We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Maya Bernstein. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Maya below.

Hi Maya, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

I wouldn’t call myself a “musician” – but a few years ago I noticed that I often heard melodies in my head. It’s likely I’ve heard melodies for years, but I never slowed down and got quiet enough to pay attention to them. I decided to take the risk of listening to myself – and began to sit down at the piano and record the melodies. After I’d accumulated a whole bunch of them, I took another risk, and reached out to a musician I knew and respected. He agreed to work with me to record the tunes and turn them into music – and we put out two albums. I still don’t consider myself a “musician” – but I’m glad I took the risks. It deepened my creativity, brought me tremendous joy, and put some music into the world. Mostly, it reminded me that it’s important to listen deeply, take leaps, and try new things.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I work as a facilitator and leadership educator; for decades I’ve built a career in working with groups and organizations (primarily in the nonprofit and educational sectors) and helping them through transformation and change processes.

A few years ago, I realized that I was ignoring my creative and artistic self, and began to devote more time and attention to my writing – specifically to poetry. I went back to school, and am completing an MFA from Sarah Lawrence, published my first collection, There Is No Place Without You, and am working on a second collection.

In addition, I’ve recorded two albums of original tunes to traditional Jewish text/prayer with Noah Solomon.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

When I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2019, many people told me – don’t worry, you’ll get back to “real life” soon. As if being sick was a break from life, and not part of it. My experience enduring the physical and emotional challenges of cancer and treatment was a kind of awakening into what mattered most to me. It didn’t feel like a break from life – it felt like a reminder of what life could be – fully open, feeling, terrified, alive, hopeful, engaged. I felt compelled to begin to give real time and attention to the artist in me – rather than just sublimating my creative self into more socially acceptable work.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Contact Info:

• Website: mayabernstein.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maya.bernstein.9

Image Credits
https://www.hedvandan.com/