Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Paula McDade. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Paula, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

After operating in the creative space as a graphic designer and self publisher for many years, it was a very personal choice for me to enter the field of resilience coaching for women. I was righteously indignant and helpless at the same time as I watched someone very close to me leave a relationship of domestic abuse as a broken, shattered woman. For many years, I assisted women in sharing their stories through writing books. I put together a number of anthologies to aid these women in processing some of the horrific things they had gone through. By doing this, I was giving them the opportunity to emerge as the unique and powerful people they had always been but had been buried beneath layers of shame, grief and guilt. My goal is to help traumatized women emerge from the shadows and develop their resilience.

My goal is to help women who have experienced trauma of any kind, whether as children or adults, develop resilience skills. The ability of women to properly raise healthy families is compromised when they are shattered in this way, as society has now realized. I’ve been able to interrupt the cycle in my own family, which gives me the confidence to continue on with this purpose.

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 got into the creative space because I have always been that way since childhood. I loved to freehand draw and create various works of art. As a child my classmates would have me draw their favorite cartoon characters and pay me to do so. This was my very first entreprenurial pursuit. I loved the satisfaction of giving them a piece of something connected to my gift and it made them smile.

Stellar Creative, my for-profit company provides graphic design and self-publishing services. We work with individuals, companies, small businesses and nonprofits to bring their creative vision to life. I also publish a magazine called Brilliant Awakening, which has been on a hiatus for awhile but will soon come back to the marketplace. I wanted to showcase some of the incredible people who do great work in their communities, in business and in the world. I have finally created a distinguishable brand that stands out from others because people can recognize my work out of the crowd. I work hard to create an experience that my clients will be pleased with.

My nonprofit venture is Resilience Refinery, a virtual and in person experience for female trauma survivors to build their resilience skills. They can receive group coaching or one-on-one services with a trained resilience coach, access to workshops and events, referrals to community services and advocacy training. By providing these valuable services to all women regardless of their ability to pay, my hope is that they will find their path to healing and break the generation cycle in their own families.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Of course everyone had to pivot during the pandemic. For me, it gave me time to think about what was really important to me at the core. I had to take a look at what I was doing that was working, and what wasn’t. Since emerging from the isolation of being quarantined, our world looks very different than it did two years ago. Our mental health took a hit, and those who were most vulnerable began to show signs of decline. If you went into the pandemic as a trauma survivor it only served to aggrivate conditions for some people. Since most of the time women are the caretakers of the home and children, this has been particularly difficult for some. I knew that this critical area had to be addressed and that we needed more boots on the ground. I have a background in the nonprofit arena working with underserved populations, so this move made sense for me. While I am not closing my business, I am adding an element that takes me in the direction of my passions, helping women heal while educating their minds.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Word of mouth is always the core of a service provider’s business. People who have an experience (whether good or bad) with you always tell others. My work speaks for itself and the personal attention given to each client is something that they will gladly pay for. Prior to my creative business I was well networked within my community. I already had a large number of contacts and relationships with people in various capacities.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.stellarcreates.com | www.resiliencerefinery.org
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StellarCreates
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulalorraine

Image Credits
Speaker panel on stage photo: Honest + Kind (@ Confidence Con) Photos with white backdrop and crowd (Chelsi Dennis Photography)