Many of us consider the stroke of midnight into the new year to be some sort of magical reset button that comes with snow flurries and a kiss. I happen to be one of them. However, turning that magical moment into everyday life usually takes a little more than fairy dust, like a bold decision, courage, perseverance and a pathologically unshakeable belief that what you want is not only possible, it is inevitable, and it is already here. Clean Up That Lens It’s hard to have great vision when your … [Read more...] about Bring Your Vision into Focus for the New Year
Bonnie Stevens
Five Good Reasons to Leave Your Job
You may have heard: People don’t leave jobs, they leave bosses. And while I believe this to be very true, there are other good reasons to leave jobs. Here are five: 1. You Don’t Want Your Supervisor’s Job or Their Supervisor’s Job or Even the Corner Office I know this sounds really negative, but we can take the emotion out of this statement by looking at your situation objectively. It may be that you accepted your position because you have a specific skill that the company needed. Maybe you … [Read more...] about Five Good Reasons to Leave Your Job
Discovering Relief From Your Crouching Tiger, Type-A Self
So, you’ve missed three appointments and have shown up for at least two at the wrong time. The universe is screaming at you that your hard-pushing, never-miss-a-deadline personality is in overdrive and probably weakening your immune system. We all know that stress causes terrible health problems and might even make you gain weight, break out in hives and ignore your dog. But asking Type A individuals to “relax” is like asking a tiger not to pounce – and it can cause intolerable levels of … [Read more...] about Discovering Relief From Your Crouching Tiger, Type-A Self
Successful People Plan, Practice, Persist While Ignoring Polar Bears
When we witness someone achieving extraordinary success or delivering a flawless performance, we are often tempted to call it “genius” or “in their DNA,” which really diminishes the effort and practice put in by the individual and also takes the pressure off the rest of us for ever having to do anything exceptional. And to that, I say, “Fine. Just stop thinking about white bears.” In Heidi Grant Halvorson’s nifty little book, “9 Things Successful People Do Differently,” she places strategies … [Read more...] about Successful People Plan, Practice, Persist While Ignoring Polar Bears
How to Get What You Want
Bella is a quiet, mild-mannered 6-year-old that loves to play catch, go on walks and travel. She is small, but not too small to step on or lose in your purse. She also is quite content hanging out and accepting the day as it comes, which may include encounters with domestic and wild animals or a road trip. She’s fine with it all. She’s also a rescue, sort of. Her human mama died recently, and she needed a new home with a gentle environment and lots of hugs. Bella is the perfect dog – for … [Read more...] about How to Get What You Want
Surviving Loss, Living with Grief, Rediscovering Joy
Taylor and Megan are the kind of strong, talented women who seem to have it all. Their friendship and support for each other is enviable. And their smiles light up a room. But a series of tragic events shook their young worlds. At age 24, these best friends are both recovering from the sudden and unexpected deaths of loved ones. Today, they want to help others who are trying to find their way through deep grief and offer advice to friends of those grieving, while reimagining their way forward … [Read more...] about Surviving Loss, Living with Grief, Rediscovering Joy
Five Ways to Make Your Life Louder Than Your Inner Critic
So many of us walk around with a mean girl or guy or disembodied voice in our heads that is so quick to judge us harshly or agree with or at least strongly consider any negative words that come our way. And while it’s probably a healthy trait to have a constant monitor looking over our shoulder to see if what we are doing is actually helpful, noble, caring or our best, it can be crippling, too, if we don’t keep that noise in check. That’s why I’ve started to notice how to live with that inner … [Read more...] about Five Ways to Make Your Life Louder Than Your Inner Critic
Exercising Your Freedom is Good for You
After witnessing a profoundly moving and meaningful naturalization ceremony in federal court recently, I realized we American citizens seem to get so bogged down in the challenges facing our country, including political disagreements and the cost of gas, that we forget how privileged we are to live in the United States. We forget about the opportunities and freedoms we have that give us the power to pursue a better life. Not taking advantage of our freedoms – like the right to vote, the right … [Read more...] about Exercising Your Freedom is Good for You
Moonshot, SBDC Invite Entrepreneurs to Pitch Their Ideas
Elaine O’Connor made a pitch and won the local and then the statewide competition with her business idea, Prescott Bark, in 2022. Cottonwood innovator Mayor Tim Elinski and his wife, Ruth Ellen, made their pitch and won the local and statewide competition with their PinDrop Travel Trailers in 2023. And now, Moonshot is looking for the innovator or entrepreneur with the next great idea. The 2024 Moonshot Rural Pitch Tour – an entrepreneurship contest similar to ABC’s Shark Tank – starts this … [Read more...] about Moonshot, SBDC Invite Entrepreneurs to Pitch Their Ideas
Have Kindness, Ambition, Integrity Swiftly Moved into the Spotlight?
Never before have we seen Americans voting with their fashionable pocketbooks like we are witnessing today. And, from marketers to politicians, artists to athletes, we should all be taking notice if we hope to gracefully step into financial and public favor with this beautiful S-curve that promotes kindness, ambition, integrity and, yes, even femininity as strengths. While Taylor Swift was performing hit after hit with songs like “Shake It Off” in the early 2000s, the rising tide of Swifties … [Read more...] about Have Kindness, Ambition, Integrity Swiftly Moved into the Spotlight?