Welcome to the first issue of Taking Care of YOU! If you know me personally, you’ve heard me speak at a conference or retreat, or you’ve read one of my books, you know I’m a firm believer in always having a PLAN if you want to make positive changes in your life....
Gifts to Give Yourself!
When I made the commitment to send these weekly e-notes on Fridays, I didn’t think about Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve being on Fridays this year! So this will be brief, as you may have things to do, places to go and people to see! After the first issue last week...
Letting Go!
If you’ve taken time to reflect on last week’s issue I hope you’ve decided on that “Just One Thing” you can do to take better care of yourself this year. While it may mean adding something new, it can also mean letting go of something that’s not working. In my eBook,...
Put People in Charge of their Own Stuff!
Last week I challenged you to “clean out your junk drawer thinking” and identify the negative attitudes, beliefs and behaviors we all carry around … those that can keep us from being our best, make us doubt ourselves and add stress and anxiety to our lives. That’s...
It’s Easy to Lose your Balance!
Remember when you first learned how to ride your bike without the training wheels? You were feeling so “grown up” and proud of yourself! Unfortunately, you didn’t realize you were losing your balance until the handlebars really began to wobble, and by then it was too...
Winter Weather and the Road of Life
Viewing TV weather coverage for the past few weeks, I’ve thought about the everyday conveniences I often take for granted – a warm home, a car heater that works, and travel that’s safe and painless. Lately we’ve watched video of drivers trying to maneuver their...
Don’t Make Me Have to Stop This Car!
Looking through an old album this week, I enjoyed photos of our annual summer trips to Virginia for my dad’s family reunion. The drive from Louisiana was long and hot. Excited to see our cousins again, my siblings and I were fairly cooperative on the way there. The...
Please Don’t Be My Valentine!
Have you ever had a day that didn’t go as planned? You created this perfect scenario in your mind, but the reality that unfolded didn’t even come close. My (very short) career as a first-grade teacher many years ago taught me about planning for the unexpected. On...
Bulldozers Are Not Your Friends!
These days it seems like Baton Rouge is one never-ending “road under construction” zone. Crews are working to widen lanes on the interstate, so drivers are taking the side streets and “back roads” – leading to more congestion. You can’t get anywhere without dodging...
Don’t Forget to Breathe!
Trying to live in today’s rapidly changing world reminds me of the first time I went snorkeling on vacation years ago. Both experiences can be stressful and downright scary. My mother always told me that if I put my head under water and tried to breathe, I would...
Friends are like Flowers in the Garden of Life
Flowers are bursting into bloom all over Baton Rouge this week, reminding me of the song our three children sang at their various kindergarten graduation programs. It’s titled “Friends are like Flowers in the Garden of Life.” (If you’re curious, you can find it on...
“Little Grey Raincloud People” in your Life
Have you spent time this week with any “little grey raincloud people”? I’ve given them that title because they have a knack for putting a damper on positive moments. It’s like they can see that you’re having a good day so they figure out a way to ruin it with their...
Tough Decisions with No Easy Choices
“Did you really give your sister a kidney, or did you make up that story to add punch to your keynotes?” Whenever I get that question my answer has two parts. “Yes, I did give my sister a kidney 46 years ago, and we’re both doing great. And do you really think I would...
Dealing with the “Squirrels in your Attic”
Our troubles began one morning with the pitter-patter of little feet in our attic. This worried me because, as far as we knew, no one was living in our attic at the time. We soon discovered that a crafty mother squirrel had come in through a loose vent and built a...
Winning an Argument with a Three Year Old
“How do I handle the angry person in my life?” That’s a common question during my women’s programs. As adults we know how to express anger, seek satisfaction and get results in a positive way. But angry people don’t always act like adults. Ever had an argument with an...
Talking to Yourself is a Good Thing!
When it comes to getting what you want, what’s the difference between persuasion and manipulation? We all negotiate every day – a lot more than we realize. Some people think that negotiating means getting your way, even if it means wearing the other person down...
Help is Only a Conversation Away!
If you’re a regular blog reader, you’ve heard me speak or read my books, you know that I don’t tell other people’s stories. I only share my own life experiences and what I’ve learned from them. Since today is Good Friday, a day of reflection, I’m offering “food...
Don’t Get Your Wires Crossed – Part 1
Throughout my childhood my parents constantly preached about safety issues. First we got the basics: don’t run with scissors, don’t throw pencils, don’t pet stray dogs and don’t talk to strangers. Sound familiar? When we became teenagers the list got more serious. But...
Don’t Get Your Wires Crossed – Part 2
As I wrote last week in Part 1 (below) getting our communication wires crossed can lead to misunderstandings, anger, frustration, resentment, low morale, less productive days at work and at home, and physical ailments related to increased stress levels. And it doesn’t...
Do Whatever You Can with the Space You Have
Searching for my usual blend of encouragement and practical ideas for this week’s blog, I found it on a recent visit to Colonial Williamsburg. It didn’t come from our wise Founding Forefathers but from a speaker at a three-day Garden Symposium Les and I attended. We...
Don’t Just Sit There! DO Something!
This title reminded me of one of my mother’s favorite pieces of advice. Although I’ve spoken in many healthcare facilities across the US, I recently had the privilege of presenting a unique program for a hospital’s annual luncheon. The guests of honor were women...
Staying Angry is Too Much Work!
Anger is a normal human emotion, and we all get angry once in a while. There are certainly justifiable reasons for anger that give us the energy to make positive changes, fight against injustice, right a wrong, confront a bully or take a stand. It can give us the...
Staying Angry is Too Much Work! – Part 2
Last week I promised to give you tools to help manage your anger. It may be your own, or you “caught it” from an angry person. It could be recent, or it could be anger you’ve been holding onto for a long time. So here goes! When you realize you’re angry: Do something...
Learning from Perfect (and NOT so Perfect) Days
Think back to a special day in your life when you were a child. It could have been your birthday, a family vacation, or neighborhood adventures with your best friend. This perfect day held such promise that you couldn’t wait to jump out of bed and get started. Now...
Fun with Dick and Jane
I’ve often thought about the propaganda I was exposed to when I was taught, at the tender age of six, that some people really did have perfect families and perfect lives. And it had to be true because it was right there in my first-grade reader, Fun with Dick and...
Remember the Rules?
A few days ago I was stopped at a red light, next to a car full of teenaged girls being chauffeured by a mom. Thinking back to when our teens needed a ride from mom or dad (or any trusted adult) reminded me of the three rules that apply when you drive teenagers...
Making Your List… and Checking it Twice
As of June 1, we in the South are asking: “How can it be Hurricane Season already?” Of course hurricanes are now traveling to states they’ve never been before. Depending on where you live, you may worry about tornadoes, earthquakes, fires, floods and mud slides. The...
Friends Are the Family We Choose
Taking Care of YOU means making good choices in every area of your life. And that includes surrounding yourself with positive people who support and encourage you, tell you the truth (even when you might not want to hear it), and know all about you and like you...
Re-Writing Your Life Script
We recently had the thrill of attending Hamilton at the Saenger Theater in New Orleans. Since this wasn’t a typical play I prepared by reading all the lyrics, along with an article titled “Hamilton for dummies.” Very helpful! And the play was amazing! I’ve found that...
How Big is your “Classroom”?
“Back to school” happenings this week remind me of an important yearly ritual when our three kids were in school. Two weeks before classes began, we would drive to school and read the homeroom class lists taped to the cafeteria windows. After quickly scanning each...
What’s the Name of Your Storm?
Even though I lead women’s retreats all over the US, I live in Louisiana. Like so many of you in our area, every year I prepare, plan, worry (and pray) to be spared from those destructive storms we call hurricanes. And all of those hurricanes – all of those...
Ziplining through Change
A friend just sent me a photo from our ziplining trip in Alaska a few years ago. Dealing with change can be like ziplining if you’ve had days that leave you thinking, “This is not what I signed up for!” I learned a few things about ziplining that have helped me handle...
Happier Holidays – Part 1
At a recent luncheon with several of my blog readers, the talk turned to the upcoming holidays. They laughed when I shared the title of a recent magazine article I’d read: How to Survive Thanksgiving and Christmas. Survive?? Really?? As they told stories about how...
Happier Holidays – Part 2
If you enjoyed “Happier Holidays, Part 1” have you thought of any other gifts you can give yourself as the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays approach? Customs and traditions can be amazing Gifts in the life of any family. Little kids grow up and have their own...
Happier Holidays – Part 3
Gift 5: Spending time with people you love is a wonderful gift, and special holidays can be lonely without them. If you’re spending the holidays away from home and family this year, you don’t have to do it alone. If following old traditions is not possible, start some...
Happier Holidays – Part 4
We’re almost there! Here are my last few ideas to help you create stress-free holidays. Gift 8: Think carefully before you get “carried away” with holiday enthusiasm. Many years ago a dear friend invited me to a “cookie exchange.” In theory I would come home...
A New Year… More or Less?
How many articles have you seen since January 1 – newspapers, magazines, the internet, Facebook, Instagram and your phone (to name just a few) – about improving your life in 2023? Diet, exercise, finances, relationships, projects … every “expert” has an...
Are You Working Your Plan?
I was surprised at the large number of responses I received from my January 6 post. Remember… I asked you to make a list of what you want MORE of in your life in this new year. Many of you listed words like: family, friends, better relationships, happiness,...
It’s Easy to Be Honest When You’re Five!
I made a new friend at a parade over Mardi Gras weekend. She told me her name and that she was 5 years old. Totally mesmerized and delighted by the groups of girls dancing and twirling their batons to (very loud) music from the marching bands, she announced, “I’m...
You Don’t Need a Wizard to Claim Your Strengths!
In my last post I challenged you to make a list of your strengths – not to brag but to honestly acknowledge your innate gifts and talents. If you’ve never given your strengths much thought, it might be because (like most of us) you take them for granted. They come...
Kleenex or Red Sock Moments?
Have you ever started to transfer clothes from the washer to the dryer – only to discover that you forgot to check the pockets and pieces of shredded Kleenex are now attached to everything? When that happens to me, I sigh…and then remind myself that it could be worse....