Faces of LIFE-Alette Stache

“Striding Into a Vibrant 3rd Act”

Alette Stache clearly has a taste for adventure and new horizons, given that she immigrated to America from her home in the Netherlands when she was 18 years old in order to pursue higher education. She made a home and a name from herself in the states, and she has two grown children.

Her heart beats for entrepreneurship, first evidenced by her pursuit of interior design
as a focus of study, which later materialized into a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. She engaged in a bit of career exploration before taking on a sales role at Automatic Data Processing (ADP), progressing into sales management there and working with ADP for a total of 17 years to “motivate people to peak performance”.

Seeking work/life balance, Stache decidedto “hang out her own shingle” and pursue her passion for interior design by opening HomeVisionConcepts in 2006. Her interior design business is centered around customizing home spaces for clients, offering many kinds of individualized services such as new home and remodel design, space planning and much more. The business has made quite the mark, racking up several service awards from Houzz.com. Though still active, the business has slowed somewhat since Covid-19, so the ever-active Stache felt “ready for her 3rd act”.

Through some extension courses completed with Harvard and Pennsylvania State, Stache was first introduced to Positive Psychology. It became apparent to her pretty quickly that this was the path she wanted to pursue. However, as Positive Psychology is a somewhat emergent field, locating the educational program that would provide her the proper support took some time. As she soon discovered, the fully online Master of Science in Positive Psychology (MSPP) at Life University (Life U) is one of only a handful of similar programs in the country. The MSPP at Life U investigates strengths-based research that enable individuals and communities to thrive. It is focused on the study of flourishing and positive human functioning, in particular key areas such as meaning in life and cultivating what is best within themselves like gratitude, compassion and forgiveness.

“My two main professors, Dr. Mickey Parsons and Dr. Richard Shook, are the bomb. They are the most compassionate, enthusiastic educators I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. I feel that they care as much about my success in the program as they do about their own performance,” said Stache. “It’s a different world for me, to be around professors that take the time to answer your questions, who are there to support you and there to encourage you.”

She went on to say that these professors “embody all that the program stands for. They embody positive psychology at its best.” Stache also very much enjoys getting to know the fellow students in her cohort, relishing the chance in a small group setting to grow with like-minded individuals from all over the country. It’s remarkable to see the many different ways in which the philosophy behind positive psychology can be applied to many different fields, from academic work towards a Ph.D. to life coaching to any number of other avenues. For Stache, she hopes to pursue providing coaching services for entrepreneurs, drawing from her own personal and professional experience as a marketer and entrepreneur herself.

“Entrepreneurs are an underserved part of our population, and they need all the help they can get,” noted Stache. “I have a lot of experience in corporate sales and marketing so probably coaching sales leaders […] and I would like to do something that I call ‘Legacy Coaching’, helping people that are coming up.”

Stache holds great regard for bestowing hard won knowledge on those that will come behind her, leaving behind a legacy of lasting purpose. And what could be a better 3rd act then that?

This article was originally published in Your Extraordinary Life (YEL), Life University‘s Alumni and Friends Magazine, 2022- Volume 15. YEL started in 2009 as a twice-per-year publication before moving to three issues per year from 2010-2017. In 2018, University leadership made the decision to publish a larger, more elegant version of the magazine just once per year that our alumni and friends could be proud of. YEL features an in-depth look at all things Life University, from alumni and student human interest stories to recaps and previews of the University’s biggest events. If you are a proud Life University alumni, friend or supporter, this publication is one you can’t miss!

Read the latest issue and past issues at this link or pick up a print copy on campus.