A constant balancing act
Perhaps a few of you will remember the old "Ed Sullivan Show." It was a staple of American entertainment when I was growing up. Every Sunday night, families would gather around the TV and watch a...
View ArticleTake the pain out of networking
Women of the Baby Boom era were raised in a different social climate than we have today. Girls were discouraged from being aggressive. We were taught not to speak up too much in class. We often felt we...
View ArticleShe made an impression on me...
This is a true story. My first real job, fresh out of college, was at the Social Security office in Brooklyn, NY. I was a trainee and was developing my skills as an interviewer (skills that would later...
View ArticleArticle 12
Writing is my business, so I’m especially attuned to its impact. Whenever you write something for your business, whether it’s related to sales and marketing, company policy, employee relations, or...
View ArticleThere's no such thing as 'the weekend'
The other Sunday, I received an e-mail from a potential client about some text he wants to work on together. I'd planned – if you could call it planning – to do nothing that day (except the crossword...
View ArticleA matter of choice
Enough already! Bad news is everywhere. You can't turn on the radio or TV without hearing about some disaster, act of terrorism or idiotic government solution proposed by the very people who created...
View ArticleFacebook – a garden on the Internet
At the urging of those who know more than I about all things Internet, I put up a page on Facebook. I immediately started searching for “friends” to build my network. My purpose was merely to connect...
View ArticleAn unexpected education
When I was a child, long before the game Trivial Pursuit was invented, my father prided himself on knowing thousands of tidbits of information on a wide variety of subjects. He was extremely...
View ArticleThe jackpot
Why do I love penny slot machines? I know that in the long run, I'm not going to win. And I know that there's nothing I can do to control the outcome (although I have some rituals). But even with that...
View ArticleFOCUS
Last week I had the pleasure of speaking with a student who is taking a summer writing course at Saddleback College. Her assignment was to do a personal interview with an active member of an...
View ArticleWho's the Remarkable Woman in your life?
I have one, do you? For most people the answer is “yes.” Most of us have remarkable women in our lives who have loved us, influenced us, nurtured and taught us, inspired us, and helped to make us the...
View ArticleSharing remarkable stories
On Oct. 15, NAWBO held its annual Remarkable Women awards dinner honoring three outstanding members for their accomplishments in business and in life. It was my privilege, and my pleasure, to write the...
View ArticleYou need both
I’m a little worried about our young people. Too few of them are developing strong basic writing skills. I see it every day as I work with businesses whose employees have difficulty expressing...
View ArticleThe robot has come between us
The other day, I turned on my cell phone to make a call and saw a message on the screen indicating that software updates were being installed. It's happened fairly often lately, and when it does, I...
View ArticleWhat is the purpose of text?
You can find text like this on thousands of websites: It's time to take it to the next level. Going forward, we'll help you leverage your core competencies to affect a sea change. You'll be ready to...
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