Insights

Last month I was asked by the Columbia Business School Alumni Office to share my thoughts on career transition. As a coach who has personally transitioned twice, I have learned a few things. This entry is the first of several tips: While an absolute majority of Columbia Business School alumni work in consulting and finance […]

For years I’ve been reading and hearing about happiness and positive psychology. But there was always something that didn’t make sense. I mean, where are these people jumping up and down like Tom Cruise on Oprah right after he met Katie Holmes? And, how can so many studies say that people with children are less […]

This weekend I wasn’t quite glued to the TV, but I did find myself spending a couple of languid hours enjoying the re-runs of the royal wedding. Like many people, I love the rituals of wedding and royalty. But, giving it some thought this morning I realized that what drew me in was more than […]

A friend shared this speech by Elizabeth Coleman, president of Bennington College, which to me carries the game changing perspective shift of the sort that John F. Kennedy presented in his 1961 inauguration speech. I’m sure that the points of view around this article will be rich and varied. From the coaching point of view, […]

A friend sent me this article on Obliquity, a new book by John Kay of the Oxford Business School. The article suggests that having a focus other than happiness actually gives us much more access to happiness. It also suggests that taking good care of your customers, rather than focusing on profits, is a much […]

Yesterday a client (who agreed to my writing this) came to me with a lot of emotion around work. In fact, the communication was so urgent, so emphatic, that I might have thought the client was in danger of being fired. As we talked it became clear, little by little, that the work issues were […]

I love this Fast Company article titled, “Eight Things You Can Learn About Success From Lady Gaga.” Specifically I am drawn to things #3 and #4 which I take to mean be yourself and connect with people. Several of my clients came to me, frustrated at work, because they were afraid to be themselves. Working […]

On February 28th, the New York Times had a great article on self-compassion: “Go Easy on Yourself, a New Wave of Research Urges.” I loved the article because it is such a good example of what coaching, specifically life coaching, is about. I work with high-achieving women. And when I see someone who is stuck, […]

A year and a half ago my coach asked me, “What is it to be a powerful woman?” Given how long it’s taken to find the answer, I’d have to start with, “Respecting a feminine process, gestation, versus a masculine one, pulling the trigger. This week, in a conversation with a man, I had to […]

The other day I was at Pinkberry getting a frozen yogurt. I was the only person in the small store, which was about 15′ x 20′. The clerk, also alone, seemed new and very enthusiastic. When he took my order, he said, “Your name?!” I smiled inwardly but then told him, gave him money, and […]