I talk a lot in my job, which is good, because I enjoy talking. My challenge is to stop talking when that would serve the situation. There are two very specific aspects of the conversational back and forth that I work on and fail at every day. These, I suspect, will be life long goals […]
Getting to We
What a delight it was this week to facilitate a retreat for a group of 15 co-workers who were trying to find their footing again after a series of challenging events. The planning for this gathering seemed unusually easy for me and I didn’t experience the typical anxiety associated with guiding a group of people […]
Becoming a Place of Refuge
Not long ago I gave myself the gift of a three day, silent meditation retreat. It was held in a beautiful setting outside of San Francisco and one of the instructors was someone I have admired for many years. Sylvia Boorstein is this impish, eighty two year old woman who is a master story teller. […]
The Trouble with Bubbles
Recently I had a conversation with a group of friends about the idea of bubbles. It was so interesting to hear the varied points of view. There was agreement that indeed, we are all in a bubble of some kind. Their beliefs in the values or perils of this kind of existence was what […]
Asking for What You Need
What would happen if we simply asked for what we needed? Clarity, intimacy, patience, support, understanding… These are things you not only need, but deserve. They are essential to your happiness. “Can you ask for what you need?” is a question I pose to my coaching clients often. This is what I frequently get in […]
Playing the Devil’s Advocate
I don’t particularly like the Devil or his Advocate. I am not sure when this phrase first started to bug me, but when I hear someone use it now I go on alert. I took a look at the genesis of the phrase and it actually has an interesting history. In the Catholic Church there used […]
It’s the Kindness
It has been a long time since I sat down to write and I am happy to be back at it. The pause was due to “a series of unfortunate events” that not only consumed a fair amount of time and emotional energy, but made me doubt my ability to say anything that you might […]
You go, then I’ll go
My husband and siblings and I spent last week cleaning and prepping our childhood home so we can put in on the market. As you might expect, this was a time filled with remembrances, laughter and a few tears. What surprised me the most though was the frequency with which I noticed characteristics of the […]
Slowing it down…
I was in my home town last week, engaging in the details associated with closing up a life. Who knew there were so many entities to be notified, contacts to be made and minutia to be tended to! For anyone who has lost a parent, this is probably familiar territory. It is easy to get […]
Knowing Where to Look
Yes, I did this. I am solely responsible for this embarrassing incident. A week ago, my daughter and husband and I headed downtown for a pre-birthday brunch. It was warm but the wind was wicked that day so I dropped them off at the restaurant then began the search for a parking spot. I […]
