Overall:
“I worked with Marilyn Cornelius from 2020 to 2022 in my capacity as the Fund Manager for the Fiji Women’s Fund which became a legal registered entity now known as the Women’s Fund Fiji. During this time, Marilyn provided the following services to the organization: led a participatory approach to the development of our Trust Deed which led to the eventual legal registration of the first national women’s fund in Fiji and the Pacific. Marilyn also supported a host of change management processes and worked closely with the Fund’s team. These included individual and group coaching, facilitation, stakeholder consultation, team dynamics, change management, leadership development, mindful communication, and process documentation.
I found Marilyn’s work to be of immense value and of remarkable quality. We benefited as an organization and as a team from the work we did with Marilyn. Her approach is unique because she combines her behavioral science, design thinking and wellness approach to her work and uses a wide range of tools to bring out the best in people.
I would work with Marilyn again because I find her approach and her values align with that of the organization and my own. I wholeheartedly recommend her for change management, leadership development, coaching and for working with teams particularly around group dynamics and group culture.”
Michelle Reddy
Fund Manager, Women’s Fund Fiji
“Holistic, all encompassing, tailored, and empowering wisdom – this is how I describe Alchemus Prime. When you are ready to face your fears, process your trauma, and learn to fall in love with YOU, Alchemus Prime is what you need. It’s worth every penny and more. You will find a coach who will be by your side guiding you, through the remainder of your path to healing and when you “fall back,” gently pushing you to face your fears, reminding you to (re)discover your true-self, supporting you when people (that you love) push back at your rediscovered true self, reminding you how hard you work and how far you have come, and rejoicing with you when you reach those milestones. It can be a slow-moving process. It’s taken years for my subconscious to learn bad habits, for my body to suppress the pain (mentally, emotionally, and physically) of trauma. Healing doesn’t happen overnight. It is a slow process. It’s worth the hard work! I found a guiding Angel here. My relationships with Alchemus Prime are through individual coaching sessions, the online self-love course, and daily video messages at “Mornings with Marilyn”.
Angelita Hernandez, MA
Operations Manager and Coach, Microfinance
“I like to think I am a pretty strong and independent woman, but I found myself in an isolating job and a relationship that made me feel empty. I was engaged in online self-help, wanting to solve me like I would solve a work problem. Knowing the theory was a base, but I was blind to the obstacle (lack of confidence) inside which was holding me back and the tension between knowing and doing made me miserable. I met Marilyn by chance and my life changed for the better. Marilyn is a smart, holistic coach with a mix of practical career advice and emotional trauma coaching plus meditation. I have learned that all the science in the world is nothing if I don’t have the belief in myself or the courage to set authentic boundaries and to trust. I feel so lucky to have Marilyn on my team. The scientific and spiritual approach is opening my eyes and giving me tools to be ‘even more badass than before’ in a life I can love 100%. I have come a long, long way. I know I am stronger and that I couldn’t have done it on my own.”
International Development Consultant,
Melbourne, Australia
First Session
“I spoke to Marilyn when I was in a stage with lots of questions and uncertainty. It seems that I had achieved lots of things at the same time without clear direction or conviction. We started the first session by breaking down the current problems I encountered and ranking my priorities based on my emotional and rational preference. After walking out of the session, I found a clear path towards my dream. It might not have been optimal but it was the decision I was comfortable to make since it aligned with my current preferences. This is the stage I reached after my session with Marilyn: being wise doesn’t mean making the decision solely on rational thinking but considering the factor of my emotional fluctuations.”
Second Session
“After the clear path, I thought there would be no surprise during my journey to the dream. However, I discovered an alternative path, which might accelerate my success but also increase the burden of my mental health. I ceased my decision making process since I am reluctant to compromise with either choice. Marilyn smiled and asked me: “What if you create a third choice?” I realized that I underestimate my capability and this is the root cause of my unhappiness. I should be confident enough to create options for myself instead of being limited by the options offered by others.”
Data Scientist and Mom,
San Francisco Bay Area
“I have undertaken a few coaching sessions with Marilyn. I have been going through challenges personally and professionally. With the professional help of Marilyn, her practical exercises including homework which she keeps a track of like a school teacher (with compassion), I have been slowly shedding the layers of conditioning. The new me, which is still evolving is now feeling braver, confident, creative and ready to take on the world. Her coaching sessions also allows for independent thinking so that you’re not just told what to do. Aside from the coaching, I’ve also had a few tarot card readings with Marilyn, which helped me deal with a few personal challenges, her guided meditations after the readings really “seal the deal”. Marilyn is a gifted coach and healer, I highly recommend using her services, if you’re going through life’s challenges. Thank you Marilyn.”
Ilana Harriet Burness
Yoga Entrepreneur, Ilana’s Heart Yoga
Suva, Fiji
“This has been the most amazing journey I have ever taken in my entire life! The intense energy is a healing gift that each individual should invest in. This the product of experience, the manifestation of self-love, wisdom and divine awakening. Marilyn is relentless with the truth yet the profound insight and knowledge she bestows on one is what makes this the most significant turn in one’s life, she has the gift that she not only uses for the better but also shares with us all so we may also heal ourselves and others. I have found the true meaning of love and this is it.”
Anisha Josephine Chand
Caregiver, Sydney
“I highly recommend Marilyn for her ability to establish and maintain strong and lasting relationships. About a year ago I had a traumatic experience; which had a negative impact on my health, my mood and the way I thought about myself. Together, we explored my strengths and weaknesses. Marilyn coached me to use my experience to draw deeply within myself, determine what keeps me going and find strength in that. Notably, Marilyn provided exceptional support from a distance (I live on the east coast of the USA). I kept moving ahead, found resilience and here I am!”
Natasha Kumar, Ph.D.
University of Virginia Health System
“It is my time now! Recently, a career transition forced me to evaluate my skills. Through the process, a very deep issue that I always knew I had but never wanted to face resurfaced: a grammar problem. My intuition that was later confirmed, is that my grammar and writing skills are deeply connected to my self-image, self-talk, and self-confidence; my ability to lead and motivate my team; and my confidence about my career transition.
I am a mom of two children under 5, with a full time job, and a partner who works full time and does night school. Also, I am learning to cook and eat gluten free. I have no extra time to spare. As a result, classes were not a good fit, and this is why I needed personalized sessions that worked with my schedule. I was seeking help with my business writing. At first, I did not know what this meant and what to expect.
As I made a list of potential helpers, Marilyn was on top. She once, many years ago, helped me with academic writing. We connected and initiated a 4-hours-per-week flexible schedule with two 2-hour sessions per week. We began by looking at all the tasks I was already doing for work, to see how we might leverage them for learning grammar. This resulted in analysis and revision of the most useful, relevant, and timely tasks: communication and report writing.
Our sessions are evolving as we discover my error patterns and we go beyond grammar into things like affirmations, and pronunciation, which was surprising but helpful. Our discussions are rich in content, with action plans and meaningful information. Marilyn meets me where I am in life, and then we move at my pace to set goals. Our work involves more than writing, it is also about how to be more confident, and get people to do what you want without asking! Yes, it is possible, once you know how. It is priceless. I wish I would have done this sooner! Marilyn is helping me to rediscover my voice!”
Angelita Hernandez, MA
Operations Manager and Coach, Microfinance
“My real progress has been in practicing mindfulness and gratitude. I realized that life is not about having emotional reactions to everything. I am no longer on a runaway train that used to be my mind. I can sit and be cool. When I consciously practice gratitude, it’s so freeing from pressure others put on me, pressure I put on myself, and from disappointment. Now, I taste, smell, and see everything around me. I have so much to be happy for. My results so far include producing better quality work, and becoming a stronger influencer.
Marilyn has been an amazingly astute and generous guide. She knows how to pose difficult questions and help you find your way to finding genuine answers. Thank you Marilyn, you are a godsend.”
Coaching Client, MS
National Director, Information Systems
“I wasn’t sure if [the retreat] would accomplish my objectives, but wanted to give it a try as I was feeling unsure of what our next steps at [our nonprofit] should be. Should we continue with the [project 1] deployment…Should we focus on just the [project 2] if that comes through? How should I continue working with [collaborator 1] and [collaborator 2] at the [institution 1] and [institution 2]? I was also hesitant [about whether]…the retreat costs were the best use of the money we had in [our] account. Thus far, I had never used money donated to [our nonprofit] for anything other than project expenses.
The first two days were stressful and I couldn’t sleep well at night. At the end of the second day, I slept soundly as the pieces fell into place…I had clarity on how the various projects fit together into a grand pattern. Until then, I wasn’t sure if the various steps [being taken] would lead to the desired outcome.
Yes, [I achieved my goal], undoubtedly. The extremely lofty goal of mapping out a strategy for whole system change [was attained]. The retreat met my goals but exceeded my expectations. This was my first such retreat.
With the new model, we now have a concrete model to realize our vision whereas previously, I was trying various things out, seemingly without any coherence. But all along, there were patterns that I wasn’t consciously aware of, until the retreat. Thanks!”
Retreat Participant, PhD
Executive Director, environmental nonprofit
“I have been through so much in life and in this process, I had internalized self-hate. I started to self-sabotage and loathe myself. Life became hard and it felt like I was living with a huge rock on my head. Meeting Dr. Marilyn Cornelius and going on a journey of self-love, self-discovery and self-forgiveness has been life-changing. It has truly been a rebirth. This journey has been about looking in the mirror of life, looking the self in the eye and embracing everything completely: every experience, every scar. Forgiving and loving it all. I recommend this course to everyone and anyone because it is the most beautiful, rewarding, liberating, and freeing gift you can give yourself.”
Sidhant Maharaj
“The greatest gift of taking this course is that it has led me to finding internal joy and love for myself. It opened up many doors of self-discovery, healing and an intention to find love within. For anyone who is thinking of taking this course, GO FOR IT! Think of it as a gift and an investment for yourself. It’s a gift of guided self-discovery that leads to self-love!!”
Michelle Reddy
“When we experience trauma for a prolonged period of time and this goes unchecked, our bodies find ways to cope with it. In my case, my body chose to be frozen, this meant I lived in an auto pilot mode, going through life without being intentional or meaningful about my work life. This led me to procrastinate, not give my 100% and mainly sit with a blank mind. For several months I couldn’t understand what was going on till I engaged the services of Dr. Marilyn Cornelius through the accelerated short course on recognizing and releasing trauma patterns. The experience helped me understand that my state of being frozen was a result of experiencing extensive trauma in a toxic work environment. Through the course, I was able to recognize harmful patterns even from my childhood into my adult life and one by one I released most of them. As I continue to work on self-healing, I feel I have woken up from the slumber. I actually feel like myself again. I am now able to not only recognize patterns but also set strong and healthy boundaries. I would recommend the course to anyone and everyone interested in self-love and self-growth and ready to live to their highest potential.”
Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion Manager
Regional Training Organization
“Marilyn Cornelius brings to her work a powerful combination of planning with passion, focus with humor, and research-validated educational practices with current topical knowledge. Her personal dedication to authenticity, holistic approaches, and fostering the greater good make her an excellent coach for organizations pursuing these essential principles. I have enjoyed and benefited from her excellent programs, and hope for the opportunity to work with her again soon.”
Barry Zalph, Ph.D., P.E.
Transportation Expert/Retired
“At first, it seemed as you were moving us too quickly through some of the activities, which were difficult to grasp. However, as the workshop progressed, we learned to let go and trust the process. After doing so, we realized that there was a method to the madness and it all came together beautifully. This workshop gave a powerful boost to the spirit and effectiveness of the group and led to a confident application of new skills, improved communication, and collaboration as a team. We have appreciated the coaching too and are looking forward to opportunities to work with you in the future.”
Michelle Ferreira
US Peace Corps Volunteer
Fiji Ministry of Health – National Wellness Center
Other comments from various wellness workshops:
- “Great workshop, it really made me think about my role as a team member, group team member, and company team member.”
- I liked that you created a safe place for everyone. It allowed people to feel more comfortable and open up despite being who they are and going through what they have.
- “Fun! You were able to get us to collaborate even though we didn’t know each other well yet.”
- “Thank you for encouraging us to act more (think less) and take the more wild, challenging route.”
- “Appreciated the fun, the connection to nature and to ourselves and each other.”
“An eclectic and far-ranging collection of short essays on everything from diet and meditation to prison life, biologically-inspired social innovation, design thinking, Taoism, behavioral change and leadership, Personal and Planetary Wellness at first seemed diffuse and disjointed. How could all these dots connect? And would it be a tiresome series of lectures on how things “should be”? But from the very first page, my doubts were dispelled. All the essays are here for one reason: to facilitate your personal capacity to be a force for change in the world. Marilyn accomplishes this with an unfailingly humble, gentle, curious and practical approach. In reality, this book is a participatory workbook filled with prompts to develop your own leadership style.
Central to Marilyn’s approach is a deeply nature-based philosophy. Not the Thoreauist one that is all to often implicit but unspoken in conversations about biomimicry or regenerative design–that we need to go outside and try to reconnect with our lost garden of eden–but one that I personally deeply adhere to, a Taoist one. Every living thing has a nature, a way of being, and life flows and adapts most easily when it lives from that place. The key to facilitating more adaptive, resilient, regenerative futures for ourselves and our planet is to take time to listen in a deeper way to what these natures are telling us. For Marilyn, that means biomimicry, meditation, outdoor time, and practicing equitable personal freedom.
Never strident, each selection is eminently practical, concluding with a few questions for guided personal reflection. In fact this is the book’s other theme: regenerative, resilient, adaptive living is not really a philosophy, it is a practice. You have to DO it and continually work at it. Marilyn walks her talk here, serving organizations through her consulting company, Alchemus Prime, which she comes back to throughout the book.
My favorite essay in the book is the one provocatively titled “Bruce Lee’s Biomimicry,” in which she describes her company’s action-oriented approach to obstacles and challenges, with its mission statement rooted firmly in Taoist thought: “we help our clients become more like water: accepting, adapting to, and flowing with change in ways that maintain and strengthen their integrity while wearing away even the largest barriers.” Marilyn notes that water changes its form without changing its identity, responding to local conditions, always resilient. “It surrenders to pressure, gravity, temperature, and impact–but it’s strength lies in accepting change.” She quotes the Tao Te Ching: “nothing in the world is as soft and yielding as water. Yet for dissolving the hard and inflexible, nothing can surpass it. The soft overcomes the hard; the gentle overcomes the rigid. Everyone knows this is true, but few can put it into practice,” and relates martial arts legend Bruce Lee’s epiphany that strength comes from finding one’s nature and committing to live it in every way.
This book is a gentle and down-to-Earth meditation on finding our own, practical ways to contribute to a better future. I came away feeling enriched, hopeful, peaceful, and capable of contributing to lasting change in ways that work for me personally–my own nature. Thank you Marilyn, highly recommended!”
Tamsin Wolley-Barker, PhD
Author of TEEMING: Teeming: How Superorganisms Work Together to Build Infinite Wealth on a Finite Planet (and your company can too), Independent Biological Researcher at Biomimicry 3.8, and Writer at Inhabitat.com
Reviewing Personal and Planetary Wellness: Addressing Climate Change, Health, and Social Justice Challenges.
“Food of Love – Got this cookbook [as a gift] from [my friend] Esther. The recipes were so inspiring, my family decided to try our way to become vegetarians. Easy to follow instructions, you can whip up breakfast, lunch and dinner in a flash. You can get your ingredients at most supermarkets now. Be creative, adventurous and have fun with this cookbook. You will feel the LOVE!”
Maribet de Ubago
“It’s hard to find gluten-free recipe books in the first place, and when you do, they can be overwhelming. This book [World of Love] has the right number of recipes and isn’t too much information to digest. There are easy to follow recipes and they are tasty! I love that I can make variations and there are suggestions for doing so. In a foreign world of vegan and gluten free, I find myself at home with this cookbook. It makes a complicated process easy, really easy for a beginner cook. I love the pictures and inspiration from quotes/introductions.”
Amazon Customer
“Marilyn Cornelius, whom I call an Angel on Earth, has become one of the most influential women in my life. I feel so happy and honoured to speak about my personal connection with this amazing personality. I started on her page, “Mornings with Marilyn” where I totally fell in love with her beliefs on the importance of mind- body-spirit connections.
Inspired by her motivating, encouraging and resonating morning messages each day, my connection with her transformed into an even deeper form. With her great qualifications and being a recognized behavioural change specialist, an innovator, a strategic leader and a pathfinder, I greatly admire her very charming, down to earth nature with deep-rooted values. I count myself very lucky to have met her in person when she facilitated a 2-day workshop invited by the nonprofit FRIEND, where she worked with caregivers, community health workers and the team in looking at how we can tackle diabetes.
It was a great opportunity to be among a group of people gathered in a space to discuss and share our personal views on how to bring about lifestyle changes to tackle non communicable diseases, all these to promote togetherness, educate, heal and support. The knowledge Marilyn imparts & the way she mentors with her sophisticated art of teaching people to focus on the achievement of specific objectives is very encouraging and inspiring. She is a trendsetter who invokes her positive attitude and strong work ethic and so naturally instills values in each person she connects with.
Such a delicate and gentle soul yet so strong and powerful person with such powerful impact on all around her with her tireless service.
Love you Marilyn. God bless you with all the best you deserve.”
Shaira Jan Humayoon
“I am a shy and reserved person and people have often taken advantage of me. In other words, I was an average person and very passive. This could be simply due to the reason that I do not drink (nobody is stopping me from doing that but I feel that the money and time I will spend on liquor can be used for my family). I have only few friends and I have difficulty making new friends.
Social media is a great hideout for low self-esteemed individuals like me. Just browsing on FB gives you awareness of your surroundings. So I did that; just following people and keeping my life private. Till date, I have not posted any pictures on FB or publicly posted anything. I hate being in the limelight. I prefer privacy. Saving motivational quotes and videos is what I do best; but to put that in action??? It’s not me.
I got to meet Dr Marilyn Cornelius for the first time at my workplace, when a work colleague of mine invited her to be the chief guest and give a speech about an important occasion to do with women’s empowerment. It was not a huge gathering and her mother, Dr. Margret Cornelius had accompanied her.
For the first time, I heard something that made sense to me. I was captivated by her depth of knowledge, her aura and her ability to touch hearts through words. I did not know (and still do not know) her background. What I really was interested in was what she was saying. Her fluency and simplicity to reach out to emotionally weak persons is just amazing.
After the function, I had a chat with my colleague who had invited her and she told me that Dr. Marilyn has a FB account with a name ‘Mornings with Marilyn’. I straightaway subscribed to it. As I started watching her motivational videos, I felt that she knew me. I could relate to every video of hers. I could even direct message to her on messenger. She is such a savior.
My life began to take shape. Mornings with Marilyn is my habit now. I now have made so many positive changes in my life and have a very confident and positive outlook on life. I feel that every human being is worthy in their own sense and it’s important to keep our own self happy before we can make others happy. Our positive perception of our own self will definitely give us much needed self-confidence and self-worth.
Thank you, Marilyn.”
Professor,
Suva, Fiji
