Meet Your Behavior Guide
Hi! I’m Mary.
I enjoy the simple things - walks with my family, cappuccinos, and flowers on my dining table. I also love improv comedy and just finished a year-long training program!
I‘m so glad you are here!
A little about me …
I didn’t start this business because I had a perfect plan.
I started it because I became a mom.
Before this, I was a school-based behavior analyst. And while I learned a lot in that role, I always felt pulled toward something else—I wanted to work with families. I wanted to advocate for them, not just manage behavior in a classroom.
Then I had my son, and everything shifted.
When he started daycare, I got a call that stopped me in my tracks. They told me he was being physically aggressive—hitting—and that something needed to change.
I remember feeling so many things at once:
embarrassed, overwhelmed, and honestly… out of control.
And because of my background, there was an added layer of pressure. I felt like I should have prevented this. Like somehow I had failed him.
But underneath all of that was fear.
I was scared we would be asked to leave daycare. And in Nashville, that’s not a small thing—you don’t just find another daycare. Waitlists can be years long.
I also started questioning myself as a parent.
Had I done enough?
Had I prepared him for this?
Was I too late?
And what made it harder was this:
The conversation was all about the problem. There wasn’t a clear path forward.
So I created one.
I stepped back, worked through the emotions, and started doing what I had been trained to do—but this time, as a parent. I looked at patterns. I asked better questions. I put simple, intentional strategies into place.
And things started to change.
His behavior at school improved. We stopped getting calls.
That experience changed everything for me.
Because I realized—most parents don’t have the tools, the support, or the guidance to do what I was able to do in that moment.
And when they go looking for help, they run into more problems:
Advice that doesn’t fit their child
Strategies that don’t align with their values
Or nowhere to turn at all
So they try everything… and nothing sticks.
And over time, they start to feel something deeper:
like they’ve lost control.
That’s where I come in.
I bring over a decade of experience working with children and families—but more importantly, I bring a different approach.
I don’t believe I’m the hero in your story.
You are.
My role is to help you uncover what’s already there—to help you understand your child, connect to your values, and create strategies that actually fit your family.
Because there isn’t one “right” way to parent.
There’s your way.
And when we build from that place, things start to click faster.
Sometimes that looks like a small shift—like using a timer for brushing teeth or giving a simple choice instead of a demand. Small things that create quick wins and show you: change is possible.
From there, we build.
Not with overwhelm. Not with rigid rules.
But with clear, practical steps that help you feel confident, capable, and back in control.
Because you’re not starting from nothing.
You already have what you need.
I just help you bring it forward.
Mary is a Board Certified and licensed Behavior Analyst based in Nashville, TN. With an evidence-based approach, she seamlessly integrates the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT), neuroscience, and child development.
Views represent only that of Mary Lees and not that of the Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB).
Images by Amy Miller