Ann McLaughlin
Building a world in which everyone thrives
Transformational & Empowerment Coach ~~ Writer ~~ Trainer ~~ Speaker ~~ Consultant
Works in Progress by a Practical Visionary
My writing shows the arc of my thinking and how I bring that vision down to earth
In my books, I connect the dots. I am both “big picture” and practical. My quest was to do a “needs assessment” to help me shift from being a psychotherapist to applying my skills internationally. I read voraciously in history, current events, world affairs, economics, and futurists. Because in the 1990’s there were few schools to prepare me, I developed a world view that is uniquely my own.
The Choice is Ours:
Spiral Up or Spin Out
Computers, the internet and social media have made it possible for humanity to be connected. Like the printing press, technology empowers common people, has raised aspirations and accelerated change. 2020 has been momentous: 1918 + 1929 + 1967 & 1968! Some futurists predict conflict, revolution and catastrophe. I think it is more important to create our future than to predict it. The future is our choice; it is what we create. I showcase initiatives, innovators and people with a vision – ordinary people doing extraordinary things – which can light our path.
The Power of the People Rising
I see a clash between citizens who want their voices heard and self-serving autocrats. Human rights abuses and refugees fleeing are symptoms of tyrannies. Democracy building is the antidote: building “people centered” governments which respond to the needs of the people. Droves of people coming to me at NGOabroad want to help Syrian refugees. I say, “We need to avert tyrants such as Bashir Assad who drop barrel bombs.” I see the George Floyd protests that have rocked the US as part of a worldwide trend of rising people power confronting “a heavy boot.” Protests are just the first step. Vision and sustained practical action are required to reinvent policy and elect or forge a government which responds to the needs of the people.
International Development: Build your Skills...to Get the Job...to Change the World
Many people coming to me for career counseling at NGOabroad, are not prepared to enter international work. One, they do not know the realities on the ground – how people live in remote villages or peri-urban slums. Two, they do not have the necessary skills. Three, coming from privilege, their attitude may inadvertently thwart progress. This book is primarily for those in the Global North; because those coming from the developing world could have written the chapters on the realities on the ground and attitude. Most books are theoretical; this is very practical.
International Social Work:
Build the Skills....to Get the Job...to Work Abroad
This book is a slight reconfiguration of the international development book. Because Social Work in many countries has a long tradition of emphasizing poverty, advocacy, empowerment, community organizing and how to launch and direct an organization, Social Work is well regarded in international development.
International Development: Brilliant Solutions
The World Bank did a “listening tour” and talked to 60,000 poor people in 23 countries about their needs and priorities. Rather than expatriates determining the priorities, in Participatory Development, the people themselves identify their needs and craft the solutions. Let us listen to what the poor propose. I then point to stellar models which could be replicated: literacy in India; health program in Bangladesh; economic empowerment and community development in Ghana; rural development in Nepal. Plus, if you have a hunger to help, learn the ways you can create change in and from your home country.
Thrive
in Hard Times and an Ever-Changing World
This book was written during the COVID crisis. The crisis is a crucible: it will forge us and force us to reinvent ourselves. People who do best in a crisis have often faced adversity before; they are determined and undeterred; their dream drives them. Thriving is this unsinkable attitude; + articulating your dream and plotting the path to its realization; the same “recipe” for reinventing yourself for a new job role or making your own small business.
The Speaker page has links to articles which I have written which also show my emerging thinking.
