As a small business owner, I believe it is important to support other small business owners, especially when we are friends. Sometimes that poses a challenge, which is why we are often cautioned against doing business with family or friends. Read more about my experience at the intersection of Friendship and Professionalism

It’s the 4th of July, the day we celebrate our country’s independence. While I should be fully enjoying parades, barbecues and fireworks, there’s something that’s distracting me. The current state of America – and Americans – has been weighing heavy on my heart for quite some time.

I’m sure life during the Revolutionary War and the years that followed was filled with many challenges, but it seems it was much easier for Americans to identify and unite against their adversaries in 1776. Today, we live in a fr...

My garden is often the source of inspiration and insights, but winter in the Midwest requires me to find other recreational activities. Since I’m not a fan of the cold, that usually means something indoors.

A few winters back, I was convinced by a video tutorial that I could arm-knit a gorgeous, chunky, green infinity scarf. I quickly went to buy the yarn and, once home, followed along with the video until I missed a step and got stuck. I tried again…and again…and again. Each time my arms would be covered i...

Really, today is fundamentally no different than yesterday. Even so, there’s some sort of magic we ascribe to New Year’s Day. It’s a day of hope, dreams, fresh starts, and resolutions that may soon be broken, but positive change and growth just doesn’t happen without first believing in the potential.

I firmly believe that potential is not fixed or capped, limiting our possibilities. Rather, potential is a renewable resource. With belief and effort, we can create new potential with endless possibilities. Yes...

We were all so happy to welcome the first baby into the family. My sister wanted only the best for her bouncing baby boy so she did all the things good moms are supposed to do and more. She brought him into the world naturally and was determined to raise him the same way.

All signs indicated that was a successful strategy. He was a happy, healthy, chubby cheeked boy who had aunties and Grammy to help Mom and Dad dote on him. Of course, he would get sick from time to time, as babies do, but he had a healthy...

“The cobbler’s children have no shoes.”

That’s the way I’ve always heard it. However, the earliest reference to the parable appears in the Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs.

But who is wurs shod, than the shoemakers wyfe, With shops full of newe shapen shoes all hir lyfe? (1546 J. Heywood Dialogue of Proverbs i. xi. E1V)

The American version sounds sad. The original version sounds like torture!

Nevertheless, many cultures have some version of the parable involving the cobbler and one or more of his family members....

Today we lost Muhammad Ali, the ultimate hype man. He turned trash talking into an art form if he didn't, in fact, invent it. His public persona was brash, arrogant, and overflowing in confidence, but we loved him because he had the talent to back it up.

Confidence or talent? It's a chicken/egg thing or perhaps butterfly/larvae in this case. Was he confident because he knew he had mad skills, or was it his confidence that drove him to work so hard? Regardless, he had to have them both or he would never have...

I'll admit it...I'm a control freak. Therefore, it was difficult to leave a project I birthed in the very capable hands of those who helped me nurture it. It is now, however, a full grown body of work. It's great to see it finally leave the nest!

INTEGRATED APPROACH TO SCHOOL-LINKED OUTREACH: PUTTING THE PIECES TOGETHER
A culmination of lessons learned from two years of consulting, development and collaboration with partners, this guidebook offers a systemic approach to outreach work.

Many thanks to Doris We...

One might say 'there's no point, it's no use, it's impossible'- when found in an unappealing, unlikely & seemingly unsuitable position. But see what the fragile flower sees. Sure, it would probably rather thrive in a field of its own family of flowers feeling protected & comfortable, but being beautiful in its comfort zone is not the flowers' job. It is to bloom where it is planted so that others may take from it- bees, birds & small animals the nectar for food & honey- insects the leaves for nourishment &...

Part of today’s agenda included some time at the tire shop. Over the weekend I got an oil change and the mechanic made me aware that my practically new tire was flat. The car hadn’t been handling all that well, but I attributed it to all the snow on unplowed roads, and I’ll admit I don’t regularly check my tires like they told me to do in driver’s training. However, once I was informed of a potential problem, I knew I probably had a slow leak and needed to monitor the situation. Good thing I did, because a...