You know how when you have a fantastic idea and get all jazzed up about it, at some point, you inevitably run headfirst into a rock hard wall? Well, there are two kinds of people facing this wall. One keeps their eye on the prize and figures out how to Andy Dufresne their way out … Continue reading What Andy Dufresne Can Teach Us About the Path to Freedom
7 minutes For a while there anytime I would go to do anything that scared me in the slightest, my ego would fly into red alert. We're not talking walking alone down a dark alley at night. No, no, no. Anything, where I'd be putting myself out there to be judged and criticized, would … Continue reading The Upside of Boring Yourself
5 minute read I have a morning ritual that keeps me in check. Once the kids are fed, and the coffee is poured, I sit down with the newspaper and flip directly to the obituaries. I skip right past the fear-inducing manipulation of the "if it bleeds, it leads" stories that infest our newsfeeds and … Continue reading Let’s Talk About Death, Baby. Let’s Talk About You and Me.
7 minute read Did you know that as of 2016, over 660 MILLION vacation days were left unused by American employees? Your vacay days were floating around on an imaginary raft sipping your ice cold adult bev somewhere in the ether. Breaking this down even further, this equates to over $600 per employee being … Continue reading You’ll Want Your Own Solo Road Trip After Reading This
7 minute read Marie Kondo made me do it. I had just watched an episode of the hilarious Momsplaining with Kristen Bell that had Marie Kondo, the author of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, as the main guest. Days later I made a routine visit to the library with my kids, and that book … Continue reading How Listening to Marie Kondo and My 80-Year Old Self is Helping Me Lighten Up Once and For All
5 minute read "Even Jell-O needs a mold." Fortunately, I was given this simple advice late in my twenty's so that I could absorb and appreciate it. It made sense and helped me get out of my way creatively and personally. This is also what quieted my inner rebel and allowed me to move towards … Continue reading 3 Questions to Help You Be a Rebel With a Cause
5 minute read When I was a kid, I called my dad "The Man Who Never Smiled." As you can imagine, this nickname thrilled him. I wish I could say it was one of those moments in childhood when fading memories and blurred dreams merge into one, and you're not sure what's real. But I … Continue reading How Facing Off With Our Past Can Help Our Present
This piece is a guest post I wrote prior for my dear friends at The Perpetual Visitor. The request was to write: how to find time for your own creative pursuits once you become a mother. Please share this with any moms you know who could benefit from it in any way. We're all in … Continue reading 3 Steps to Help You Create Like a Mother
5 minute read You've heard it a million times: follow your heart. It’s so cliché that you may dismiss it as a touchy-feely idealistic way of living your life. It sounds innocent and childish. It doesn’t sound smart because it’s not. Everything considered smart is contained, practical, and organized. It all comes from the left … Continue reading Why Listening to Your Heart Doesn’t Sound Smart
5 minute read We all remember the wedding scene in Old School, right? Noooow you're smiling. Fantastic! The wedding singer brings such a hilarious intensity to an otherwise overplayed and overly dramatic ballad of "Total Eclipse of the Heart." He nails urgency and light-heartedness like a champ. The Dan Band takes it for the win. … Continue reading The Mother Phrase to End All Freakouts
