As many of you know, my husband Jeff, died of esophageal cancer two and a half years ago. But three months before he died, he had a paralyzing stroke. He lost movement along the entire right side of his body and remained hospitalized. Eventually, with extensive rehab, some of the movement in his hand returned.

As part of his rehab, he had to write a few words each day. He decided to write “I love Carey-Ann.” He wrote this every day until he became too weak to write. His dedication to his physical rehab in the midst of fighting stage 4 terminal cancer was inspirational. But, his dedication to loving me and our daughters was the stuff of storybooks. There may be a lot of things that I still need to learn about in this world, but I have learned a lot about love.

There can come a time in people’s lives, often in their forties or fifties, when they start to wonder who they really are at this stage in the game. These executives may like themselves well enough and feel confident in their abilities, but there may still be a little voice inside of them that says there is something more. If you are feeling this way, you can either ignore that voice and push it away. Tip: It will come back again down the road! Or, you can curiously dive into it.

About 18 months ago, I was exhausted and overwhelmed by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. I felt like something had to shift in my life, yet so much seemed out of my control. Out of this reflection, came the creation of my new morning ritual. So, what does my morning routine look like and how can you build your own morning ritual?

I love January because it is a great time for new beginnings! A chance to reassess and start new. Yet, statistics show that only 30 percent of people who set New Year’s resolutions actually keep them beyond 3 months. So why are people’s goals falling by the wayside and how can I help you make some important shifts to achieve what you want?

As an Executive Coach, I am a strong believer in people doing their inner work and cultivating greater self-awareness. So, I must say the profound impact that undertaking a home renovation had on me was completely surprising. After all, it is just a material possession.

I will never forget the day the demo team came to my house. I was gathering up a few belongings in my bedroom to get ready to take off for the day when the team began their work. I actually dropped to my knees and cried when I heard the sound of sledgehammers smashing ceramic tile and walls on the floor below me. I was instantly transported back to the moment 18 months earlier my husband took his final breath in my arms.

On the weekend, I was at the park and saw an adorable girl wearing a bright pink t-shit that had the message ‘Girls are Better Than Boys’ written across the front of it in bold letters.

I understand the whole girl power vibe. Both of my children are girls. But, I must say this messaging seemed a bit off. Can you imagine if a little boy was wearing a t-shirt that said ‘Boys are better than Girls?” People would be giving his/their parents nasty looks for sure. So if we want to fill the large equality gap that still exists. What is important?

This past weekend, my daughters and I attended a family bereavement retreat. My husband and my daughters’ Dad died two years ago of esophageal cancer. There seems to be a lot of grief in the world right now. So many others have lost loved ones either through COVID-19 or other illnesses and injuries. You may be grieving a relationship that ended in divorce, a job loss or a life that didn’t turn out the way you had planned. And, there is also grieving of life as we knew it before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Role Modelling is so important. I saw this first-hand when I took my daughters to a family bereavement retreat on the weekend as we remembered their Dad/my husband. One of the activities was rock climbing. I went first. My head felt heavy from all of the retreat stuff so when I was on the climbing wall, I didn't push myself too hard. At the first sign of trouble, halfway up the wall, I said I am ready to come down.

Then I watched my girls go up. They stopped at exactly the same spot on the wall I did and then asked to come down. I saw very quickly what was happening here. I immediately asked to be hooked back up

This is the question likely on the minds of most leaders right now. Sure, we made the quick transition in March 2020 of utilizing technology to allow for many employees to work from home. But beyond some of the planning put in place from a business continuity standpoint, has your leadership team actually sat down (yes, virtually) to put a plan in place about what needs to be done to steer your organization in the right direction for the future?

Are you noticing a few extra grey hairs since the COVID-19 pandemic began? Maybe a sore back or just an overall sense of mental unwellness. I think many people are caught in that place of mental languish - not clinically depressed but not really thriving either. If you are feeling this way, you are not alone. But, what do you do about it? And, how can the steps you take right now improve your work and your life?

I’d like to share my annual ‘real’ out-of-office email message for the holidays. Hello. I won’t be checking my email regularly over the holidays. Not because I am going away on vacation.

Ever since I was a little girl, I have loved Corvettes. I didn’t know anybody who owned one in the small town I grew up in, but I was the kid playing with my dinky car Corvette while other girls my age didn’t have any interest in cars.

This is a message to the leaders I have coached and those who are looking for some guidance right now in how to lead through the COVID-19.

I have been quite transparent in sharing my brain injury journey, then our cancer journey when my 44-year old husband Jeff was diagnosed almost two years ago. Now, I would like to share with you how the rest of the story goes.

Last year, I posted my ‘real’ out-of office message for the holidays. I have done the same this year and would like to share with you.”I am out of the office from Dec. 24 – Jan. 4.

“With each passage of human growth we must shed a protective structure. We are left exposed and vulnerable, but also yeasty and embryonic again, capable of stretching in ways we hadn’t known before.” Gail Sheehy.