Client story: Lena

Lena was disappointed in herself. She had moved to a city she loved, thinking it would improve her life. But she had developed habits that reinforced her sense of isolation.

Together, we came up with a plan to change that. Here is her story in her own words:

"During my time with Maya, I recognized that I longed for a sense of belonging where I lived, but I wasn't doing anything about it. I thought I would find my people here, but after work and on weekends, I would either do my errands alone or just stay home.

That´s when I made my Farmers Market promise. The promise was this: I would show up each weekend at the small Farmers Market three blocks from my apartment and strike up a conversation with a stranger. Bonus points for exchanging names. EXTRA bonus points for exchanging contact info.

By turning it into a game, I found I looked forward to it! I kept track of who I talked to, and what we talked about. I greeted these people when I saw them.

I got brave and asked a neighbor there if she wanted to grab coffee. She seemed happy to be invited! We ended up talking for an hour. She also works from home, so we started going on Wednesday noon walks together. I told her about my Farmers Market promise. She thought it was brilliant! She made a similar promise to start a conversation with someone while working on Thursdays at a local cafe.

Soon, we had a group of five neighbors. We started getting together for coffee before the market each Saturday. We made a pact not to complain about news and instead plotted about how we could support what we valued in our neighborhood.

We started doing things like clean up our park, organize a picnic for our block, and assist those with neglected community garden plots. We had a clothing swap. We built and installed a free library. In winter, we had soup nights, candlelight game nights - things I never imagined I would love!

Nothing we did was terribly original. That was not important. What mattered to us was making small improvements together and inviting others to join in.

It has been a year now. I feel like this is the community I always hoped to live in. I spend my weekends doing fun things with people I know instead of staying at home and streaming movies.

This was just one aspect of my life that I was able to change while working with Maya. Each thing I did--the Farmers Market promise, my new side gig, and my skill-building challenge--gave me a sense of agency and made my life so much more fun.

I would have wasted this year. Instead, I chose to change my habits, and that changed everything.¨