lessons
learned

I remember the first time I heard that pain is inevitable, but suffering is an option. I absolutely didn’t buy it. In fact, I was incensed. In my Italian Catholic family, suffering is simply what you do when something horrible happens.  Or even, when something horrible might happen.  We are a family overflowing with empathy. We love […]

It’s the end of April and it finally feels like spring in Connecticut. Truth be told, I’ve never really understood why people around here are so big on spring. To me it’s always seemed grey, wet, and muddy. It’s different this year though. Maybe it’s because of the long/late winter, or the fact that I’ve […]

Ok.  I admit it. I have spent hundreds (maybe thousands) of hours watching completely horrible, ridiculously sophomoric, absolutely inane comedy movies.  It’s not something I’m proud of.  Truth be told, I’ve denied it more than once. I can’t stop myself – I crave the laughter.  So much so that I’ll sit through even the stupidest movie if […]

You know those movies that you’ve seen a million times?  The ones you saw in the theater when they first came out and then again and again because they were in the HBO rotation forever?  If you’re under 40, you’ll have to trust me here. Die Hard is one of those movies for me, and last week, […]

Noise.  Just the word can up-level your stress – yet interestingly, silence can have the same effect.  It’s not what’s happening on the outside of your head that’s creating the problem – it’s the endless swirl of thoughts inside.  The noise, or lack of it, simply complicates your thinking process and adds to your feeling of […]

Mindful Listening Improves Relationships and Boosts Opportunity Have you ever had a conversation with someone who appears to be listening but is really just waiting to deliver their opinion? How about with someone who insists that they are listening even though they’re simultaneously responding to an email? Maybe you’ve had a conversation that went absolutely […]

I recently happened upon a headline that read “Mindful Sweeping.” I didn’t read the article, but the idea flew around my head for a bit. Last night, coming home from an all day event, it finally made sense. This week had a number of long days. Driven by back to back trainings, client sessions, and meetings, […]

While driving home from an event last week, my 18 year old son and I shared an order of cajun fries. Max strategically pushes all of my buttons while simultaneously cracking me up. Needless to say, the banter was lively. Before we knew it, the fries, something we both consider a treat and an indulgence, were gone. […]

We all experience anxiety. It’s a natural emotion. And sometimes, it’s even useful. Those anxious moments can light a fire in you to take action, move forward and get things done. Except when they don’t. More often than not, anxiety (or anxious thinking) is an obstacle to action and an impediment to growth. It can feel […]

Last week I was getting a mani-pedi – a yummy, indulgent, experience to be sure. And yet… As I looked around, I noticed that every single woman in a pedicure chair was looking at her phone. Every. Single. One. (That means me too.) I started up a conversation. It turned out that we were all […]