The Unexpected Gift from an Ex-boyfriend — I’ve searched for love, all of my life. I guess we all have to some degree. Early on I didn’t feel worthy of love. I was not a planned child. While I felt cared for and in a sense wanted by my parents, I felt like an intruder in our…

Growth in Spite of Grief — “You will be successful,” Nicolas’ text message read. I did not respond immediately. Receiving a message of encouragement like this one just four months earlier would have buoyed my spirits. It would have made me believe, at least for that instant, that what I was going for was perhaps possible…

Reflections of a Lone Achiever — Is a success a success if you don’t have someone with whom to share it? It absolutely is! Yet I still seek my soul mate with whom to share life’s highs and lows. As I accomplish more and more in my life, it can feel lonely to achieve. The nonexistent…

How I zeroed in on my New Home in France — When I told my friend Bea that I had moved from Perpignan to Céret after only a year there, she remarked with surprise, “Oh really, do you think you’ll stay there long?” I could sense confusion and a bit of judgment in her tone. After all I’d just picked up…

You Might Just Find the Fountain of Youth — “The Fountain of Youth is Closer than You Think.” That is the title of a chapter I wrote for the ABCs of Awesome Living, a book project in which I took part. And the fact that the publisher will release it in the next few days is no coincidence. Recent…

You Just Might Build Skills that will Come In Handy Later — I recently gave a presentation to a group of college alumnae. A college representative had asked me to speak on November 21, and I’d been honored. Though I’d had five weeks to prepare, I waited until the last minute (or what seems like the last minute to my old self)…

Then Ask Yourself this Question! — Every society (and family) has a set of rules that help guide it, which helps keep order and the status quo. We are born into our culture without choice, and our brains are imprinted with the cultural norms (rules and regulations) without our choice either, when we are young. I…

And How You can Improve your Track Record — We don’t reach our goals because sometimes the goals we set are not important to us. We think we want to do something for some external factor, but the reasons don’t tap into our core values. I spoke of this in last week’s message. But in my article entitled…

Then turn to Your Core, Core Values that is! — When you set a goal do you lack the belief in yourself to attain it? Sometimes I do. I mentioned this in my story “Want More Wins in Your Life? Start here!” which led me to discuss the “Building Self-confidence” Catalyst for Cultivating Courage. But “Setting a Meaningful Goal” is…