Blog

I wanted to be a doctor until I learned that there was blood involved. In high school, I turned my attention to journalism and public relations and have worked in related fields ever since.

Assertive. Self-aware. Intuitive.

Success is learning from failure and moving forward. In building a business (and in life), there are a lot of hiccups, missteps, and duct tape. The trick is not to get hung-up on what went wrong, but learn from the experience and build a better approach for the next time.

Failure is a necessary part of the learning curve. Everyone makes mistakes; not learning from them is the real failure.

I’ve made many, many mistakes over the years and I would make all of them again. My mistakes and successes have made me who I am today.

Two things: 1) Talk and listen more. In my 20s I wish I had spoken to more women, older than me or further along in their careers, to help me get a better sense of the proverbial road ahead and shape my longer-term goals. And, 2) travel. I didn’t take a semester abroad (big, big, big mistake!) and went straight from college to working full-time. Although I had the chance, I never took time to travel and see the world. Exposure to different people, cultures, and histories is important in the development of perspective and empathy. I’ve been fortunate to travel with my various posts and have spent time in some amazing places – but when you are working, it’s hard to truly immerse yourself in and appreciate another culture.

For her strength, focus and kindness, my mother is my heroine. In the face of adversity – from good ol’ boy politics to fighting ovarian cancer for more than a decade – her grace and poise never ceases to amaze, inspire and motivate me to be a better human being.

Forgiveness; forgiving yourself for not meeting self-imposed expectations is liberating and frees you to do and be your best. But the most important “trick” is to find a great partner in life. Mine, my husband, helps me maintain balance, perspective and, possibly and most importantly, a sense of humor.

With two young boys and a growing company I haven’t had much time to contemplate an alternate career … that said, I am passionate about empowering girls/women to achieve their goals and I am an advocate of anti-bullying and would love to work to further these
causes.

It’s hard to pick just one… When I was a child, I loved the adventures in “Tell Me a Mitzi” by Lore Segal and “In the Night Kitchen” by Maurice Sendak. More recently I discovered, with my boys, a beautifully imaginative and illustrated world created by Chris van Dusen. We started with “If I Built A Car” and our collection continues to grow.

Somewhere slightly remote with breathtaking views – beach or mountains – surrounded by my family, friends, good food, delicious wine, and great conversation.

1) Red Lodge, Montana
It’s a tiny, rustic, mountain town known as the “gateway to Yellowstone National Park” via the death-defying Bear Tooth Highway … I know it as home; it’s where my parents live, where I got married, and where the people smile and say hi to total strangers, because it’s the polite thing to do.

2) Mexico
I traveled to Mexico during college and lived in Cuernavaca for several weeks to study Spanish. I fell in love with the culture, the art, the food and the people.

3) Paris
Because it’s the most romantic city on earth.

4) Texas
Family, friends, my Longhorns, country music, Tex-Mex and margaritas. Need I say more?

5) New York City
No explanation needed.

Like I said, there I was as the perpetual banker in Monopoly. I also used to sell icicles every winter. We grew up in Montreal, Canada and snow magically fell almost every day forming mountains of fresh snow right outside my front door. A child’s dream. I loved knocking icicles down from rooftops and displaying my collections on snow banks to trade with something one of my friends in the neighborhood had collected. When I reflect now on why I loved doing this, it was the way I could use my imagination to tell stories about each icicle and how mesmerized my friends were when listening to the stories. If we all think of moments in your life when you are “in the zone” using your gift, you will realize your true purpose in life meant to be shared. Only recently have I realized mine is as a storyteller who inspires people to see the wonder of life in simple things all around them.

My favorite three words have always been Belief, Imagine, Inspire. Just typing them gives me goosebumps. I think they carry so much power and magic and are aligned with my values. So I hope I can continue to use my imaginative storytelling to inspire people to believe in something greater than themselves that awakens their soul and brings love and goodness to the world.

Choosing love over fear. Living with compassion, kindness, joy and reverence for life. Inspiring my two young children, Finnegan and Delphine, and my husband David, and others in my community to define their own beliefs and live courageously by them. When we look at conflicts within ourselves, within marriages, communities, races, nations, between species, between our planet and us most everything can be resolved by each of us choosing to live by the values of love (compassion, kindness, truth, forgiveness, joy, hope…) over fear (anger, jealously, frustration, sorrow…). This is what really defines success rather than anything externally pursued. Having once pursued external rewards at the expense of my own values, I know first hand it doesn’t lead to personal fulfillment. And choosing love over fear throughout the day is easier than it sounds. It’s waking up each morning and making that simple decision “I choose to act in love over fear as best I can throughout my day.” I bet you will start connecting with people you maybe never have before. Doors will open up to you as the Universal force works through you to bring more love into the world. Life basically gets more peaceful and joyful.

When I don’t learn from experiences that are here to teach me and grow my soul. When I react in a contracted state, not open to learning from each experience and repeat the same responses that aren’t working for me. My soul fails to grow in that moment and I postpone bringing the next stage of enlightenment to myself.

Thank goodness, yes, many. For these have taught me the greatest lessons, far greater than the successes. Lesson like not chasing money but trusting the right amount will chase me when I pursue my purpose. Learning not to compare my success to others or to our culture’s current standards of success but rather be guided by my own values. Most of the mistakes I have had in my career happen when I am not clear about my personal beliefs. So I now have my beliefs written down and I chose experiences that are aligned with them.

That when I was living a crazy fast paced life and found myself way off course with my values, which was a good couple times, I found the courage to course correct. It took belief. Trust. Slowing down so I could reconnect with myself and hear my inner voice. It’s never easy. But I know first hand that that is exactly when you gain the most enlightenment. These pivot points in my journey have always reminded me how worthy I am. How connected we all are to one another as ONE humanity. How everyone is born out of purpose, no life is an accident. How sacred our planet is. It helps me feel the magic of the Universe. When I reconnect with myself the world always brings me opportunities that are in alignment with what I was meant to do during my time on earth. So I hope everyone course corrects when their inner voice whispers they are sailing away from their beliefs and purpose.

Great question. To look for, practice and apply the tools that will enable me to stay in touch with my authentic self, not my ego. Meditation. Yoga. Taking walks, connecting to nature. Write down my values so I have a clear guide to make decisions.

Marianne Williamson for having the courage to speak from her heart on issues our country needs to hear. Oprah for leading a spiritual movement. My mother for inspiring me to live with simple, joyful values and keeping that wonder for life. She is so amazing especially given she grew up from her infancy to age 18 in an orphanage in Switzerland during WWII. Yet she never lost that wonder.

Well that one’s not easy either, but I have found that if I focus on clarifying exactly what are my true values, then stringently stick to making decision by them, then balance can’t help but come. One of my values is living every moment. Really living and breathing in every one. I recently learned this requires creating “white space” around moments rather than packing in one To Do after another throughout my day. This way if a moment grows — say I run into a friend and we get into a deep connection – I make time to be present and enjoy it. Let it grow. I used to always be thinking of all the things I had to do each day so there was little white space left. I missed lots of spontaneous opportunities for fulfillment and chances to share and receive gifts with others.

I remember as a child always looking forward to the page in Goodnight Moon where I could say “Goodnight Mush”. I think its because my Mum made boule (French for porridge) and seeing it on that page, all by itself, with nothing else around it, well it always just felt like home. It’s the simple things in life isn’t it?!

Exploring a new culture with our kids so they learn how to relate to all cultures, appreciate diversity, and feel the expansiveness of our world. Our family recently returned from a month vacation at a farmhouse in France. We didn’t connect to TV, Internet or do all the touristy stuff. We just became locals in the culture, tasted all they had to oer (the food was amazing on a daily basis), read a lot of books after the kids went down (see list below) and enjoyed simple moments like watching the sun going down every evening. A perfect vacation.

1) Healing the Soul of America, by Marianne Williamson

2) The Seat of the Soul, by Gary Zukav

3) French Kids Eat Everything, by Karen Le Billon

4) The Seven Spiritual Laws for Parents, by Deepak Chopra

5) Clean, by Alejandro Junger, M.D.