When I wrote my Happiness Manifesto, I included the truth that happiness is a skill, not a choice. Just like any other skill, happiness takes practice, planning and patience. Let's pretend I wanted to become a ninja. Just hoping to learn mad ninja skill isn't going to work out well. As we say at my… Continue reading Do you need a plan(ner)?
Category: Opinion
Extra! Extra!
Hey, fellow happiness hunters! My first newsletter went out today. I'm clickable! Work Your Happy is my monthly newsletter helpingboost daily happiness in 5 key areas to benefit overall well-being. Health * Assets * People * Purpose * Yourself In the November 2019 newsletter:The first all-female spacewalk was out of this world,the personalization of time steals your friends,and Harry Potter… Continue reading Extra! Extra!
Planning as a path to wellness
Last week, I attended a wellness workshop at the my office. The focus was on wellness as an integrative practice. Giving yourself a score across across 8 dimensions would help you identify how "bumpy" your life might be currently. The goal isn't to get each dimension to a perfect 10 on the satisfaction scale. The… Continue reading Planning as a path to wellness
It’s NOT a scrapbook!
My planner is always with me. I’ll occasionally show someone as a self-deprecating way to show that yes, I am a Planner with a capital “P”, and my need for grids, deadlines and advance logistics is just part of my DNA. When I did this recently in a meeting, a co-worker called it a “scrapbook”,… Continue reading It’s NOT a scrapbook!
My “rules” of working happy
Yesterday, a friend texted me about an insane situation at her work place. Emotions running high, communications breaking down, exhaustion and frustration setting in. My text back: Observe over engage. Not everything needs an immediate response. It's the action-oriented view of "important vs urgent". Full disclosure: sometimes we give the advice we need to hear.… Continue reading My “rules” of working happy
Back to School
New ideas give me energy. Specifically, ideas on how to make work better. You know, so we’re all a little happier at work. So I’ve created a bit of a “class” for myself: reading up on what makes work “work” for individuals, the economy as a whole and our communities. If pumpkin spice can be… Continue reading Back to School
Happiness isn’t energy
One of the questions for the September Journaling Challenge* is to reflect daily on what gives you energy. Not what makes you happy, or what are you grateful for, but focusing on what gives you energy. Less than two weeks in to the challenge, and I’m already surprised at what an impact that mental shift… Continue reading Happiness isn’t energy
Visualizing and Interacting with Time
Vanessa Shaw prioritizes her week in under 30 minutes using sticky notes to physically categorize, organize and prioritize work. I have a similar-in-intent strategy with my paper planner. Vanessa captures why I love my paper planner: it allows me to both visualize and interact with my time. As I re-read the article, I realized that… Continue reading Visualizing and Interacting with Time
Call the Experts
I know that when my car has a flat tire, there’s no way I can drive it without doing serious damage*. I’d pull over and fix it, then get back on the road. I’d be both annoyed at the inconvenience, and proud of myself for fixing it. But if anything else more serious happened, I… Continue reading Call the Experts
Aggressive Simplicity
You know how sometimes at work you're asked what your super power is? Sometimes I think mine is "finding complexity". I love lists so much I could make a list of my lists. I add things to cross them off, which makes it easy to replace accomplishments with activity. Over the last week, I've even… Continue reading Aggressive Simplicity