Pinterest and charcuterie boards: finding humor in the messy middle

Photo by Jake Oates on Unsplash.

What do Pinterest and charcuterie boards have in common? An end vision. You’ve seen them: the memes that parody Pinterest boards by displaying each perfect [fill-in-the-blank], followed by another person’s hilarious attempt to…[read more]

Everything is permissible but not beneficial: the 100% rule

Photo by Patrick Robert Doyle on Unsplash.

It’s easier to hold your principles 100% of the time than it is to hold them 98% of the time.
~ Clayton Christensen

If you could apply one tip to your life to make it easier in 2022, would you? Motivational speaker and author Benjamin Hardy calls this tip the “100% rule”—making a decision with no other outcome than 100%. For example,…[read more]

One thing at a time: turning resolve into results

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash.

Resolutions: the infamous “R” word. Some years I pile on all the ways I resolve to improve myself. Other years I know that to set the bar too high will result in an #epicfail. Why do we oftentimes gravitate toward an overly optimistic view…[read more]

New year, new word: a recipe for success

Photo by Eyestetix Studio on Unsplash.

I talk a lot about setting ourselves up for success. About our one magical life. And I write about hope for new beginnings, humor in the messy middle and heart for happy endings. But what happens when new beginnings take a detour?…[read more]

Looking back: recounting the past to inform the future

As we approach the final days of 2021 and look toward the new year, it’s the perfect time to recount the milestone moments that paved our way to present, so that we can better inform our future. Looking back on my own journey, I celebrated the publication of…[read more]

Happy birthday to me: one magical life to live

Today marks another trip around the sun—more than halfway into my Club 50 membership. As I reflect on the past half-dozen years, with all honesty I can say: What a ride! Cue in this past summer’s getaway of a lifetime. While it resulted in an inner prompting to create movement, it also reignited my struggle with limiting beliefs—especially when presented a chance to take a leap of faith. What if I screw up? What if I do it wrong?…[read more]

A new home: Always the write time for hope, humor & heart

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Burnout vs. boredom: knowing the signs

Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash.

A typical day in my life begins by rising at “zero dark thirty” for coffee and prayer, part I creative side gig, power workout, day job, part II side gig, dinner, preps for next morning, chores, walk, collapse into bed and repeat. Although I profess to be living the life of my dreams, recently I woke up in the middle of a “funk,” unable to identify why. Until I listened to a podcast titled Burnout. The host ticked off the signs: fatigue, irritability, social withdrawal, self-doubt. Check. But then she warned against mistaking burnout with boredom—which often masks a problem in which one desires to do a particular activity, yet something prevents it. Right now, I’m knee deep in revisions of my manuscript. But maybe I need to shake it up…explore a new hobby or volunteer opportunity, or make room for a guilty pleasure. Or perhaps I must simply take a moment to breathe.

Burned out or bored? Drop a note in the comments and follow me.

 

PSA: It’s simple—Don’t drink + drive

One of the easiest decisions a person can make is to not drink and drive. But here’s the catch-22: once you drink, your decision-making skills become impaired. And because one person chose to drink and drive on Aug. 19, 2004, my family’s “normal” changed forever. Consequently, on the anniversary of my husband’s “death” and “re-birthday,” I hop on my soapbox to share the down-and-dirty details about that night. My 12-year-old daughter and I waited for her dad to arrive home from work so we could enjoy a family bike ride together. Instead, at 6:19 p.m.—minutes from our neighborhood—an intoxicated driver slammed his Dodge Ram into my husband’s Honda Civic. Following a medical-helicopter transport to a Trauma 1 hospital, my husband underwent emergency surgery—after which he spent the next 59 days as an inpatient navigating his new normal resulting from a TBI, crushed hip and myriad physical, emotional and mental trauma. And he still struggles with deficits today. Please think twice: If you drink: don’t drive.

Talk to me: no invitation necessary

 

I’ve never liked confrontation. Yet, avoidance is seldom the best solution. Perhaps today you’re embroiled in a gross misunderstanding. Maybe you’ve been wounded or your words or actions have hurt someone else. One friend of mine—rather than confront a misunderstanding—oftentimes requires an invitation, of sorts, to re-establish the lines of communication. However, this only serves to foster discord. Although I’m the first in line to minimize conflict whenever possible, I don’t require an invitation to initiate a dialog. For example, I’m always willing to provide clarification or nip an assumption in the bud. OK, except between 9 p.m. and 4:30 a.m., or while I’m hiking or writing or practicing yoga or it’s “Friday pizza movie night.” When misunderstandings occur (because they will), I’d like to suggest a tactic rooted in gentleness, kindness and love: that we proactively seek to facilitate a pathway toward common ground. We may have to agree to disagree. But at least we’re talking.

Who do you need to reach out to today?