Tag: life
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Reporter vs. Storyteller
When I tell someone I’m a storyteller, they automatically reply, “Oh. You’re a reporter.” “Uh, no. I tell stories.” “How is that different?” A reporter relays the facts relevant to the current situation, focusing on having every fact relevant and accurate to the event while maintaining objectivity through words, video, or an online report. A…
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First Date
“I don’t appreciate what you said about my friends.” Her voice was tense, borderline hostile. What I didn’t know then was that this conversation would change the trajectory of both of our lives, hers and mine. Between the abuse at home and the constant teasing at school, I was fed up. Mostly, I was tired…
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Paying Attention to Your Direct Reports: Mental Health Awareness Month
Struggling. It’s an understatement to use that term at work. Not that anyone would notice or care. Certainly not those working for a large organization that supports mental health. It’s ironic to think the same people who advocate for others to get help with their own mental health fail to recognize it in their own…
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Overheard At Starbucks
“Where are you?” Are you like me? I try to keep to myself when I’m in public, especially when I’m at a coffee shop. I’m not a huge fan of Starbucks, but it was my birthday. An acquaintance I’m not all that close with handed me a $50 gift card and said, ‘Happy Birthday,’ in…
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EPA Results from Jim’s Farm
Fieldwork wasn’t for the faint of heart, Anne being one of those homebodies who didn’t like to get out much. She had two close friends, both extroverts who loved dancing, clubbing, going to movies, concerts, and musicals. Neither woman met a stranger, whereas Anne met them all the time. She didn’t want to be out…
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Setting the Cruise Control
Angie is my favorite person in the whole world. She and I do a lot together. And I mean a whole lot! We get coffee. Manicures. Pedicures. Facials. We’ve been known to get massages simultaneously but with different masseuses. Huh. That would be kinda hard. Two massages at the same time? I wonder if Sven…
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Exhausted
I’m exhausted. I am so tired of listening to leaders who do nothing more than talk about change. It needs to happen, they say. We need to do better. We need better communication. Let’s hire better people. We will make time for our teams. We promise a salary increase is coming. Then, after six interviews…
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Your Words Count
Words matter. Like more than you thought they did. Wrong words can do irreparable damage for however long you have left of your life. Kids don’t know what words have the potential to do by uttering the simplest of words and phrases. The more you think about it, the more you start to understand how…
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Barefoot
“Put what you want into the universe. It will come back to you.” Bracelets on both wrists jangled as she touched my nose with her index finger. “Promise.” The smile and her words warmed me. She stood before me, wearing a flowing broom skirt, her sliver-streaked hair touching her shoulders with a sunflower tucked behind…
