What Are You Saying Yes to?

“The delicate balance of mentoring someone is not creating them in your image, but giving them the opportunity to create themselves.” — Steven Spielberg   A colleague invited me to speak to her class of college juniors and seniors who were practicing...

Are You Pulling Together or Pulling Apart?

  “The harder we worked to convince each other that our way was the right way,the further away we got from understanding each other.We were pulling apartinstead of pulling together.” — They Just Don’t Get It,” p 97   I am a practitioner at heart. What do I...
Gardening My Inner Landscape

Gardening My Inner Landscape

  “I can do anything I set my mind to.Watch me.”   ― Pippi Longstocking • Is there a message from a childhood book that is seared into your brain? While reading a colleague’s post about leadership, what danced into my head was the very memorable phrase from the...
Learning the Benefits of Breaking Away

Learning the Benefits of Breaking Away

Aging gracefully is an art, Aging disgracefully is an Absolute Blast! — Unknown Here is a statement for your imagination: Can you imagine sixteen, mid-life women, who don’t know each other, traveling from all corners of the United States, living together, and...
No Regrets

No Regrets

“The inspiration you seek, is already in you.Be silent and listen.” — Rumi I spent most of January battling a virus and then struggling with our healthcare system. For this first month of a new year, the dogs and I were getting sick, being sick, seeking care,...
Once You Know, You Can’t Unknow

Once You Know, You Can’t Unknow

  “Fatigue is the price of leadership.Mediocrity is the price of never getting tired.” — J. Oswald Sanders Many days end with a conversation with a tired leader. I seem to be talking to many tired people these days and I love to support leaders who are...
Going Out into the World Again

Going Out into the World Again

“Meantime, life outside goes on all around you.” — Bob Dylan   Though I have been traveling during 2023 — and in the months and year before this — I have not been flying on planes or attending big conferences for a long time. 9/11 changed us forever and the...
Brothers

Brothers

“That girl wasn’t who she wanted to be anymore,but sometimes you don’t get to choose who you are.”― Catherine McKenzie   My family had a secret it kept. I did not learn of this secret until I was a teenager. It was like a ghost in our home. The event and the...
When I . . .

When I . . .

  “Don’t simply retire from something;have something to retire to.” — Harry Emerson Fosdick Have you ever said….’When I ……’ • Graduate• Marry• Have children• Become an empty-nester• Have this amount of money saved• Sell my...
Choosing the Right Gear

Choosing the Right Gear

 “ Life is like a ten-speed bicycle.Most of us have gears we never use.” — Charles M. Schulz I was happy to be invited to speak at a monthly safety council meeting in Cleveland. I am always up for a conversation about safety. Though, you might wonder why a consultant...
My Complicated Life

My Complicated Life

“I’m a problem solver. I love people. The more complicated they are, the more I get into them, and I just want to understand what makes them tick.” — Paul Walker I am a very goal and activity-oriented person. Action is my preferred gear. I need to be...
Where is Home?

Where is Home?

“Dwelling on the past only blinds you to the future. Missing home is natural, but embrace the present and create a new place that feels just as comforting.” — Dale Carnegie I have just returned from five days committed to being in a different environment with...
Still Crazy After All These Years

Still Crazy After All These Years

“Now I sit by my window and I watch the cars.I fear I’ll do some damage one fine day.But I would not be convicted by a jury of my peers.Still crazy after all these years.” — Paul Simon This morning I stepped both back and forward in time while using...
Back in the Saddle, Again

Back in the Saddle, Again

“Worrying is carrying tomorrow’s load with today’s strength— carrying two days at once.It is moving into tomorrow ahead of time.Worrying doesn’t empty tomorrow of its sorrow,it empties today of its strength.” — Corrie ten Boom This past week I found myself picking up...
Are We Safe in a Safe Harbor?

Are We Safe in a Safe Harbor?

“A ship is safe in the harbor, But that’s not what ships are built for.” — Gael Attal While I was enjoying a well-needed vacation — one that really caused me to let go and disconnect — I still managed to compose a blog. In my last one, I told you I was on an...
The Best Definition of Friendship

The Best Definition of Friendship

“I learned that a friend may be waitingbehind a stranger’s face.”  Maya Angelou It is a good morning when your day starts with a phone call from someone with whom you share the same values, interests, and intentions. Many of my friendships start with one kind of...
The Risk and Impact of Isolation

The Risk and Impact of Isolation

“All things are subject to interpretation.Whichever interpretation prevails at a given time is a function of power and not truth.” ― Friedrich Nietzsche   Researchers report: Civility isn’t just in decline, it is disappearing. Because we are losing...
Who Am I?

Who Am I?

“Who am I really? What have I done? What is important and meaningful to me? What difference does it make that I have lived? What does it mean to be truly human, and where am I on that scale?” — Morrie Schwartz     The Wisdom of Morrie:Living and Aging Creatively and...
What Simple Fun Teaches

What Simple Fun Teaches

Fun itself hasn’t changed — the nature of work has changed and will continue to change.But fun is fun, as much fun now as it was then.Forever.” — Bernard DeKoven, “The Playful Path” A Playful Path is the shortest road to happiness. — the Oaqui   I love stories...
Team Chaos!!!

Team Chaos!!!

“Chaos was the law of nature;Order was the dream of man.Chaos often breeds life,when order breeds habit.” — Henry Adams   More than one dog is a pack. I have five smaller dogs, 4 French Bulldogs and an English Bulldog. They have been given a nickname...
More Fun with a Partner

More Fun with a Partner

“It is the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too)those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed.” — Charles Darwin I believe that everyday experiences and formative life experiences are good fodder for building...
Discovering More Gears

Discovering More Gears

“More coal, more smoke, more heat,more steam, more pressure, more speed. ― Martin R. Jackson I have operated with several gears for most of my life. Gears is my metaphor for my work/lifestyles that I move in with ease. Life and work require us to have a full range of...
The Caregiver Syndrome

The Caregiver Syndrome

“Kindness can transform someone’s dark moment with a blaze of light. You’ll never know how much your caring matters.” — Amy Leigh Mercree   My recent health challenges have caused me to be even more reflective than I am normally. In sharing my experience with a...
Gratitude and Breath

Gratitude and Breath

 “They’re funny things, Accidents. You never have them till you’re having them.” — Eeyore, “The House at Pooh Corner”   When I tested myself today, COVID still registered positive. I will have to relearn how to mask — and take things more...
Late to the Game

Late to the Game

Drawing by Kei Acedera © Disney Productions “I’m late, I’m lateFor a very important date.No time to say hello, good-bye,I’m late, I’m late, I’m late” ― The White Rabbit March 27 had been circled on my calendar for months....
Two sides of the same coin: Love and Grief

Two sides of the same coin: Love and Grief

“A dog is the only thing on Earth that loves you more than it loves itself.” ― Josh Billings My Facebook page shares with me the posts from previous years. Each day I visit the label called ‘Memories’ to view what was happening in my life on this day from...
Unraveling the secrets to love, relationships, and marriage

Unraveling the secrets to love, relationships, and marriage

Many of us seek community solely to escape the fear of being alone. Knowing how to be solitary is central to the art of loving. When we can be alone, we can be with others without using them as a means of escape.” ― Bell Hooks   No — I am not building a dating...
For better, for worse

For better, for worse

  “I used to think that the worst thing in lifewas to end up all alone. It’s not.The worst thing in life is ending upwith people who make you feel all alone.” — Robin Williams I have no experience being a married person. I have not yet fulfilled that commitment....
Food, Mood, and Learning

Food, Mood, and Learning

“Lunch should consist of at least1/3 relationship-building talk.If you don’t have time for business talk,it was a very successful lunch.” — Jeffrey Gitomer One of my favorite things to do is to connect with someone over a shared meal. Yesterday...
What’s in a (Nick)Name?

What’s in a (Nick)Name?

“Titles are but nicknames, and every nickname is a title.” — Thomas Paine   What do you think about nicknames? Have you ever given someone a nickname? Did they know? Did that nickname carry a positive, negative, or neutral theme? What was your...
Rememeber When?

Rememeber When?

“The bad news is time flies.The good news is you’re the pilot.” — Michael Altshuler Do you find yourself having conversations that reflect on things in the past? Remember when we used the fax machine? Remember landline phones with cords? Can you remember your...
Time is the Equalizer

Time is the Equalizer

Time is the most undefinableyet paradoxical of things;the past is gone,the future is not come,and the present becomes the past,even while we attempt to define it.” — Charles Caleb Colton For years I have maintained this reflective habit. When given the gift of time...
Embracing the Ache

Embracing the Ache

“I like the pace of my world. It’s busy, but for me, the less I do the lazier I get.” ― Hoda Kotb   This morning I found myself smiling as I bustled through the morning routines that have been made complicated by the acquisition of two new little French...
Fraying at the Edges

Fraying at the Edges

“Big stress or little stress—your body reacts the same way. The human body doesn’t differentiate between major or minor stress. Regardless of the catalyst, a typical stress reaction floods the body with a wave of 1,400 biochemical events. If this happens too...
Predictable Habits and Rituals

Predictable Habits and Rituals

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act, but a habit.” — Aristotle   My Myers-Briggs-Type-Inventory personality style assessment is spot on. I am an ENFP. Let me explain for those who are not as enthusiastic about style assessments as I am....
No Brief Candle

No Brief Candle

“My father would tell me that there is a plan for me. My mother still tells me that all of my dreams will come true someday. Their hair is now as white as flames on candles. Wonder if they got everything that they wanted in life? Theirs is the greatest achievement of...
What Happens After Hello?

What Happens After Hello?

Mostly, it is loss which teaches us about the worth of things. — Arthur Schopenhauer   Recently, I complicated my life again, but in a good way. My most senior dog and working companion, Buddha Bear the Brindle Boxer, developed a brain tumor. When his seizures...
Trends Part Two

Trends Part Two

“The ability for a group of people to do remarkable things hinges on how well those people can pull together as a team.” — Simon Sinek   So, yesterday, I left you with a bunch of questions about what trends you’ve noticed recently. And asked how they...
Trends Part One

Trends Part One

“Unless commitment is made,there are only promises and hopes;but no plans.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson   I meet with a group of colleagues each month. Recently we were discussing the trends we were personally experiencing as well as those we see developing...
When my best self gets lost

When my best self gets lost

  “There is no elevator to success.You have to take the stairs.” — Zig Ziglar My intention every day is to be my best self in every interaction. I don’t always succeed in my goal.At the end of this week, while I was talking on an early morning call...
Wyrd

Wyrd

The World Wide Web is another interwoven network and a well-named one.It is truly a web of almost endlessly interconnecting nodules (of which this page is one)linked together by invisible strands of electronic connectivity.This page has existed, waiting for you. You...
Choice Starts with a Spark and Intention

Choice Starts with a Spark and Intention

“In everyone’s life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being.We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit.” — Albert Schweitzer Recently, I was honored to...
Unexpected Doors

Unexpected Doors

“You have to come to your closed doorsbefore you get to your open doors.”—  Joel Osteen​   I have started to travel again. Though I am rusty in my pre-trip preparations, I am like a kid in a candy store with the discovery of the changes that have...
Me and My Shadow

Me and My Shadow

  “It is only through shadows that one comes to know the light.” — St. Catherine of Siena Do you have someone with whom you can talk without restraint? Someone with whom you can sort your thoughts, share your frustrations and unfiltered concerns? Does...
Gifts of the Pandemic

Gifts of the Pandemic

“Learning is the antidote to fear, prejudice, bias, and to becoming obsolete.” ― Kate Nassar   Life is a journey of highs and lows, gifts, and sacrifices — and the many planned and unexpected events. When I talk like this I sound like my mother and grandmother....
Leaving the Pandemic Bubble

Leaving the Pandemic Bubble

You can still make new friends when wearing a mask. Your eyes carry your smile. — Leslie Yerkes On my recent first plane trip since the onset of the pandemic and my first trip out of the country in over two years, I found the world waiting and people willing to...
Restoration of the Forgotten

Restoration of the Forgotten

“Sometimes it takes a total break to lead to complete healing and restoration.” ― Karen Pennington   I took myself to a different place and discovered all sorts of things. After two years of no plane travel and many canceled trips and engagements, I boarded a...
Come On and Rescue Me

Come On and Rescue Me

“Rescue me,Oh take me in your arms.Rescue meI want your tender charms.’Cuz I’m lonely and I’m blue.I need you and your love, too.Come on and rescue me.”   — Raynard Miner & Carl Smith   Some people would tell you that I have dogs,...
Humbly Embracing Humanness

Humbly Embracing Humanness

“If you could only sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet;how important you can be to the people you may never even dream of.There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person.” — Fred Rogers  ...
The Great What?

The Great What?

  “Never be a prisoner of your past. It was just a lesson, not a life sentence.” — Anonymous   I really appreciate it when one of my blogs sparks a reaction. I write from what I observe and hear. So, to add to that collection of themes really broadens...
The Great Disconnect

The Great Disconnect

“Prediction is very difficult, especially about the future.” ― Niels Bohr   Never has the challenge of finding the skilled talent, filling and fitting positions, and retaining good people been as difficult — or as much as of a concern — as it is...
When the Marathon Becomes a Triathlon

When the Marathon Becomes a Triathlon

  “Normal life is highly structured for most people. This is because of the routine ofgoing to work, social interactions, and the like. The loss of these rhythms means thatwe are almost lost in time because we don’t have our usual cuesto what day it is, or...
The Power of Narratives

The Power of Narratives

“We use narrative to label the lens through which the storyline is told.I hear about narratives everywhere I go.” — Leslie Yerkes   When I was in school, a narrative was a literary term associated with the storyline of a book. To be a narrator is to be the...
Boundaries and Balance

Boundaries and Balance

“When we are no longer able to change a situation,we are challenged to change ourselves.” ― Viktor Frankl This morning I succeeded at maintaining a commitment to myself that I had previously let fall off my schedule. For the first time in many months, I...
Highs and Lows

Highs and Lows

“In the darkest of times, have faith and ask for support,and the light of hope, friendship, and help will appear. “ — Leslie Yerkes   I don’t have too many seriously emotionally hard weeks. I am not afraid of hard work or challenging situations. This week,...
Is Anything Weighing Heavy on Your Mind?

Is Anything Weighing Heavy on Your Mind?

“We can wait out the stormOr we can stand in the rain.Gonna have to mournOr hide from some pain. It weighs heavyOn my mind.So heavyOn my mind.” — “Heavy on My Mind”Mavis Staples I know, what a silly question to ask as we are eighteen-plus...
The Rusty Road Warrior

The Rusty Road Warrior

“The mind can go either direction under stress— toward positive or toward negative: on or off. Think of it as a spectrum whose extremes are unconsciousness at the negative end and hyperconsciousness at the positive end. The way the mind will lean under stress is...
More Complicated or Enriched?

More Complicated or Enriched?

“Pets are humanizing. They remind us we have an obligation and responsibility to preserve and nurture and care for all life. — James Cromwell Before the end of October, I will be adding a new responsibility to my life. I don’t need to make this life change, but...
Putting it out there. Again.

Putting it out there. Again.

“She tugged and pulled and pulled and tugged and slowly, slowly, slowly, they started off.”   — Watty Piper “The Little Engine That Could”   Today I will be making my first speech since the onset of the Pandemic. I trust that the venue and protocols...
The Dog Days of Summer

The Dog Days of Summer

“We learned that trying is not nearly as good as doing. So I don’t settle for “I’m trying.” But the most important lesson was this: When you make a promise, keep it.” Beej in “Lost, Found, and Forever.” Leslie Yerkes & Randy Martin Are these the dog...
Slowing Down, Looking Up

Slowing Down, Looking Up

“Anyone who stops learning is old,whether at twenty or eighty.Anyone who keeps learning stays young.” ― Henry Ford This reflection was written in the winter of 2020 pre-pandemic when life seemed simpler and I was on a vacation to beat all vacations. Yet, the lessons...
Push, Pull, Tug of War

Push, Pull, Tug of War

  “Don’t wait for anyone to push you up, push yourself up; don’t wait for anyone to pull you up, pull yourself up!    — Mehmet Murat ildan   While walking my dogs, first on the shores of Lake Erie and then back along the sidewalk, I noticed something. The...
Change is Happening

Change is Happening

“Every time you are tempted to react in the same old way, ask if you want to be a prisoner of the past or a pioneer of the future.”   — Deepak Chopra After college, I was working in a field I loved, doing what I loved. I enjoyed every day of work...
Off Road

Off Road

“Self-reflection entails asking yourself questions about your values, assessing your strengths and failures, thinking about your perceptions and interactions with others, and imagining where you want to take your life in the future.” — Robert L. Rosen I spent the last...
Be a Helper

Be a Helper

  “My goal in life? Be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. ” — Unknown I was raised in Pittsburgh and we watched “Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood.” So I’m certain his counsel to “Be a Helper” entered my psyche over time. However, I believe...
Coming Out of Our Shells

Coming Out of Our Shells

“The key to everything is patience. You get the chicken by hatching the egg,not smashing it.” ― Arnold H. Glasow   This week, I shared with several clients my observation that right now people are like papier-mâché eggs. While this concept does...
Formative Experiences

Formative Experiences

“Rescue meOh take me in your armsRescue meI want your tender charms’Coz I’m lonely and I’m blueI need you and your love tooCome on and rescue me.” — “Rescue Me” by Aretha Franklin   What experiences of your life...
Currently Lost

Currently Lost

“When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.” — Henry Ford   Today at breakfast — while coaching a friend and former client — I found that what I had been discovering in my life...
Like a Low-Grade Fever

Like a Low-Grade Fever

“Spring will come and so will happiness. Hold on. Life will get warmer.” —  Anita Krizzan   We are emerging from the short, dark days of winter. With each day — which is now lighter, longer, and warmer — we are reminded of our resiliency. In my...
The Unwritten Rule

The Unwritten Rule

“In a wicked world, relying upon experience from a single domain is not only limiting, it can be disastrous.” — David Epstein For my entire career, I have been working to create, nurture, and reclaim the cultures of the organizations and leaders whom I...
How many hats?

How many hats?

We all wear different hats, wear various face-masks, every day under different situations and variable environments. Deep down, we all want the grasp of the hats and face-masks to get loosened so that we ourselves can find our true existence. — Subhashis Biswas  ...
At What Speed are You Traveling?

At What Speed are You Traveling?

“Slow down, you move too fast You got to make the morning last Just kicking down the cobblestones Looking for fun and feeling groovy Ba da-da da-da da-da, feeling groovy.” ― Paul Simon “The 59th Street Bridge Song”   As you make your way...
I learned today I am not so alone

I learned today I am not so alone

“When the wind blows in your face, when you feel you are losing your head, when the going gets tough, and when all else fails, look inside you, you are not alone.” ― Malak El Halabi   I live alone. And I am occasionally lonely. During this pandemic, I have spent...
Labels, Names, and Titles

Labels, Names, and Titles

  ” Who am I this time?” — Harry Nash, in Kurt Vonnegut’s short story of the same name   I have never been attached to having a title. We as people are always labeling people by their age, gender, hometown and so much more. The power...
Your Invincible Summer?

Your Invincible Summer?

  “In the depth of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer.” — Albert Camus Did anyone else run out of steam towards the end of the year 2020? Did you struggle to find the holiday cheer during a social distancing pandemic?...
What Did You Do During the Pandemic?

What Did You Do During the Pandemic?

“What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness?” – John Steinbeck The end of  summer meant the end of endless play. No more picnics or swimming or traveling vacation. And that meant it was time for school.  Which of course meant...
Rest, Reset, and Refresh

Rest, Reset, and Refresh

“If you have gained the trust of a horse, You have won a friend for life.” — Equestrian Co.   Ask and you shall receive. (That is if you are open to it and willing to be receiving.) I am more comfortable with giving than I am with asking for help and...
Over, Around, and Through

Over, Around, and Through

If you can’t fly, then run;if you can’t run, then walk;if you can’t walk, then crawl.But whatever you do,you have to keep moving forward.  — Martin Luther King, Jr.   I have had the great fortune in my life to both to mentor and be mentored. In all cases I always...
Tunnel Light

Tunnel Light

“You may think your light is small, but it can make a huge difference in other people’s lives.” — Anonymous   Though we are related, I did not grow into a relationship with my cousin or his wife until I started to visit my uncle as a surrogate for my mother who...
Look, Look

Look, Look

 “Your path is illuminated by the light, yet darkness lets the stars shine bright.” — J.L.W. Brooks As I interviewed my friend and colleague, Ralph Febbo, I learned that he had run ten marathons and so understood my use of the metaphor immediately. Ralph has been...