About
The HRart Center is devoted to Healing that Cultivates Balance within Your Work and Life
We believe that workplaces that emphasize healing employee capacity will experience higher overall cultural engagement and productivity.
Healing is defined as practices that restore energetic reserves and embrace an emphasis of being present.
Samm Smeltzer
Chief Vision Officer & Founder
How It All Began...
It was the summer of 2015, and I was on maternity leave. I had just given birth to my youngest daughters, who decided to make an appearance six weeks early. It was in those days of traveling to and from the NICU that I found myself questioning everything. I suddenly was hyper aware that I felt numb and I was tired.
I casually made excuses saying my feelings were simply a byproduct of post-baby hormones. As I continued to attempt to navigate the emotional storm that was overwhelming my life, my husband extended an olive branch. Inviting me to create space and take time. To pause, choose myself and remove all other influences. I accepted and left the world of corporate expectations and opened the doors of Leadership Arts Associates. A boutique Leadership Development and HR Consulting firm.
What I learned early on in my entrepreneurial pursuits, is despite my professional career success to that point – personally I felt empty. Leadership Arts Associates displayed this raw realization, with my clear lack of direction and confidence. For the first time in my life, I was looking in the mirror and realizing that I wasn’t sure who I was and what, if anything, I had to offer to the world.
Up to that point I was living checking all the boxes on my proverbial, “Life Goal List.” Needless to say, I felt like I wasn’t truly living. My life was in motion and I was just along for the ride.
I was disengaged from my work and my life.
This is where my obsession began. As a HR practitioner that specializes in organizational development and culture change, engagement was a big deal for me. Now knowing that I personally was disengaged felt like a failure. If I couldn’t keep myself engaged, how in the world could I help guide anyone in keeping others engaged.
So my quest began, with me at the center of my research. There was no company to hide behind or organization to blame for my unhappiness, everything was dependent on me. The perfect foundation for exploration to answer the questions…
How do we help the disengaged?
How do we prevent disengagement all together?
Overview of Research
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2015-2017
The outcome: I learned that aspects of spiritual exploration were effective when working with individuals regarding their sense of purpose.
Inspired by the work of Dr. Brene Brown centered around shame and vulnerability. I used this as a starting point, owning up to the shame I had around my physical appearance, overall health and struggle with spirituality. I began studying with Spiritual Teacher, Gabrielle Bernstein and working with a large variety of nutritionists and personal trainers. Also, despite two dedicated years of consciously focusing on my health, my physical body experienced minimal changes (less than 10 lbs. fat loss, while experiencing large muscle gains). The group of nutritionists and personal trainers were equally bewildered by the limited results. In addition, I personally did not feel better. I dreaded workouts and my food options were becoming more limited (like I was developing new sensitivities) Personally, I was doing a lot of work of revisiting my story and reclaiming it as my own without apologizing for how I felt during any of the experiences. This powerful transformation was captured in my first book that was released in January 2018, From Heart to HRart. -
2018-2021
The outcome: My eyes were open to the world of energetic anatomy and dynamics. I also was given the structure to finally make sense of my sensitivities as a child.
In a practice of trust and having faith, I was introduced to Ted O’Brien, the Director of the East Coast Institute of Medical Qigong. I trained with Ted and became certified as a Medical Qigong Practitioner, then a Medical Qigong Therapist. By the end of 2021, I had completed my Master’s Certificate in Medical Qigong. Learned that I was severely energetically depleted and two years of intense physical activity had only depleted my fleeting reserves more rapidly. With this new knowledge, I took on an elimination protocol to limit all forms of stress on my body (food, physical and mental activity). This resulted in a loss of 30 lbs. in 30 days, confirming my thoughts on the impacts of stress (regardless of type). Finally, my sensitivities began to experience growth and evolution. I was able to see with a new level of transparency how these sensitivities were actually skill sets that have greatly assisted in my work with people up to this point. My key experiences and insights were logged in my second book, The HR Intuitive. -
2022-Present
The outcome: My work and research has accumulated into the following hypothesis. Workplaces that emphasize healing employee capacity will experience higher overall cultural engagement and productivity. Healing is defined as practices that restore energetic reserves and embrace an emphasis of being present.
Actively working on completing my Doctoral Certificate in Medical Qigong, studying with Lisa VanOstrand at 3 Treasures School of Medical Qigong. Began offering training opportunities to Leaders and HR practitioners on how to detox disengagement and learn the workplace healing modality. The birth of The HRart Center, Intuitive HRart Institute and The HRart Shoppe. In addition, I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease and adrenal fatigue, resulting in a need to modify my work schedule and lifestyle further. This forced light duty now reinforced even more why healing and restoration are a necessity for individuals and workplaces.
Why So Personal?
I felt compelled to share my personal story, because I was at the forefront of my own research. I have always been a believer that I would never ask someone to do something I hadn’t done, and so I knew I needed to go first on all fronts if I was ever going to materialize tangible actions for change. More importantly, I’ve learned there is no choice but to get personal. It is this level of intimacy that has been missing from our organizational development work that has allowed our progress to become stagnant and morale numbers to continue to decline.
We are whole human beings that are not meant to suppress certain aspects of ourselves for extended periods of time. The act of suppression is causing active internal destruction as well as the use of energy that is unnecessary. Our workplaces have cultivated a type of society that encourages suppression and as a result limits diversity, authenticity and self-care. If we don’t make a change and challenge these default ways, our health and organizations will continue to decline.
Where Are We Now
Our Mission is to: Create a strong healthy vitality within workplaces and individuals that ends suffering and cultivates engagement. Our portfolio of services is devoted to staying in alignment with moving our Mission forward. Our work is continually evolving, reflective of our own growth and research.