Amy Lynn Durham: Fostering Heart and Human Connection in the Workplace with “Create Magic at Work”

Amy Lynn Durham, a former high-ranking corporate executive in the retail industry, once managed a staff of over 400 employees while working for both private and publicly traded companies. However, as her career progressed, she began to feel a sense of burnout and loneliness, which she attributed to the isolating nature of her executive role. To combat these feelings, Amy began incorporating human-centered activities into her leadership approach, which helped her teams connect on a more personal level. Simultaneously, Amy underwent a spiritual awakening in her personal life, which ultimately led her to leave the corporate world and re-enter the workforce as the “Corporate Mystic” behind “Create Magic at Work,” a venture aimed at fostering heart and human connection in the workplace.

Amy Lynn Durham had long planned her exit from the corporate world, a decision she made a year prior to starting her own business. During this time, she embarked on a journey of self-discovery, traveling and writing her book. Later, Amy enrolled in the Berkeley Executive Coaching Institute at UC Berkeley, where she earned her executive coaching certification. With her newfound skills and a sense of purpose, Amy went on to create the successful brand, “Create Magic at Work,” which has been well-received in the corporate world. Her story serves as an inspiration for those seeking to infuse meaning and connection into their work lives. 

According to Amy, the company is dedicated to promoting human-centered workplaces and fostering a deeper understanding of humanity within everyone. While emotional intelligence has long been a buzzword in the corporate world, Create Magic at Work aims to take things a step further by encouraging leaders to access their spiritual intelligence and become what Amy calls a “quantum leader.” These leaders can make wise and compassionate decisions that positively impact communities, the planet, and humanity. 

Create Magic at Work primarily works with high-level leaders in the workplace who are looking to expand their leadership skills beyond traditional emotional intelligence training. The company offers a wide range of products, services, and workshops designed to support this vision. Amy Lynn Durham believes that every person is a leader and has the potential to contribute to making magic at work. As such, Create Magic at Work partners with both large corporations and small businesses to expand their knowledge of spiritual intelligence and elevate their leadership skills. 

Create Magic at Work’s workshops are built around the company’s own products, and Amy and her team also provide one-on-one coaching for clients who are looking to go through a transformative journey lasting three months, six months, or even a year. During this process, clients learn elevated leadership skill sets that help them experience inner and outer peace, even under the most stressful circumstances. 

Amy explains that the central theme of her company’s services is helping clients put their fear, ego, and defensiveness aside and instead operate from a place of inner wisdom, compassion, and love. By learning to differentiate between these two approaches and practicing operating from a place of inner wisdom more frequently, individuals can seek guidance from within when making decisions as leaders. 

As Amy sees it, the benefits of operating from a place of wisdom and compassion in the workplace are clear. Leaders who prioritize kindness, empathy, and inner wisdom create a culture that is more productive, positive and fulfilling for employees. By contrast, leaders who fail to embrace these principles may find themselves unable to attract and retain top talent. 

In her book and the Create Magic at Work workbook, Amy offers a range of activities designed to help individuals see the humanity in each other. One such activity involves writing down what individuals want to let go of in their life before or after a meeting and sharing it with others. Another product offered by Create Magic at Work is called Flying Wish Paper, which allows individuals to write their wishes and let them go together, creating a powerful sense of connection. 

She believes that the feeling individuals have when they walk out of the room after an activity like this outweighs everything discussed in the meeting and is what they will remember. Through her work with Create Magic at Work, she seeks to create workplaces that are productive and where individuals can show up as their authentic selves and connect with others in meaningful ways. 

Amy also hosts The Create Magic at Work podcast, which offers a unique perspective on workplace leadership. With a focus on spiritual intelligence and quantum leadership, each episode features guests who provide insights and tips to help individuals become wise and compassionate leaders. 

Her advice to those seeking to infuse meaning and connection into their work lives is to start with small actions that align with their values and vision. Amy suggests setting achievable goals and creating a plan to reach them, seeking out resources and support from mentors, coaches, and like-minded individuals, and being open to learning and growth. For Amy, self-care and taking time to reflect and recharge are essential, as are cultivating a positive mindset and practicing gratitude.

As she reflects on her decision to leave the corporate world behind, Amy recalls a moment that proved to be a turning point. While at work, she made a list and took a lunch break to visit a home store. It was there that she came across a magnet with the words, “leap and the net will appear.” Amy took this as a sign that it was time to take a chance and trust in herself. To this day, the magnet remains on her refrigerator as a reminder of that moment.