If you live in West Michigan, you’ve experienced what many refer to as the “dog days” of summer, with heat and humidity at a high point. The name “dog days” came from the ancient Romans because they associated the hottest days of summer with the star Sirius. Sirius was known as the “Dog Star” because Read More
Once there was an eagle’s nest with four beautiful eggs perched on the side of a mountain. An earthquake occurred causing one of the eggs to roll out of the nest and down the mountain side. It landed in the middle of a chicken farm below. The chickens gathered around the egg and decided they Read More
In my last post, I talked about focusing on the positive and paying attention to the present moment. One way to stay positive is in your actions. Take time each day to build others up to look for ways to be kind to someone. Look for ways to do someone a favor. It is easy Read More
The other day, I was teaching a workshop and after one of the activities, I asked the group to share their thoughts, comments or questions. One of the participants said the model for conversation that I had just reviewed was familiar; he had learned and used similar things many times in the past, and this Read More
You are probably familiar with the Japanese proverb Fall down seven times, stand up eight. In other words, continue to try. Too many people give up when success doesn’t come quickly enough. In her book, Your Journey to Greatness Through Routine, author Michelle Steffes says, “Imagine your success journey as a train. Unless you begin Read More
We can all appreciate a good night’s rest, but did you know that cultivating more gratitude throughout the rest of your day actually adds to your ability to maintain levels of deep sleep for longer? By focusing on the positive side of life in our daily experiences before we settle down to sleep, we are Read More
Once there was a carpenter who decided to retire after a long and storied career. When he told his boss, the builder, of his intentions, the builder asked the carpenter if he would do one last job. The carpenter reluctantly agreed. He approached this project like none other. In the past, he had always given Read More
Just before dusk, on the last night of an end-of-summer camping trip, a young boy and his father were walking through the woods. They walked and talked together for some time until they came across a fallen tree branch on the ground in front of them. The boy cheerfully ran ahead and called back to Read More
Several years ago, a colleague had a sign in her office that read something like, “I get plenty of exercise jumping to conclusions, pushing my luck and dodging deadlines.” People always got a good chuckle after reading it, mostly because it wasn’t true – especially the part about dodging deadlines; she always had tasks done Read More
I recently volunteered to be a part of a group dialog with other business professionals about leadership, management and accountability. As part of the process, my staff were invited to give anonymous feedback in 10 different areas. I also ranked myself in the same 10 areas. The group’s facilitator then recapped all the information into Read More
