The nervous system prepares for a defensive action. That may begin as an impulse, a vocal response, a gesture or a larger movement, but it is specific to the threat and to what the nervous system determines will be the most successful response at the least cost. The movement has meaning. It is not random. A memory of the original event is not necessary. The nervous system organisation can still be present in how the person responds now. Why can trauma keep looping despite insight, somatic awareness and regulation? Because none of those necessarily changes what the nervous system learned. Insight can change conscious understanding. Somatic awareness can help someone recognise what is happening in their body. Regulation can reduce activation and provide relief. But the nervous system updates through new evidence that contradicts what it previously learned. If it learned, for example, “I cannot stop this,” understanding why that belief developed does not provide evidence that the threat can now be stopped. Calming the response does not provide that evidence either. The person may feel better, understand more and function differently while the original organisation remains intact. To change the loop, we have to work with what the nervous system is still organised around and provide evidence that contradicts the old conclusion. How important is prediction in nervous system logic? The nervous system is continually using previous experience to predict what is likely to happen next. Those predictions determine what we perceive, how we behave, the beliefs we form, and which choices are available to us. The nervous system does not wait to discover what is objectively true. It acts on what it predicts will happen. Prediction can also keep us stuck in trauma. If the nervous system predicts that speaking up will lead to punishment, leaving will lead to greater danger, or protecting ourselves will cost us an important relationship, it organises accordingly. Those predictions will continue even when present-day circumstances are completely different. Reasoning, reframing, and practices to stay present do not reach the level at which the nervous system is organised. That is why prediction is central to trauma resolution. If the prediction does not update, the old organisation continues to make sense to the nervous system. What keeps the nervous system responding to the past as though it is still happening now? When a defensive action does not reach its biological conclusion, the system doesn’t receive the evidence that would have allowed it to update. Therefore, it remains organised around the threat. The nervous system may also have learned that using the defensive response itself would have consequences: “If I fight back, I will be punished.” “If I say no, I will lose the relationship.” “If I leave, things will get worse.” So the original response remains unfinished while the nervous system continues to predict a cost if that response is actioned. That is why you can feel stuck, stay silent or be unable to speak up for yourself even when present conditions have changed. Your nervous system learned that protecting yourself carried a cost. The nervous system needs evidence that what was not possible then is possible now. Otherwise, continuing to organise around the old prediction is logical. If regulation can help people feel better, why isn’t that resolution? Because regulation changes the state without necessarily changing what is producing it. Someone may become skilled at calming themselves, reducing activation or recovering after they are triggered. That can be an important coping strategy and can make a real difference to daily life. But if the same nervous system response continues to be generated, there is still something that needs to be regulated. When the unfinished response reaches completion, the nervous system receives new evidence and the prediction updates. There is no longer a loop that needs to be managed. That is the distinction: regulation helps a person manage the response. Resolution changes what is generating it. If trauma therapy began working at the level that is organising the response, what would change for the client? The client does not need to retell their story or become highly emotional in order to resolve trauma. They control the pace while being guided to observe what is happening at the nervous system level. When an unfinished defensive response becomes available, the client is supported to follow the impulse to finish what the nervous system had originally prepared to do. When that response completes, change can be almost immediate. The nervous system receives new evidence, its prediction updates, resources previously committed to defence are released, and the system settles. The significance is not simply that the client feels calmer afterward. Something that had remained biologically unfinished has changed. Responses and choices that were previously unavailable can become available without the person having to consciously override an old pattern. That is what becomes possible when therapy works at the level organising the response rather than only with its symptoms. What is the most important shift you would like practitioners to make in how they understand trauma? Stop assuming that the event, or the symptoms, are the trauma. Trauma is the persistence of an unfinished defensive response – a response the nervous system prepared but could not complete. The nervous system is not malfunctioning simply because someone is anxious, avoiding something, shutting down or reacting strongly. It continues to predict a threat and has not yet had reason to change that prediction. The symptoms are the expression of that organisation. That changes the practitioner’s relationship to what they are seeing. Instead of beginning with, “How do I reduce this? How do I settle this nervous system?” practitioners understand that nervous system responses are not random and begin to ask what the nervous system is doing and why. Sometimes regulation is appropriate. Sometimes the client first needs enough stability to stay present with what they are experiencing. But regulation is not the same as resolution, and suppressing a response can suppress the very defensive action that is trying to finish. Everything the nervous system does has purpose. If we understand its logic, the symptom stops being the problem and becomes information about the organisation underneath it. Why do you see restored agency – rather than symptom reduction – as the real end goal? Because agency is not simply knowing that choices exist. It is having genuine access to those choices. A person may intellectually know they can leave, speak, protest, set a boundary or choose differently. But if the nervous system predicts danger, rejection, punishment or failure, those choices can disappear in the moment they are needed. That is why knowing we have choices is not the same as agency. When the nervous system receives the evidence it needs and outdated predictions no longer organise the present, responses that were previously unavailable can become available again. The person is not simply calmer. They are less constrained by an old biological conclusion about what is possible. For me, that is the larger purpose of trauma resolution. The future of trauma therapy should not be measured only by how well people manage their symptoms. It should be measured by how fully they can reclaim the choices their nervous system once had to take away. Visit my website for more info! Read more from Cindy Jacobs

Written by Ingrid Montague, Mindfulness Instructor & Somatic Wellness Practitioner, MSc Ingrid is a certified Mindfulness Instructor, MSc, certified Yoga Instructor & Sound Healing Practitioner. She is the Founder of The Mindful Way, where she offers online, evidence-based mindfulness courses, guided meditation sessions, and 1:1 women's coaching. Ingrid also holds yoga classes and sound healing journeys locally in Stockholm, Sweden. The most common question I get around mindfulness is quite simple, what is it? While often talked about in relation to wellness, mindfulness practice is rarely understood in a way that feels accessible, practical, and relevant to everyday life. If you’ve ever wondered what mindfulness actually is and why so many people turn to it during stressful seasons of life, this article offers a clear, scientifically grounded explanation of what it entails and why it is so beneficial for our personal lives and professional success. What is mindfulness? According to Rob Nairn, renowned author and co-founder of the Mindfulness Association, through which I was trained, mindfulness is defined simply as knowing what is happening while it is happening, without preference. This definition contains two essential elements: A skill: Present-moment awareness, or noticing your experience as it unfolds. An attitude: Awareness without preference or judgment, by meeting your experience with kindness rather than criticism, towards yourself and/or others. So, when practicing mindfulness, we are building a certain skill while employing a certain attitude. Mindfulness is not about clearing the mind, achieving perfect calm, or forcing yourself to “think positive.” Quite the opposite. It is about learning to stay present with yourself gently, honestly, and compassionately, especially when life feels hard. Thankfully, when we manage to do this, the outcome is often reported as a clearer mind, a steady inner calm, and more positive thoughts. Why the skill of present-moment awareness is so powerful When the brain is not actively engaged in a task, it will instinctively fall back into its default mode network, which is responsible for scanning for threats as an ancient survival mechanism. Today, this manifests as the mind wandering off into time-traveling, either worrying about the future or ruminating about the past. Very rarely do we actually live in this present moment simply as it is, and yet it is only when we live in the present that we can interrupt the brain’s automatic stress response of scanning for threats. When we practice the skill of noticing what is happening while it is happening, for example, noticing when the heart starts racing during a stressful moment, we activate the brain’s regulatory systems rather than its survival systems. This simple act of noticing sends a message to the nervous system, despite the challenging moment, I am here. I am aware. I am not in actual danger. When practiced over time, this present-moment awareness becomes a stabilizing force. You begin to catch your stress earlier, respond to it more consciously rather than resist it, and stay connected to yourself beneath the noise. I discuss how this helps us in the workplace in my interview with Brainz here. Why the attitude of non-judgment is so powerful According to a compelling 2021 study published in the Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy journal, internal self-judgment is one of the biggest amplifiers of stress. The moment we feel overwhelmed, the inner critic makes a cameo, “I should be coping better.” “Why am I like this?” “Everyone else seems fine.” This self-judgment activates the same physiological pathways as threat does. Physical sensations manifest in response, muscles tighten, the breath shortens, and the mind spirals into panic mode. In some cases, this can contribute to chronic physical health conditions. Practicing the attitude of non-judgment interrupts this harmful pattern by allowing you to meet your experience with self-compassion rather than self-attack. In trauma-informed mindfulness, non-judgment is not passive acceptance, it is proactive nervous system repair. It teaches the body that it is safe to feel, slow down, and respond thoughtfully rather than react impulsively to a situation. When you stop judging your inner experience, you stop fighting yourself. When you stop fighting yourself, you give yourself the chance to heal and to thrive. Why practice mindfulness? Mindfulness is not a quick fix for emergency situations. It is a long-term, compassionate training of the mind and nervous system. But it is also a superpower. Practicing mindfulness helps you: Reduce stress and overwhelm by interrupting automatic reactivity Build emotional resilience through consistent, non-judgmental awareness Improve focus and clarity by remembering to return to the present moment Strengthen self-compassion by detaching from the authority we unconsciously give our harsh inner critic Support trauma recovery by reconnecting with and creating safety in the body Improve relationships by learning how to regulate your emotions, build self-awareness, and develop compassion and empathy toward others A place to start: A simple mindfulness practice Pause from whatever you are doing at this moment. Bring your attention to where your body makes contact with the floor. Notice one sensation in the body, tension, temperature, movement, or stillness. Name it gently without judgment, for example, “Tension in the chest” or “Tapping the foot.” Then add an element of self-kindness, for example, “This is allowed.” This combination of noticing and allowing is the heart of mindfulness. Why mindfulness matters now more than ever In today’s world, which is constantly speeding up, mindfulness offers a radical way to handle it sustainably, presence. Instead of giving in to our habitual stress impulses, we are taking our power back by remaining grounded and calm. We do this by staying conscious and accepting of our internal moment-to-moment experience so that we can choose how we want to respond rather than react. Once you learn how to incorporate mindfulness into your everyday life, it evolves from a simple practice into a powerful mindset, leading you to move through your days with resilience and empowerment. Want to learn more about how to transform your life through mindfulness? I offer online one-to-one coaching sessions for women, online weekly meditation practices, and a transformative, evidence-based online course called The Mindfulness-Based Living Course, designed by the Mindfulness Association. You can also join me on Substack, where I write my free weekly newsletter, The Inner Compass. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, and visit my website for more info! Read more from Ingrid Montague Ingrid Montague, Mindfulness Instructor & Somatic Wellness, MSc Ingrid is a Mindfulness Instructor & Somatic Wellness Practitioner, MSc, specializing in teaching evidence‑based practices for nervous‑system regulation, emotional resilience, and embodied well‑being. After contracting a severe illness in 2020 that landed her in the hospital, Ingrid learned firsthand how practicing meditation calmed her stress and strengthened her immune system, inspiring her to make mindful and somatic practices the focus of her professional work. Ingrid currently guides and teaches mindfulness classes, yoga, and sound healing journeys online and locally in Stockholm, Sweden.

Written by Dr. Omosefe Christina, Medical Doctor, CEO & Founder of Elite Exams Dr. Omosefe Christina is a Medical Doctor, Entrepreneur, and Founder of Elite Exams. She blends frontline clinical practice with medical education and community programmes to help International Medical Graduates (IMG) and African families flourish in their careers and communities in the UK. A direct look at why structured, tailored induction is one of the most consequential and most overlooked patient safety decisions an NHS employer can make. This article examines the evidence on how well-planned support can help international medical graduates navigate NHS systems, settle into clinical teams, and provide safe care. Picture the first day Picture this. A doctor arrives in the UK after years of training and clinical experience in another country. She is qualified, motivated, and ready to contribute. On her first day, she is handed a standard employee handbook, pointed toward a computer terminal, and told her induction is the same one every new staff member receives. Within weeks, she is taking on-call shifts. She has never used the electronic prescribing system before. She is unfamiliar with the local referral pathways. She does not yet know the NHS escalation culture, when to call, who to call, or how to document. Nobody has explained it. Nobody thought to. This is not a rare or extreme scenario. It is, according to the evidence, the norm. It carries real consequences, for the doctor and for the patients depending on her. The numbers tell a story employers can no longer ignore The NHS does not run despite international medical graduates. It runs because of them. In 2021, over 77,000 licensed IMGs were working across NHS hospitals and primary care settings, accounting for 34% of GP trainees that year. By 2023, that figure had climbed to 52% of all GP training places being filled by non-UK graduates. In many regions and specialties, globally trained professionals are not supplementing the NHS workforce. They are holding it together. Yet, a survey at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth, found that 69% of IMGs rated their first NHS induction as 3 or lower out of 5. Nearly half received no departmental induction at all. A striking 92% said they would have benefited from an IMG-specific programme, one built around their actual transition experience, not a generic checklist written for someone who already knows what the NHS is. A separate national picture confirms what that survey suggests: more than half of IMGs reported receiving no formal NHS induction at all. Not a poor induction. No induction. This is not a minor administrative gap. It is a structural risk to the doctors who show up ready to work and to the patients trusting them from day one. When induction fails, regulation records it The regulatory data is unambiguous. According to the GMC, IMGs are three times more likely to be referred to a fitness-to-practise process by their employer than doctors who graduated in the UK. That statistic is alarming enough on its own. What makes it more significant is what the GMC's own commissioned research found when it looked deeper. The landmark Fair to Refer? report concluded that a primary driver of those disproportionate referrals is insufficient transition support before IMGs begin clinical work, not lower clinical ability. Internationally trained professionals were being referred not because they were less competent, but because they had been placed in environments that never properly explained the rules. Earlier research examining over 7,500 GMC inquiries found that overseas-trained clinicians were not only referred at higher rates, but were significantly more likely to face serious outcomes, including suspension or erasure. More recent analysis from 2026 confirms the gap has not closed: IMG and EEA graduates are still referred by employers 1.5 to 1.7 times more frequently than UK graduates. These figures are less a verdict on individual doctors than a record of what happens when a system absorbs thousands of globally trained professionals every year without properly equipping them for the environment they are entering. What good induction actually looks like, and what it delivers In June 2022, NHS England launched the Welcoming and Valuing International Medical Graduates guidance, the first nationally standardised induction framework of its kind, covering pastoral welcome, professional practice orientation, IT and electronic patient record training, and language and communication support. It sets a minimum standard, not a suggestion of what good looks like, but a baseline for what every NHS trust should be providing. At Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, a five-day induction programme for IMGs led to faster integration, reduced onboarding strain, and measurably improved patient safety outcomes. Supervisors reported that doctors who completed the programme required significantly less oversight and settled into clinical teams far more quickly. The programme costs around £400,000 per year, a figure the trust views not as an expense, but as a patient safety investment. At Withybush Hospital in Pembrokeshire, a bespoke induction built around NHS professional skills, clinical refreshers, emergency simulation, and on-call ward scenarios was evaluated in the Future Healthcare Journal (2025). The results showed significantly improved clinical confidence in IMGs, alongside stronger engagement from educational supervisors receiving structured, early feedback on the doctors they were supporting. Both programmes share the same core logic: induction that is early, specific, and human. Not a one-day tick-box exercise, but a structured transition that treats the doctor's context, where they trained, what they know, what they haven't encountered yet, as the starting point. Primary care cannot afford to treat this as a hospital problem GP practices face a particular challenge here. Smaller, less resourced, and without the induction infrastructure of large acute trusts, many simply absorb new clinicians into the workflow and hope for the best. But the clinical risks in primary care are no less real. An overseas-trained GP joining a UK practice may be navigating unfamiliar consent frameworks, different safeguarding thresholds, a repeat prescribing culture that differs from their home country, and communication norms that take time to read correctly. None of these are failures of competence. They are gaps in orientation, and they are entirely preventable. A structured 30-day onboarding process for internationally qualified doctors joining GP practices, covering clinical systems, safeguarding protocols, referral pathways, and medicolegal expectations, is not an optional extra. It is the minimum standard for safe practice. 5 things every induction package for IMGs must include The evidence from national guidance and programme evaluations converges on five things that separate an induction that actually works from one that merely satisfies an HR checklist. It has to start before the first unsupervised shift. Induction must happen before on-call or out-of-hours work begins. Orientation needs to pre-empt the first night shift, not follow it. It has to be specific to where they are working. Generic induction is insufficient. The electronic patient record, local referral networks, and the escalation culture of a particular department vary between trusts and practices, and induction must reflect the actual environment. It has to support the whole person, not just the clinician. People with lived migration experience consistently report that professional performance and personal settlement are inseparable in those first months. Practical orientation, housing, banking, and cultural navigation directly affect clinical presence and retention. It has to build in supervisor feedback loops from day one. Induction should generate structured early feedback for educational supervisors, enabling support plans to be built before issues escalate, rather than after. It has to explicitly cover UK medicolegal and communication norms. Consent law, duty of candour, GMC professional standards, and NHS consultation style are not universal. Assuming equivalent knowledge is a documented source of regulatory risk. It needs to be taught, not assumed. This is not about being kind, it is about being safe There is a persistent tendency in NHS workforce conversations to frame IMG support as an act of generosity, something extended to newcomers as a welcome gesture. The evidence dismantles that framing entirely. Professor Mala Rao, lead architect of the NHS IMG Induction Programme, has described it as "astonishing" that the lack of a comprehensive induction had been flagged for a decade, and nothing systemic was done until 2022. With 41.9% of the NHS medical workforce from ethnic minority backgrounds, induction that does not account for the transition experience of internationally trained professionals is not a neutral default. It is a design failure. An induction programme without a structured, early, IMG-specific component is not fit for purpose in the modern NHS, and that conclusion rests on the data, not on opinion. For medical directors, training leads, and practice managers, the ask is not complicated. The frameworks exist. The evidence is established. The cost of doing this well, whether through a multi-day trust programme or a structured GP onboarding checklist, is modest against the clinical, regulatory, and human cost of getting it wrong. The doctor in that opening scenario, qualified, motivated, shown to a terminal and left to figure it out, deserves better. So do her patients. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and visit my website for more info! Read more from Dr. Omosefe Christina Dr. Omosefe Christina, Medical Doctor & CEO and Founder of Elite Exams Dr. Omosefe Christina creates digital learning platforms that turn frontline experience into practical support for international doctors in the UK. She is the CEO of Elite Exams, which supports the medical education of internationally trained doctors aspiring to become independent GPs. She builds digital systems, courses, platforms, and automated learning pathways to support doctors who migrate to the UK. References: NIHR ARC NWL – NHS IMG Induction Programme Overview McLaughlin & Baker (2025) – Integrating the International Medical Graduate, PMC Jalal et al. (2019) – Overseas Doctors of the NHS: Migration, Transition, Challenges, PMC NHS Employers – How LED Induction Can Support IMGs (Chelsea & Westminster Case Study) Derriford Hospital Survey – Developing an Enhanced IMG Induction Process, PMC RCP – Pilot Programme to Better Integrate Locally Employed IMGs into the NHS e-LfH – NHS Induction Programme for IMGs (Welcoming & Valuing Guidance) GPonline – Tips for IMGs on How to Thrive in General Practice (GMC FTP Referral Data) NIHR ARC NWL – IMG Induction Launch (Prof. Mala Rao) CapX – Poaching Doctors from Abroad Puts UK Patients at Risk (2026 FTP Referral Rates)

Written by Liz Emelogu, Executive Strategy & Wellbeing Coach & Mentor Liz serves as an Executive Coach and mentor with a unique emphasis on Wellbeing. She is keen to help businesses see that the emphasis on values centred on human needs can not only improve the wellbeing of the people but also foster a successful enterprise. Her mantra is "People first, performance will follow." A sales director I met recently was not in want of data. He saw in more detail than ever before how the tastes and requirements of his potential clients were changing. He did, however, struggle with the next step, how to convert this information into something that could actually be sold and thus lead to growth. He put his challenge to me like this, "How do I keep making decisions fast enough to keep the company stable and growing when the information landscape is changing this quickly?" This is not a question of technology. This is a leadership question. Underneath the exhilaration, and for some, even the anxiety or fear of artificial intelligence (AI), I hear the same worries. In every conversation with managers about AI, I hear some variant of this concern. For the first time, the answer may not be a scarce resource. AI can explore a problem, analyze the data, develop options, challenge assumptions, and increasingly make recommendations. So, the question for leaders is not what AI can do. It is what AI will require leadership to become. When intelligence is abundant, judgement is the scarce resource The prestige of expert knowledge is a very old thing in history. For most of the time, expertise was an important source of authority. Leaders knew more, had seen more, and could gain access to information that others did not have. AI breaks up that pattern. Now a junior associate can test an idea in advance of the meeting and bring new information that reveals an error in a senior colleague’s way of thinking. A team can try out dozens of strategies without anyone even sitting down. This does not make experience void, but it makes discernment more important, since more information does not imply better decisions. AI may widen the field of possible solutions, but only leadership can determine which deserve to become realities. The real problem for the sales director was this, the problem was not the figures, it was the people. The main task was to establish what was important and to translate this into a policy that the employees could understand, believe in, and carry out. The risk of answers that arrive too easily Another conversation remained with me in part because of who I talked to. A chief risk officer for a major financial institution told me that he was not so much concerned about whether AI would be able to do the job as he was about what would happen when automation got so good that no one checked the data before it was used in projections and growth models. That is one of the less visible risks of AI. The danger does not lie only in the possibility that an answer is wrong, it lies also in the fact that it comes to us so glibly, so unavoidably, that we stop asking whether it is true or not. The better the tool, the weaker the habit of checking it. For the risk specialist, that is where errors stop being caught and are incorporated into forecasts, financial plans, and personnel planning. This is why the ability to deal with machines does not just mean the ability to use the tools, but also the ability to know when to question them. Where are the assumptions? What data lie beneath? What could be missing? And who is to blame if we act on this information and it is incorrect? The faster the answers come, the more important the verification process becomes. When information no longer needs interaction A third executive brought up something that I believe many boards still fail to see. They were worried about the well-being and cohesiveness of the organization itself. The information that used to circulate between them by means of conversations, check-ins, and face-to-face meetings was now automatically available and accessible at the click of a button. The benefit is real, and so is the side effect. A unit can acquire knowledge better but be worse as a unit. Not every exchange in an organization is unproductive. Some serve merely to transfer information, and automation is therefore quite the right thing to do. But others serve a purpose that never comes up for discussion, they build trust, they facilitate informal learning. They expose people to other ways of thinking, give someone the opportunity to challenge an established view of things, and sometimes lead to ideas that no one expected. So the question is not "Can AI eliminate this meeting?" It is "What was this meeting doing for the organisation?" Is the answer simply a transfer of information? Then automate it. But if the answer is a matter of trust, learning or collaboration, you had better think twice before you automate. This is not an argument against artificial intelligence (AI). It is an argument for better leadership of AI. AI adoption is not AI maturity Many companies measure progress by the degree of take-up, how many employees are making use of AI, how much has been invested in new tools, and how much time has been saved. Adoption of AI tells you almost nothing about maturity. A mature organization uses AI less, not more. It knows that everything can be automated, but not everything must be, and that productivity is not the only measure of value. It protects the places where relationships, reflection, debate and judgement matter. It is also a question of not forgetting the human cost of the operation. If every increase in productivity that AI makes possible is simply transformed into an increase in speed, it may result in an organization that is technically advanced but psychologically exhausted. The question cannot only be "How much more can our people produce?" It should also be "What can our people now do that they never had the time, space or capacity to do before?" Five questions every leadership team should ask before AI scales These three conversations came from very different perspectives, from the sales department, from risk management and from organizational well-being. Yet all three have prompted the same questions. If I were to sit down with a management team today, I would not start by asking how much AI they are already using. I would start by asking the following: What is this process or meeting really doing for us, beyond the output? Separate the transfer of information from the trust, learning and connection that come with it. Who verifies, and how would we know if they stopped? Build checking into the system, especially for forecasts, financial decisions and workforce planning. Where must judgement stay human? Decide this deliberately, before the technology decides it for you. What will we do with the capacity AI creates? If the answer is only "more of the same, faster", look again. What will we deliberately refuse to optimise? Every organisation has things that are worth protecting precisely because they are not efficient. These questions lead the conversation beyond the subject of tactics and into that of leadership. Leading with AI, not like AI This is not the solution. The more capable AI is at processing information, the more the things it cannot do become important, things such as context, responsibility and human judgement. It is true that technology can tell us what is possible, but it cannot tell us what is meaningful. It can pick out patterns but cannot tell us how we should feel in a good organization. This era will bring forth new and different leaders, curious, but not dazzled, knowledgeable about data without becoming dependent on it, open to automation, without assuming it should be applied to everything. They will have a different confidence, not a confidence of having the answers, but a certainty of being able to ask the right questions, and an authority that is based on accountability, not on knowledge. Thus, the question that will be most useful for managers is not whether AI is good or bad for humanity. Are we using AI to extract more from people, or to create better conditions for them to participate, develop and lead? When AI is better at answering our questions, the quality of leadership will depend on the questions we ask. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and visit my website for more info! Read more from Liz Emelogu Liz Emelogu, Executive Strategy & Wellbeing Coach/Mentor Liz Emelogu works with business leaders to enhance their effectiveness and realise their full potential while protecting their mental and emotional health. She is an award-winning business mentor (received as part of her role in mentoring UK-based Businesses). She is a certified NLP practitioner, certified mental wellbeing coach, and an ILM executive coach. Her approach as a Holistic Business Architect helps leaders create a bespoke framework around strategy, people, and processes, with people at the centre of it. The emphasis on values centred on human needs can not only improve the well-being of the people, but also foster a successful enterprise that is constructed around the lives of both its employees and its customers.

Written by Danielle Lord, PhD, Author, Researcher & Content Creator Danielle Lord is the founder and principal of Archetype Learning Solutions, where she produces materials that support adult and organizational learning. She is also an author and academic researcher with an interest in how physicians transition from clinician to leader. Look at Gallup’s decades of data, and the pattern is sobering. In the United States, national engagement has hovered around one third of employees since 2000, with record highs topping out in the mid-30s. This means that globally, only a small minority of workers have ever been engaged. So when someone calls for a plan to “rebuild engagement,” we need to ask a harder question: did we ever really have it? We have lived with chronically low engagement for as long as we have been measuring it. That is not a morale problem. It is architectural. Today’s organizations still run on the architecture of modern work: roughly a thousand years of inherited design decisions about power, output, and human worth, layered one on top of the other and never demolished. The historical layers we are still standing on Each era updated the tools and the language of work while keeping the same underlying lesson: people are necessary, yet expendable. Feudal manor: Work exists for survival; power belongs to those at the top; those below comply rather than influence; safety depends on staying in your place. Lessons learned: unwritten rules, unapproachable managers, “Who am I to ask?” and roles built on not making waves. Industrial and Victorian era: Capital is the asset to protect; labor is surplus and replaceable. Lessons learned: machines get scheduled maintenance and stethoscopes for deep listening; humans get canceled one-to-ones. Taylorism and scientific management: Managers think and design; workers execute; deviation is inefficiency. Lessons learned: rigid workflows, excessive KPI cultures, over-scripted service, and listening labeled “inefficient.” Bureaucracy and the rational system: Stay inside your jurisdiction; authority follows the chart, not the knowledge. Lessons learned: policy as a substitute for judgment, approval chains that outlive their purpose, and the person who knows being separated from the person who can act. Human relations: People respond to attention, belonging, meaning, and mattering. Lessons learned: the language of care on the walls, with the same control-based structures underneath. Modern management: forty years of flattening: Loyalty is no guarantee of security; do more with fewer buffers. Lessons learned: compressed roles, widened spans of control, thinned middle management, and restructuring as routine weather. The residue is specific On the feudal manor, serfs were bound by oath and survival, and the manorial lord was ruler, judge, and enforcer. There was also a coarse mutual dependence: without machines, the manor needed those hands year after year. People were controlled, but necessary. The industrial and Victorian eras broke that dependence. Coal, steam, and iron made equipment the prized asset and labor abundant, and injury became acceptable collateral in the pursuit of production. An engineer in high-speed manufacturing said it plainly to me: “It’s pretty sad when the machines are better cared for than the humans.” Taylorism formalized control. Frederick Winslow Taylor’s Scientific Management (1911) promised that work could be studied, measured, standardized, and optimized. Its enduring fantasy is that if the process is perfect enough, the human being can be made predictable, and consulting firms still sell that logic under newer names: efficiency programs, operating model redesign, and lean initiatives. Bureaucracy gave it a permanent home. In what W. Richard Scott (2003) called the rational system view, organizations are instruments designed to achieve goals through formal rules, hierarchy, and control. Human relations should have changed everything. The Hawthorne studies of the 1920s, then the Ohio State and University of Michigan studies and the Blake-Mouton Managerial Grid, showed that concern for people and concern for production are not opposites. Yet the structures held, and organizations learned to talk about people while still designing around control. Modern management finished the job: forty years of downsizing, restructuring, and flattening. Support layers disappeared, spans widened, and roles compressed. The result was more fragile organizations, where employees became both indispensable and disposable. Stack those layers, and three fractures open. The first is structural. 1. The silo crack: When information, authority, and accountability stop traveling together This is not simply “departments do not communicate.” It is what happens when the person who knows is separated from the person who can act through departments, layers, decision rights, handoffs, and systems that split knowledge from authority. It begins at the bureaucracy layer, with specialization, role boundaries, formal authority, and departmental jurisdictions, and it widens through modern management as flattening removes the connective tissue that once carried a problem to someone who could solve it. Tomorrow morning, it looks like this: the person who can see the failure has no authority to stop it, and the person with authority never hears about it in time or doesn’t have the time to address it. Tension between departments and people caught between competing expectations from different leaders are among the clearest signals that distress has become systemic rather than personal. 2. The expectation crack: When promise, power, and daily reality do not line up The second fracture is relational and moral. The Expectation Crack is when promise, power, and daily reality do not line up: the gap between recruitment language, values statements, and engagement rhetoric on one side, and what people are actually asked to absorb on the other. Its logic is straightforward. The old systems taught organizations how to operate. Modern life changed what people reasonably need from work. Organizations added more generous language without always redesigning the systems beneath it. The gap between those realities became the Expectation Crack. 3. The modern crack: The reinforcing loop of an organic system Here is why it is a modern crack. The feudal serf was not promised work-life balance. The factory child was not invited to bring their whole self to work. The laborer in the workhouse was not told their well-being was central to the mission. Modern employees are. They’re told: ideas matter, you’re welcome here, you have a voice, and we believe in employee well-being. The reality experienced by many employees is very different. The crack sits near the upper modern-management layers and runs diagonally down, created by the weight of polished people-first promises resting on old foundations of extraction and obedience. I watched it open in one email. A CEO asked me to recommend two leaders in my development program. One was flippant and spent class time on his phone. The other was curious, fully present, and his team thrived while he was away. Asked which I would bet on, I chose the second. The CEO selected the first because he was a high performer who brought in significant revenue. That is how we teach people that results excuse almost any behavior, and people believe the reward system every time. Why morale programs keep failing Engagement is downstream from conditions; you cannot sprinkle it on top of a stressful culture. When a pizza lunch, a retreat, or a values campaign lands on a compliance-designed operating system, the goodwill lasts only as long as the next harmful moment. People come back the next day and realize the promises were hollow. It is also why the Blake-Mouton sweet spot, high task and high care, still feels out of reach. Leaders are formed inside these systems, where production orientation was rewarded and employee orientation was invisible or punished. Under chronic pressure, the nervous system learns that control equals safety and care equals risk. That is not a skill gap. It is a trauma gap. Culture by Design does not promise to remove every hard reality of work. It requires leaders to stop hiding those realities behind inspiring language, and its practices are reinforcement rather than decoration: voice crosses the Silo Crack; clear and kind makes power understandable; one-to-ones restore human connection; rounding brings leaders near the work; and a community of practice connects expertise across roles. Three sentences that name the architecture instead of blaming the people inside it: “Our metrics only notice throughput right now. Until that changes, I am going to say out loud that the relational work you are doing counts here.” “This priority is new. Something else has to stop. Tell me which one, and I will carry that decision upward.” “That policy was written for a version of this organization that no longer exists. Let’s find out who can change it.” The human cost has a name When fear, obedience, scarcity, and punishment repeat across centuries, they do not vanish when workplaces modernize. They carry forward as inherited scripts: over-compliance, fear of speaking up, guilt about rest, and the belief that survival at work requires silence, performance, and self-protection. Lived out over years, that inheritance produces Cumulative Workplace Distress (Lord, Kodama, & Granzotti, 2025), the slow, repeated erosion of a person’s well-being and identity caused by chronic exposure to psychologically injurious workplace conditions. It is what accumulates when role confusion, unsustainable load, emotional masking, and unnamed harm are simply how the building works. A micro-practice: Read your own building Take twenty minutes with one policy, metric, or recurring meeting your team quietly resents, and ask two questions. First: Which layer wrote this? Control and standardization point to Taylorism; rules that serve no one point to bureaucracy; doing more with fewer buffers points to flattening. Second: Does this keep information, authority, and accountability together, or does it split them? Then do one small thing. Retire it, close one gap between the person who knows and the person who can act, or tell your team why it still exists and who could change it. Twenty minutes, once a month. Naming the layer is what makes it questionable, and that is where redesign begins. Reflection questions Which historical layer is loudest in how my team is actually measured, regardless of what our values statement says? Where in my own span does information sit with someone who has no authority to act on it? Which promise did we make in recruitment or on the values wall that our current systems cannot keep, and what would it take to say that out loud? In closing This history is not an academic exercise. It changes the intervention. When you can see that today’s distress is not about fragile workers or poor attitudes, you stop moralizing symptoms and start redesigning conditions. If you have felt torn between care and control, you are standing inside models that never reconciled the rational, natural, and open realities of work. That is the ground Building Beyond Engagement: Understanding Wounded Systems and Leading Through Cumulative Workplace Distress covers, with the Culture by Design Field Guide as the companion for leaders ready to redesign one layer at a time. Start with the layer closest to your own hands. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and visit my website for more info! Read more from Danielle Lord, PhD Danielle Lord, PhD, Author, Researcher & Content Creator Danielle Lord is passionate about ensuring that employees have a meaningful and beneficial work experience. For over 30 years, she has worked in organizations bringing about transformational change through adult and organizational learning, change management, employee engagement, and leadership development. As the principal of Archetype Learning Solutions, she researches and develops materials to support employees and leaders in creating a harmonious work environment. In addition, many of her products are used by coaches and other consultants to help support their own practice of maximizing the human experience at work. References: Gallup. (2022). State of the global workplace 2022 report. Gallup, Inc. Gallup. (2026). State of the global workplace: The human side of the AI revolution. Gallup, Inc. Lord, D. (2024). Engaging your employees: 12 heart-centered strategies to drive your organization’s culture & commitment. 2nd edn. The Workplace Press, Auburn, WA. Lord, D. (2026). Building beyond engagement: Understanding wounded systems and leading through Cumulative Workplace Distress. Joy House Publishing, Federal Way, WA. Lord, D., Kodama, C., & Granzotti, M. (2025). Understanding leadership fatigue in emerging physician leaders: A qualitative study of physicians transitioning into executive-level roles. Self-published. Taylor, F. W. (1911). The principles of scientific management. Harper & Brothers, New York. Scott, W. R. (2003). Organizations: Rational, natural, and open systems. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ.

The multidisciplinary cultural leader and creative artist connects self-worth, cultural influence, and independent ambition through “10 STAR,” a flex anthem backed by a co-sign from former NFL superstar Antonio Brown. OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA / MIAMI, FLORIDA – Ariana Mercedes is building a creative identity that extends beyond music. As a multidisciplinary cultural leader, creative artist, and founder of the Blueprint Movement, she is bringing together music, cultural expression, and a philosophy rooted in self-worth and unapologetic ambition. Her single, “10 STAR,” captures that philosophy through a confident flex anthem about knowing your value, owning your identity, and refusing to let outside opinions determine your worth. Now drawing additional attention following a co-sign from former NFL superstar Antonio Brown, the record introduces audiences to an artist whose vision extends beyond a single release. For Ariana Mercedes, the message behind “10 STAR” is direct: recognize your value before the world does. The ten-star mentality represents setting a higher standard, moving with confidence, and understanding that personal worth does not depend on external validation. Antonio Brown co-signs “10 STAR” The Antonio Brown co-sign marks a notable moment in the story of “10 STAR” and Ariana Mercedes’ growing creative profile. Known for his career in professional football and his presence in entertainment and music culture, Brown’s recognition brings additional visibility to the record and its message. For an independent creative artist, a co-sign from a high-profile personality can introduce music to new audiences and create new opportunities for discovery. In Ariana’s case, the moment adds momentum to a larger story about artistic identity, cultural leadership, and building beyond traditional industry boundaries. But the significance of “10 STAR” is not limited to who recognizes it. The song’s underlying philosophy is about understanding your own value before anyone else confirms it. Brown’s co-sign amplifies the conversation surrounding the record while Ariana’s identity and creative vision remain at the center. The moment also connects naturally with the record’s core message: confidence begins internally, and recognition follows on its own terms. More than Music: The vision behind Ariana Mercedes Ariana Mercedes identifies as a multidisciplinary cultural leader and creative artist, bringing a broader perspective to her work than music alone. Her creative identity reflects an interest in how artistic expression, individuality, and culture intersect. As the founder of the Blueprint Movement, a cultural movement, Ariana is developing a vision that extends beyond an individual song or conventional artistic category. Her role as a founder places cultural expression and the idea of building something larger than oneself within the broader context of her work. That distinction matters in an environment where artists increasingly build their own platforms, shape their own narratives, and establish identities that reach across multiple creative disciplines. For Ariana, music is one avenue through which she communicates her perspective. “10 STAR” provides an expression of confidence and self-worth, while the Blueprint Movement represents another dimension of her identity as a cultural leader and founder. “10 STAR”: A flex anthem about knowing your worth At its core, “10 STAR” is a declaration of self-belief. The record embraces the confidence of a flex anthem while centering a message that reaches beyond appearances, status, or material success. It is about understanding what you bring to the table, recognizing your own potential, and refusing to make yourself smaller to satisfy somebody else’s expectations. The ten-star mentality represents a standard of excellence and the determination to move accordingly. Rather than waiting for outside approval, the message encourages listeners to recognize their own value and stand firmly behind it. That perspective resonates across creative industries, entrepreneurship, and personal development. Whether building a business, establishing an artistic identity, or pursuing a larger vision, people often have to believe in what they are creating before the wider world recognizes it. Through “10 STAR,” Ariana gives that mentality a musical expression: unapologetic, confident, and grounded in knowing your worth. Oakland to Miami: Culture, identity, and ambition Oakland and Miami provide important cultural reference points for Ariana Mercedes’ story. Oakland represents the independent spirit, resilience, and distinctive creative identity associated with the Bay Area. Miami contributes a dynamic entertainment atmosphere shaped by self-expression, ambition, and cultural exchange. Together, these cities frame a broader narrative about individuality and building beyond geographical or creative boundaries. They provide context for an artist whose ambitions extend beyond a single category and whose work connects music with a wider cultural identity. As the Antonio Brown co-sign brings added attention to “10 STAR,” the Oakland-to-Miami narrative provides another dimension to the story: a creative vision focused on expanding reach while maintaining a clear sense of self. The Blueprint Movement: Building beyond the spotlight Ariana Mercedes’ role as founder of the Blueprint Movement is central to understanding her wider creative identity. As a cultural movement, the Blueprint Movement represents an important part of her work beyond music. It places Ariana’s ambitions within a larger context of cultural expression and independent creative leadership. While “10 STAR” communicates the importance of self-worth through music, her identity as a founder reflects the ambition to build beyond an individual release. The two elements sit within a broader creative narrative centered on individuality, vision, and the determination to establish something distinctive. As the movement continues to develop, its mission and activities will further define its cultural contribution. For now, it forms a key part of the story behind Ariana Mercedes and the creative vision she is building. A co-sign is a moment. A vision is the bigger story Antonio Brown’s co-sign gives “10 STAR” a timely point of attention, but Ariana Mercedes’ larger story is about more than a single endorsement. It is about a multidisciplinary creative building an identity across music and culture, a founder developing a cultural movement, and an artist expressing a philosophy centered on confidence and self-worth. The record brings those themes together in a concise message: know your worth, own your presence, and do not allow external opinions to define your potential. With “10 STAR” gaining attention through the Antonio Brown co-sign, Ariana Mercedes has an opportunity to introduce more audiences to both her music and the wider vision behind her work. She is building beyond music, beyond conventional labels, and beyond the expectation that someone else must define her value. With the Blueprint Movement as part of her broader creative identity and “10 STAR” expressing her ten-star mentality, Ariana Mercedes is making a statement about self-worth, cultural ambition, and creating on her own terms. About Ariana Mercedes Ariana Mercedes is a multidisciplinary cultural leader, creative artist, and founder of the Blueprint Movement, a cultural movement. Her work connects music, creative expression, and cultural identity, with themes of self-worth, individuality, confidence, and ambition. Her single “10 STAR” expresses an unapologetic philosophy of recognizing personal value, while the Antonio Brown co-sign has brought additional attention to the record. Listen to “10 STAR” YouTube Apple Music Artist Connect: NFL legend Antonio Brown marks Ariana Mercedes as his favorite 10 Star – The Artist Connect Media & press inquiries Ariana Mercedes Founder, Blueprint Movement Email: executiveblueprintevents@gmail.com Instagram: @thearianamercedes

Written by Kimberly Stokka Merendino, Therapist, Author & Nonprofit Founder Kimberly Stokka Merendino has spent more than two decades helping individuals and families navigate grief, trauma, relationships, caregiving, and life’s unexpected transitions. Her work explores how we can release unnecessary suffering and become more fully present, connected, and alive. Sometimes the hardest part of loving someone is allowing them to have an experience we cannot fix. I have spent much of my professional life helping people. As a therapist, I have worked with individuals and families navigating grief, conflict, uncertainty, and some of life's most difficult transitions. I've spent much of my personal life doing something similar. I know how to move toward someone who is hurting. I know how to listen, problem-solve, advocate, and take action. What I am less practiced at is recognizing when my desire to help has become a way of managing my own discomfort. Because sometimes, when someone we love is struggling, we aren't simply responding to their pain. We're responding to how difficult it is for us to watch them experience it. Those are not always the same thing. Why being needed can feel so good There is something deeply rewarding about being needed. When we help someone, we may feel useful, connected, appreciated, or reassured that we've made a difference. Sometimes helping becomes part of how we understand ourselves. We are the dependable one. The capable one. The person who knows what to do. There is nothing inherently wrong with any of that. Caring for others is part of what makes us human. We need one another, and there are times when stepping in is exactly what love requires. But I am beginning to recognize that there is a difference between caring for someone and feeling responsible for making their experience better. Sometimes that line is remarkably thin. Even with the best intentions, we can intervene in ways that interrupt another person's opportunity to discover what they need, make their own decisions, or work through something difficult. We may offer advice before they've had a chance to find their own words. We may try to resolve a conflict they aren't ready to resolve. We may rush to reassure them because their sadness makes us uncomfortable. Sometimes, without realizing it, we begin carrying responsibility for an experience that belongs to someone else. A lesson from the sand tray Some of my most important lessons have come from working with children. Children can be remarkably clear about what they need, particularly when they feel safe enough to tell us. I remember working with a young client who enjoyed creating elaborate scenes in the sand tray during our sessions. As the child played, I offered a comment, hoping to engage with what was unfolding. The child stopped me and asked me to remain silent. I learned in that moment not to interpret the play, contribute to the dialogue, or offer my thoughts. I was simply asked to be there, to witness. Just there. Present. Attentive. Emotionally available. But quiet. I remember that moment because it was such a clear reminder that what I believed might be helpful was not necessarily what this child needed. Another voice in the room was not needed. What was needed was someone willing to accompany without taking over. The difference mattered. The difference between helping and rescuing I think about that moment often, especially in my adult relationships. What would change if I became better at simply accompanying the people I love? Listening without immediately offering a solution. Allowing someone to tell their story without deciding what they should do next. Remaining emotionally engaged without assuming I need to contribute something useful. After a lifetime of being the person who solves problems, simply listening does not always come naturally. Sometimes listening without intervening requires more intention than taking action. I can be fully engaged in what someone is saying and still feel the urge to offer a suggestion, share an observation, or point toward a possible solution. But I've begun asking myself whether that urge is always about the other person. Sometimes it may be about me. About my discomfort with uncertainty. My difficulty watching someone struggle. My desire to believe there is something I can do to make the situation better. Perhaps even my need to feel useful. That's where helping can quietly become rescuing. Helping responds to what another person needs. Rescuing can become an attempt to relieve our own distress by changing someone else's experience. When that happens, we may unintentionally take away some of the very independence, confidence, or agency we hoped to support. The difference isn't always obvious. Our motivations can be mixed, and sometimes someone genuinely needs immediate, practical help. But the distinction is worth noticing. Presence is not passivity I want to be careful here. There are situations in which intervening is absolutely necessary. Children need protection. People facing illness or disability may need sustained caregiving. Someone in danger may need another person to step in decisively. Sometimes the most compassionate thing we can do is advocate, problem-solve, or take action. The lesson I learned in the sand tray wasn't that I should never intervene. It was that I needed to pay closer attention to what the person in front of me was actually asking for. Sometimes people want advice. Sometimes they want assistance. Sometimes they need someone to help carry a burden that is genuinely too heavy to manage alone. Sometimes they simply want someone to sit beside them while they figure out what comes next. Presence is not the absence of care. It is one expression of care. It can require considerable discipline to remain present without making ourselves responsible for the outcome. A different question to ask Lately, I've been trying to ask myself a different question when I feel compelled to help. Am I stepping in because this person needs my help, or because I am uncomfortable watching them struggle? The answer is not always simple. Sometimes it is both. I don't think we need to criticize ourselves for wanting to make life easier for the people we love. That impulse often comes from a beautiful place. But perhaps we can become more curious about it. Have I asked what kind of help this person actually wants, or have I already decided what would be best? We can notice when we're offering solutions to a person who may simply need understanding. We can allow others to have feelings we cannot resolve. We can learn to distinguish between being available to someone and becoming responsible for everything that happens to them. I am still learning this. I suspect I will be for a long time. But that experience in the sand tray taught me something I continue to carry into my relationships. Sometimes the most meaningful thing we can offer another person isn't our wisdom, our advice, or our ability to make something better. Sometimes it is our willingness to remain beside them without taking over. We can care deeply without carrying everything. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and visit my website for more info! Read more from Kimberly Stokka Merendino Kimberly Stokka Merendino, Therapist, Author & Nonprofit Founder Kimberly Stokka Merendino is a psychotherapist, author, speaker, and nonprofit founder with more than two decades of experience helping people navigate grief, trauma, relationships, caregiving, and life’s difficult transitions. Her clinical expertise and personal experience as a caregiver inform her exploration of the difference between unavoidable pain and the unnecessary suffering we add along the way. Through her writing, Kimberly invites readers toward greater presence, connection, wonder, joy, and hope.