A powerful metaphor that has captured the essence of life's journey through time and experiences. Just like a highway, life is filled with twists, turns and unexpected detours. Navigating the bumps, dead ends, roadkill and outright potholes can be menacing. Whether you find yourself on the onramp gearing up for a merge, traveling at break-neck speed in the fast lane or embarking on a whimsical ride topping out at 40mph, you're going somewhere. The trick...finding the motivation and courage to travel the journey that is uniquely yours! As we gas up to hit the road of life, it's important to ride in style......and with grace.

Storm chasing -  a fun, and potentially dangerous, profession.  How does a storm chaser decide which storm is worth chasing and how do they weigh the risks of chasing said Storm?  Similarly, how does an employer, the Storm Chaser, decide which candidate is worth chasing.  What characteristics, like a Storm, categorize you as being chase-worthy? Equally as poignant, how do you become the Storm to chase and not run from?  Be the Tornado, the Hurricane, the Tsunami.......

If wherever you are now isn't where you should be...you may just be living and playing small. Good news, this isn't a life sentence and there is a cure. But, how can you tell if you're playing small? Unless you've got a brutally honest network of family, friends, or colleagues that call you out, because they see the light within that isn't shining, you may not fully realize it. In my humble peri-menopausal opinion, living and sharing your best self takes a conscious effort. Here are just a few ways I've learned to blast your light like a confetti bomb on New Year's Eve....take them as they apply.

My allocated budget for my business wardrobe this year is the same as previous years. What isn't the same, by a wide margin, is what I've actually purchased. Traveling for work has not afforded most of us the ability to live in comfy sweats, until... a behavior-shaping event like Covid happened. Nobody truly wanted to retire their stilettos for sneakers, but it happened. Although I've embraced, somewhat, the leisure-suit through 2020, I've maintained a standard of at least an excellent blouse!

It's an old saying....one that seemingly rings true for many seekers of change. The question begs to be answered....Is the Grass really Greener on the other side? This phrase is widely overused and I feel it's meaning and impact has been dulled. It's a common idiom that suggests people often believe that others have it better, that somewhere else or in someone else's life, things are more desirable. While this sentiment may ring true in some instances, there's another perspective to consider: "The grass is greener where you water it."

So yah, we're all in this together. It happened fast, didn't it? One week I'm a crazed traveling working Mama - balancing kids, hockey games, lacrosse practice, grocery shopping, feeding my small army, dragging kids to ortho appts, wellness appts, haircuts, maybe scoring a lady's night out for drink (if I can muster it after the aforementioned craziness) - then Shazam...Nothing. Oh, I'm still feeding my army, kids & pets alike, but I haven't driven my car in a week. We are at a standstill that rivals downtown Boston traffic after 2pm. We operate at a break-neck speed and to suddenly halt is odd. Eerily odd. Embracing the slowdown might just be the gift we all need. But, in the immortal words of Freddie Mercury, "The Show Must Go On." Here are a few things I've learned to keep my Show running.....

Even the mightiest of Oaks started as an acorn. Where are you now, how did you get there and where do you want to be tomorrow? I'd wager a cold brew you've sacrificed, lost your way, succeeded and failed only to finally arrive. Or perhaps you've yet to arrive. Either way, showing no quit, mercy or fear, to live the life you want, is hard. You have to fight for it. Take a look at the imagery above. What does it evoke in you? I see strength, perseverance, grit and a hint of sarcasm. This flower is dripping with attitude and wasn't deterred by it's opposing force. It's the attitude and the will that allows such defiance. A song comes to mind about an Ant and a Rubber-tree plant. May we all have such grace.

If you've fought many arduous battles in life, love and career, and they've swallowed you and your sense of purpose, perhaps it's time to rewrite the lyrics to the song you've been singing. If you've survived these battles, have gleaned invaluable lessons from them and still have the scars to prove it, you deserve to be commended. Trick is not waiting for the applause or the kudos but rather rely on yourself for the attaboy. It seems unnatural, as our arms weren't designed to pat our own backs. Maybe that's a design flaw. At any rate, learning to self-soothe, self-promote and self-congratulate is, in my opinion, learned. True ownership of our warts and triumphs comes from accepting that we are meant to fail, suffer, rise & persevere. Thinking we are born awesome is just silly. My point is if you don't grab the role of being your own hero, someone else will. That's a big job, so if you willingly give it away, be sure it's in trusted hands.

Sales positions are like nuts on the ground in Fall, if you're from New England....they are aplenty! Finding the right role, that suits and accentuates your skills...now that's another chore all together. Having been in many sales roles over the last 20 years, I've learned a thing or two about myself and the type of company I'd prefer to align with. Before we get into the type of organization to strive for, let's examine some of the tools you'll need in your bag to be a success in this fast-paced, high-energy, client-facing arena.

Don't quit because something happened, quit because you tried your hardest and nothing made it better. Never been a fan of quitting. However, there are some scenarios where waving the white flag are appropriate, albeit necessary. 

We all start somewhere and we're born impressive. Without any forethought of what our futures may hold, we're already winners. We've already fought enormous odds, beating out 20 million worthy opponents. Although this is not a biology lesson, I think it important to recognize and applaud the inner fortitude we already have within us. We've each competed in the most noteworthy event of our lives...the fight for Life. Our work isn't done though. How do we leverage our position, as the winners we clearly are, to ensure our daily thoughts and actions are spurring growth? One of the most apt things we can do to aid our growth, is to strive for personal excellence. The Mighty Oak was just a seed once too.

I'm a juggler. Think I always have been. Today, I find it increasingly difficult to do it all. Does doing it all equate to having it all? What does that really mean or look like? The question lingers like a coffee stain on my skirt. Are my standards too high, or is what I've always been reaching for meant to always be just out of reach? Discovering that having it all can simply equate to KNOWING you already do. There, I've said it, and I'm breathing easy.........(almost) 

What if you could snap your fingers and be exactly where you wanted to be, now.  Right now, as in, as you sit and sip that java, you've scored the ideal job - one you've envisioned yourself in forever, or so it seems.  

Batter Up!  Baseball is in full swing and the smell of Fenway sausage is in the air! (yup, pure Boston fan here, they're wicked awesome).  As I sat the other night, with my Sox-fanatic 11 year old son, I observed his ability to call the pitches, or at lease make valiant efforts.  My mind wandered, as it does, (because I'm female) and I sat thinking about the types of pitches thrown that can make or break the game.  There are ones that seem impossible to hit.  Some are low, high, fast or sneaky, while some completely break away and take a different direction.  Some even miss the mark completely.  Just like these pitches, there are pivotal employees on a team that might mean the difference between succeeding and flat-lining.  Each with their own individual talents and contributions, that if were absent, would make all the difference between winning and losing. The parallels between team sports and the workplace have long been studied and are widely accepted as accurate or at the very least, entertaining.  Perhaps there are parallels to the different types of pitches thrown and how they are aligned, or not, with the people we spend 40+ hours a week with in the office? aka.....our "teammates"  How do the varying personalities on a winning (or losing) team equate to success or failure?  Let's have some fun, as my analysis is certainly not gospel, so sprinkle with salt and consume lightly.

It could be a conversation you enter into in line at Fresh Market, or with that odd fellow you silently prayed wouldn't sit next to you on your flight.  Maybe you're yucking it up at a friend's birthday bash and meet a Nabisco representative who is seeking new Oreo cookie combinations - and you, being an expert judge in all matters of taste, have some insight on the subject of these temptress devils. What am I talking about? I know you already know.... it's Opportunity, with a capital O, and it rarely knocks twice.  I've heard stories of it actually knocking down doors, after suffering bloody knuckles, and the person still didn't answer it.  How sad.