I recently went to meet one of my son’s teachers.  He was not doing well in this particular class… which was unusual for him. I scheduled a face-to-face meeting and went in ready for battle.  My head had been filled with all of his stories about how she “hated” him and how bad her teaching was and how she humiliated him in front of the entire class, etc., etc… Well, I saw her as the enemy before I even met her! So you can imagine my expectation of the discussion was going to be difficult and unpleasant… I could feel my… read more →

Are you one of those people who worries about your kids when you’re at work and then worry about work when you’re with your kids?  How crazy does that sound?  You are not alone… it happens to everyone! Let’s see how to break this insanity down a bit.  We’ll start with what “worry” means.  One definition is “To feel uneasy or concerned about something.”  What does “something” mean?  If we look at the context of being concerned about a possibility that “something” may be happening to “someone”, “somewhere” at that given time or at “some point” in the future.  That’s a whole lot of “some”s… read more →

How do you define leadership?  Typically, we think of the CEO in the corner office as the epitome of “leadership”.  However, leadership affects every aspect of our lives in all the roles we play.  If you are a parent, you are a leader for your children.  If you have a spouse, you are a leader in your marriage.  If you play on a sports team, you are a leader in your specific position on the team, etc. The definition I have found that I feel suits the many roles of leadership is: “leadership is the ability to motivate and inspire… read more →

Being a parent is one of the greatest gifts I have ever known.  But great responsibility comes with the receipt of that gift!  Often I find my son catching me doing something that I have taught him not to do… for example not making eye contact with him when I am speaking to him; not turning on my blinker when making a turn; answering the phone during dinner when I have taught him that is what voicemail is for; and a more serious offense like texting while driving. The role we have as leaders in our home is one of great responsibility… read more →

If you know the story of the Good Samaritan, you may think it would be hard to imagine any good deeds like that happening these days… It seems we live in a very self-centered, instant gratification world. Well, I have to tell you what happened to me recently, helped me open up and remember there are so many kind, generous, loving people out there that we have forgotten about… I was up early on a Saturday and heading downtown to a charity event. On the way, I had a flat tire but was able to get to the dealer. I… read more →

When you tend to resist what life is having you go through, it becomes harder with every moment.  Consider the following two scenarios (based on true stories): 1.  You are traveling overseas to get to a meeting.  Your flight is cancelled that afternoon.  You are frustrated, angry, struggling with how you are going to delay all your plans by one full day.  There is no other flight that day to get you where you need to go.  The next morning you get to the airport and find out your flight is delayed again… you may miss the connection for the… read more →

I recently came across a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson that struck me, “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” How many of us have pursued a career because we were trying to live up to someone elses expectations, a parent, spouse, teacher? How many of us have listened to others who came up with all of the reasons why IT won’t work? Has your creative spirit been squashed because you believe your company culture would frown upon your idea? Think about how you’re living your life and whether you… read more →

We make choices everyday on how we will spend our precious time here. Some of us have been called “workaholics”, others have been called ”adventurous”, “free-spirited”.  Whatever, your title, is it how you want to be remembered?  The first step to creating change in our life is to be aware of how we are spending our time and then deciding if we want to continue as is or choose another path. Think about your typical work day… I mean really THINK about it!  Does it excite you?  Fire you up?  If not, what about it can you stop doing immediately and replace with something you want to… read more →

It’s summertime which translates to the well-deserved vacation time. The question is:  will you put down your Blackberry long enough to jump in the water and swim with the kids?  We all get so wrapped up with what’s going on in the office… Afraid we may miss something… Or better yet, feeling guilty that we are on vacation. A few thoughts to ponder:  relax, you earned it! – vacation is the time to create beautiful memories for all of you – your work will still be there when you return – it’s rewarding for others to fill in while you are gone… Just take a breath,… read more →