Often times, when we lose someone special to us, we feel despondent or distressed. Sometimes the only way to describe this feeling is like there’s a hole left in the universe: you know for certain that this person’s qualities can never be replaced by all the rest of humanity. Never, in any combination, will anyone be able to replicate their personality, or talent, or humor, or faith…or anything about them at all. What they had to offer is gone. I experienced this feeling rece

You can still make beautiful things in imperfect places. I come from a family of green thumbs. My parents keep a greenhouse, two porches, and a room full of indoor/outdoor plants; my Nana’s greenhouse, gardens, and orchards were constantly producing something edible and/or beautiful; and I have foggy toddler memories of wandering through my Great Mama’s flower gardens, which seemed to me like fantasy lands in bloom. Last fall, my Dad gave me an African violet plant he grew fr

Feeling overwhelmed? Reflect on your work's focus and who you aim to serve. Over the past week or so, I’ve heard several variations of the following statements, both in person and online: “Things are so confusing right now, I just don’t know what to do.” “Everything feels like it’s going crazy, I don’t know what to believe anymore.” “The world just feels upside down, I don’t know what to think." I’ve written before about the importance of finding your foundation to help you r

If the going gets tough, up your resilience by maintaining a strong connection to your foundation. Last night as rain began rolling through Houston, I was reminded why I love thunderstorms. Growing up in a farming family, we were hyper-aware of weather patterns, and I always had a respect for the weather’s innate power. Where we lived, it could bring healing rain or devastating floods; cool breezes or fierce tornadoes; fantastic ice sculptures or damaging hailstones. At some

It’s time to quit selling yourself (and your words) short. Recently, I’ve been dealing with a strange compulsion to run long distances even though I'm not an athletic person. I'm almost positive I'm physically “running:” my legs are propelling me forward; my arms are swinging at my sides. I’m pretty sure I'm wearing the right clothing and accessories. I’m confident I'm wearing the right shoes; the nice gentleman at the running store told me so! This year, I've run one full ma

Start cultivating a belief that what you have to say is important. Before I became a professional writing coach, I spent some time working as a middle school English teacher. During this time in my career, I realized I definitely had a knack for helping people understand confusing information. I also found out I was a perfectionist. I think I had always known this on some level, but it had never manifested itself as a problem before. In retrospect, I am positive this is becau

Recognize the power of finding a voice to tell your story. I once met an amazing student at a conference where I was invited to speak. I was leading a session on resume writing, and I had introduced a formula that would help the students take some content they had brainstormed and transform it into strong, professional resume bullet points. While the students were working independently, I circulated the room answering questions and looking for potential sticking points. One y