When we love and care for someone who suffers from a serious mental illness, there are beautiful, joyful moments where everything is well managed.
The best of everything and everyone is possible.
I try to take pictures with my heart at those moments.
Then, every number of years, there is a major health crisis. Continue reading
Do you know your employment value? I learned about the emotional benefit of getting an unbiased opinion when I helped someone write her CV around 30 years ago.
In my new home typing venture, my first client worked at a local bank. She was a lovely, nervous woman who wanted to know if I could provide a confidential service and help her write a new CV. Continue reading
Listening to the Harvey Weinstein story brought back some memories. One of them is of a parenting workshop participant I had several years ago. As a Family Life Educator, in my workshops, because it’s such an important topic, I often opened up the concept of how to teach children values and sexuality. This workshop was no different. Continue reading
I was having a conversation with this amazing construction manager with higher than usual emotional intelligence. Since the projects he does are huge, with up to 250 people to manage, he ends up with different quirks and personalities woven into the mix.
On his current project, he talked about getting several complaints about one person who was overly aggressive. Continue reading
I have a client who is dealing with a bad boss. Her boss gets hysterical over inconsequential things, doesn’t plan well or communicate with the staff and is putting the organization at risk.
Her life is spent putting out fires while his is spent lighting them.
Although she has bravely spoken up and alerted the people above him, this will take a while. Continue reading
In reflecting on a conversation I had with a Director of Care and her direct boss at a senior’s residence, I was struck by how unaware they were that their attempts in managing communication flow was causing their current communication breakdown.
The new DoC has only been in her position since December and was promoted from within. Communication breakdown has been a terrible problem for several years. There is a history of staff not being told basic information and clients or their family members unable to get information about their loved ones. Continue reading
People always want to know how to have a better outcome with those horrible, difficult people in their lives.
I recently gave 2 keynotes on my topic of increasing collaboration.
After both of them, people came up to me to tell how one simple tool struck them.
What regularly sticks is this small piece of information I share with folks: Continue reading
Out of the blue, someone I know professionally wrote me a quick Facebook private message telling me he thinks I’m amazing. Truthfully, I didn’t even know how to respond. I read it and sat with it for a couple of hours before I responded. It truly confused and bothered me.
He was not pointing to anything in particular I had done.
I expected he was most likely responding to a Facebook opinion post. Continue reading
It’s very easy to judge another. Everyone does it.
On Friday, we went to grab a bite at Wendy’s. Ahead of us, there was an impatient woman, waiting to be served while a confused, older gentleman was trying to order a Papa burger. A&W is across the street.
They were opening another cash register while the woman angrily barked at the man that A&W is across the street and that this is Wendy’s. Continue reading
At one point, I asked Dad to teach me how to knit. My first project was some uneven potholders for my mom. They were yellow. Of course, Mom loved them.
Eventually, wanting to do follow more intricate patterns, I bought a book on how to knit.
I was having a difficult time understanding one of the steps for a sweater and asked for advice.
The girl at the knitting store told me that I was holding my yarn and needles in the wrong hands. I was basically knitting backwards. Continue reading
