"Take it easy, take it easy. Don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy. Lighten up while you still can. Don't even try to understand. Just find a place to make your stand, and take it easy."   If you are anything like me, after reading those lyrics, right about now you are humming to yourself the 1972 song by the Eagles. Given what we are all going through right now, I find this nearly 50 year old song very apropos. It is challenging, to say the least, to completely understand the impact of the current global coronavirus epidemic. In a relatively short amount of time, we have gone from being encouraged to be cautious, to being told to be socially distant, to being involuntarily closed down. It is safe to say that we are clearly in unchartered waters as our global, national, and local leaders work diligently to guide us and do everything possible to safeguard our health and well-being. The complete sell-out of hand sanitizers, rubbing alcohol, disinfectant wipes and sprays, and even toilet paper may be one indication that the "panic button" has been pressed. I am here to say that while I am personally doing everything to keep my own family, friends, clients and students healthy and safe, I prefer to press the "easy button". Read More

Years ago, I took a public speaking class. We were allowed to make speeches on any topic of our choice. One of the most memorable speeches was the one made by one of my classmates who spoke about how to make chocolate chip cookies. I recall that her speech was very well received, perhaps because her closing remarks included the distribution of freshly baked and warm cookies! I regularly bake cookies in my home. My family enjoys the finished product as well as how wonderful the house smells while they are baking. For us, the “perfect” chocolate chip cookie is chewy on the inside and very slightly crisp on the outside. It is not too thin and not too thick. It contains a favorable chip-to-dough ratio. If my description is beginning to remind you of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, the 19th century fairy tale in which Goldilocks wanted her porridge to be “not too hot, not too cold, but just right”, then allow me to elaborate. Everyone’s description of the “perfect” cookie is different. It doesn’t matter if you prefer yours thick or thin, with or without nuts, or if you favor semi sweet, bitter sweet or milk chocolate chips. The point is this: two people can each use identical ingredients (butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, flour and chocolate) with the intention of creating the very same thing (delicious chocolate chip cookies), but end up with completely different results. Haven't you tasted cookies that were dry instead of moist, were more cookie than chips, or were as hard as a hockey puck? Didn't it make you wonder what went awry during the baking process? Even putting all of the ingredients together in the same order and at the same time is not a guarantee of success. You need to honor the proportions of the ingredients, have a certain order in mixing them together, and blend them for a specific time. Can you tell I have spent a lot of time over the years trying to perfect my personal recipe?   The same concept applies to our lives. Just because you have all of the same "ingredients" as the next person, doesn’t mean your results will be the same. You can both have the same running shoes and athleisure apparel, but if your neighbor puts them on every day and goes for a long walk or a run and yours are adorning the shelf of your closet, your results will most definitely not be the same. Read More

It seems as if I have recently heard the word "chaos" used more frequently than ever. We are in the middle of the US presidential primary election season and the battle for delegates is won and lost via both elections and caucuses. I majored in Political Science when I was in college, yet I cannot recall spending a lot of time learning about the caucus process. The simplest explanation is that caucuses are private events that are directly run by the political parties themselves. It is hard to make a great case for their use when all we hear about is how much chaos they have created, that they are extremely time consuming, they are not easy for voters to access, the ballots are not private and that they do not use a popular vote system. Retaining the caucus system rewards passionate activists and diehard party members willing to take part in the often time-consuming process of selecting a candidate. This leads to the biggest disadvantage which is low voter turnout with less than 10% of registered voters participating. After the extreme chaos and lengthy delay (of the results) that developed during the Iowa Caucus process as the result of coding problems with the new smart phone app, some lessons were learned and a back-up system was built into the state of Nevada's primary caucus. Thank goodness for that since there was such a lengthy "hold time" when results were being phoned in to Nevada's "secure and dedicated hotline" and there were also problems with their new digital tool, the "caucus calculator". The paper and texting back-up plan that had been put into place actually came in handy. Yes, there were improvements, but the process could still be defined as extremely chaotic.   We are all familiar with the definition of the word CHAOS. Years ago, I read a book written by a popular professional organizer who defined the word CHAOS as Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome. I thought this was the perfect description since the last thing you want when your home is in complete disarray is for the doorbell to ring. One of my friends told me last week that she recently had unexpected family drop into town for an extended visit. She had just completed the process of getting her house in order and she was extremely grateful that she had done so. She said that the initial panic she felt when she opened the door to her well-intentioned relatives was quickly replaced by a sense of calm knowing that her house was no longer Chaos Central.   Read More

It's back! Season 18 of American Idol started on Sunday night. While I am unable to name all the winners in chronological order, the show has been "must see TV" for me through the years. Idol has undergone many changes over the seasons, including a revolving door for judges who have come and gone as well as a television network change. One of the things that I have enjoyed watching is the inclusion of celebrity coaches/mentors who have nurtured, encouraged and supported the contestants. One of the newer coaches is Bobby Bones, who is an on-air radio personality, musician, comedian and author. You may recognize his name as one of the recent winners of Dancing With the Stars. Bones has a no-nonsense yet compassionate approach to mentoring the American Idol hopefuls. He shares his personal experiences in the business as he imparts his advice and suggestions. His personal mantra is now the subtitle of his latest book: "Fight. Grind. Repeat." In the words of Bobby Bones himself, this is what the expression means:     Fight: Deciding what it is you really want; setting your goals; and strategizing and taking the first steps toward those goals.   Grind: Never missing a detail; always being ready and on call; and doing the work no matter how tired, sick, or 'over it' you feel.   Repeat: Having the patience, resources, and resilience to keep doing the same thing over and over until you get what it is you really want. Read More

Much to my delight, it is Honeybell Oranges Season! Oh, how I look forward to this time of year! The Honeybells are only available for a short period of time, typically from mid to late January until the beginning of February. They are, in my opinion, the most incredible citrus fruit. They are a grapefruit/tangerine hybrid which are known for being incredibly juicy and having the most wonderful honey-sweet flavor and freshness. They are filled with so much juice, that they actually come with a bib for you to wear to protect your clothing! When you eat one, you will want to be sure to squeeze out every precious drop of delectable juice. When the boxes with my annual supply first arrive, I am very generous with them, sharing them with my family and friends. As the supply dwindles and the season sadly comes to end (which means I know I cannot get my hands on any more), I start hoarding and hiding these valued little jewels! I thoroughly enjoy each and every delicious Honeybell and am sad when the short season (as well as my supply) comes to an end. I really have to make sure to squeeze the most out of my inventory every year! Read More