Communication

I presented at a luncheon the other day at an international biotechnology company. It was a talk I had given before and I knew my material really well. I was prepared with stories from my own life that demonstrated the points I wanted to make.

What I wasn’t prepared for was the comment by a participant when she came up to me after the presentation and said, “I so appreciate your vulnerability.” 

Interesting. I simply said, “Thank you.”

She responded, “I don’t see that in too many people and I…

Twelve step programs use a great acronym that reminds one to check in when one feels like turning to the addictive behavior. It’s called H.A.L.T. "Am I hungry, angry, lonely, or tired right now?” It makes you stop in the middle of letting your emotions run high and think about how you are feeling and reacting to a situation.

• H: Hungry. Check in to be sure your body’s nutritional needs are met. I know this is critical for me. If I am not fed on a regular basis, I regularly become “Hangry.” I a…

"In the course of my life, I have often had to eat my words, and I must confess I have always found it a wholesome diet." ~Winston Churchill

Have you been involved in any of these conversations or ones like these lately?

• Talking to a colleague about a sensitive issue;
• Giving your boss some feedback about her behavior;
• Ending a relationship;
• Talking with a rebellious teenager;
• Confronting a loved one about an issue;
• Asking a friend to stop a certain behavior.

Many years ago I was …

A client asked me the other day about how I’m doing on the five productivity tips I was trying this year as mentioned in my January 2, 2018 blog. I had to look her straight in her eyes and confess that I didn’t even remember what I was going to try, but I would get back to her.

Looking back at the blog I have some good news and some not so good news. As you can tell, if I didn’t even remember what I was going to practice, how in the world could I be practicing it? The good news is that some of …

I spent a lot of my career in the business world working for someone as an employee. From the very beginning, I took great pride at being very professional. I was educated and programmed (yes, I said programmed), to always think and act like a "professional".

Photo Credit: Priya Saihgal

This was programmed through employee orientations where expectations were set of what behavior was valued, through observing other successful individuals in the company, and through evaluations where one wa…