Calm down, it’s not always what you think — You’ve asked someone to do something with or for you — with honest intent. And they say, “No.” Now what? Before displaying a knee-jerk reaction — one you may regret — keep in mind their response may have nothing to do with you. More important, unless the other person willingly…

5 tips for finding your personal comfort zone in a crowd — A few years ago, I wrote an article about how to overcome shyness and anxiety when meeting new people at social gatherings. …

Performance anxiety may be keeping you from succeeding. — I finally figured out the number one reason preventing many writers from succeeding: They bail when it’s time to tackle the hard stuff. Why do talented writers suddenly get brain freeze when they hit a wall, or can’t fill a blank screen, or don’t know how to find the answer…

Eliminate your personal roadblocks to achieve your dreams — Many years ago, I read an article about how to train fleas. I’m not sure why it was of interest at the time, but the story caught my attention. It seemed to be a fairly simple process — and pretty straightforward. This is essentially how the method was described: To train fleas, put them in a glass jar and close the lid…

The hardest thing to do is trust in the process — Every day your character is put to the test. You make your plans, check off every detail, and sit back thinking — believing — that everything will turn out exactly as expected. Until some unknown variable kicks its way through the door and smashes your carefully thought-out plans to bits. When our lives are turned upside down or interrupted…

The decisions are up to you — One of my favorite board games my sisters and I played when we were young was Chutes and Ladders. The game was designed to teach us that making progress and dealing with unavoidable pitfalls often go hand-in-hand — in much the same way we’d inevitably encounter those types of experiences…

Maybe those distractions are trying to tell you something — I’m starting to dread the blank white screen. Yesterday, that bright, slightly translucent rectangle gave me pause — enough to make me question my ability to write, well, anything. Ready to start the day, I sat down at my writing desk and switched on the computer. A strange sense of uncertainty came over me. For some reason, the…

Sometimes it takes a while for the message to get through — Last week, my husband and I were listening to a podcast about transformation. The host and his guest discussed many aspects of how this concept affects our lives emotionally, physically, and spiritually. There was a lot of ground to cover. The podcast was longer than usual, running about an hour and a half. At the time, there seemed to be a lot of…

Go ahead, try to guess my age. — It’s no secret there are a lot of differences between men and women. For the most part, I recognize there are reasons for embracing our various shades of grey, and I attempt to live my life with an attitude of “different strokes for different folks.” There is one area of divisive attitude, however, that baffles and amuses me. And it all comes down…