Why Are We So Surprised by Change?

Why Are We So Surprised by Change?

At the beginning of the pandemic, I sent out a warning to my girlfriends:  Try on your jeans once a week. Your jeans will keep you honest. I felt compelled to share this because I’ve worked from a home office for many, many years. I know, with 100% certainty, that if I wear yoga pants … Learn More

Be that Someone for Someone Else

Be that Someone for Someone Else

In May 1997, I should have been on a high: I’d just graduated college and earned my commission in the United States Marine Corps. Though the moments around these two events were special and celebratory, once the pictures were taken and the festivities died down, inside I was in knots. I was saying goodbye to … Learn More

Work-Life Balance? Impossible. Strive for Harmony Instead.

Work-Life Balance? Impossible. Strive for Harmony Instead.

If you were to take the phrase work-life balance literally, that would mean everything is even:  You’d get eight hours of sleep, work, and life each day, every day.   That would be amazing, wouldn’t it?! Spoiler alert: That type of balance is probably never going to happen.  But let’s not blame “sleep” and “life” … Learn More

The Magic of Inclusion

The Magic of Inclusion

No one likes feeling like they’re on the outside.  When I was in elementary school, I didn’t get an invitation to a sleepover. The rejection still stings. While my parents did their best to make that Friday night special – we went to McDonalds and they let me stay up late to watch Dallas – … Learn More

Gratitude: It’s a Feeling and a Practice

Gratitude: It’s a Feeling and a Practice

My brother’s birthday is tomorrow. November 22. He died nearly 20 years ago from suicide. Even after all this time, Thanksgivings spent at my parents’ are still hard. We don’t talk about his absence. Yet, when we greet each other with a hug and give that extra squeeze, we all know that’s code for “I … Learn More

It’s Time to Tell My Story. Isn’t It Time for You, Too?

I grew up painfully shy. When I was little, I used to hide behind my mom’s legs whenever an adult spoke to me. When it was time to attend preschool, she told me that I couldn’t go unless I started talking with people. My mom found the right motivation. I wanted to go on the … Learn More

The Four Areas in Life to Set Goals

Our goals should be as multi-dimensional as our lives. Learn about the kaleidoscope approach to goal-setting. I LOVE goals. I also like intentions, resolutions, aspirations … pretty much anything that has to do with establishing a starting point (where you are) to a result (where you want to be). Goal junkie: I turned into a goal … Learn More

What Can We Gain from Loss?

How to Grow from Loss, Grief, Setback, and Struggle “How can you even talk about this without breaking down?”   I asked this humbly, sincerely, to a colleague who was sharing with me a story about losing her sister to suicide. This was in 2002. My younger brother, Dan, had just taken his own life. … Learn More

1,000 Reasons to Cheer

Though it was 2021, I can remember this moment like it was yesterday. My mom and I were at a park in Frankfort, MI. She was sitting on a bench. I was sprawled out on the ground nearby surrounded by cigarette butts, chewed up gum, and all sorts of other litter. I didn’t care. I’d just completed my … Learn More

The Victims of Your Bad Habits

Who Are the Victims of Your Bad Habits? What are your bad habits? Come on … you know you’ve got them. To explore further, take a look at the list below: When I look at the list above, it’s easy to see times in my life when I demonstrated several of them, often to my … Learn More

Let Me Reintroduce Myself

Transformation isn’t always visible, but it’s real. Here’s how to share your journey with others. You’ve changed. A lot. Especially amidst the pandemic. Change builds resilience, which leads to an increased capacity to do more, think differently, and contribute in ways you’ve never been able to before. The problem with all this change, though, is that key … Learn More

How to Ask for Help

I had it going on.  High heels, dressy jeans with fancy pockets, hair blown out, makeup done, walking confidently through a crowded hotel lobby in Huntsville, Alabama. I was on my way to a client site, giddy on the inside because I was about to facilitate my first LIVE, post-Covid, in-person session in what seemed … Learn More