Tag Archives: courage

Don’t Quit

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill, When the funds are low and the debts are high, And you want to smile, but you have to sigh, When care is pressing you down a bit- Rest if you must, but don’t you quit.   Life is […]

One Person Can Make A Difference With a Little Determination and Hope!

I was down sick again today, but I wanted to share a story with you that I came across a few years ago that touched my life in a major way.  I shared the story years ago in a company blog, but I am reposting it again today for all of you to read as […]

An Ice Cream Coma and a Lesson Learned

I am in New York City this week to attend the Women Moving Millions Conference, a conference to bring together charities which focus on helping women succeed.  The conference was assembled to allow these charities to discuss best practices and share ideas of what things are the most effective to help women.  I am here […]

IF you can…

IF If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you; If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too: If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or, being lied about, don’t deal in lies, Or […]

The First Day of the Rest of Your Life

Yesterday was my 42nd birthday, which means that today is the first day of the rest of my life!  And if you think about it, for every one of your reading this blog, today is the first day of the rest of your life as well – and you didn’t even have to have a […]

Heroes are Ordinary People Who Do Extraordinary Things

September 11th is always a tough day to write my blog because there is so much emotion when I think back to that day in 2001.  I can remember exactly where I was standing when I saw the news station as it showed the tower that the first airplane had flown into, and I remember […]

Handsome Is As Handsome Does

I first read the saying “Handsome is as handsome does” in a book I was reading during my teenage years.  For some reason the phrase impacted me and stuck with me over the years.  It was a reminder that true beauty is something that emulates from the inside out… To prove this fact one can […]

Brick to the Face Theory

So those of you up on the daily reading of my blog know I got hurt a few days ago when my face and a board met up at my new construction site.  The sweetest person sent me a really cute email to cheer me up and the story she shared in the email had […]

Why It’s So Hard To Trust

“People ask me why it’s so hard to trust people, and I ask them why it is so hard to keep a promise.” Nothing is as frustrating as putting your trust in people who then let you down. Trusting people in the first place is always scary.  But then after you take that leap and […]

Get Your Sparkle On!

I have a great story to share with you today – it is a story that was shared with me tonight and it totally inspired me to want to GET MY SPARKLE ON!  Hopefully sharing it with you will inspire you to GET YOUR SPARKLE ON too! Going into this school year my daughter set a goal for herself […]

Just because its stormy now doesn’t mean you aren’t headed for sunshine

I am sitting in a chair wrapped up in a blanket and watching an amazing rainstorm through my window.  Lightning is shooting through the sky every few seconds followed by the constant cracking of thunder.  I have to say that there is something really magical about watching a storm like this.  Perhaps it’s the beauty […]

“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.”

That is a fantastic Chinese Proverb I came across tonight that I had to share with all of you tonight because it is a perfect fit for what is on my mind. I have spent the last several weeks working on a landscaping design for our new home with our landscaper extraordinaire, Chip Galloway of […]

Make The Best Of The Way Things Turn Out

As I sit here at the hospital tonight, following my daughters second ACL surgery that took place earlier today, I am trying to reflect on what lessons I have learned in my life today so I can share those thoughts with all of you.  It’s funny how just sitting around in a hospital waiting room […]

Grateful For Her Example

There is huge power in the examples set by the people we surround ourselves with.  Tonight I want to share a story of one of the great examples in my life.  My daughter Ashley is 17 years old.  For those of you who have followed my blog for a time, you are aware that last […]

“Don`t Count The Days…Make the Days Count”

All of us have worries and concerns in life. Things we are scared of. Things we are dreading. Worries about what “might” happen or what “might not” happen. It seems that there is a truly endless supply of things to spend our time being worried about. Yet, at the end of the day does the […]

Pioneer Day: Celebrating Courage

July 24th, 1847 marks the day when Mormon Pioneers, led by Brigham Young, entered the Salt Lake Valley in Utah for the first time and settled in the state.  The Pioneers came to Utah to get away from the mobs to the east that were persecuting them.  Their trip across the plains was one of the […]

Speak The Truth, Even If Your Voice Shakes (Forbes Article)

When someone isn’t performing well at their job; or when they aren’t the right fit for a particular position; or when their personality isn’t a match for the company culture, one of the biggest disservices you can do to them is to not tell them the truth. As a CEO, I found that one of […]

“People Only Rain On Your Parade Because They Are Jealous of Your Sun and Tired of Their Shade”

I would guess that we have all seen the bumper stickers that say “Mean People Suck.”   And the truth is that I couldn’t agree more.  I have little tolerance for mean people.  I just don’t.  I don’t think there is ever a good excuse to be mean or hurtful to another person.  Sure we can […]

Eeny Meeny Miny Moe…

Wouldn’t life be so much easier if we could make all our decisions with a little game of “Eeny, meeny,miny, moe”.  Seriously!  How cool would that be?  And how much less stress would we have throughout our day when decisions have to be made?! Yeah, well it’s too bad life doesn’t work that way if […]

He Is Building A Palace

Life is full of unexpected events, changes, and uncertainty.  Sometimes those changes are exciting and wonderful, and sometimes they are devastating, painful and hard. C.S. Lewis is my favorite author.  I have learned many important life lessons by reading his books.  One of his quotes that has helped me tremendously as I have dealt with […]

“Instead of Worrying About Failure Imagine What You Miss Out On By Deciding To Not Even Try”

When is the last time you allowed fear of failure to stop you from doing something?   I love the quote in today’s title:     “Instead of worrying about failure imagine what you miss out on by deciding to not even try.”    I love it because it is so simple yet so impactful.  It’s true, when you […]

Get Up And Dance!

Nothing can lift the spirits of a crowd faster than putting on some great music and having an impromptu dance party!  The last few days I have been attending a Girls Camp for the Young Women in our church group ages 13-17 and after a long, hot, uphill hike, the girls were worn out and […]

I Wish I Would Have Thought Of That! (Forbes Article)

Every day we hear of amazing new business ideas that some enterprising entrepreneur stumbled on and we find ourselves saying, “I wish I would have thought of that!” That comment is typically followed by a few moments of deep thought as we look in the deep recesses of our minds to see if that next […]

People Do Business With People They Like (Forbes Article)

People ultimately choose to do business with people they like, and everyone likes someone who appreciates them. I once read a quote by the ever so brilliant writer known as Anonymous. It states, “People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel.”  […]

Be a Bridge Builder

The Bridge Builder   (by Will Allen Dromgoole) An old man, going a lone highway, Came at the evening cold and gray To a chasm vast and deep and wide Through which was flowing a swollen tide. The old man crossed in the twilight dim; The rapids held no fears for him. But he turned when […]

Go The Extra Mile!

I am a HUGE fan of people who go the extra mile in life! Too often these days you see people who seem content to just do the very minimum required to get by. I don`t think I will ever understand that mentality. I grew up in a home where both my parents were going […]

Make It Happen

“Good things happen to those who wait. Greater things happen to those who get off their butt and do anything to make it happen.”   – Unknown Making it happen takes work!  And loads of it!  There is just no two ways about it.  If you truly want something in your life you can’t just sit […]

Motivation, Inspiration, and Determination

“To succeed you need to find something to hold on to, something to motivate you, something to inspire you”  – Tony Dorsett Being self-motivated is critically important.  Far too often people sit back waiting for someone else to give them a reason to get up and get going.  If you want to make something of […]

The People Who Encourage and Inspire Us

There are people in all of our lives that lift us up when we are down or help us through when times are tough. There are people in our lives who make us laugh and smile and make us feel better about ourselves. There are people in our lives that tell us we can do […]

Have Something To Look Forward To!

“People who say that life is not worthwhile are really saying that they themselves have no personal goals which are worthwhile. Get yourself a goal worth working for. Better still, get yourself a project. Always have something ahead of you to “look forward to“, to work for and hope for.” (Maxwell Malz).  I don’t know […]