Could You Be So Right It’s Hurting You?
I woke up this morning to little snowflakes on my windshield. SNOW! Apparently New York didn’t get the ‘it’s Spring” memo. When I saw the snow I immediately felt grumpy and, after 2 or 3 minutes of pouting, I realized I have a choice. I can choose to stay grumpy and let it ruin my mood […]
Authentic Buy-in
If you’ve been in the professional world, corporate or otherwise, for any length of time, you’ve heard about the importance of communicating benefits. Communicating Benefits is one of those basic block and tackling skills that rarely get taught in high school, or even college for that matter (like balancing a checkbook – what’s with that?), […]
The Comparison Trap
There are some days that, try as you might, you cannot escape being human. And even though you know, logically, that “everybody’s got their somethin”, it’s still easy to fall into that comparison trap. You know the one. Remember the last time you saw somebody who seemed to have it all? You look at them […]
Making it Safe to Say What’s Real
“How are you?” “How’s it going?” If you’re spending time in the US, you’ll hear these greetings all day long; from colleagues, friends, clients, the checker at the grocery store, your kid’s teacher, the mailman, the guy making your latte at Starbucks – that’s just what we say to each other in this country. Do any […]
Don’t Fool Yourself, People Know
I don’t remember where I heard it. I do remember it was eons ago, further back than I could attempt to pin down, but somewhere along my journey, I remember someone once saying, “Who you are in one area of your life is who you are in every area of your life.” It stuck with […]
The Magic of Baby Steps
It never ceases to amaze me, how when I look out over the panorama of my life, the biggest obstacles around are those that I’ve put there myself. It’s almost as if I’ve driven a 4×4 jeep through my muddy pot-holed-filled journey, erecting ‘do-not-enter‘ signs every few yards. I’m not alone in this unwitting-self-sabotage, I’ve […]
What are the Lessons of Your Life?
As I’m watching my husband bundle up to “battle the elements” for his walk to catch the train on his way to work, I’m reminded of my childhood. As some of you know, I grew up a world away from where I find myself now (just outside NYC), on a cattle ranch in northwestern Montana. My dad […]
A New Kind of Leader
With her head cocked to the side, her eyes fixed on some mysterious spot on the floor, I couldn’t tell if she was annoyed or just indifferent, but it was clear that she was not a happy person at that moment. I will never forget how Julia appeared on that stage, waiting to begin. She […]
Creative Thinking and Making an Impact
What seems like a lifetime ago, in the summer of 2001, I got one of those crazy ideas (for those of you who know me, you know that this is not terribly unusual). I was in Seattle at the time, running my corporate events company, and I found this breathtaking spot at the foot of […]
Expectations, Caring and a Tale of Two Trees
As my husband and I were comparing schedules this morning, trying to figure out when we will get the chance to get the annual Christmas tree, I was reminded of the contrasting experiences we’ve had in the past and how critical it is to deliver on expectations and show that you care. Year-before-last, we put […]
