Anxiety is a thin stream of fear trickling through the mind. If encouraged, it cuts a channel into which all other thoughts are drained.

Arthur Sommers Roche

This weeks blog post is very transparent about the struggles I have faced with Anxiety and coming to terms with the stigma often attached, due to being categorized as a Mental Health issue.

What I have learned is that, it isn’t that simple, and it isn’t separate from physical health. It certainly doesn’t make you less of a person, leader, friend, wife or family member.

I am writing this to hopefully demystify and de-stigmatize this topic and encourage others to share their story. As you will see below, you are not alone and if you do not have Anxiety you probably know someone, lead someone or love someone who has anxiety and is hiding it from the world.

Life is Seasonal…

Life is extraordinary in its ability to take us on twists and turns, we have ups and downs, and we have lots of moments of learning.

We also have a lot of happiness and joy, as well as sadness and heartache.

Over the years, as I have faced different situations, I have begun to look at these times as different seasons. Some are awesome, some not so much. When I reflect on it this way, I don’t feel so overwhelmed by the downtimes, or over joyous on the good times. I tend to roll with it in the moment and enjoy the ride.

Now, this is not easy, and it took me close to 40 years to get to this spot. I often wonder what life would have looked like if I hadn’t spent a lot of it worrying about things or being an emotional wreck in the times that were not great. How would I have enjoyed the good times more, be present more,perhaps even laugh more?

Continue reading “The Anxiety Glitch…”

“It’s only after you’ve stepped outside your comfort zone that you begin to change, grow, and transform.”

― Roy T. Bennett

This is the January article I wrote for Emerging Women NC, a division of BJD Leadership.

Increasing the momentum of change…

About ten years ago, in a leadership course, the facilitator made the statement that “the only constant in life is change.” At the time, all the leaders in that class thought that the changes we were experiencing were going extremely fast and really couldn’t get any faster.

I look back now and think, WOW that wasn’t fast at all.

The pace of change is relative, as changes are happening more rapidly year over year, the wisdom from that facilitator is applicable today and into the future. How we prepare and accept that change is a constant, will aid us in navigating the significant growth we need in our careers.

Continue reading “Creating the Capacity for Change”

“Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence.”

— Sheryl Sanberg, COO of Facebook

This is the February article I wrote for Emerging Women NC, a division of BJD Leadership.

Compassionate Leadership…

This month we are exploring compassionate leadership that includes: Love, Respect and Gender Equality.

When we are without …

Many of us have had situations when we didn’t feel cared for by our immediate leader or an organization where we worked.

Feeling un-cared for and in some cases less-than, we feel disconnected and resign ourselves to fly under the radar, instead of going above and beyond and tapping into our discretionary energy. This drives us into a scarcity mindset, and we become focused on surviving the day. That is an unhealthy work life to be in.

While we are ultimately in charge of our own well-being, leadership that illuminates a disconnect from compassion and respect, can create a breeding ground for unhealthy work environments which can perpetuate this mindset from the top on down.

Continue reading “Lead with Heart”

“Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul.” – Henry Ward Beecher

If I Had a Superpower…

I have to admit I have thought about how cool it would be if I had some superpowers. 🦸‍♀️

Although there are so many to chose from, I am not sure what I would want. Maybe the ability to have many that can be used in different situations. Maybe… Teleporting, Strength, Telekinesis, so many to choose from!

Continue reading “The Superpower of Gratitude”

“I think unconscious bias is one of the hardest things to get at.”

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

When we assume…

I was struck by a tweet recently that set about a premise that if you didn’t have kids, your opinion was worth less.

I chose to exclude the info on the tweeter as that isn’t the point here. It is the perspective that anyone’s opinion would be worth less than someone else.

Here’s the main part of the tweet:

Continue reading “A Story of Unconscious Bias, Starring Childless Women and Men”