Work-Life Balance
Use your bedtime to revisit your dreams
My original dream of becoming a world-class copywriter in an advertising agency never went away. Instead, it evolved from copywriting in my own advertising agency where I’d be selling products and services, to copywriting in my own career-coaching practice, where I help people build up the skills they need to sell themselves. I believe…
Read MoreYour original dream is not lost – you are just hiding from it
If you feel frustrated, disgruntled, overly emotional, sarcastic, or complacent, or even if you are downplaying what you really want out of your career, know that your original dream didn’t go anywhere, just like the pigeon who makes his way into plenty of Mo Willems’ other books. Your original passion lies inside of you. Your…
Read MoreYour original dream is being lived by someone else
In Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, the bus conductor is living the bird’s biggest dream. It really doesn’t matter who is living out your dream. You are bothered by the fact that someone else had the vision and courage to go for it. What you might not realize is that they too had…
Read MoreYour original dream takes different shapes
The pigeon wants to drive a bus in the beginning of the book, though later he switches gears to pursuing a trailer. Both are vehicles that move. What moves you? It’s not easy to uncover an underlying thread unless you have the courage to dig for it. Sometimes you have to pay for someone to…
Read MoreYour original dream never goes away
You may get distracted along the way and pick up professional degrees in the process, yet these might be considered distractions until you are ready to pick up your dreams once again. As a job interview coach I am committed to making it socially acceptable to fulfill childhood dreams. I believe that the same dream…
Read MoreYou’re supposed to dream at night
Anyone else read between the lines of children’s books? If you are reading a bedtime book to your child, I encourage you to pick up the lessons that its author might have intended for you. As a parent of three sons, I re-read these stories so often that I find it impossible not to connect…
Read MoreStop taking your unhappiness at work out on others
I want to career coach job seekers who go out of their way to mentor others. I prefer working with people who believe that they are not working for their own gain but for that of others. Those people exist…you have to find them or become one yourself. I remember those caring team leaders and…
Read MoreYou’re supposed to dream at night
Anyone else read between the lines of children’s books? If you are reading a bedtime book to your child, I encourage you to pick up the lessons that its author might have intended for you. As a parent of three sons, I re-read these stories so often that I find it impossible not to connect…
Read MoreStop second-guessing yourself and take action (not everyone can)
As a little girl, I always wished there was some huge book of careers – just a place where you could turn the pages and read about every occupation in existence from food stylists to marine biologists. My interest in careers became consuming when I noticed that some professions afforded families a better quality of…
Read More45 Questions You Must Answer Before 2017 Rolls In
Let’s be honest 2017 won’t look very differently than 2016 unless we ask ourselves tough questions, and then face the potential ramifications of our answers. I’ve outlined some of the questions that would stop me in my tracks and encourage me to rethink core assumptions. Give them a try and let me know how I…
Read More[DARE #14] – Unstuck Yet? – What Went Wrong in 2014?
It’s the last Sunday challenge of the year. Last week I encouraged you to figure out ways to delegate yourself out of your current job to a better one – it was a forward-looking task. Now, let’s take one step back. Be warned: this one is uncomfortable – for everyone but it’s about increasing our…
Read More[DARE #13] – Get Unstuck – Delegating
“The true goal of leadership is to make yourself unnecessary.” -Geoffrey James Think about it – how else will you ever ascend to a higher leadership position (i.e. out of your current role) if you don’t figure out ways to train your team (or anyone) to eventually takeover your existing responsibilities?
Read More[DARE #12] Get Unstuck – “Crazy stuff”
Last week was about thinking through what you want out of 2015 and creating a roadmap. This week is about tweaking your plan in a meaningful way. Here’s the background: On Saturday, I ventured out to NYC to think through my business priorities. It was easy to map out run-of-the-mill business activities and…
Read More[DARE #11] Get Unstuck – Draft a Roadmap
Santa did it! I was having so much fun this past weekend that I forgot to send over this Sunday challenge. Obviously, my three boys were also having fun. Can you see each one’s huge and joyous smile? Okay, you’re a busy executive so let’s cut to the chase. Dare #11: Draft a roadmap…
Read More[DARE #10] Get Unstuck – Have fun
About that pic above: That’s me and my family having fun! Nick is to my left. Noah is to my right. Then further right is my husband Jesus and my son Gabriel. Yes, we didn’t fit in that tiny photo booth so we had to divide and conquer. On that note, I can’t believe we…
Read More[DARE #9] Get Unstuck – Be a philantrophist
It’s the week of Thanksgiving here in the US. In cities across the US, many of us are celebrating our gratitude for family, friends, uplifting colleagues (notice how I said uplifting), and/or gracious clients.
Read More[DARE #8] Get Unstuck – Network WITH Purpose
It takes guts to google yourself for fear of what’s out there. Last Sunday, I asked you to do just that for a few reasons: As I mentioned in last week’s challenge, prospective employers are googling you and truthfully so are prospective partners (including romantic and platonic).
Read More[DARE #7] Get Unstuck – Clean Up Your Online Brand Presence
Last week I took the plunge and enrolled in a one-day course. While the idea sounds simple, it takes a great deal of orchestration to pull off such a task when you have little children. But I did it and truthfully it was fun.
Read More[DARE #6] Get Unstuck – Learn Something New for Free
It’s been five Sundays since the launch of the Sunday challenges. Throughout our time together you have been dared to:
Read More[DARE #5] Get Unstuck – Be introspective
I have to confess that I did not complete my OWN dare last week? What was the dare? To initiate a thoughtful or provoking conversation within one LinkedIn Group. I’m not ashamed. There is no regret. I am actually happy that I decided not to participate.
Read More