HI, I’M Marianne
HI, I’M Marianne CANTWELL
If we don’t know each other yet, an extra big hello.
I’m so glad you stopped by.
This is an ‘about’ page – but before we talk about me, I’d like to talk about you:
Because as you’re here, odds are we have a few things in common.
For one thing, I’ll bet you don’t quite fit into the box that other people sometimes assume you do – right?
I’m with you on that – as you might guess from the photos around this site, I’m more than one thing too…. and multifaceted humans like us are my people (welcome!)
Read on to find out a bit about me, and why that is:
01. A few years ago I wrote a book on finding your really-right direction, quitting your job + growing your own thing (that fits the life you want *and* your personality… so you don’t have to leave a piece of yourself at the door to get paid).
It turned into a bit of a bestseller, and has been translated into over half a dozen languages.
(The new extended edition is available now: check it out here).
For well over a decade I ran an online business, creating courses (and global online events) for thousands of people around this topic.
(This work was fully online and let me travel around the world with my little laptop… hence the photos of weird and wonderful locations).
It’s for those of us who don’t feel like we’re just ‘one thing’ – who are good at looking like we fit in the various worlds we move in… but secretly, on the inside, a little piece of us never feels we 100% fit into any of them.
The talk gives that trait a name (“liminal”) and explains why it is not something to hide, and why the difference you may want to hide might be more powerful than you think.
I wasn’t sure how it would be received but the idea seemed to hit home: it was listed by Entrepreneur as a top 10 TEDx Talk to watch and has been viewed half a million times, as people see themselves in it and share it… so if you’ve ever felt that way, you are definitely not alone!
03. Much like you, I’m someone who cares (I very much identify as a “highly sensitive person”, or HSP.)
Add in some late diagnosed ADHD – and I realised years ago the regular work world just wasn’t made for people like us.
So I created a world that works for me, and have evolved it over the years to grow with me. And while I’m no longer working direcly with people or running courses on this, I want you to know you can do the same – even if your way ends up looking very different to mine!
That’s why you can still access the FRH book (full of bonus resources), and why I share my recommended coaches here for more personalised support!
Random skimmable facts if you’re curious 😉
I grew up in Australia, lived in London (UK) for most of my adult life, and am now based in sunny California – but am often found adventuring in favourite spots around the globe.
In the last few years I’ve spent time in Italy, France, Mexico, the UK, Mauritius and Australia (as well as nesting at home, with a garden full of squirrels).
I’m a speed reader… I read everything and I read it fast!
Some favourite authors: Joan Didion, Steven Pressfield, Elizabeth Gilbert, Hanif Kureishi, Jay Griffiths and JP Sartre (yes, really, his novels are wild)
These days I’m all over Samantha Irby, Patti Smith (and anything design related :).
I love personality profiles (and the way we use profiles in free range humans land means they don’t put you in a box, they instead free you up to be more you).
If you’re curious: I’m a classic ENFP (Myers Briggs), Questioner (4 Tendencies) and ‘Star’ profile (in Wealth Dynamics)
One thing people rarely guess about me is that I live with on and off anxiety (and have had bouts of depression), and those things have shaped my decisions over years.
People usually don’t always see that but I share it here to say: you don’t have to be some mythical always-on-it super-human to make things work.
Many of my clients have ADHD (me too!👋) or other things that make us a tad different on the inside.
Our approach is about helping you do things that work because of who you are, not in spite of it.
I believe that words are more powerful than we give them credit for. The words we use unconsciously shape what we think is possible for us.
Which is why I love giving words to the things we’ve always half-thought, but never had a name for (see “liminal” in my TED talk for one example!) – to things we always thought were ‘just us’ and so never talk about.
Until someone, somewhere, works out how to.
And a whole new world might just open up.
05. My thinking has been featured in Business Insider, Inc.com, BBC World (television), The Guardian, The Financial Times among other places.
I was interviewed on about 30 podcasts the other year and I‘m looking forward to more!
A popular conversation topic is always “why your weirdness is your edge” (why the thing about you you are tempted to hide at work or in business might really be your secret superpower).
Which seems to be a theme, because:
06. My most shared quote is “weaknesses are just strengths in the wrong environment”…
And I firmly believe that.
There is a home for every personality and strength – it’s just a question of finding that home or creating it to fit you.
It’s a simple idea, but in a world that can often tell us we need to be more like other people to be good enough… I figured it was worth including here ;).
Lots of love,
Marianne
PS: if you like the sound of any of this and want to hear from me (occasionally!) drop your name here!