Like her colleagues at Ivy Sea, Inc., Network Collaborator and former Ivy Sea Writer-in-Residence Maggie Oman Shannon is passionate about promoting mindful communication — something she has been interested in since the age of 15, when she first started writing short stories inspired by current events.

In her collaborations with Ivy Sea, Maggie has lent her significant expertise in research, writing and editorial review on numerous projects, including acting as editor for the hardcover first edition of Big Vision, Small Business (HC, October 2001). Maggie's career has always involved communicating; she is the former editor of two inflight magazines, Braniff Destination and USAir Magazine, as well as The Saturday Evening Post. Her other professional experience includes being the editor for The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis (the largest children’s museum in the world), and Director of Marketing for the Institute of Noetic Sciences, an international research and membership organization.

Maggie also contributes her rich experience and multiple talents from her other professional offerings. A spiritual director and inner-life coach, she is the founder and principal of The New Story, a business offering coaching and educational services to people seeking deeper meaning in their lives. She is the editor of Prayers for Healing and the author of The Way We Pray (both published by Conari Press), and co-author of A String and a Prayer: How to Make and Use Prayer Beads (Red Wheel/Weiser). Her articles have appeared in Intuition, New Age, Utne Reader and other publications.

Maggie lives in the city she loves (San Francisco) with those she loves (her husband and two cats). In addition to taking advantage of the many natural and cultural delights of the Bay Area, she enjoys traveling, spending time with friends, seeing movies and making beads in her leisure time. She is a graduate of Smith College, with a B.A. degree in English Literature and Language, and graduated from the three-year program of the Spiritual Directors Institute at Mercy Center in Burlingame, California.

E-mail Maggie directly, or visit The New Story website for more information.

I am very inspired by people who make a lasting contribution to the world through their acts of compassion, courage, and creativity. A current source of inspiration is the work and example of my teacher and mentor, Angeles Arrien.

What do you find most challenging about your career?

Finding enough time to pursue all the adjunct avenues associated with it (such as reading current publications and web research) on a daily basis.

Most rewarding?

When someone reflects back to me that something I’ve written or said has had a positive impact on his or her life.

If you could pursue any other profession, what would you do?

My current livelihood is the result of having gone down a number of professional paths, all of which converged to bring me to this place. I’m very happy here.

What’s the one item you have on your person most of the time?

My wedding ring. I never take it off.

If you were a non-human object/being, what would you be?

A lighthouse.

What’s one of your favorite quotes?

Two lines by the 13th century Sufi poet Rumi: "Let the beauty we love be what we do./There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground." I love this so much that I have a ring engraved with these words.

What type of person do you get along with the best?

People who are intelligent, kind, have a sense of humor, are interested in the people and world around them, and who are open to exploring the spiritual dimensions of life.

Name one of your pet peeves.

I love San Francisco, but parking in certain parts of the city can definitely be challenging. I have twice had the experience of having to give up on a planned activity because I couldn’t find parking!

What’s the one question you’d like definitely answered?

That’s an interesting question to ask, because I think so much of the richness of life lies in continually asking powerful questions. But I suppose the one I’d like definitively answered is, "How can we all work together to create lasting peace, and futures of health, hope and wholeness, for every man, woman and child on the planet?"

Of what are you most proud?

Being blessed with the opportunity to attempt to contribute something of value to the world through my books — having created something that will outlast me.

What was one of your favorite games as a child?

One of my favorite games as a child was to write stories and illustrate them. Since Jung said that we can find keys to our right livelihood through our activities as children, this memory inspires me to find more time for my artwork.

What’s your favorite comfort-food meal?

Pizza with sun-dried tomatoes and pine nuts.

What book or books are you currently reading?

Since I’m currently writing a book, most of my reading relates to my research. However, I can report on the last two books I read on vacation: Soul Salsa: Surprising Steps for Godly Living in the 21st Century by Leonard Sweet, and Releasing the Creative Spirit by Dan Wakefield. And the last two books I bought (two days ago) are Jesus, Entrepreneur by Laurie Beth Jones, and Spiritual Innovators: Seventy-Five Extraordinary People Who Changed the World in the Past Century, edited by Ira Rifkin and the editors at Skylight Paths.

"I hope that people of all faiths as well as those who do not believe in a religion will find inspiration and understanding here [in Prayers for Healing] that in some way contributes to their own inner peace." — His Holiness the Dalai Lama

"Maggie Oman Shannon has gifted us with a magnificent collage of practical grace. She has gathered together treasures from the family of the earth, precious jewels of prayer, contemplations and deep reflection. Any one of these offerings, if practiced, has the potential to bring us genuine peace and nourishment. To have so many wonderful stories and traditions at our disposal [in The Way We Pray] is a rich meal, indeed. Maggie's work is an astonishing act of love." — Wayne Muller, author of Sabbath and How, Then, Shall We Live?

"Maggie is an Ivy Sea collaboration-network member because of the integrity, caring and expertise she brings to her work. In addition to her belief that we can infuse our work — indeed all of our endeavors — with love, passion and a deep sense of purpose, Maggie offers a wonderful blend of creative, spirit-based and practical tools to help her clients find their own ways to do that." — Jamie Walters, Founder, Ivy Sea, Inc. and Author, Big Vision, Small Business