During my childhood, I remember watching actors win Oscars during the Academy Awards. The next day, they would inevitably be interviewed and would mention how they could not remember their acceptance speech. I can clearly remember thinking: well, look who's acting now! I would officially like to apologize to all those Oscar recipients for my childhood self thinking you were full of it. I understand now... On Wednesday, November 9th, 2022, I was seated in a ballroom full of co

November 3, 2021 November 2, 2016 November 3, 2010 In the past 11 years, on those three dates and many more years before, 11 brilliant women were awarded the ATHENA Leadership Award (R) in Wausau WI. I have been honored to be a finalist on three occasions. While I have not been the award recipient, another phenomenal woman earned the distinction and I applaud each of them for her efforts to better our community. Their great work inspiring and leading the many. (BRAVO!!) For t

words... words... words... words... never-ceasing words.... Letters tumble thru my mind like Scrabble tiles whipped in a dice shaker... reaching for form... straining to become reality... daring to make sense. What words shall tie together H's brain today? Shall we have her pondering all night? Or will the words flow like molasses on a perfect Fall day? I am seated to write and the confabulation of language is on warp speed. Time to tap the brakes so my fingers can keep up. M

"Dreaming is a form of planning" ~ Glennon Doyle As a leader who teaches other leaders, I find it important to continuously learn and expand my own knowledge base. This goes a long way to insuring I have terrific resources and timely topics for my lessons and my students. Last week's teachings came from a two-day event called the #DreamSummit2021. This is my first year attending, and I was ecstatically blown away by the topics and the quality of the guest speakers. Hosted by

"Follow, follow, follow, follow, follow the yellow brick road!" - the Munchkins in Oz In 1900, L. Frank Baum authored a ground-breaking book, destined to become a literary classic. It was chock full of wondrous characters that captured the imagination, while filling the reader with new levels of self-confidence and daring. In the Wonderful Wizard of Oz (C) , Dorothy wandered with her mission along a magical, otherworldly path, meeting new friends, fighting enemies, and overco

"Every fire is the same size when it starts." There's a small thought itching in the back of my mind. I'll pay it no attention today. Life moves forward, as I tackle all of my to-dos. My daily chaos swirls into shape and molds itself into memories and life lessons. The to-do list is complete... I think. There was *something* I was going to do... There's a small thought itching in the back of my mind, begging to be granted oxygen. I shall ponder it briefly, bookmarking it for

"A woman shows the world: who she is; what she values; and what she believes." ~ Iyanla Vanzant How do you move through life? Are you being yourself? Truly, authentically you? Or are you showing the world a version of you that you believe everyone likes? "Harmony is your inner balance between life and your surroundings. Are you in sync with yourself? Or are your day-to-day actions grating against the vibrations of harmony within? Are you working against yourself? Meaning, are

"I believe in fairy tales - And dreamer's dreams - Like bedsheet sails - And I believe in Peter Pan And miracles, anything I can to get by - And fireflies..." ~ Faith Hill Friday night, I replenished my soul with the sweet refrains of music. Sharing a stage, a moment in time, and a microphone with a dear friend and fellow musician. My hips remembered the song before my tongue found the lyrics hiding in the recess of my mind. My subconscious had me swaying to the stage choreo

"If you can fail doing something you don't like, then why not dare to do something you love?" ~Jim Carrey 40 years ago - I said I wanted to be an author. 4 years ago - I said yes and taught my first leadership development class. 8 months ago - I put my dreams and plans on paper and set deadlines. 8 weeks ago - I published my first book and it became a best-seller. And in the last 16 days - I have been booked to present two keynote addresses. WOOT! WOOT! (That's me shouting fo

"Turn up the wattage so people can see it and aren't afraid to do it themselves." ~ Cynthia Erivo When you are working hard at being authentically you and doing the very things that bring you great joy in this life, you will shine like a beacon of hope to others. That joy illuminates you from within while also lighting the path for others to follow. Turning up the wattage within is electrifying. You can feel the tingle of adrenaline from living your dream out loud. Every step

I'm awake. Listening to the sounds of a thunderstorm roll through the area. Lightening bolts dare to penetrate through my room-darkening shades, and I pause, "One, one thousand, two, one thousand, three..." until a thunder strike halts my counting. The thunder is loud enough to feel the rumble shake the walls; yet, it is soft enough to not wake those already slumbering. I listen to the steady sound of the rain as it beats upon every fiber of this house, and I get lost in the

"An arrow can only be shot by pulling it backward. When life is dragging you back with difficulties, it means it's going to launch you into something great. So focus, and keep aiming." ~unknown It's pulling on you. Trying to weigh you down. You tense yourself bracing for impact from whatever it is and what will happen if it gets you firmly in its grasp, or hits you straight on. What if... ...instead of bracing for impact, you set yourself in an archer's stance? ...you strateg

"To create something exceptional, your mindset must be relentlessly focused on the smallest of details." ~ Giorgio Armani relentless... When was the last time you were relentless about something? Anything... Was it big? small? Would the end result impact you? someone else? many others? How many? Did you set your eyes on the finish line and never looked up? Or did you glance up... repeatedly, nervously looking for would-be obstacles? Did you find your pathway obstructed? Or wa

"How often people only tell us about our limited possibilities instead of our limitless capabilities... let that underestimation fuel your determination..." - Kalen Allen What if you knew you could be anything you wanted to be in this world? What if you knew you could reach all the goals you set for yourself? What if the plans you made were going to come to fruition? Would you reach higher than you ever thought possible? Well, you can do and be all the things you want and you

"Don't call them dreams, call them plans." I wrote a book. I wrote a book more than a year ago but a pandemic laced with crippling self-doubt tamped down the plans I was making. That book lay silent in my drawer, gathering dust; silent until I found myself seeking a resource to build up my self-confidence once again. Now, where could I find a book on building self-confidence? Ohhhh, yeahhh.... I wrote a book. I may have written the book for young leaders and young professiona

From Show It Until You Know It: A Guide to Building Self-Confidence: "Aren’t you nervous? Aren’t you scared? How can you get up there in front of a crowd? I could never do what you do! Speak to everyone? Share myself with them? How do you stay so happy? How do you do it? How? How?!! When I’m peppered with questions by folks (friends, strangers, acquaintances) asking how I am able to talk in front of any number of people, I tell them well… first, I climb the stairs to the stag

"If we did all the things we were capable of doing, we would astound ourselves." - Thomas Edison I know I've dumbfounded myself before (ha! and true) but now I'm reaching towards astounding. Every movement of every second hand on every clock in this house finds me striving towards a new level of me. Somewhere inside me the innovator, the re-invigorator found new footing; has been cleaning out the mental cobwebs; and is winding me up for my next chapter. Here I am! You know me

It's just shy of midnight in my time zone and I find myself at the edge of night. The turning hands of the clock bring this chaotic, pandemic, locked-down, short-changed year to close. It has been a year of severe ups and downs for so many in this world and I am grateful to be safe. I'm re-learning which way is up and I am standing on my own two feet tonight. Gazing out the window into the semi-void... listening to the wind... my verbal processing on silent mode while the hou

"I have longed to be a writer for as long as I can remember. And I have let no one stop me but myself. I recently read a quote by Nora Ephron that says, "You don't find the time to write, you make the time." So here I am, at 20 minutes before midnight on Friday, December 25, 2009.... making the time......" That was the beginning of my first ever blog written more than a decade ago. Let's just say I let myself get in the way again a few months after that... but no more! There