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Explore living a more thriving, creative, meaningful life, even in today’s crazy, unpredictable, sometimes pull-your-hair-out times.

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The Art of Unknowing

When I was growing up, school rewarded us for what we knew. We were tested on facts and praised for correct answers.

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We’re in this together

Fear and worry can constrict us, prompting us to hold our energy protectively when we sense danger. These feelings can separate us,

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Hip, Hip, Hooray

The last couple of weeks have brought much to celebrate: An amazing change in the race for the US Presidential Elections. A

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Letting life “cure” us

Every day, life burnishes and “cures” us —sometimes by the unexpected and dramatic, sometimes by the routine and ordinary. We feel, we

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Playing with Paradox

To be able to hold a paradox requires holding the tension between opposites—seemingly contradictory forces.  When the world appears too chaotic it’s tempting to want to

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Eight Books Someone Should Write

The uber-creative illustrator and drawing coach, Wendy MacNaughton, issued a challenge this week to the folks following her on Substack: come up with imaginary

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Growing high/growing low

Most trees and plants grow by reaching upward toward the light while sinking roots into the darkness of the earth. We grow as

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Surviving Mile 19

“Hitting the wall” is the term runners use to describe the moment when the bottom seems to fall out of their stamina,

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The Gift of the Ordinary

Grief knocked again—or, more accurately, knocked me off my feet and left me wailing. You’d think after writing about grief, I’d know

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Wordless

Words are beautiful but sometimes need to waitLest they be out of place.The world must be experienced before it can be described. I tread

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To practice receiving

A dear friend living in the shadows of cancer, With death on the horizon, Sat with me and said, “Throughout my life,

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Planting hope

This week I planted daffodils. There’s nothing remarkable about this, although some might question why I waited to dig holes in the

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The art of waiting

Waiting. We do a lot of it. Waiting in traffic, in the checkout, or for that blankity-blank Amazon delivery. Sometimes there’s a

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The art of nothing-ing

September is here, school bells have rung, and I’m here with my first blog since leaving for Italy. I missed you even

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Are we crazy?

I’ve had it. Another shooting. And children, for god’s sake. .Let’s call this for what it is. Insanity. We talk about mental

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Creating “normal”

Years ago, you wouldn’t have heard me craving “normal.” Picturing myself as creative, I’d have called normal too dull, predictable, and routine.

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Living in Limbo-Land

y husband has Covid, and I may be next. I’m officially in limbo (call it quarantined). Overnight, life changed. I canceled plans and

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STOP!

STOP!Fermati!Arrête !СТОП! STOP! is a good word to have in your pocket. It’s short, abrupt, and good in emergencies. When I ride

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If Trees Could Weep

If trees could weep, would they send sorrowsinto the groundthrough roots, mycelium,into rivers and seas? Blending stories from birch and beech, spruce and

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The fog from war

I’m feeling foggy and overwhelmed again. Dang. After two-plus years of Covid-brain, I thought the fog had lifted. But another fog has

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Wiggle your toes to calm your mind

Recently, I wrote about “Breaking the grip of self-judgment.” This week, I discovered some tools that can help. In Positive Intelligence Shirzad Chamine writes that we

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Did Darwin Get it Wrong?

At the suggestion of a friend, I recently watched Fantastic Fungi. Normally, a movie about mycelium and mushrooms wouldn’t be my top pick

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Time for the Turning

Years ago, I loved to listen to Gordon Bok singing “Turning Towards the Morning” on well-worn Folk-Legacy LP. I could listen for hours to

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We always have choice

Somedays, it’s easy for me to feel powerless as Covid ramps up again and Afghanistan collapses. I need reminders that I always

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Does age matter?

I remember an experiment from a class in business school. The prof asked us to line up by age. Then he asked: “Does

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Heat wave

As the heat inched past 100 Our Northwest hubris We don’t need air conditioning, We can sit under trees Melted away. I couldn’t

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MMMMMMMMM your way to calm

Given the stresses of daily life combined with growing uncertainty about our global future, I’ve been collecting remedies and techniques to use

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The past is never past

“The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”       William Faulkner Faulkner’s words were written to describe how the history

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Balance continuity and change

In these times of turbulence and rapid change, when areas like the environment, voting rights, and immigration demand immediate, constructive action, why

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Anxious in America

Hopefully, the pandemic is receding and so, too, is the spike in national (and global) anxiety it provoked. I suspect, though, that

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Can we celebrate now?

Are you celebrating? It may be long overdue. Life without celebration is like hiking across a snowfield during a whiteout when the

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If you need more time

Even though last week I wrote about seeding a new beginning, I’ve had trouble starting up again. The air feels fresher, yet

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To tame a raging bull

It is rare that I consider aborting a blog I have almost completed. But how to keep writing, let alone think, when

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Feeling safe

  A lot of people aren’t feeling safe these days. Three million people in the US keep open-carry weapons with them at

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Stay calm–and vigilant

Last Saturday, as elections results were finally announced. I celebrated. Relaxed. Cried. Then I looked up and knew, “It ain’t over yet.”

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Time for trust

We hoped it would be over. It’s not over. Maybe over was just a fantasy. The same forces that existed before the

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Fuel the fire within

Here on the U.S. West Coast, we’ve had a tough week. Fires raging, and the whole coast socked in smoke. With hazardous

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Finding more of enough

How do we know when we have found “enough?” That question propelled me to read prize-winning author Shauna Ahern’s just-published memoir: Enough:

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Finding fiery hope

“Hope locates itself in the premises that we don’t know what will happen and that in the spaciousness of uncertainty is room

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Where in the cycle are you?

To everything (turn, turn, turn) There is a season (turn, turn, turn) And a time to every purpose, under heaven             Pete

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What if, sometimes, there is no reason?

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.21.4″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” z_index_tablet=”500″] Does everything happen for a reason? Even

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Got Rhythm?

We all have rhythm. It’s built into us through our heartbeats and the circadian (24 hour) rhythms that influence when we feel hungry,

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Heal the burn

It’s so difficult to watch the pictures of the Amazon burning, knowing that there’s so little that can be done, at least

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When the tail stops wagging

Today, as this post is being published, our dog, the irrepressible Jackson, is being put down. Perhaps dementia was triggering his increased

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The power of deep hope

Last year a good friend went through a true dark night of the soul brought on by medical circumstances. The prednisone she

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When you’re feeling climate despair, give nature a face

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.21.4″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” z_index_tablet=”500″] I’m feeling pretty despairing about climate change these days.

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Does it spark joy? If not, create your own.

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.21.4″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” z_index_tablet=”500″] I fell in love with Marie Kondo,

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Spring for a Pause

If you want proof of the complexity of the world, come visit my garden, a mélange of good and evil, light and

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Find Your Inner Porpoise

The books written about Purpose or “Finding Your Inner Purpose” on Amazon have it almost right. They just spelled it wrong. Change

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Images of imagination

This week, I’ve been thinking about the power of imagination, especially as we age. Imagination provides a spark for creativity. Creativity feeds

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Attention! Yours is at risk!

You know how it starts… You’re trying to concentrate on the computer, perhaps reading an article, writing a document, thinking through a

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How to Do More by Juggling Less

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] X Do you ever feel as if you have too

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A midwinter’s night pause

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”]   My article for the winter issue of 3rd Act

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Marie Kondo, Will you be my Valentine?

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] Dear Marie, I know my invitation may come

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Improve your day a click at a time

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″] What if one click of acknowledgment could reinforce the skill, craft, or project you’re working

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Is Your Story Fact or Fiction?

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] When the waves of change are high, stories

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Create a daily oasis with ordinary rituals

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] “We humans remember trauma better than pleasure, it’s the way

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Cultivate kindness in small doses

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] Don’t we all need a little more kindness

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As the earth rises in 2019, we’re still in this together

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] We’ve just closed out 2018.

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Welcome back the light

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] “There is a crack, a crack in everything, that’s how

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Fill with joy and arrest the stress in the holidays

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] Does it ever feel to you that someone

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Taking the small steps back to thriving

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_padding=”22px|0px|15.2557px|0px|false|false”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] What do we do when we keep

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Sweat your way to community

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] Sometimes you build community by talking, finding common interests, and

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Expanding our thanks

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row custom_padding=”13px|0px|12.7415px|0px|false|false” _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] Thanksgiving, that holiday of family, friends,

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Small talk

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.48″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] Red alert: The holidays are coming! Thanksgiving in the U.S.

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What you can and can’t afford to forget

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”] Do you forget things? I do…and it bugs me,

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When wonder beats words

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”] After a productive day writing, I was burnt out on

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Ask a better question…create a better world

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”] Whenever I lose my glasses, which, I’m

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The Dummies Guide to Disrespect (15 tips)

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”] Enough!!  I hate to add anything to the pantheon

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How to support a friend in need

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”] As I’m writing this, my friend Susan Partnow’s husband

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Want more time? Go slow…

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”] A colleague once shared a Montana saying.

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Do you have FOF? (Fear of feedback?)

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”] Turns out a lot of us are

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How to keep your creative spirit from getting buried

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”] Last week, I received this letter from a dear

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A question to guide your birthday

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” inline_fonts=”Abhaya Libre” background_layout=”light” disabled=”off”] I’m writing this on

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Does your work make you better?

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”] In her stunning collection of essays (highly recommended) This

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When to invite your heart to think (or, How I got a dog last weekend)

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”]   Have you ever been wracked by a decision

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How often and when should you take a break?

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”]     Who needs a break from

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The Secret Key to IGNITING Performance

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”]       Picture this: a lively

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Before you deny your age, think about this

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”] This Thursday, as this blog post launches,

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Who ate your time?

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”] Every day, an army of invaders enters

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Got rest?

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”] Despite an otherwise admirable record in my

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What’s your legacy (story)?

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ custom_padding=”13px|0px|54px|0px”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_padding=”0|0px|27px|0px”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”]   I’ve spent

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When you can’t always get what you want…

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”]   You can’t always get what you

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What community do you dream of?

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.106″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light”]       Sixty plus years ago,

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What about your work do you love, love, love…

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.63″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” border_style=”solid”] It’s been a hard week.

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Pause for the light

i thank You God for most this amazing day: for the leaping greenly spirits of trees and a blue true dream of

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Five Reasons Advice Doesn’t Work and When It Might

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.63″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.63″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” border_style=”solid”] I remember many years ago

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On Valentine’s Day: How to skip the sugar and give some real appreciations

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.0.47″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.63″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” border_style=”solid”] Remember “Sweethearts,” the little pink

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After Me Too

  The chorus of voices chanting “Me too” keeps getting louder. Hearing people finally speaking out against sexual harassment has been great,

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Honoring fall

  I love fall with its bittersweet splendor. Months of dark rain lurk just around the corner, yet the leaves today are at

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This is not the New Normal

My heart breaks with Charlottesville. I am still grieving Charleston and so many other sites of senseless violence. Hate crimes wound us

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How much is enough?

This week I‘m having a blast designing a business storytelling class for a client, interspersed with writing my blog. Working on two

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Is this it?

  Sometimes I open the door to my mind to write and there’s nothing there. Depending on how I’m sitting (or what I’m hoping to do),

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Spring for some new reading

Spring is hitting the northwest, almost in time for summer. We broke Seattle’s rainfall record for April, But now it’s oh-so-beautiful, as the

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Why Music is Subversive

As I was mid-way through the Women’s March Olympia, (capitol of the other Washington), a woman near me burst into song: “This little

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Stepping back and moving on

What a November it was! For those of us caught in an emotional whirlwind after the elections, I wrote this triptych: Navigating Your Way

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What Makes You Feel Abundant?

The classic Thanksgiving feast, in the United States, is a table of abundance, overflowing with food that beckons family and community together. But

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You Can Do This Hard Thing

During this time of recovery and even trauma, I chose poetry over punditry, philosophers and theologians over politicians. Listening to the meaning-makers who speak through their hearts helps me to heal and to stand in my deeper values and higher

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Breaking the Spell

Is our country under a spell? After the last presidential debate, I felt the need to wash away a residual toxicity, so I

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My favorite fall things

Raindrops on dahlias and nuzzling my horses Leaves that go crackle and new on-line courses, Wearing yummy old sweaters and starting to

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Getting ready to fly

Fall brings change. The days shorten. The air cools. The migratory birds will soon take off. It’s a beautiful site to see them

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In praise of an audience of one

Despite the buzz about content marketing, and writing for your audience, the words of Kurt Vonnegut, as quoted by the brilliant Maria Popova, live on: “write for an audience of one”.

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Do you choose high seas or a safe harbor?

Action heroes are always taking risks, daring greatly and saving the planet. They’ll probably always choose high seas over safe harbors. But for the rest of us, managing the balance of risk and safety is a skill to cultivate.

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Find Your Best Frame

Last week, I gave a workshop on Strategic Storytelling at a conference of fundraisers. Strategic storytelling is the vivid use of stories

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How to pick out what is essential

How do we know what’s essential? Greg McKeown, author of Essentialism, has some ideas. I’ll use his emphasis on principles or priorities as a reference point. But I still need to figure out what’s the most important thing to get

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The Perils of Having a Vision

Edward S. Curtis was a visionary. He was also obsessed. He created a monumental legacy at great personal cost. And so it is with visions – engage at your own marvelous risk.

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On Facing the Void

Facing a void means standing in the unknown. it can feel potent, full of possibility, or paralyzing. Without answers, a poem can provide comfort.

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Finding Fierce Humility

Nobody I knew in business school used to wander around asking “How can I be humble?” But there’s a fierce humility that may well be at the heart of leadership.

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Mind Your Cues to Change Your Habits

Habits are useful. They help us not to think. Like checklists they help us navigate complexity. But changing a habit we don’t want can be hard — and understanding cues can help.

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A simple tool for managing complexity

I’m not a to-do list obsessive kind of gal. So you wouldn’t think I’d get excited by a book called The Checklist Manifesto. I’ve become a believer in his main premise: In a complex world, the simple checklist can be

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Finding the bigger story

Are you feeling tired of hearing all the government-bashing by the punditry? Isn’t it time to create some bigger more empowering stories about the institutions and causes we care about?

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How to change your pose to change your life

Can body language, and specifically your posture influence how you think, how you feel, and how you are perceived in the world? Dr. Amy Cuddy thinks so – and presents her findings in her popular TED talk. I do too,

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How to give advice people want to hear

Ever wish that you could give people a piece of your mind and have them wanting more? Or, give feedback that someone really used because it was both tough and compassionate? The best model I’ve found recently for balancing straight

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Celebrating you

In this season of gifts and celebrations, wise men and pilgrimages, the dark of night, and the light of new beginnings, I

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When Nurses Speak

Last week, with a partner, I guided 6 nurses to be able to share their stories on stage. The group represented 180 years of nursing experience. Add six stories and you had one big miracle. As a participant with more

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Doodling about leadership with Lynda Barry

Lynda Barry doesn’t write or draw about leadership. She’s an award-winning cartoonist, known for her comic strip “Ernie Pook’s Comeek.” Yet in her recent graphic book Syllabus, she shows us how she led her students on a path of discovery

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How I found gratitude in the back of my closet

This weekend I cleaned my closet. Not an earthshaking event, but a task I’d avoided. Yet this weekend, as I sorted scarf after scarf, bag after bag, I realized that I didn’t even know what I had. And I discovered

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50 Shades of Introversion

This week I have a new coaching client and I’m so excited: he’s smart, he’s competent, he listens well and….he’s an introvert.

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Try the Appreciation Diet Before Thanksgiving

Appreciations are the low-hanging fruit of communications that build better relationships. Yet most of us could offer so many offer. Why not go on an appreciation diet to build your gratitude muscle for Thanksgiving?

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When Nurses + Stories = Tranformation

Nurses are taught to listen. But in a profession so key to our health care system, they need to speak out as well – and tell their stories. That’s what Nurses Speak is all about.

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Find the courage in your unique legend

When life feels particularly challenging, you might be experiencing the middle, turbulent phase of an extraordinary, legendary journey. Your legend is waiting for you to claim it, and to create it as you live it.

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When it’s time to go small

Even a good loss, like the departure of a friend, can bring deep feelings. How do we create rituals and give ourselves the opportunity to grieve yet still keep going – by doing something focused and small.

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Let Hollywood add some sizzle to your stories

Do you hear “Lights! Camera! Action!” at your business presentations? Maybe not. But do you think about “Conflict! Emotion! Transformation?” According to screenwriter and story consultant Michael Hauge, those elements can make your business stories start to rock. Join us

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Is technology making you feel dumb?

I wanted to take a four-minute clip from a video interview. It should have been easy. But somehow nothing that involves new software or new technology ends up being that easy. There’s always some question I can’t answer – which

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Mining the mind of a millennial

Do millennials think differently than baby boomers?

I decided to ask a recent college grad, who is living with us for a few days. A desire for the freedom to move about, wanting to be fulfilled at work, and the

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Should we lose or use our anger?

How do you live with ANGER? Would you rather avoid it? Move beyond it? Or use it as a fuel for action? Of all the emotions, anger is the one that I like least. So I was interested in some

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Have You Done Enough Today?

As we approach Labor Day, have you ever wondered if you’re doing enough? Or, do you, like me, find it hard to stop? Wayne Muller, author of “A Life of Being, Having and Doing Enough” has some insights that were

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12 Ways to Find or Build a Tribe

Recently, as part of launching my website, I’ve had great fun re-connecting with members of my tribe of colleagues who I haven’t seen for a while. We still share so much. I’ve also been relishing making connections to new tribe

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Use Your Story to Find Your Tribe

My delightful colleague and operations guru Lauren Lizardo took a big risk last year and told a candid story about being…bald. Out of the story and her willingness to stop hiding came new connections, new work, and a new tribe.

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Why I Need a Tribe and Why You Might Want One Too

Having a group of colleagues (aka tribe) with whom to share dreams, ideas and interests can be a big boost to our professional lives. And for the solo-preneur, independent consultant, or innovator forging a new direction within a company, it’s

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Managing Creative Chaos

We all create in different ways and for some, like me, the creative process is accompanied by a certain amount of chaos. How can we avoid being overwhelmed when our creative juices are running?

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How IGNITE Seattle! Ignites…

I had the opportunity to speak at IGNITE Seattle! this week. Watching the organizers having fun and working as a team, I took away a few leadership lessons of my own.

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How to Stop But-ting

When we say “yes, but” in our controversial conversations we can escalate conflict and decrease listening. Last week, I taught about a way to reach a better outcome. Just don’t say what I did!

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Take a vision day

As a self-employed professional, I need time away from the day-to-day demands of work to reflect, refuel my creative inspiration, and think about the future. That’s why, as the new year begins, I’m taking a Vision Day. Learn how you

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Spark Your Thinking by Going Visual

Visual Goal Setting is a way of tapping your intuition and giving additional power to your goal setting and planning efforts. I spent a great evening with Patty Dobrowolski, author of Drawing Solutions, learning how to make use of this

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Is it Time to Get Your Hands Dirty?

Planning and improvisation often go together. And you can’t start a business unless you are willing to plan….and then improvise, or as we say in the garden “go get your hands dirty”.

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